A stunning premiere: Elizabeth Cree

Review

The production is bursting at the seams with variations in style, mood and display. Its musical ideas seamlessly transition from comical to frightening. The score includes some familiarity in terms of the musical vocabulary it employs. We hear moments evoking a Broadway musical, moments that are reminiscent of Bernard Herrmann's sounds of horror, and moments of gorgeously sweeping romantic lines.

Talking with singers: Andrew Haji

Interview

After high school, Haji went not into music, but into computer science. After just two years - and a realization that he was miserable - he "quickly abandoned ship". He took a year off, during which he met with his high school music teacher, discussing the beginnings of his plan to pursue music.

Talking with singers: John Fanning

Interview

"Even geezer singers will take breaths they shouldn't," he says of the all-too-human aspect to singing live onstage. "Those things never change, we just get better at dealing with them."

Talking with singers: Simone Osborne

Interview

"For the first couple of seasons that I came back I still very much felt like I had to prove myself," says Osborne of returning to what she considers her home company. She admits to feeling pressure to bring consistently great performances to the COC, where the standard of artistry is high and the audiences are in-the-know. "It's probably the pressure I put on myself."

Using your voice again: a plan of action

Op-ed

This can be a vulnerable process, and in sharing this writing with you, I do feel quite vulnerable. Who knows how and where I will be compelled to sing more frequently again, but I do know that my voice has power and I can likely use it to improve the situation of my friends, family, communities, fellow humans, and of the earth.

Keeping the thread: moment-to-moment awareness in singing

Op-ed

The body only does what the mind tells it and allows it to do. Intense, almost loving attention to every single note can help realize a tricky passage like this. When it comes to runs and coloratura in general, this approach is useful because it can help give fast singing a real clarity, accuracy and a sense that there is plenty of time to sing all the notes and for them to be heard.

Rhoda and the Fossil Hunt: where opera meets science

Interview

"Composers have included scientific subjects and references, from Mozart's send-up of the real Dr. Mesmer in Così fan tutte, to John Adams' Dr. Atomic about Robert Oppenheimer and the creation of the atomic bomb. The very act of scientific discovery is a creative one."

Brisk & wicked: Die Zauberflöte at ROH

Review

Speaking of maniacal, the Monostatos of Peter Bronder brought the house down. This creepy and twisted creature slithered about the stage, more screaming his lines than singing, which made the actions of him and his evil band of goons thrilling to watch. Bronder is the kind of performer who we could glean meaning from only seeing his eyes peering through a black curtain - every movement is filled with intention.

The stars align for Toronto Masque Theatre's final season

News

"I'm filled with so many emotions as I introduce you to our final season," says Beckwith. "I'm humbled to present many of Canada's leading performing artists – some TMT regulars alongside some new faces. I'm heavy-hearted as I contemplate the end of a magnificent journey. But above all, I'm excited to present to you an entertaining season of music, theatre and dance that I'm sure will demonstrate the accomplishments of this unique company and its place in the performing arts in Canada."

Just in time for fall: Shoperatic!

Op-ed

It's Suzanne Vinnik and Sara Duchovnay of Shoperatic.com! We're excited to announce that after talking about our new online peer-to-peer marketplace for what seems like eons, we are LAUNCHED and open for business! When we ran into a little technical snafu in beta testing, we reached out to our friends at Schmopera who were able to help us figure out the problem and got us back on track!