Reviews, appreciation and analysis of all things opera
Below is a list of world premieres of new operas, which I will be reviewing between June and December, 2015. This list is supplementary to previous lists in this “Quests and Anticipations” series of selected operas being performed from April 2015 through February 2016: Sondheim’s “Sweeney Todd” at the Houston Grand Opera and the San Francisco Opera and … Read more
The Los Angeles Opera presented Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro” in a performance that was cheered by the appreciative audience. The cast demonstrated, not only the depth of the world’s operatic talent, but the commitment of the Los Angeles Opera to introducing new singers or singers in new roles to Los Angeles audiences. The quintet of … Read more
The San Diego Opera mounted the most complex production of its three-opera 2014-15 season – the first San Diego appearances of John Adams’ extraordinary 1987 opera “Nixon in China”. The opera has been discussed on these pages, particularly the popular Vancouver (British Columbia) production seen in San Francisco [see 25 Years Old, “Nixon in China” … Read more
This continues the series of conversations that I have had with British opera director John Pascoe. This is the seventh part of the conversation. This part follows: Homage to Dame Joan Sutherland: A Conversation with Director John Pascoe, Part 6. [Below: Director John Pascoe; resized image of a personal 2014 photograph, courtesy of John Pascoe.] … Read more
The New Orleans Opera presents two performances each of four operas each season. As the third opera of its 2014-15 season it created a new production of Donizetti’s “Lucia di Lammermoor”, directed by E. Loren Meeker with sets by Ryan McGettigan. The cast, led by Texas lyric coloratura soprano Laura Claycomb in the title role and … Read more