LondonIsabela Díaz has great fun as chambermaid Vespetta and Grisha Martirosyan is laugh-out-loud funny as nice-but-dim Pimpinone in a tale of sexual politics not a million miles from our own time Sun 4 May 2025 11.30 CESTShareSpare a thought for Georg Philipp Telemann and godfather to Bach’s son Carl Philipp Emanuel he penned more than 3,000 works including 29 extant operas for all his fecundity of invention and consistent quality we hear his sparkling music far less often than he deserves its three acts were intended as comic intermezzi for a production of Handel’s opera seria Tamerlano (total running time a gruelling five hours!) With an easy to follow plot and laugh-out-loud musical numbers it would have come as welcome light relief conductor and director drawn from its Jette Parker Artists programme but one with plenty of charm and sexual politics not a million miles from our own time hence its interest beyond the recording studio The work is subtitled “The Unequal Marriage Between Vespetta and Pimpinone or The Domineering Chambermaid” working-class Vespetta – the name means little wasp – lands a job as housemaid to Pimpinone by Act II she’s ready to quit until he offers to marry her he grudgingly grants her some genuine freedoms bringing a modern slant to issues of equality and female emancipation Vespetta is first discovered performing as part of a festive bash at Pimpinone’s pad she’s literally done up like a Christmas tree (witty set and costumes by Anna Yates) Isabela Díaz has great fun with her lively opening aria her bright soprano with attractive upper extension does the rest prenups and miniskirts attend her shimmying up the greasy pole of social mobility Grisha Martirosyan is her nice-but-dim Pimpinone complete with porn tash and dubious taste in multicoloured shirts His thrusting baritone has depth and power at the top especially in the panting syncopations of his hot-to-trot opening aria while Díaz shows off her nimble technique in a pair of teasing vocal minuets (though both might have sung more softly at times) Peggy Wu conducts a crisp performance with players drawn from the English National Opera Orchestra Continuo pickups might have been quicker off the mark and more imaginatively decorated allows Telemann’s neatly revived confection to shine At Linbury theatre, London, until 17 May Essential digital access to quality FT journalism on any device Complete digital access to quality FT journalism with expert analysis from industry leaders Complete digital access to quality analysis and expert insights complemented with our award-winning Weekend Print edition Terms & Conditions apply Discover all the plans currently available in your country Digital access for organisations. Includes exclusive features and content. See why over a million readers pay to read the Financial Times. Gioachino Rossini’s comic opera plays at the Ordway Music Theater in St. Paul. The Italians had a lot going on in the 1500s. A century that started with Leonardo da Vinci painting the “Mona Lisa” ended with the invention of opera by a coterie of composers in Venice. Between them came the evolution of a considerably more lowball creation: the theatrical style of commedia dell’arte. It was theater of the people, often found at street festivals and in humble venues, in which actors both male and female (take that, Shakespeare) would get crowds laughing at ribald, slapstick-laden tales of upper-class young lovers being kept apart by their bickering fathers, but eventually united with the help of crafty servants. Gioachino Rossini’s comic opera “The Barber of Seville” was always rooted in the stock characters and silly scenarios of commedia, but Minnesota Opera’s new production really leans into the tradition. It’s unapologetically built for laughs, with any earnest romantic yearnings serving only as a palate cleanser before the next madcap twist or trick gone awry. And it’s a great deal of fun, the ideal antidote for anyone who imagines opera to be an elitist art form. That’s largely because director Chuck Hudson and conductor Christopher Franklin are so precisely simpatico on the tone they’re taking. Rossini’s music is full of frothy phrases that fly at you in fleet fashion, the singers often chattering their melodic lines so quickly that they sound like the vocal equivalent of an adrenaline-fueled rocker’s drum solo. Minnesota Opera’s opening-night cast handled it all quite impressively, each performer making their cartoonish character engaging company while decked out in Mathew J. LeFebvre’s well appointed 18th-century attire and performing on an Allen Moyer set that deftly combines two- and three-dimensional elements. The plot is pure commedia, the tale taken from Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais’ comic novel about a barber who facilitates romances, making buffoons of the rich and powerful through clever disguises and fast thinking. For this adventure, he’s helping a count capture the heart of Rosina, the ward of a bombastic aristocrat who wants her for his own. While a second set of leads will perform on May 10 and 18, most audiences will have the opportunity to experience the artistry of a strong opening-night cast. As the barber, Figaro, Takaoki Onishi displayed a fine balance of bravado, charm, comic chops and vocal power. Complementing him well was Lunga Eric Hallam as a charismatic Count Almaviva, whether serenading Rosina with a lovely ballad or joining her for a delightfully well executed second-act love duet. Katherine Beck was similarly engaging as Rosina, her soprano voice doing delightful things with her arias of love, longing and joy. And Matthew Anchel made for a comically vain and arrogant Dr. Bartolo, aided by Stefan Egerstrom’s memorable take on his friend, Don Basilio. Franklin and the Minnesota Opera Orchestra brought ebullient energy and subtlety to the score of an often not-very-subtle opera, the solos sweet, the rapid romps as thrilling as a roller-coaster ride, especially the sextet that closes the first act and the quintet near the start of the second, both requiring athletic enunciation skills from all the singers. Like traditional commedia, this production is occasionally a little sophomoric in its bawdiness, but Rossini’s marvelous music and the cast’s strong execution of it (as well as their well crafted characterizations) make this a very fun night at the opera. Rob Hubbard can be reached at wordhub@yahoo.com. When: 7:30 p.m. Thu. and Sat., 2 p.m. Sun., 7:30 p.m. May 17, 2 p.m. May 18. Where: Ordway Music Theater, 345 Washington St., St. Paul. Tickets: $25-$263, available at 612-333-6669 or mnopera.org. Music She was as alluringly confessional as Joni Mitchell but not as musically intriguing Gioachino Rossini’s comic opera plays at the Ordway Music Theater in St Benson Boone’s American Heart Tour will open at Xcel Energy Center on Aug just two years after he played in town at the Fine Line a cast of strong and impassioned singers and players It would be hard to find a more compelling trifecta of talent than Seattle Opera displays in the current production of Puccini’s beloved “Tosca,” which opened Saturday evening to enraptured applause there is compelling drama that unfolds against a beautiful background of realistic painted backdrops depicting 19th-century Rome The sets have a history of their own: Designed in Milan by Ercole Sormani in the 1950s and brought here in the 1960s by Seattle Opera Founding Director Glynn Ross they’ve been used in four previous Seattle productions (1969 1986 and 2015) and rented by dozens of other companies subtly and beautifully lighted by lighting designer Connie Yun there’s the music itself: one great tune after another a winner of the Solti International Conductors’ Competition debut with this “Tosca,” and his dramatically convincing interpretation with an expertly responsive orchestra lends a white-hot intensity to this beloved score with arias and ensembles that are packed with emotional energy Saturday night’s opening performance was the kind of show that leaves the audience leaning forward in their seats the next exciting