Opera Boston could not have done better than bring in mezzo-soprano Stephanie Blythe to make her local debut in the title role Opera Boston is winding up its season with a delightful production of Jacques Offenbach’s La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein (1867) one of more than 100 of Offenbach’s works for the music stage followed closely after three of his most accomplished contributions: La Belle Hélène (1864) All four had libretti by his favored collaborators and started composing for the stage in his late twenties The current Boston show takes place in the imaginary duchy of Gérolstein in the year 1720 She finds war an amusing pastime and is more attracted to military uniforms than to the personalities that wear them and promotes him in stages to captain and finally commander-in-chief where he conquers the enemy by letting the latter get drunk on 3,000 bottles of booze An aborted assassination conspiracy ensues only to find that he is married with four children you must try to love those you can have.” It’s all hilariously nonsensical and this production conveys the silliness splendidly she is a commanding presence with a huge voice She has no trouble handling more than a two-octave range and clearly loves lording it over everyone around her and baritone James Maddalena a properly jealous General Boum tenor Lee Gregory is memorable as the luckless and then lucky Prince Paul and David Kravitz’s Baron Grog are all admirable Robert Perdziola designed lovely sets—a military encampment (with a large cannon) and a gaudy red bedroom—as well as handsome outfits for the soldiers and gossamer gowns for the 10 court ladies who was also responsible for the English dialogue (the singing is in French Kneuss had the amusing idea of bringing on a series of hobby horses to deliver the mail and devised some funny byplay with the Duchess’s heirloom saber brings verve to Offenbach’s infectious score It is not the least of Offenbach’s achievements that he laid the groundwork for the wonderful operettas of Gilbert and Sullivan Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" The Lady’s Dressing Room (1732) BY JONATHAN SWIFT Five hours (and who can do it less in?) By haughty Celia… but this Littlefield review has convinced me to make the purchase your comments reek of what is wrong in today's society and also if entitlement About Us Advertising/Underwriting Syndication Media Resources Editors and Contributors © 2025 The Arts Fuse. All Rights Reserved. Site by AuthorBytes Susan Graham in “The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein” at Santa Fe Opera Listening to three hours of an Offenbach operetta will likely cause a hangover not unlike the one caused by all the champagne that is guzzled by the operetta’s characters This was the lesson learned at the Santa Fe Opera’s new production of Offenbach’s La Grande Duchesse de Gérolstein It is an odd feature of an odd season for the New Mexico company the other festival regular; a season with a world premiere beginning with the company convincing mezzo-soprano Susan Graham to bring some star power to the title role but other mezzo-sopranos before Graham have done it and Graham brought a keen sense of comic timing to it although vocally she did sound a little thin and rough at times with enough spirit in her to put off her marriage to the vain and fussy Prince Paul (former SFO apprentice Jonathan Michie and waving dandy’s cane) and make a move on a younger man in the regiment of the military school she supports The advertisements for the opera even use an image of a cougar wearing a tiara a concept acknowledged by the director in the program notes the object of the Duchess’s affections sad-sack life by tenor Paul Appleby in his company debut This production sets the story in an unspecified location that evokes a small town in the 19th-century American Midwest and its rah-rah local military school who was sometimes hard to hear in the house was charming and disarmingly funny as the unlucky the towel boy who gets stuffed into a rolling cart by the jocks in the first act the Gérolstein Military Academy needs an anti-bullying program.) Fritz’s real problem is that his marriage to Wanda (sung with silvery lightness by Anya Matanovič another former Santa Fe Opera apprentice) is threatened as the Grand Duchess shows her affection by raising him in rank from lowly private to exalted commander-in-chief The Grand Duchess is all about lifting up male privates — countless variations of this joke and others of the same ilk are dotted throughout the spoken dialogue translated and adapted into English for this production which Fritz will win through a ruse worthy of Odysseus with a funny southern drawl but sometimes almost inaudible when singing) the explosively named General Boum (Kevin Burdette) do their best to keep the Grand Duchess in check a bass who made his Santa Fe debut in 2011 in The Last Savage was by far the production’s best comic asset His send-up of military discipline in the first act complete with uproariously obscene pelvic thrusts and his terrorized cadets all in lock-step stood out for her plush sound and sassy stage presence A group of dancers livened up the big choral scenes with cartwheels and jumps during the restored Carillon number that ends the second act and the madcap Galop that provides a transition into the final scene energetic reading of this often wild score Rarely have so many notes been played to such short-lasting effect the pop of a champagne cork and a little fizz Offenbach made significant cuts to the score That shorter version of the score was the one most often performed including the four times — four times — that Santa Fe Opera mounted this operetta in the 1970s the Santa Fe performance just did not have the same sparkle and vivacity The shift of the story to an American setting did little other than justify the use of English dialogue considering that both the blind devotion to the military and the media phenomenon of the “cougar” could have yielded plenty with some nice touches in Prince Paul’s absurdly long car and a reviewing stand that rose and sank at the back of the stage providing a fun entrance for Susan Graham’s Duchess matched by the breathless choreography of Peggy Hickey This production continues at Santa Fe Opera through August 24. santafeopera.org Posted Aug 17, 2013 at 3:58 pm by Raouf Zaidan I would add that it lacked charm and grace and gave the impression of a