Quests and Anticipations

The following is a list of four opera performances that I am scheduled to review at the San Francisco Opera and Santa Fe Opera during August and September, 2026. Rodelinda (Handel), Santa Fe Opera, July 25, 29, August 7, 11 and 21, 2026 [Photo: a scene from R. B. Schlather’s 2023 production of “Rodelinda” at … Read more

The following is a list of four opera performances that I am scheduled to review at the San Francisco Opera and Santa Fe Opera from June to August 2026. Elektra (Richard Strauss), San Francisco Opera, June 7(m), 11, 14(m), 19, 23 and 27, 2026. [Photo: Elektra (Elena Pankratova, left) holds a battle axe she has … Read more

The following is a list of the first four of five performances that I am scheduled to review at the Santa Fe Opera in Summer, 2025: La Boheme (Puccini), Santa Fe Opera, June 27, July 2, 5, 11, 18, 28, August 2, 6, 14, 19 and 23, 2025. A production of Puccini’s most popullar opera, … Read more

The following is a list of performances that I am scheduled to review at the San Francisco Opera in June and September of 2025: La Boheme (Puccini), San Francisco Opera, June 3, 7, 10, 12, 13, 15(m), 18, 19 and 21, 2025 English director John Caird’s production of Puccini’s most popular opera is a co-production … Read more

The following is a list of performances that I am scheduled to review at the San Francisco Opera. The Handmaid’s Tale (Ruders and Bentley), September 14, 17, 20, 22(m), 26, 29(m) and October 1, 2024. What if dystopian forces seized control of a government in 2024 to impose specific behaviors on a society’s inhabitants, including … Read more

The following is a list of operas that I am scheduled to review at the Santa Fe and San Francisco Operas. The Righteous (Spears and Smith) July 13, 17, 26, 30, August 7 and 13, 2024 Gregory Spears’ much admired opera, “Fellow Travelers” was set to a Greg Pierce libretto based on Thomas Mallon’s 2007 novel … Read more

The following is a list of four operas I am scheduled to review during the Santa Fe Opera’s 2023 and San Francisco Opera’s 2023-24 seasons. One is a newly reorchestrated work dating from the Italian Renaissance. Three of the operas are recent compositions. Orfeo (Monteverdi), Santa Fe Opera, July 29, August 2,11, 16 and 24, … Read more

The following is a list of four of the five operas I am scheduled to review during the Santa Fe Opera’s 2023 Season. The fifth will be included on a later “Quest and Anticipations” list. Tosca (Puccini), June 30, July 5, 8, 14, 21, August 1, 7, 12, 19, 23 and 26, 2023 British director … Read more

Each of the following operas is scheduled for the San Francisco Opera’s 2022-23 centennial season. Dialogues of the Carmelites (Poulenc and Lavery) October 15, 18, 21, 26 and 30, 2022 Olivier Py’s production, co-produced by the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées and Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie, Bruxelles, is imported to celebrate the 65th anniversary of the … Read more

The following is a list of operas, each composed in the second or third decade of the 21st century, performances of which I am scheduled to review at the San Francisco and Santa Fe Operas. The Dream of the Red Chamber (Sheng and Hwang), San Francisco Opera, June 14, 17, 19, 23, 25, July 1 … Read more

The Santa Fe Opera has announced its Summer 2022 season. It consists of four 19th century works and the world premiere of “M. Butterfly”, which was previously announced but canceled along with the other operas of the Summer 2020 sseason, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The new opera “M. Butterfly” will be highlighted in a … Read more

The Copper Queen (Borzoni and de los Santos), Arizona Opera, October 29, 30, 31, November 1, 2, 3 and 4, 2021. A planned in-theater world premiere for Clint Borzoni’s opera “The Copper Queen” (libretto by John de los Santos) had to be cancelled because of the Covid-19 epidemic. A decision was made to film the … Read more

Il Trovatore (Verdi), Los Angeles Opera, September 18, 22, 25, October 3, 6 and 10, 2021. The Los Angeles Opera re-opens for its 2021-22 season (after the Covid-19 pandemic forced cancellation of its previous season) with Verdi’s “Il Trovatore”, conducted by Maestro James Conlon. The role of Manrico is shared by tenors Limmie Pulliam (first … Read more

Note from William: My most recent review of an operatic performance was that of the Sarasota Opera’s production of Catalani’s “La Wally” on March 7, 2020. Although I was scheduled to review subsequent operatic performances in Chicago, San Francisco, the Glimmerglass Festival, Los Angeles, Dallas and Houston, every one of these performances was canceled as … Read more

I am scheduled to travel to San Francisco, Los Angeles, Dallas and Houston to review the following operas by Ludwig von Beethoven and Richard Wagner between September 2020 and January , 2021. [The entire Fall, 2020 San Francisco Opera season was canceled due to the Covid19 pandemic.] Fidelio (Beethoven), San Francisco Opera, September 12, 15, … Read more

Update: The Lyric Opera announced on March 12, 2020 that all scheduled performances of Wagner’s “Ring of the Nibelungs” were canceled, in response the declaration of a national emergency related to the Covid-19 pandemic. In Aptil 2020, the Lyric Opera of Chicago debuts the complete production of Wagner’s “The Ring of the Nibelung”, with sets … Read more

Several times I have been invited to write articles for the programs that accompany live performances of operas. Three of these articles relate to the operas composed by Gaetano Donizetti and his younger contemporary, Giuseppe Verdi. These articles are: 21st Century Love for Donizetti’s “Elixir”, and, From the “Barber of Seville” to “Don Pasquale”, and … Read more

Here is a list of another foursome of operas I am scheduled to review in 2019 and 2020, including productions that I have not previously seen, by British director Michael Grandage, South African director Alessandro Talevi, Israeli-born director Tomer Zvulun and New York director Francesca Zambello. Billy Budd (Britten), San Francisco Opera, September 7, 12, … Read more

Last year, I highlighted a foursome of myths and fairy tales that I was schduled to review. [See In Quest of Operas Based on Myths and Fairy Tales – November 2018 – August 2019.] This year I continue the subject of myths and fairy tales with another foursome of operas, to be presented at the … Read more

The following four operas continue an ongoing “Quests and Anticipations” Feature:  In Quest of 21st Century American Operas – November, 2018 – August, 2019. Three are by composers, each of whom has written an opera or operas for which I had previously written world premiere reviews. Three of the operas will be world premieres. If … Read more

Over a 13 month period, I have reviewed or am scheduled to review all seven of Mozart’s major operas. The reviews included the Lyric Opera of Chicago production of Mozart’s “Idomeneo” [see Review: Matthew Polenzani Stars in Jean-Pierre Ponnelle “World Treasure” Production of Mozart’s “Idomeneo” – Lyric Opera, Chicago, November 2, 2018] and the Los … Read more

The following is a list of French opera performances that I am scheduled to review over the next year. Carmen (Bizet) San Francisco Opera, June 5, 11, 14, 20, 23(m), 26 and 29, 2019. J’Naii Bridges is Carmen; Matthew Polenzani is Don Jose, Anita Hartig is Micaela and Kyle Ketelsen is Escamillo. [Below: J’Nai Bridges … Read more