conflict — or the next declaration of love soprano Lianna Haroutounian created a mercurial and passionate Tosca her expressive voice rising easily to the high notes of some of the loveliest arias ever composed Her “Vissi d’arte,” one of the most beloved arias in the soprano repertoire was exquisite; it was both artful and emotionally moving She was well matched by tenor Yonghoon Lee as her lover vibrant tenor set the tone for the performance with a passionate first-act “Recondita armonia.” Both Haroutounian and Lee are compelling actors conveying the passion and the desperation of the lovers’ doomed opposition to their political oppressors Stage director Brenna Corner kept the action fluid and natural even in one of the most challenging scenes — the conclusion of Act I the big village celebration that brings together a crowd of villagers and children Chorus masters Michaella Calzaretta and Julia Meyering prepared the adult and youth choral singers well but essential to the act’s atmosphere of pageantry and celebration the villain audiences love to hate — the one who sets the whole tragedy into motion by exploiting Tosca’s jealousy gloating menace that belied the warmth of his voice The supporting cast was well chosen: John Marzano (Spoletta) Ilya Silchukou (Sciarrone) and Micah Parker (the Jailer) Grace Elaine Franck-Smith made a brief but lovely contribution as the Shepherd Boy features Vanessa Goikoetxea in the title role so much so that when Tosca stabs the evil Scarpia a startling round of applause arose in the house — applause that was repeated when the tyrant breathes his last Now that’s successful villainy … and grand opera The opinions expressed in reader comments are those of the author only and do not reflect the opinions of The Seattle Times Stay secure and make sure you have the best reading experience possible by upgrading your browser Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker 2025 2:25 PM5 min readUkrainian theater director Eugene Lavrenchuk has declined to stage an opera at the Jerusalem Lyric Opera & Festival after the organizers brought in Russian singers despite his objections by Yuliia TaradiukA Ukrainian theater director has refused to stage an opera at the Jerusalem Lyric Opera Studio & Festival in Israel after the organizers of the event hired Russian singers against his wishes Eugene Lavrenchuk explained the reason behind his decision in a post on Facebook on April 28, confirming that he would no longer have a role in the staging of George Handel's opera "Rinaldo," the premiere of which is scheduled for July 21 in Tel Aviv "Russia is a country that killed millions of people and became known for its brilliant ballet and operas," Lavrenchuk told the Kyiv Independent. "This legitimized Abkhazia, Chechnya Russia did this in (Pyotr) Tchaikovsky's time as well." "Let Russia return the occupied territories and drown in sanctions, and then fine, I'll be the first to stage Tchaikovsky," he added Lavrenchuk told the Kyiv Independent that when he took on the project he had only one condition for the organizers — no one from Russia could be a member of the cast even asking for it to be a clause in his contract Lavrenchuk said the organizers assured him his request would be honored but when he was sent the text for a promotional poster it contained the names of two Russian singers among the cast "When I noticed the unfamiliar names of singers I had not selected I decided to check the Facebook pages of these two opera singers Both are from Russia,” Lavrenchuk told the Kyiv Independent "The organizers said (the singers) have Israeli passports but this does not negate the fact that they publicly position themselves as Russians on social media," he added Lavrenchuk asked the Kyiv Independent not to name the opera singers to protect them from backlash The Kyiv Independent could not verify the citizenship of the two singers, but according to their Facebook pages, both studied in Moscow. One’s bio states she lives in Moscow. In 2016, she sang songs about war for Russia's Victory Day, celebrated each year on May 9, and shared photos from Crimea in 2019 "The beautiful life in Crimea," she wrote in the caption Despite already working remotely from Lviv selecting actors from "all over the world," forming a team and even preparing some of the stage costumes Lavrenchuk resigned from the project on April 8 (L-R) Rehearsals for "The Dawns Here Are Quiet," a World War II-themed production directed by Daniil Dmitriev in Cheboksary Dmitriev was hired as a replacement to work on the opera production in Israel after its Ukrainian director quit in protest over the involvement of Russian soloists (Daniil Dmitriev / Facebook)"It is not acceptable for me to work with people who are presented as Russians," Lavrenchuk said we cannot stand on the same stage with Russians because other people will use it to legitimize the friendship of (Ukrainian and Russian) peoples One will say that politicians are fighting somewhere else but the ordinary people are Slavic brothers Representatives of the Jerusalem Lyric Opera Studio & Festival an artistic non-profit organizing opera events defended their decision to include Russians in the production in a statement emailed to the Kyiv Independent on May 2 saying they "can't accept ultimatums" from artists "Our decisions are based solely on artistic excellence or political affiliation," the statement reads The Jerusalem Lyric Opera Studio & Festival representatives also pointed out that they organized a solidarity concert in support of the Ukrainian people in May 2022 "in response to the war in Ukraine," and they "stand by that act." we believe that art must remain a space free from political or national discrimination," they said "The artists in question are Israeli citizens currently living and working in Israel While they may hold dual citizenship or have outdated information on their social media profiles they were selected purely on the basis of their artistic talent and professionalism." Lavrenchuk chose to withdraw from the production and respect his personal convictions," the statement adds we cannot accept ultimatums that require us to exclude artists based on their citizenship or place of birth." including the actor Vladyslav Shkarupilo who was supposed to play the central role of Goffredo there were no problems at all (with the organizers) — everything was as friendly and professional as possible," Shkarupilo told the Kyiv Independent "But it was a bit improper of the administration to not coordinate these soloists with either the director or the conductor." performing in Rinaldo with Lavrenchuk was a "dream" opportunity but he felt he had no option but to step down from the role but I would like to say that if they don't care who performs then let's invite some soloists from Gaza or Afghanistan (to the Israeli stage)," he said alleging that in that case Israeli organizers would have been more sensitive to mixing up soloists of different origin on the cast there are a lot of colleagues in solidarity who understand the difference between Ukraine and Russia," he added Lavrenchuk highlighted Israel's own boycotts of works by the German composer Richard Wagner "Wagner had nothing to do with the fact that Hitler used his music out of respect for the Holocaust (victims) Wagner’s operas were not performed in Israel for a long time Because you have to respect people and humanity," he said Despite the turmoil, the opera is still going ahead as planned. On April 16 the Jerusalem Lyric Opera & Festival announced they had hired a replacement for Lavrenchuk — Russian director Daniil Dmitriev Flora Hawk and Jonathan Michie star in the world premiere of Damien Geter’s Loving v Virginia Opera is marking its golden anniversary season in the best way possible which divides its time among three Virginia cities is performing the world premiere of an opera it co-commissioned with the Richmond Symphony As heard during the Sunday matinee at the GMU Center for the Arts in Fairfax this full-length work proved to be one of the most successful new operas of the decade The title refers to a