lot of money wasted with little merit to show for it We use cookies to provide a more personalized website experience By clicking “I Accept” you consent to all cookies Click “I Decline” to continue with essential cookies only Learn about how we use cookies Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 2017 – Caldwell graduate and undergraduate students  studying art therapy volunteered at the Essex County Hospital Center the receiving hospital for all short-term psychiatric facilities in the county assistant professor and clinical coordinator at Caldwell said it was a unique opportunity for the students it is not the norm for the work to be observed by others “Community-based interventions allow even undergraduates to observe and become immersed in the counseling art therapy process as a facilitator.” Graduate students Kaila Hawriluk and Andrea Morte are doing internships at the hospital for their studies in the mental health counseling with art therapy master’s degree program They came up with the idea to have the students help patients plan for the hospital’s Halloween party by creating costumes around a theme of superheroes and villains deciding on materials and publicizing the event to solicit graduate and undergraduate art therapy students and rehab therapy team staff at the hospital They were guided by their internship supervisors Caldwell alumna Ashley Gerolstein and art therapist Lisa Thomas Hawriluk found it rewarding to see the patients having fun while creating their superheroes The patients’ choices helped the team learn a little more about their personalities and the characteristics of the superhero personalities they take pride in and she was pleased that a number of patients engaged in the project “We did not know which patients would come down and it was surprising for me to see patients who I haven’t had in art groups come and create.” Members of the Caldwell art therapy faculty are grateful to the Essex County Hospital patients and staff for collaborating with them on the project also provided a networking opportunity “where more senior clinicians become mentors to those with less experience,” an arrangement that can continue throughout their careers Caldwell University does not discriminate on the basis of race or any other characteristic protected by applicable law in administration of its educational policies and athletic and other school-administered programs this is WEEKENDS on ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News I'm Guy Raz.RAZ: Sixty-eight years ago today the Allies launched a massive dress rehearsal for the invasion of Normandy the famous D-Day landings that would happen five weeks later But that rehearsal turned into one of the war's biggest fiascos a beach in southwestern England.GILES MILTON: And the beaches there are long and they're wide so it gave the soldiers plenty of opportunity to really experience what it was going to be like because the beaches in the west of England are almost identical to the beaches in Normandy.RAZ: That's British historian Giles Milton He wrote about what was called Operation Tiger on his blog last week The idea was to get landing boats into the English Channel and then have them simulate a water landing on the beaches of Devon The man in charge: the great allied commander Dwight Eisenhower.MILTON: So he wanted to put them out in the rough waters of the channel everything else that soldiers are prone to And then the idea was for these ships and tank landing craft involved in this operation to bring them up toward Slapton Sands where there was going to be shellfire and gunfire so the men were going to land in real battlefield conditions.RAZ: But to make sure the men would be safe and that the mission would be effective Allied command had to keep the operation a secret even from their own men.PAUL GEROLSTEIN: They told us nothing We didn't know anything.RAZ: That's 91-year-old Paul Gerolstein He was a gunner's mate on one of those landing ships Three hundred Allied ships were sent into the English Channel they started to approach the British shores.MILTON: A German patrol fleet is out in the English Channel it picks up on its radar this enormous flotilla of vessels and dramatically and suddenly launches attacks on some of the easy pickings of this flotilla.GEROLSTEIN: A flare broke over our head over our ship I looked to the stern and I saw LST 531 or 532 get torpedoed.MILTON: The torpedoes tear into these vessels and literally blow them apart the ship's starting to sink.RAZ: The Allied commanders ordered all the boats to scatter immediately They hoped to avoid any more direct hits from the Germans But that order left hundreds of men floating in the icy sea Paul Gerolstein's commanding officer refused the order and he turned his boat back to help rescue the men still in the water.GEROLSTEIN: And we put cargo nets over the side I went down the cargo net to the last hole I put my leg through one and my arm through another one and they could work their way up.RAZ: All told Paul and the rest of the crew managed to save 70 or 80 lives.GEROLSTEIN: When we got back and then the light broke you could walk across the dead bodies in the water There was over 700 of them killed.RAZ: But that wasn't the end Many of the ships continued on to the beach at Slapton Sands Eisenhower had ordered live fire to be used in the rehearsal because he wanted to simulate real-world conditions.MILTON: Now the idea was that the shelling would stop very very shortly before the American soldiers came onshore so that the wreckage of war would still be around But there was a terrible mix-up of timings which meant that as the American soldiers came onto the shore which meant that the Americans came under devastating friendly fire from the British.RAZ: Within a few minutes Paul Gerolstein helped ferry some of those wounded to a hospital.GEROLSTEIN: The orders were You will just take care of them.RAZ: By the time it was over close to 1,000 American troops were killed.MILTON: It's a staggering figure And all the more staggering when you realize that more people were killed in the rehearsal for the landing at Utah Beach than were killed in the actual landing at Utah Beach.RAZ: For nearly 40 years Operation Tiger remained a secret.MILTON: Allied Command did not want the bulk of the troops about to risk their lives going over to Normandy knowing that this disaster had unfolded in the west country of England.RAZ: And Giles Milton says the disaster prompted Allied commanders to order better life preservers but most importantly to fix their broken system of communication.MILTON: All radio frequencies between all the different command structures and all the different ships involved in the D-Day landings all these radio frequencies were standardized so that this miscommunication could never happen on the big day itself.