landmark case in the civil rights movement decided unanimously by Earl Warren’s Supreme Court in 1967 striking down Virginia’s state law banning interracial marriage were arrested and jailed by the sheriff in Caroline County but the judge in the case suspended the sentence if they left Virginia who moved temporarily to the District of Columbia Jessica Murphy Moo crafted a libretto that includes all of the relevant points of the story while humanizing the characters and allowing moments of emotional expansion Contrary to the approach of many contemporary composers and librettists opera just does not work quite the same way as spoken theater Music and non-recitative singing need to be given the upper hand something that Murphy Moo’s libretto helped make possible Loving is the second opera for Damien Geter, the Virginia-born composer who is also an operatic baritone and interim music director of Portland Opera. Geter’s major oratorio An African American Requiem, performed by Choral Arts Society of Washington in 2022 demonstrated both his dramatic acumen and his skill in writing for voices Geter has woven music in vernacular styles—blues and spirituals—into this score yet in ways that felt organic and logical with a lyric soprano featuring exceptional tonal clarity “The House Called Love,” sung to her daughter Peggy with occasional weakness toward the top of the range a working man who enjoyed fixing and racing cars unaccompanied passage after they accepted the condition of leaving Virginia to avoid going to jail for a year Mezzo-soprano Melody Wilson, heard in 2023 with Washington Concert Opera especially the emotional moment after she visited her daughter in jail (“My child Contralto Alissa Anderson gave an equally strong impression in the smaller role of Richard’s mother in the duet with Richard “You tripped a wire Phillip Bullock lent his polished baritone sound to the dignified role of Mildred’s father while mezzo-soprano Tesia Kwarteng made a sassy Annette Tenor Adam Richardson relished the dual villain roles of Sheriff Brooks and Judge Bazile nasal voice to the visible face of justice applied unjustly All three of these singers are former Herndon Foundation Emerging Artists with Virginia Opera provided some comic relief as Bernard Cohen surpassed in vocal power by tenor Christian Sanders as his partner The Virginia Opera chorus played crucial parts throughout the evening with excellent intonation and ensemble unity especially the male quartet that taunted Richard while he shared a prison cell with them Presiding over the pit was Virginia Opera’s talented music director His confident beat and careful coordination came across in the cohesion of vocal and instrumental forces Guitar and drum kit added some distinctive sounds Mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves-Montgomery, who sang the previous evening on the other side of the Potomac put on her opera director hat to direct a savvy giving the story some personal resonance.) Minimal sets suggested the family’s home with furniture pieces and a roll-on door and court buildings with a set of riser-like steps (scenic design by Mikiko Suzuki MacAdams) Jessica Jahn’s costumes effectively evoked the 1950s and 60s Geter’s score alternated between neo-romantic lush harmony and scoring and the pulsating rhythms of minimalism mainly for transitions and active choral scenes Geter chose to represent the impersonal machine of the law with a smaller semi-chorus reciting legal cases and statues in a unison or octave monotone Graves heightened the effect of this musical choice by having the singers in that role wear gray masks that obscured their faces When these robotic chorus members switched from chanting the old racist Virginia Code to the language of the Supreme Court ruling it became a powerful symbol of hope for the future Asked toward the opera’s end how she felt about the Supreme Court victory “I feel free,” which rightly got its own round of applause Loving v. Virginia runs through May 11, only in Richmond. vaopera.org XHTML: You can use these tags: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong> Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value"  Subscribe via RSS while faves and fiends are back on soap operas Here are the latest comings and goings casting news from all five daytime dramas: The Bold and the Beautiful, Days of our Lives, General Hospital, The Young and the Restless, and Beyond the Gates Find out if any of your favorite actors and actresses from yesteryear are returning to the shows you watch if any newcomers have been cast in contract or if any popular performers are about to make their exit There’s big exit news at Y&R. Allison Lanier has wrapped up her role as Summer Newman who replaced the popular Hunter King in 2022 “I’ve loved the journey and learned so much but it’s time to grow in a different direction… very grateful for all of the Y&R fans who have supported me,” revealed Lanier There’s no word on the show’s plans to recast the character who left town for Italy on Marchetti business Cait Fairbanks continues to get more screen time as Tessa now that her storyline with Camryn Grimes’ Mariah is heating up Elizabeth Hendrickson is back as Chloe Mitchell Baldwin She shares scenes with Melissa Claire Egan’s Chelsea on Friday Michael Dietz continues his pivotal DAYS guest spot as Dr the medico who’s working on the miracle serum that could possibly save Bo’s (Peter Reckell)life He shares scenes with Dan Feuerriegel’s EJ on Wednesday The MIA James Reynolds is finally back as Abe Carver Look for his character to console his stepdaughter Kennedy Garcia pops in as Felicity Greene The actress interacts with AnnaLynne McCord’s Cat Rachel Boyd gets more screen time as Sophia Choi Leo Howard’s Tate tries to cheer up his pregnant ex on Tuesday A pair of popular teens are back at GH this week Finn Carr returns as Rocco Falconeri Dante (Dominic Zambrogna) and Lulu’s (Alexa Havins) son Asher Antonyzyn gets more screen time as Danny Morgan on Monday Look for Jason (Steve Burton) and the late Sam’s (Kelly Monaco) son to be part of the fallout from the beach party Parry Shen makes an important appearance as Brad Cooper The hospital’s lab technician makes a life-changing decision on Thursday Bryce Durfee returns as Vaughn, Josslyn’s (Eden McCoy) WSB handler The two actors share scenes with Chris McKenna’s Jack who briefs them with new information on Wednesday Smith wrapped up his latest stint as Brick Sonny’s (Maurice Benard) ace security expert The character stepped in to arrange his boss’s secret heart surgery in Los Angeles The latest Forrester fashion show wrapped on B&B and with it so did a few prominent guest spots. Lauralee Bell completed her visit as Christine Blair Meanwhile, Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt are out too. The Hills stars appeared as themselves during the runway extravaganza.  Lisa Yamada is back as the conniving Luna Nozawa this week Look for the troubled teenager to interact with her TV dad 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 We are delighted to reveal today that the recording of these works will be released this September – and is available for pre-order now most of whom are from Welsh National Opera some appendices) make up over 17 hours of music and use text lifted almost entirely verbatim from Tolkien’s masterpiece we’re excited to see both Tom Bombadil and his fair companion Goldberry listed The recording will be available as a 15 CD Deluxe Digibook with 64 page complete libretto and notes from the composer Here’s the official press release from Volante Opera: Tolkien last year to sanction the recording of Paul Corfield Godfrey’s “musical chapters from The Lord of the Rings” was hailed by listeners throughout the world as a milestone in the field of Tolkien adaptations For many years the Tolkien Estate has refused to allow any musical treatment of the works of the author which employed his own words Now they have agreed to make a concession in respect of the music of Paul Corfield Godfrey whose acclaimed cycle of “epic scenes from The Silmarillion” was finally completed in 2023 with the issue of a ten-CD series of recordings from Volante Opera and Prima Facie Records Ever since the 1960s the composer had been working on sketches fragments and episodes of what was originally envisaged as a cycle of musical works based upon The Lord of the Rings Following on from the success of the recordings of The Silmarillion he was persuaded to go back to these beginnings and fully explore expand and complete the work which has now evolved as “musical chapters from The Lord of the Rings” This fully operatic setting has now become a companion work on the same scale as The Silmarillion The adaptation extends to thirty “chapters” designed for performance over six evenings – more than fifteen hours of music This recording of the complete work by Volante Opera has now finally been completed and Prima Facie will release a demo set of the complete cycle in the same manner as their Silmarillion recordings Returning artists from The Silmarillion include: Simon Crosby Buttle as Frodo Emma Mary Llewellyn as Arwen and Goldberry Martin Lloyd as Treebeard and the Herb Master Sophie Yelland as the Barrow-Wight and Louise Ratcliffe as Lindir with George Newton-Fitzgerald and Jasey Hall taking on a plethora of parts.  Angharad Morgan is also reprising her role as Galadriel from The War of Wrath Other new cast members include Rhodri Prys Jones as Legolas Francesca Saracino and Steffan Lloyd-Evans in various other solo roles and Howard Kirk as Tom Bombadil and Quickbeam it adheres without any but the most minor alterations to the author’s original words and the original plot development remains unchanged – including such elements as Tom Bombadil and the Barrow-wight the love story of Éowyn and Faramir and the ‘scouring of the Shire’ such as the coronation and wedding of Aragorn The issue includes not only the complete musical score but also a substantial booklet containing full details of the recording (including the text as set) and a supplementary appendix disc giving more extended versions of some of the more substantial narrative poems As with the earlier issues of The Silmarillion the cover art has been furnished by Ted Nasmith Find out more about the recordings by Volante Opera Productions Discover the Music of Paul Corfield Godfrey Physical copies directly from Volante Opera Productions available for pre-order now; orders from other retailers will be closer to the release date Digital purchase will be available to pre-order seven days before release date of Sept 5th Streaming platforms will be very limited but specific platforms will be itemised closer to the release And just to make September 5th seem even longer to wait – here’s a teaser trailer to whet your appetite! (You can see a longer trailer here.) Technology Cody CombsWashingtonMay 05 Strauss’s Salome returned to the Metropolitan Opera on Tuesday evening in a new production by Claus Guth coming rather late in the 61-year-old German opera director’s career For those who have wondered why a sixteen-year-old girl can be so emotionally twisted and sexually depraved a small girl in a black velvet dress with a white collar and black bow appears center stage with a doll Guth establishes that Salome was one disturbed little girl as a loud wisecrack about a cellphone prompted a burst of laughter in the darkened house.  The first few measures alone establish mood and foreshadow the story’s trajectory Guth’s deep dive into Salome’s psyche doesn’t require a prelude that Strauss didn’t write The director further updates the action to the late Victorian era from Galilee in the early first century C.E This corresponds to when Oscar Wilde’s one-act tragedy in which Jochanaan languishes chained to the walls Guth employs the Met’s stage elevators to transition between the two scenes Egyptians are among the guests at the party that opens the opera The stage is dominated by a large statue of an Egyptian deity with the head of a ram cavorting with a beautiful naked blond woman whom they hoist high above their heads Guth leaves no doubt that Herod’s palace is a hotbed of lasciviousness.  His twist is to illuminate the reason for Salome’s warped psyche The younger ones silently witness the oldest Salome’s descent into madness including a very young one sitting on a shelf holding a teddy bear as Salome attempts to seduce Jochanaan The silver mirror and tray upon which Salome demands that Jochanaan’s severed head be delivered to her are the same Servants hold them to reflect the Dance of the Seven Veils but the head is brought to Salome by one of her younger selves cradled in her arms More subtle is the use of video to depict the winds and whirl of insects that haunt Herod The stage is bathed in soft light from the large moon as Herod orders his servants to kill Salome.  Guth does not shy away from depicting sex and gore as she manipulates him into letting her speak to Jochanaan Salome clutches her dress and begins to masturbate The beheaded Jochanaan sits bound to his chair but seven Salomes perform the Dance of the Seven Veils to Yannick Nézet-Séguin and the Met Orchestra’s dazzling It was gripping and horrifying to watch the seven Salomes relive the trauma of their childhood The youngest slipped their veils and danced like marionettes clutched tight to a male teacher The cane he used to punish them became a spear in the oldest Salome that pierced him through the heart Guth made the Dance of the Seven Veils the emotional climax that Strauss intended Elza van den Heever embodied Strauss’s description of the singer he desired in this role as “a 16-year-old princess with the voice of Isolde.” The black dress visually infantilized Salome while van den Heever’s complete immersion in the psyche of a teenage girl did so dramatically Her transformation into a sexually charged woman was achieved by slipping out of the dress A simple white sheath made all the difference Van den Heever has ventured into Wagner (and Beethoven’s Leonore) but steered clear of Isolde The role extends downward into the contralto range it was another matter with van den Heever’s voice slicing through the dense orchestra with ease and beauty The soprano not only conquered but triumphed in this notoriously difficult role.  Mattei’s Jochanaan was cadaverously thin and ashen white as the fearsome and fearless prophet who berates Herodius and bewitches her daughter It’s a one-dimensional role to which Mattei brings his characteristic nuance as a singer and actor Tenor Gerhard Siegel’s dark-suited Herod dominated the stage enthralled by Jochanaan’s holiness and power Wearing a lurid orange wig and ruched velvet gown of the same color Michelle DeYoung’s Herodias was called upon to do little more than pose and a trap door opened to reveal a hand holding a bottle Piotr Buszewski’s Narraboth was forthright in voice and character Besotted by the forbidden fruit of a princess he wasn’t driven to suicide by Salome’s depravity but accidentally impaled on a baluster she had removed from a staircase a participant in the Met’s Lindemann Young Artists Development Program Nézet-Séguin led the Met Orchestra in a performance in which orchestral color dazzled as much as the silvery he sculpted a performance of intricate detail that captured the full arc of the drama There was one final departure from the libretto After Herod orders his guards to kill Salome transcendent moment in which Salome triumphed over her past Salome runs through May 24. metopera.org  Subscribe via RSS LondonRattle and the London Symphony Orchestra’s survey of Janáček’s operas arrives at the zany Mr Brouček With Peter Hoare in the lead role and the likes of Lucy Crowe and Aleš Briscein even with surtitles to translate the sung text and an interval in which to scour Wikipedia for the details of 15th-century Czech history Since the release of the Prague National Theatre’s version last summer there’s no longer a clear gap in the market for the recording that will be made from the LSO’s two performances Behind the brittleness of the opera’s characters there’s music full of fleeting moments of beauty and these receive their full due