(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)RAZ: That's historian Giles Milton He's the author of "The Boy Who Went to War." Today there is a small memorial to the 946 men who lost their lives that day Copyright © 2012 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information Become an NPR sponsor Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker but that's no reason #dryjanuary shouldn't live on many people choose temperance during the first month of the year in an effort to balance the excesses of the holiday season I decided to see what's up on the mineral water shelf Sparkling water is a common substitute for booze calcium and all the sophistication of wine And though you may not usually spend a few dollars on a fancy glass bottle there should be plenty of room in your budget if you take out all the beer I chose five of the best-known name brand mineral waters plus two that are just carbonated spring water Spring water naturally contains some minerals I picked up Whole Food's house-branded answer to San Pellegrino for good measure Spoiler alert — I'd stick with San Pellegrino I chose one top pick and also categorized the waters into similar groups based on flavor and fizziness Voss sparkling water 800 milliliters ($2.99 at Market of Choice) San Pellegrino sparkling mineral water 750 milliliters ($1.69 at Whole Foods $2.39 at Market of Choice) Bottled at the source in Bergamo Gerolsteiner sparkling mineral water 750 milliliters ($1.99 at Market of Choice) Topo Chico sparkling mineral water 12 ounces ($1.29 at Whole Foods $1.39 at Market of Choice) also available in 25.4 ounces Castle Rock sparkling spring water 500 milliliters ($2.59 at Market of Choice) It's good if you don't like a lot of bubbles but don't want still water Whole Foods Italian sparkling mineral water 1 liter ($1.39 at Whole Foods) Taste: Flavor was light and slightly metallic 750 milliliters ($1.99 at Market of Choice) which had large but somewhat sparse bubbles The flavor wasn't great and tasted like stone or metal Mountain Valley sparkling water 1 liter ($2.69 at Whole Foods) The flavor would be amenable to food or to drinking on its own Follow Anna Glavash on Twitter @AnnaGlavash and on Instagram @541ToTheTable This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page E-edition PLUS unlimited articles & videos Personalized news alerts with our mobile app *Refers to the latest 2 years of stltoday.com stories This is my 20th season of reviewing Opera Theatre of St Here are some photos and brief notes about productions from the internationally renowned company that have stood out in my memory across the years It's a personal (and just possibly slightly idiosyncratic) list of some of the productions that touched me most Madeline Bender and Marcus DeLoach in Paul Schoenfield's "The Merchant and the Pauper" at Opera Theatre of St 1999: Paul Schoenfield: "The Merchant and the Pauper"  with a libretto by longtime OTSL communications director Margaret B It's a tuneful adaptation of a tale by 18th-century Ukrainian Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav; it's both about goodness rewarded and a parable of the Jewish people The fine cast was headed by bass-baritone Thomas Barrett baritone Marcus DeLoach and soprano Madeline Bender; Mark Lamos directed Jermaine Smith takes a flying leap as Zodzetrick in OTSL's "Treemonisha" (2000) This high-energy delight turned ragtime king Joplin's only surviving opera into the 90-minute highlight of the season The responsibility lay with stage director Rhoda Levine conductor Jeffrey Huard and choreographer Dianne McIntyre along with a great cast headed by Christina Clark and then-baritone Jermaine Smith as a proto-Sportin' Life whose dancing brought the house down every night (Also in the cast: a young Lawrence Brownlee.) Verdi's "Othello," with Marie Plette conducted by music director Stephen Lord and directed by artistic director Colin Graham Phyllis Pancella in the title role of Offenbach's "The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein" with members of the OTSL Ensemble 2001: Jacques Offenbach: "The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein" Louis native Phyllis Pancella in the title role of the libidinous aristocrat who loves men in uniform including a hilariously over-the-top Timothy Nolen to say nothing of Stephen Lord in the pit and director John Going Nathan Gunn in the title role in Ambroise Thomas's "Hamlet," 2002 (Photo by Ken Howard) director and designer for this dramatic production of the Shakespearean classic It starred a suitably brooding Nathan Gunn in the title role and Dorothy Byrne as Gertrude; Raymond Leppard conducted Mary Dunleavy in the title role of Massenet's 'Thaïs' (pre-conversion) "Thaïs" is the tale of an Egyptian courtesan who is converted to Christianity and sanctity; a little late in the game realizes that he was really after the delights of the flesh after all The title role is fiendishly difficult to sing; soprano Mary Dunleavy gave a stellar performance at the head of a fine cast George Manahan conducted and the director was Renaud Doucet From left to right: Robert Orth as Richard Nixon and Jan Opalach as Henry Kissinger in John Adams's "Nixon in China" at Opera Theatre of St Nixon was the one in this opera by John Adams and Alice Goodman and Tracy Dahl as a terrifying Chiang Ch'ing This was the premiere of the much-traveled production by James Robinson and his design team of Allen Moyer and James Schuette; Marin Alsop conducted Christine Brewer as Queen Elizabeth I and Brandon Jovanovich as the Earl of Essex in Benjamin Britten's "Gloriana" at Opera Theatre of St The ensemble in Kurt Weil's "Street Scene," 2006 (Photo by Cory Weaver) Weill's "Street Scene" is a predecessor to the likes of Bernstein's "West Side Story;" a huge and talented cast at OTSL (There were also a bevy of delightfully light-on-their-feet Gerdine Young Artists that season.) Stephen Lord conducted and James Robinson directed the hit of the year Kelly Kaduce as Anna and Christian Van Horn as Karenin in David Carlson and Colin Graham's "Anna Karenina" at Opera Theatre of St OTSL artistic director Colin Graham died in April 2007 but he left "Anna Karenina," the last of seven operas for which he wrote the librettos He also left his production notes for director Mark Streshinsky dramatically wide-ranging and possessed of a gorgeous instrument Brandon Jovanovich and Christian Van Horn were also standouts in the cast; Stewart Robinson conducted Pinkerton and Kelly Kaduce in the title role with Jamie Barton (at rear) as Suzuki in Puccini's "Madame Butterfly" at Opera Theatre of St I've seen (and sung with) many Cio-Cio Sans in my time but never one so perfect as Kelly Kaduce in the title role of "Madame Butterfly," vocally a properly caddish Pinkerton in David Pomeroy and a compassionate Sharpless in Lester Lynch whose strong connection to Japanese culture was clear in every detail (L to R Foreground) Christopher Feigum as Figaro Glavin as Louis XVI with (Onstage at rear) Dorothy Byrne as Susanna and members of the company in John Corigliano's "The Ghosts of Versailles" at Opera Theatre of St 2009: John Corigliano: "The Ghosts of Versailles" "The Ghosts of Versailles" was conceived as the ultimate in grand operas designed to show off everything the Metropolitan Opera could throw at it Combining history with characters from the plays of Beaumarchais Maria Kanyova was a touching Marie Antoinette in a large cast that also included James Westman OTSL artistic director James Robinson directed; Michael Christie was the conductor Oren Gradus as Prince Gremin and Dina Kuznetsova as Tatiana with members of the ensemble in Tchaikovsky's "Eugene Onegin" at Opera Theatre of St 2010: Pyotr Illych Tchaikovsky: "Eugene Onegin" Dina Kuznetsova was the shining star of this fine production of "Eugene Onegin," along with luminaries Sean Panikkar Kevin Newbury directed; David Agler conducted The cast of John Adams' "The Death of Klinghoffer," Opera Theatre of St 2011: John Adams: "The Death of Klinghoffer" "The Death of Klinghoffer," by John Adams and Alice Goodman dealing with the real-life 1985 hijacking of the cruise ship Achille Lauro by Palestinian terrorists and their murder of a disabled Jewish passenger OTSL handled it with much care and a great deal of interfaith dialogue; director James Robertson helped make all the characters fully human Aubrey Allicock and the rest of the cast made it come alive New-music specialist Michael Christie conducted Rachel Willis-Sørensen as Fiordiligi and Kathryn Leemhuis as Dorabella in Mozart's "Così fan Tutte," Opera Theatre of St OTSL hasn't had a great track record with the operas of Mozart in recent years but this production was well-sung by five out of six principals: Rachel Willis-Sørensen Jean-Marie Zeitouni was the conductor; Michael Shell directed Victor Ryan Robertson as Benny “The Kid” Paret and Arthur Woodley as Emile Griffith in the world premiere of Terence Blanchard's "Champion," Opera Theatre of St Perhaps OTSL's most important commission (this one with Jazz St "Champion," by jazz legend Terence Blanchard and librettist Michael Cristofer tells the true story of boxer Emile Griffith Griffith rose from poverty to become welterweight champion of the world and was beaten nearly to death himself 30 years later after leaving a gay bar It had outstanding performances from Denyce Graves James Robinson directed; George Manahan conducted and Susannah Biller as Adina in Donizetti's "The Elixir of Love" at Opera Theatre of St 2014: Gaetano Donizetti: "The Elixir of Love" The sweet update of Donizetti’s “The Elixir of Love” at Opera Theatre of St set in what appeared to be “The Music Man’s” River City Jose Maria Condemi staged James Robinson's original production ("27," a commission by composer Ricky Ian Gordon and librettist Royce Vavrek that looks at the lives of Gertrude Stein with a cast led by Stephanie Blythe and Elizabeth Futral.) and Geoffrey Agpalo as Hooker in Tobias Picker's "Emmeline" at Opera Theatre of St Tobias Picker’s “Emmeline” is one of the finest American operas of the 20th century and OTSL treated it like the masterpiece it is Wayne Tigges and a great collection of singers in smaller roles led in the pit; James Robinson was at his most inspired So Young Park as Zerbinetta and Marjorie Owens as The Prima Donna/Ariadne in Strauss’ "Ariadne on Naxos" at Opera Theatre of St "Ariadne on Naxos" is the thinking opera-lover's tragicomedy with hijinks and sublime music all wrapped up together and it's not (despite its humor) to every taste OTSL put together a strong cast in Marjorie Owens and put conductor Rory Macdonald in charge in the pit Long-time OTSL choreographer Sean Curran turned director Composer Ricky Ian Gordon and librettist Michael Korie's "The Grapes of Wrath" started life as a four-hour epic; trimmed and reworked to a little under three hours Director James Robertson and his go-to design team of Allen Moyer and James Schuette put the action in a Depression-era soup kitchen making imaginative use of simple furnishings Robert Orth and Geoffrey Agpalo led the cast of almost 30 fine performers Conductor Christopher Allen made a memorable debut and James Morris as Ben in Marc Blitzstein's "Regina" at Opera Theatre of St This one isn't quite fair; as I write these words only two of the operas in OTSL's 2018 season have opened and they're both quite wonderful in very different ways Blitzstein's "Regina" edged out Verdi's "La Traviata" for its starry cast Music director emeritus Stephen Lord conducts; James Robinson directs Catch them both while you can — and watch STLToday for reviews of the other two operas Huang Ruo's "An American Soldier" and Gluck's "Orfeo." The 39th Memorial Breakfast was held at Union Station on Monday honoring the 167 St Louis police officers killed in the line of duty from 186… The historic Old Courthouse in downtown St Louis has been closed since the COVID pandemic in 2020 Read through the obituaries published in the St Get a recap of Tuesday's local news stories from St Louis employment postings and find your next career Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device (left) appeared with his father in the musical “Piff If anyone thought “Poof!” would go poof in a single column That column ended with my tracing the word with which John Kerry summed up the failure of Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations to the phrase “Piff pouf” in the French Jewish composer Jacques Offenbach’s