in a genial performance from Rattle and the LSO although having them singing across the stage rather than straight at the audience slightly dulls their impact In both dreams, Rattle keeps the pace up, letting the music dance as it glides seamlessly in and out of waltzes and mazurkas, and propelling it through the militaristic episodes without making them march too inflexibly. Few singers could make as convincing a job of the title role as Peter Hoare periodically swigging from a lager bottle as he goes The three main women he encounters – one real her soprano especially gleaming in the moon episode with its silvery sound world; the corresponding male roles are sung by the clarion Czech tenor Aleš Briscein sounding velvety in the long oration for the author Čech gamely throwing in some yoga poses as he sings and the diamond-bright soprano Doubravka Novotná At the Barbican Hall, London, repeated on Tuesday Opera Festival of Chicago kicks off 2025 with The Love of Three Kings and a season of rare works The Opera Festival of Chicago opened its fifth season on May 9 with a triumphant performance of The Love of Three Kings (L’Amore dei tre Re) bringing a long-lost Italian masterwork to the Chicago stage for the first time in 70 years offers opera lovers a rich lineup of rarely performed works and thrilling music across a range of venues in the Chicagoland area The 2025 season launched at the Athenaeum Center with The Love of Three Kings and doomed love by Italian composer Italo Montemezzi Directed by Sasha Gerritson and conducted by Uff the production featured a cast of over 40 performers and an orchestra of 39 musicians was once internationally acclaimed but has since slipped into obscurity The Love of Three Kings follows the blind King Archibaldo and fate spiral toward a devastating end in a story told through lush orchestration and powerful vocal performances The lead cast included Andrea Silvestrelli as Archibaldo The 2025 season carries the theme “Love is a Triangle,” reflected in both its repertoire and its emotionally charged narratives Upcoming highlights include the Delicatessen Recital on June 5 celebrating food-inspired arias; the Love is a Triangle concert on June 14 and a season finale featuring Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci on June 27 and 29 emphasized its mission to revive Italian operatic gems rarely seen in the U.S “We created this festival to breathe new life into incredible works that deserve to be heard,” Gerritson said “Our fifth season is a celebration of passion the festival also supports rising talent through its Young Artists Program offering early-career performers opportunities to train and perform alongside seasoned professionals Performances this season will take place at key venues across the city, including the Athenaeum Theatre, Artifacts Events, the Jarvis Opera House at DePaul University, and the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets for all events range from $25 to $50, with subscriptions and further information available at OperaFestivalChicago.org Your browser is out of date and potentially vulnerable to security risks.We recommend switching to one of the following browsers: MITCHELL – Fans of legendary singer-songwriter James Taylor won’t want to miss “Sweet Baby James,” hailed as America’s #1 James Taylor tribute live at the Mitchell Opera House on Friday Singer-songwriter Bill Griese will bring his acclaimed show to town offering a unique experience that focuses solely on the great music of James Taylor Griese captivates audiences with his uncanny Taylor-like vocals and guitar playing audience members have described Griese as “the next best thing to James,” praising his “spot on” voice and “amazing guitar playing.” Attendees can expect to hear beloved classics such as “Fire and Rain,” “You’ve Got a Friend,” “Shower the People,” “How Sweet It Is,” and “Steamroller,” along with lesser-known gems from Taylor’s extensive catalog Tickets for this performance are $25 for all admissions and can be purchased online by clicking here. The doors to the Mitchell Opera House will open at 6:15 p.m Please note that food and drinks are not permitted inside the auditorium Serving Lawrence and surrounding counties since 1948 Madison Opera closes its season with Mozart's scandalous rogue Eaton (from left) in "Don Giovanni," Madison Opera You don’t have to like Don Giovanni to be drawn into his world That’s part of the opera’s genius — and its danger Mozart’s score seduces even as the story condemns asking us to look past the charm and see what it conceals Madison Opera's final production of the 2024-2025 season isn’t just about a man facing the devil — it’s about a man who wears the devil’s mask Don Giovanni follows a charming nobleman who seduces deceives and discards people with reckless abandon — until those he’s wronged begin to close in From abandoned lovers to a grieving daughter and her vengeful fiancé When he kills the father of one of his victims Madison Opera delivered a performance with plenty of theatrical muscle and more than a few standout moments Three next-level performers elevated the evening every time they were on stage Katerina Burton sang Donna Anna with vocal fire and dramatic conviction — every line carried weight and her “Or sai chi l’onore” was both crystalline and commanding Emily Fons brought a riveting complexity to Donna Elvira combining velvety phrasing with the raw edges of emotional instability She didn’t just sing Elvira — she agonized in real time making her one of the most human figures on stage Fons was in full command of both the character and the music delivering a performance that felt lived-in and luminous anchored the opera’s moral reckoning with thunderous authority These were performances that felt built for larger stages — and Madison was lucky to have them Barry Steele’s lighting design was magnificent — helping a largely gray set come to life with unexpected depth and glow The color choices and transitions added emotional texture where the set alone might have felt spare Jeff Skubal’s fight choreography also brought welcome energy It worked more often than not and injected a sense of physical risk into scenes that might otherwise lean static Charles Eaton returned to Madison Opera to make his role debut as that rakish rascal Don Giovanni and there were extended moments of a very strong portrayal and when he settled into the character’s seductive swagger — especially in the "Champagne Aria" and the graveyard scene — you could glimpse a compelling Giovanni in the making The role is a bear — vocally and psychologically — and Eaton is still finding his full footing Some of the evening’s shortcomings came down to timing Director David Lefkowich signed on just two weeks before rehearsals began — and while he clearly brought focus and urgency the staging sometimes lacked the nuance and specificity that deepen a production Don Giovanni is one of those rare operas where the stage directions are practically written into the score — the drama is already in the music at times rose to the level of Mozart’s scripted humor — delivering crisp patter and playful physicality that drew real laughs But some of the directorial choices surrounding his character blurred the period’s class boundaries A servant like Leporello would never have touched a noblewoman like Donna Elvira — not casually which blunted the class dynamics that are central to the opera’s structure There were other moments that didn’t quite ignite The Act I confrontation between Donna Anna and Don Giovanni — a moment charged with trauma and memory — needed more psychological heat but the staging around her didn’t support the emotional stakes It’s one of the most pivotal scenes in the opera I’m a longtime admirer of Maestro John DeMain — I’ve heard the Madison Symphony shimmer under his baton with tempos that drifted and balances that blurred The connection between pit and stage felt tenuous the orchestra often seemed a half-step behind — not just DeMain The cast also could have benefited from sharper Italian diction but there are lots of pure “ah”s — and when those get muddied The language has a natural grace that lifts the vocal line some moments lost their shape and their sensuality Don Giovanni remains one of opera’s most rewarding challenges and Madison Opera approached it with ambition and care Madison Opera’s final Don Giovanni performance is Sunday, May 4 please send an email with the following information to calendar@isthmus.com Here's the information we need to include your event in our calendar: * event date; RSVP/ticket deadline if there is one email or website we can publish (REQUIRED) Optional info:* bios/press releases for posting with the online listing That’s how far Gothenburg sophomore Carter Kincheloe will be traveling to sing at one of the world’s most iconic performing arts centers: Australia’s Sydney Opera House The 16-year-old tenor said he’s been singing for as long as he can remember “I always find it difficult when people ask ‘What was the moment you knew?’ Because auditioned for the five-day High School Honors Performance Series after being nominated by one of the music professionals he has worked with After the nomination he was invited to audition by submitting a vocal recording and a written statement on what the opportunity meant to him and why he wanted to be part of the choir Carter Kincheloe performs at Royal Festival Hall in London as part of an honor choir said they have “such a good program here in Gothenburg that if 50 kids were to apply to the program we might have 50 kids going to Australia,” but that he is extremely proud of Carter as he takes this “solo mission” across the sea The family has also received massive support from the community helping them fundraise to cover some travel costs and wishing Carter “all the luck in the world.” “We’re just pretty lucky to be where we’re at bringing together high school students from all across the world Previously he was selected for an international honor choir that performed at the Royal Festival Hall in London He has also performed at Carnegie Hall in New York is that he will be working with the same conductor from Carnegie Hall when he goes to Australia Carter Kincheloe performs with an honor choir at the Royal Festival Hall in London and we’re singing one of the songs that he had composed that we had sung before in New York.” is that moment on stage where you “just get to take in everything.” “That’s just an incredible feeling,” he said “And my absolute favorite thing with these is right after the performance going to see family and all these kids from all over the world that you worked with for the last week I love that moment right after when you get to share it with everyone you’re with.” Receive the latest in local entertainment news in your inbox weekly Email notifications are only sent once a day Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device Account processing issue - the email address may already exist Invalid password or account does not exist Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account Broadway Off-Broadway Off-Off Broadway Cabaret Dance Opera Classical Music Nashville Minneapolis / St. Paul Connecticut Atlanta Chicago Los Angeles WEST END UK Regional Canada Australia / New Zealand Europe Asia Latin America Africa / Middle East TV/Movies Music Something's coming, something good! Countless fans know and love Leonard Bernstein’s landmark work and the iconic original choreography created by the legendary Jerome Robbins Now the Broadway classic is coming to Los Angeles Starring Gabriella Reyes as Maria and Duke Kim as Tony RUBICON THEATRE is continuing its season with the U.S. Premiere of  the acclaimed West End version of the Tony Nominated musical BONNIE & CLYDE. Check out all new photos here! Now celebrating its 33rd anniversary year, The Blank Theatre's Nationwide Young Playwrights Festival (YPF) has chosen 12 plays by playwrights aged 16–19 from six different states. Audiences across America have been loving Tevye in New York!, which has been touring nationally. Now, it arrives at Theatre West for two performances. Learn more here! LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE will present one of August Wilson’s greatest triumphs focusing on the decade of the ‘50s, the Pulitzer Prize winning play FENCES, directed by Yvette Freeman-Hartley (Laguna Playhouse acclaimed production of Ain’t Misbehavin’). FENCES  will run through Sunday, May 18 at the Laguna Playhouse,. Check out photos here. function closestickysocial(){document.getElementById("foxsocial").style.display="none";}@media(max-width:1024px){.most-popular,.video-row{display:block;margin-top:25px}}Videos and exclusive discounts on tickets to your favorite shows © 2025 - Copyright Wisdom Digital Media, all rights reserved. Privacy Policy John Moore stars in Mason Bates’ The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs at Washington National Opera Washington National Opera does right by its name in presenting American operas. The latest example is its production of The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs by Mason Bates, heard on opening night Friday. Given the trendiness of the subject matter one would have expected the Kennedy Center Opera House to be much fuller than it was but large swaths of the orchestra level remained empty Part of the problem was the decidedly un-operatic start time of 5:30 p.m Chosen to accommodate the first night of the annual WNO Gala with its swanky dinners hosted by ambassadors throughout the city the time choice made getting to the venue that much more difficult this 90-minute one-act opera has appeared in several American houses often in the same production brought to Washington Mark Campbell’s libretto follows the mind of Jobs as he revisits episodes from his life His father gives him a workbench for his birthday he collaborates with Steve Wozniak to found Apple in his parents’ garage and he gives the famous announcement of the iPhone He drops acid with his high-school girlfriend and later denies his paternity of her daughter and his Zen spiritual adviser pull him back from the brink so he can become a better father although only death finally convinces him to relinquish control That decision makes the judgment of the voices difficult as relative balances are mostly in the control of someone other than the performers and conductor Baritone John Moore has performed the title role many times a sense of experience that came through in his performance the chorus and orchestra still overwhelmed his voice but he combined a polished tone and stage presence with a nasty egomaniacal edge A woman in the audience actually yelled at him during his dismissive confrontation with Chrisann John Moore and Winona Martin as Laurene Powell Jobs in The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs Mezzo-soprano Winona Martin has had a number of remarkable appearances as a Cafritz Young Artist in recent years soothing presence always announced with a halo of string sound Some of her sustained high notes frayed toward the end a failing only made more apparent by the amplification In Santa Fe, another distinguished Cafritz Young Artists alumnus, bass Wei Wu, created the role of Kōbun, the Zen master who advised Jobs. He showed the same sagacity and gentle humor, as well as resonant bottom notes, in reprising the role on the stage where he had so many youthful triumphs soprano Kresley Figueroa and mezzo-soprano Michelle Mariposa provided highlights as Chrisann and Jobs’ calligraphy teacher The composer’s revisions of the score have not made this opera any more convincing as a drama The opening scenes remained the most effective especially the sound worlds created around the three principal characters of Jobs when Jobs’ egotistical nature leads too hastily to his downfall at Apple All of his faults have to be redeemed too quickly after that complete with “aahing” Disney-style chorus conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya kept steady control over the score’s mixture of acoustic and synthesized sound rather than by Bates himself with his signature laptop contributed the most distinctive instrumental parts