opera “La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein,” first produced in Paris in 1867 along comes University of Kentucky professor of musicology Jonathan Glixon who points out that the expression is older and dates to an earlier opera Giacomo Meyerbeer’s “Les Huguenots,” whose debut also took place in Paris “Les Huguenots,” the libretto for which was written by the well-known French playwright Eugène Scribe is set against the historical background of the St Its plot revolves around an ill-starred love affair between the Protestant aristocrat Raoul de Nangis and the Catholic noblewoman Valentine de Saint-Bris arrives as a Huguenot emissary at the castle of the Catholic Count of Nevers outraged at having to accept the hospitality of the hated Catholics expresses his feelings by singing a ferocious Huguenot battle song au fer / leur temples d’enfer./ Terrassons-les / We’ll torch and put to the sword / their temples of hell whose original name was Jacob Liebmann Beer grew up in an observant Jewish home and was even more likely than Offenbach to have known some Yiddish since he hailed from Berlin which was near the Yiddish-speaking areas of Poland (He also remained loyal to his Jewish identity pouf” from “Les Huguenots,” which was one of the most successful of all 19th-century operas Nor is that quite the end of the Jewish connection of “poof.” After receiving Professor Glixon’s letter I decided to a bit more research and made the discovery that a highly successful musical comedy called “Piff Pouf!” was the hit of the 1904 Broadway theater season which featured the popular actor Eddie Foy the widower of a wealthy heiress whose will decreed that he could not inherit any of her money until he had married off their four daughters — the three eldest of whom have exacting demands: one that she will marry only a man who has never been kissed a second that her future husband must be famous and a third that she will accept no one of less than saintly character How a play of such fatuousness managed to run for 264 straight performances at the Casino Theater on West 39th Street is beyond me — but then again a Hungarian-born Jewish songwriter best known for his 1910 hit “Chinatown who did hear Schwartz’s score on opening night wrote the next day that it was “even more exclamatory than the title of the play.” The Times’ critic liked two things One was a number toward the musical’s end in which five dancers appeared in clown costumes on a blacked-out stage and played jump-rope with phosphorescent ropes The other was Foy’s “amiable” and “amusing” acting later to become a performing artist in his own right in a miniature replica of his costume and let him perform his part in his place was so convulsed by the boy’s flawless imitation of his father that it literally screamed with delight.) Pouf!” certainly must have contributed to the domestication in American English of the phrase “piff pouf,” from which “poof” eventually detached itself to become a word in its own right Questions for Philologos can be sent to [email protected] I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward American Jews need independent news they can trust At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S rising antisemitism and polarized discourse This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up Copyright © 2025 The Forward Association Germany German-Australian Heinrich Haussler of Team Gerolsteiner.. German-Australian Heinrich Haussler of Team Gerolsteiner usually spends his off-season in Australia before returning to Europe for the season But this year the 23 year-old reversed that schedule spending the fall in Europe and heading off to Australia this week for the Tour Down Under Haussler also had some time for fun and personal matters Then I moved from Cottbus to Freiburg." He won't be alone in Freiburg Matthias Russ and Fabian Wegmann also live in the area He is now preparing to fly to his native land for the Tour Down Under "although my form is not top at the moment." Then he will finally spend some family-time in Australia "I'll go back to my Inverell where my parents live and train there for two and a half weeks." There is a good reason for the fourth-year pro to stay "down under." After training in Australia he will hop on a plane to the West Coast of the United States and ride the Tour of California then there's the time difference again and the chance of getting sick because it's so cold here So I'll stay with my parents and train there." Haussler said that his first real season goal is a good performance in the Spring Classics "That is what I want," with an emphasis on "Milano-Sanremo You are in: Devon > History > Local history > Exercise Tiger remembered April 2009 marks the 65th anniversary of the Exercise Tiger tragedy in which 749 US servicemen died off the South Devon coast Help playing audio/video a convoy of eight American landing ship tanks (LSTs) were carrying out a D-Day dress rehearsal off the South Devon coast when they were ambushed by German E-boats Two of the LSTs were sunk in the attack off Slapton Sands killing 749 US servicemen - a higher death toll than at the initial D-Day landings which were to take place on Utah Beach the operation - called Exercise Tiger - proved to be the most costly Allied training incident LST 507 had departed Dartmouth for the operation and LST 531 had left from Plymouth The remaining LSTs headed for port as fast as possible whose captain disobeyed orders to stay behind and rescue over 100 men Paul Gerolstein was on board LST 515 and is one of three Exercise Tiger veterans who travelled to Torcross to attend the annual memorial service and ceremony on Sunday 26 April 2009 Archive photos: Paul Gerolstein and Nathan Resnick "I remember it as if it were yesterday," said Paul decided to stay on station and pick up survivors 'We came here to fight the Germans and we will stay here and fight,' he ordered "I don't remember the exact number of troops our ship picked out of the water It was imperative that the Germans did not know what we were doing." Paul went on to take part in the D-Day landing at Utah Beach Frank Derby (LST 496) and Nathan Resnick (LST 511) Gunners mate Frank Derby was on watch and saw one of the other ships in the convoy get hit in the bow where LST 496 hit two German mines and sank He was knocked unconscious but recovered and was rescued by colleagues Nathan Resnick was a motor machinist on board LST 511 He was asleep