along with a broad range of percussion instruments just sixteen singers prepared by Steven Gathman stayed in lockstep with Yankovskaya and each other providing the most effective check on Jobs as the board of directors toward the end of the opera featured an overload of projections (designed by S in an almost seizure-inducing visual overkill spinning musical instruments as Jobs trips on LSD The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs runs through May 10, including a May 9 performance with some substitutions by Cafritz Young Artists. kennedy-center.org Toledo Opera will present the inaugural spring performances of Opera ‘Round Town – formerly known as Opera Outdoors – with weekly performances at Wildwood Preserve Metropark The first performance will take place on the front lawn at the Manor House at Wildwood Preserve Metropark on Wednesday the performance will be moved indoors to the Manor House Lawn chairs and/or picnic blankets are recommended The series will continue Wednesdays May 14 and 21 both at 6 p.m The May 7 performance marks the first performance under the Opera ‘Round Town name following the rebranding of the series earlier this year Developed in partnership with presenting sponsor iHeart Media Opera ‘Round Town expands Toledo Opera’s community engagement efforts offering live performances at a range of community hubs across the region The upcoming spring series will feature the Opera’s 2024-2025 cohort of resident artists selected from an international pool of more than 150 applicants for a one-year residency in Toledo Resident Artists Sarah Rachel Bacani (soprano) and Alessandro “Alex” Rotundo (pianist) will perform iconic vocal selections from the classical repertoire along with musical theatre and other American standards Opera ‘Round Town represents an important step in making opera more accessible to the public: “With Opera ‘Round Town we’re bringing the power and beauty of live opera directly into the heart of our community – at the Metroparks and beyond Thanks to the generous support of iHeart Media this rebranded series makes opera more accessible and more connected to the region we serve.” “iHeart Media is thrilled to sponsor the newly rebranded Opera ‘Round Town and partner with Toledo Opera in yet another exciting music venture,” shared iHeart Media “We are passionate about supporting the arts and fostering musical talent and this collaboration is a wonderful opportunity to bring beautiful opera performances to our community we look forward to creating unforgettable experiences and celebrating the magic of music.” Click typewriter to read opinions from readers or to learn how to submit one of your own Interested in advertising here on the sidebar of BG Independent News, or in becoming an annual sponsor? Contact Elizabeth Roberts-Zibbel at elizabeth.lrz@gmail.com or click image below for the Advertise page also accessible from the Main Menu heading above When the curtain rose Saturday night on Siegfried at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre the gods themselves seemed to conspire against The Atlanta Opera the towering bass-baritone slated to embody the Wanderer—Wotan in his final fateful guise—was sidelined by allergies due to Atlanta’s merciless spring pollen Kyle Albertson was flown in at the eleventh hour to sing the role from behind a scrim embodying Wotan’s doomed gravitas in pantomime such a dual performance is not unprecedented in opera when the stakes are high and the character’s presence indispensable Grimsley hopes to recover in time to sing the second of four performances on Tuesday but what could have spelled disaster on opening night instead became yet another testament to the company’s history of resilience—and set the tone for a Siegfried that pulsed with urgency As the third and most transformative installment of Richard Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen Siegfried stands apart from its darker siblings in spirit and style It is a hero’s journey that lifts the cycle from the claustrophobic gloom of Die Walküre into a realm of discovery and dangerous innocence—but it does not escape the shadow of inevitable doom the old world crumbles as the new hero forges his path To navigate Siegfried successfully demands not only monumental vocal endurance but an acute grasp of the psychological tensions brewing beneath its brighter surface The Atlanta Opera achieved a production that honored both the exuberant and the ominous currents of Wagner’s epic One could almost imagine Siegfried as a kind of “Concerto for Tenor and Opera Company,” and Stefan Vinke delivered a titanic performance in the title role retained remarkable flexibility throughout the opera’s punishing demands from the boyish curiosity of Act I to the triumphant awakening of Brünnhilde in Act III Vinke’s Siegfried was no mere muscle-bound simpleton; he conveyed a hero of impulsive wonder often dangerously unaware of the consequences of his power Rodell Rosel offered a masterclass in character singing as Mime cutting tenor and meticulous diction captured Mime’s venomous cunning without tipping too far into caricature grounding the dwarf’s deception in all-too-human desperation Greer Grimsley’s portrayal of the Wanderer radiated authority through his physical presence world-weary vocalization from behind the scrim was admirably secure and commanding given the last-minute circumstances they forged a surprisingly seamless portrayal of Wotan’s twilight struggle: the once-mighty god reduced to a seemingly powerless observer Zachary Nelson brought a brooding Alberich to life a sharp counterpoint to the decaying grandeur of Wotan which cleverly balanced mythic terror with visual immediacy projecting clarity and a touch of mischief Mezzo-soprano Lindsay Ammann delivered a weary and sorrowful Erda in her brief but pivotal scene The moment of Brünnhilde’s awakening remains the emotional and dramatic fulcrum of Siegfried and soprano Lise Lindstrom did not disappoint Best known for her fearsome portrayals of Wagner and Strauss heroines gloriously unfurled as she charted Brünnhilde’s tumultuous journey from divine being to mortal woman culminating in an ecstatic union that nonetheless foreshadows the end of gods and heroes alike to come in Götterdämmerung Scenic and projection designer Erhard Rom crafted a mutable visual world enhanced by Robert Wierzel’s dramatic lighting and Mattie Ullrich’s costumes under Kalb’s steady and probing leadership sinewy score with emotional depth and sweep Kalb maintained a taut dramatic arc; even the opera’s more expansive passages never sagged into indulgence this Siegfried was a triumph born not just of talent and a profound commitment to Wagner’s monumental vision In facing down adversity both within the story and upon the stage The Atlanta Opera offered its audience a rare kind of operatic experience: one that mirrored the myth it set out to tell where heroism is not the absence of struggle Mark Gresham is publisher and principal writer of EarRelevant He began writing as a music journalist over 30 years ago but has been a composer of music much longer than that He was the winner of an ASCAP/Deems Taylor Award for music journalism in 2003 Things you buy through our links may earn Vox Media a commission At the end of the Metropolitan Opera’s new production of Richard Strauss’s Salome the soprano Elza van den Heever stayed onstage to accept the uproarious ovations with a weepy smile and a grateful tap on her heart That moment of curtain-call niceness came as a shock on opening night because for the previous two hours she had exuded the kind of casual What powers van den Heever’s performance is the gulf between the nastiness onstage and the glimmering warmth of her voice she sings as if she were wandering primly through a sunny meadow Strauss chiseled that fissure into her role writing seductive music for a violent story hollering about cataclysm and spewing curses into lopping off that sexy prisoner’s skull John the Baptist) in the image of baritone Peter Mattei ratcheting up the creepiness until the gross-out climax comes as a relief Guth’s goth