at the time of the attack off the South Devon coast but when the alarm sounded he became one of the gunners on the top deck LST 507 had already been hit and was in flames but his vessel fired towards the direction of the German E-boats Friendly fire from LST 496 and enemy fire from the E-boats injured 15 men on the top deck but it could have been worse - he watched torpedoes strike his ship where the ship made 50 crossings from an offshore position to unload troops and equipment and pick up injured troops Among the relatives who attended the 2009 ceromony was Laurie Bolton "He was in the tank deck on board LST 531 when it took a direct hit to that area His body was never recovered," says Laurie I was born on his birthday eight years after he died "His name is on the Wall of the Missing at Cambridge American Cemetery in England Those whose bodies were recovered are buried there." Relatives of four other men who perished on board LST 531 and LST 507 were also in South Devon for the 65th anniversary was chosen for Exercise Tiger because of its similarity with Utah Beach The landing ship tanks were on their way to Slapton Sands at 2am on 28 April 1944 when they were attacked German documents detailing the attack at the time said: "The (E) boats took advantage of the minimal security of the group The US Army made the Slapton area their base "The landing training group was broken up and sailed around relatively helplessly poorly manoeuvrable and poorly coordinated such groups are." Some of the American servicemen did not have their life jackets inflated while other jackets weren't fitted properly - adding to the death toll The survivors were told not to talk about the incident but in recent years more and more details of the disaster have emerged the Slapton area was deserted of local residents - all the surrounding villages had been evacuated to make way for thousands of US troops ahead of the D-Day invasion by Allied forces The three visiting veterans are now in their late 80s and this could be their last chance to travel to the remembrance event They attended a service at St Michaels and All Angels Church Stokenham and a ceremony at the Tank Memorial site at Torcross The annual service of remembrance is organised by the Devon and Cornwall branch of the Royal Tank Regiment Association The Sherman tank at the memorial site was recovered from the seabed off Slapton Sands in 1984 by the late Ken Small "My father campaigned tirelessly for a memorial to ensure that the sacrifices made by these young men were recognised and for those who had lost a loved one there was somewhere to go and think of them," said Dean "I have met many of the survivors and their families over the years and have never ceased to be impressed by their courage and determination to remember their colleagues who never returned "We are hoping to raise sufficient funds for a memorial View the video link on this page to watch archive US Military footage of the preparations for Exercise Tiger And you can learn much more about Exercise Tiger by clicking onto the website links on the top right of this page last updated: 27/04/2009 at 12:55created: 15/04/2009 The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites Watch a selection of old films from the BBC archives From towns to countryside to coast - explore your Devon By Hedwig Kröner in Gerolstein The third-placed team in the UCI 2004 classification was presented.. Team Gerolsteiner 2005(Image credit: Mani Wollner)Frank Høj(Image credit: Mani Wollner)Georg Totschnig and Levi Leipheimer(Image credit: Mani Wollner)Team Gerolsteiner 2005(Image credit: Mani Wollner/foto-grafik-satz.de)Team manager Hans-Michael Holczer with German sports TV anchorman Hans-Dieter Poschmann(Image credit: Mani Wollner/foto-grafik-satz.de)Davide Rebellin is the team's classics captain(Image credit: Mani Wollner/foto-grafik-satz.de)René Haselbacher quite focused the World's(Image credit: Hedwig Kröner/Cyclingnews.com)Giro mountains jersey winner Fabian Wegmann 25 years old(Image credit: Hedwig Kröner/Cyclingnews.com)Michael Rich in front The third-placed team in the UCI 2004 classification was presented today in Gerolstein a town in the forest-covered hills of the Eifel region in mid-western Germany It is also a mineral water source which gave its name to the cycling team whose members were introduced to the assembled media in the company's huge stock hall amidst a large number of bottles of water - Gerolsteiner being one of the biggest mineral water suppliers in Germany the riders one by one jumped up a couple of stairs onto a spotlighted stage and team director Hans-Michael Holczer outlined the upcoming challenges and goals of what will be the team's seventh season the small squad evolved rapidly over the years and can now count itself in the ranks of the world's greatest cycling teams the team celebrated such successes like Davide Rebellin's classics triple as well as 29 other victories and 47 podium placings of which sprinter Danilo Hondo achieved a large number and will continue to do so Austrian Georg Totschnig's top placings at the Tour de France and the Tour de Suisse as well as youngster Fabian Wegmann's mountain jersey at the Giro d'Italia were further highlights of the last year Gerolsteiner signed five new riders to its roster among them Levi Leipheimer and Frank Høj The Danish classics hunter left CSC for the German team "because I'm always really thirsty," he joked during the presentation Talking more seriously later to Cyclingnews Høj said he aims at Paris-Roubaix and Ronde van Vlaanderen this season "although it is too early to tell you if my legs will be strong enough to be captain then I do have a lot of experience with Paris-Roubaix so if another guy on the team is better that day I can always be helpful Høj is happy with his new team and finds it very relaxed compared to CSC we had the training camp and something to do all the time I do like it because it's much more flexible," Høj admitted Levi Leipheimer confirmed the easy atmosphere at his new team I expected a very strict organisation which they have; everything runs perfectly But I also suspected a little rigidity and there is none of that Leipheimer's goal being a top five placing at this year's Tour de France he will be working closely with Georg Totschnig Gerolsteiner's "other" Tour de France GC aspirant "It takes the pressure off both of us," he said As Gerolsteiner's aim is to place very high at the Tour If one of us has a chance to hop on the podium Then there's a small Italian named Davide Rebellin who doesn't seem intimidated by his unequalled achievement last year of winning three spring classics in a row there's no pressure," he said to Cyclingnews "It's a new year and I find new motivation to win other important races in the ProTour as I want to do well in the overall classification It will be difficult repeat the three race win from last year but I hope I can win one classic and maybe another that I haven't won yet," Rebellin added he will become Argentinean to represent the South American country at the World's in Madrid I suggested to take my time and do it in a more relaxed way I'll fly to Argentina to get my passport soon." Watch out for an interview with Levi Leipheimer in the coming days as well as an extensive talk with Gerolsteiner's directeur sportif Christian Henn Click here for Gerolsteiner's team roster South Africa was stunned on Wednesday after its most famous opera singer was found shot dead on his family's wine estate The 47-year-old tenor was shot twice in the chest in a domestic tragedy that left the opera world distraught and baffled was named by police as the main suspect after he was found dead with a single gunshot wound to the temple Police declined to speculate on the motive and there were no immediate reports of a feud between father and son leaving the country guessing as to why it had lost one of its greatest musical talents The bodies were found in separate bedrooms of the family home near Paarl on Tuesday afternoon by the singer's mother The opera world mourned the passing of the first South African to do the "grand slam" of performing at Milan's La Scala New York's Metropolitan and Vienna's state opera house He was sensitive and expressive as an artist," said South Africa's culture minister "Those who knew him speak of his generosity and kindness." said the country had lost a role model for what South Africans could accomplish abroad Police said their investigation was not yet a murder inquiry and declined to speculate about motives "It is alleged the father killed the 47-year-old man The son had gunshot wounds to his chest and the father had a single gunshot wound to his temple They were thought to have died at about 2pm on Tuesday Forensic experts were examining a gun removed from the scene South African media reported that it was found beside the father The family was expected to issue a statement through lawyers Van der Walt never reached the popular acclaim of Placido Domingo or Luciano Pavarotti but was well known and respected within the opera fraternity He made his debut as Jaquino in Fidelio at the Kapstadt opera house while still a music student at the University of Stellenbosch In 1981 he won the international Mozart competition in Salzburg and his career took off with invitations to opera houses and festivals across Europe and the US Van der Walt made his Covent Garden debut in 1985 as Almaviva in Rossini's Barber of Seville Barcelona and Hamburg under conductors including Riccardo Muti It was the era of apartheid sanctions and white South Africans were not always welcomed abroad but the easy-going tenor was still able to carve a name for himself A role as Tamino in The Magic Flute under Sir Georg Solti in 1991 the year after Nelson Mandela was released he showed his versatility by moving from Italian to French for the role of Romeo in Gounod's Romeo et Juliette at the Zurich opera house While on tour in France Van der Walt would sometimes meet his professional golfer brother at vineyards to share their lifelong love of wine in a valley near spectacular views over the Klein-Drakenstein mountains 56km outside Cape Town The bomb had been found early on Tuesday morning during construction works There had been no danger to the population but the police closed off the area out of precaution the WWII-era aerial bomb was removed and successfully defused by experts Residents were able to return to their homes in the evening Scientists said certain geological conditions can act as natural storage tanks for the gas A man examines rock formations at the Gerolsteiner Dolomiten nature reserve in western Germany Scientists say certain geological conditions like these rocks can act as natural storage tanks for carbon dioxide Germany: Nested in the forested foothills of western Germany’s Gerolsteiner Dolomiten nature reserve are rocks that are approximately 200 million years old formed over geological periods hundreds of millions of years ago could be part of the solution to today’s climate problems from the German Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources “There are some fractures and tiny pores in between the sand grains of the sandstone – these pores are where the CO2 (carbon dioxide) can be put in and easily penetrate into the rocks.” The geologist was explaining the role the nature reserve’s rocks can play in carbon capture and storage (CCS) a concept touted to reduce carbon emissions from industrial processes The technique involves the capture of carbon dioxide generally from large point sources like power generation or industrial facilities that typically use fossil fuels The captured carbon dioxide is then compressed and stored in ways that do not affect the atmosphere such as deep underground in depleted oil and gas reservoirs Scientists said specific geological conditions Carbon is already stored underground naturally in rocks and sediments springs with carbonated water – sometimes called soda springs – can be found in pockets of the globe with certain geological formations such as volcanic rocks This means carbon dioxide emitted by human activity can also be stored and sealed underground using the same types of rock formations millions of square kilometres of similar rock formations stretch across Germany to as far as France a Brussels-based think tank advising the European Union on carbon management strategies said CCS could be one way to deal with the huge amount of carbon dioxide produced by heavy industrial facilities such as steel mills Several European countries are currently in talks to use these types of so-called reservoirs as a way to store carbon and combat climate change “We have technologies which are available to capture CO2 often in the same places that we take oil and gas from – in deep rock formations hundreds of metres under the ground,” he said “It binds itself to the rock … and it stays there permanently … most importantly opinion has been split about the use of carbon capture and storage as a climate solution Critics warn that the technology is still at a preliminary stage – largely untested Climate advocates also say capturing carbon should not be seen as an alternative to cutting emissions The United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change pointed out that while carbon capture can help mitigate climate change German Member of Parliament (Bundestag) Jorg Cezanne said that CCS utilisation is finite and associated with additional risks it would make sense to wait and see what residual emissions really remain for which storage may then be the only solution – and then we can talk about it,” he said have said that they will not support storing carbon dioxide underground for now amid fears of community pushback over leaks But Berlin is exploring opening up the practice under the seabed along the country's northern coastline German authorities are also working with the private sector to capture carbon during production using industrial facilities Cement is one of the most widely-used substances in the world But the industry is responsible for about 8 per cent of planet-warming carbon dioxide emissions CEO of carbon dioxide mitigation firm Leilac said his business has built plants in Germany and Belgium to pilot the capturing of about 20 per cent of carbon dioxide from cement plants’ throughput “Cement has been around for thousands of years and having this big change where we (are now) addressing these CO2 emissions is a big moment,” he said While the rollout of CCS projects remains far from wide-spread industry insiders believe interest will continue to grow as nations and businesses look for solutions to meet strict greenhouse gas reduction targets Get our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inbox Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app We know it's a hassle to switch browsers but we want your experience with CNA to be fast Upgraded but still having issues? Contact us The initiative, part of DB’s €45 billion investment plan, aims to overhaul 4,200km of track across the German rail network. While this extensive programme promises long-term improvements to infrastructure, it will lead to extended closures and detours, impacting both passenger and freight services to and from Luxembourg, mobility minister Yuriko Backes said in response to a question in parliament. Several key lines connecting Luxembourg to major German cities, including Cologne and Koblenz, will undergo upgrades. Renovation of the right bank of the Rhine between Troisdorf and Koblenz is scheduled from July to December 2026. The left bank of the Rhine line, linking Mainz, Koblenz, Bonn and Cologne, will face disruptions between February and July 2028. Additionally, the electrification of the Eifel line from Trier to Cologne via Gerolstein is expected between late 2028 and 2029, with service interruptions between Hürth-Kalscheuren and Koblenz central station.​ The disruptions will lead to longer travel times, Backes said. “This mainly results in service cancellations or route diversions, leading to longer travel times, additional costs not covered by customers, as well as a reduction in the robustness of transport plans, with an increased risk of deterioration in the quality of service,” she said. To mitigate some of the disruptions, replacement bus services will be introduced during the affected periods. The German and Luxembourg rail networks, however, plan to coordinate their work periods to guarantee the accessibility of the Luxembourg network to freight trains coming from or going to Germany, the minister specified. The €45 billion investment is part of DB’s broader strategy to modernise its railway system, focusing on improving capacity, reliability, and sustainability. The plan aims to enhance the competitiveness of Germany’s transport network while supporting the country’s environmental goals by making rail travel more efficient and climate-friendly. Once the work is completed, DB plans to introduce a direct passenger connection between Luxembourg and Cologne via Trier and Gerolstein, offering a faster and more efficient alternative for travellers. This direct route is expected to improve regional connectivity and reduce travel times.  (This article was originally published by Virgule Translation and editing by Kabir Agarwal.) Start your day with the top headlines shaping Luxembourg MobilityEaster holiday to disrupt trains to France and BelgiumStarting from 5 April, CFL will make progress Bettembourg-Luxembourg and Arlon-Luxembourg railway works Cross-border travelGovernments seek to improve Luxembourg-Saarbrücken rail serviceA feasibility study is set to present a roadmap later this year on how the Grand Duchy can be directly connected to Saarland and Mannheim Travel Getting around the Grand DuchyHere's how to get around Luxembourg by bus, rail, tram, bicycle and car Train strikesFurther strike action to disrupt Luxembourg-Belgium trains Union action will begin on Sunday and last for a week, while four days of walkouts are planned in April Cross-border travelBelgian commuters set for further disruption with week-long rail strikeLatest industrial action is planned to run from Friday at 22:00 until 2 March RailFaster Luxembourg-Brussels train on track for 2029Transport ministers of both countries met on Thursday to discuss railway, road and cycling links between Luxembourg and Belgium Power cutDamaged cables cause power outage in central train stationPower cuts reported around the capital’s central station with repair work ongoing Advertiser contentTreat yourself to a stress-free holidayDreaming of a worry-free trip What if the secret to a smooth getaway was simply good preparation and the right protection Advertiser contentReal estate: Why should you take advantage of the start of 2025 to begin your real estate project?The main things we remember about the housing sector over the past 12 months are the rise in interest rates and the fall in property prices Advertiser contentProperty: I've decided to invest!The various forms of government support for investment Advertiser contentThe Luxembourg Times BusinessRun is happening again on 18th September!On Thursday 18th September with the starting gun of the 11th Luxembourg Times BusinessRun fired at the Coque at 7 pm Share this with instagramShare this with facebookShare this with linkedinSections