staging might quickly start to look hokey a man in tuxedo and ram’s head groping a naked woman Young Salome in her Wednesday Addams outfit — the whole gestalt teeters on the verge of black comedy and kitsch Oscar Wilde’s play (which Strauss adapted for his libretto) compresses the action too much to allow for any real character development — the titular sociopath is just as sick at the beginning as she is at the end — so Guth fleshes it out with backstory we expect the first sounds to be Strauss’s slithering clarinet solo rising through C-sharp minor allowed that interpolation — embroidering the score of an opera is generally a no-no — but it’s effective as the accompaniment to a Victorian childhood A little girl smashes her doll on the floor just as the adolescent version will later knock over a statue that pulverizes when it hits the stage We get glimpses of moral decay in flashbacks: the girl sitting immobile on a high shelf clutching the doomed doll and watching her future incarnation romance the prisoner; the older Salome instructing her younger self how to slice the air with a toy sword and a sense of lethal purpose The opera became and has remained famous for its “Dance of the Seven Veils,” in which Strauss deliciously scored a disturbing act: a teenager’s public striptease Guth keeps van den Heever clothed and instead turns it into a dance of the seven Salomes all her previous selves and alter egos gathering around her in a physical display of the fractured mind But the true double-chambered heart of perversion is the pair of sexually charged encounters between Salome and Jochanaan who is outraged in one scene and dead in the other You can understand his appeal in the first instance: Mattei sings the role with virile power and a pious intensity that spills over into the erotic But the real attraction for the crazed princess is that he can’t escape when Salome descends into the palace’s bowels (or rather the dungeon rises to meet her) she finds Jochanaan in the divided form of a headless corpse Van den Heever outdoes herself here: Not every great singer can get away with playing a scene of sloppy necrophilia with such aplomb Fewer still can do that while singing with such untroubled suppleness without a trace of steeliness or gristle in her voice the opera is the culmination of a traumatic childhood We can see — and hear — Mom and Dad’s faults for ourselves Michelle DeYoung presides as the haughty mother her blood-orange dress a streak of color on the monochrome stage Gerhard Siegel earns the audience’s gratitude by singing Herod not as a weak-willed despot but as a comically lascivious burgher out of Rosenkavalier They don’t seem so bad — certainly not bad enough to have formed such an unhinged daughter only ill-equipped to cope with the person she’s become And so it falls to the orchestra to fill in the psychic landscape releasing all those bilious harmonies and seething rhythms in an unbroken two-hour spasm of excitement Salome is at the Metropolitan Opera through May 24 Password must be at least 8 characters and contain: you’ll receive occasional updates and offers from New York Ben Ganger continued his dominant run with a fourth straight win in Friday's episode of Jeopardy As has been the case in each of Ganger's wins he was essentially assured of a win going into the Final Jeopardy round by virtue of having more than double the score of his closest competitor Ganger's winning total Friday of $20,000 left him with a four-day total of $96,415 in winnings Ganger works as a data analyst at Goshen-based Viewrail He also sings with South Bend Lyric Opera and co-founded the South Bend chapter ofOpera on Tap South Bend, which hosts monthly recitals at Iron Hand Wine Bar South Bend is the only city in the state with both an opera company and Opera on Tap chapter Ganger proudly told The Tribune on April 30 A win on Monday's episode would give him the five wins needed to automatically qualify him for an entry in the year-end Jeopardy Tournament of Champions according to the guidelines on jeopardy.com CA marketing manager Shweta Balasubramanian and Atlanta attorney Sam Sabulis Ganger continued his trend of fast starts to the games He had $3,400 before either of his competitors was on the board at all and he rolled into the first commercial break with $4,000 to Sabulis' $1,200 and Balasubramanian's negative $1,000 He finished the Jeopardy round with $5,600 ahead of Sabulis' $1,800 and Balasubramanian's negative $200 His lead quickly grew in the Double Jeopardy round as he ran through the Classical Music category correctly answering four of the five clues He quickly added another $8,500 by correctly answering both daily doubles one in Governors and another in A is for Capitals In 2022 Car Seat Headrest was on the road touring — as one does in a band Frontman Will Toledo came down with COVID and it morphed into long COVID The band canceled the remainder of the tour and it was unclear if they would even continue as a group Toledo was bedridden and developed a histamine intolerance While dealing with all this he started work on what has become the band's latest release Rock operas can be hit or miss (see Greendale by Neil Young) but Car Seat Headrest has a solid offering here It's not at the same level as Ziggy Stardust or Tommy but it’s pretty cool that the band went down this road The story here focuses on a group of university students who may or may not have special gifts with each track taking on the viewpoint of a different narrator Deep analyzing and understanding this album's story is a task beyond what I can do here but I can imagine fans will be crafting their own ideas for years to come Part of the fun with albums like this is figuring out the story and coming to your own conclusions Most songs on the album are north of five minutes it doesn't make this the most easily-accessible Car Seat Headrest record and I would not recommend this album to you if you're unfamiliar with the band But if you're like me and have been into the band for a long time this is one of their most eclectic offerings yet I’m enjoying it more than Making A Door Less Open and in a day and age where rock seems less and less prevalent it's a fun listen that reminded me of the more fantastical aspects of the genre I'm sure the band has something impressive up their sleeve for the upcoming tour Some standouts for me were “The Catastrophe (Good Luck With That, Man),” “Gethsemane” and “Reality.” The later is almost like a time machine back to the days of Bowie and T.Rex Car Seat Headrest is a great rock band and this album rocks Embrace the 18-minute trip that track “Planet Desperation” offers and have a weird rocking time Nevada Chamber Opera captured an epic adventure with gingerbread men a sinister witch and two lost children — it’s Hansel and Gretel but inspired by 8-bit design and video games Under the direction of Katherine Parker and conducted by Jason Altieri this whimsical twist on Hansel and Gretel was brought to life.   an eclectic and playful array of characters were showcased The performance began with a tableau of the full cast of characters ranging from a bubbly fairy to a disgruntled mother looking for her two adventurous children The orchestra prefaced the fairytale with music influenced by folk with a mystical tone   Magen Gauthier began her stunning performance as the mischievous Gretel and amazed the audience with her timbre and vocal range portrayed the character like it was her own invention.   The German fairytale with Engelbert Humperdinck’s artistic depiction took a wild twist when the two children are tasked with embarking on a journey in the woods to collect berries for the household who makes her nurturing presence on stage using three orbs of light The sandman is accompanied by an ensemble of woodland creatures adding to the mythical nature of this old classic and she fostered a playful dynamic with Hansel and Gretel.   a comedically timed group of gingerbread men arrive on stage with the anticipated villain of this tale The audience adored Amber Hurtado’s performance of the evil witch and her portrayal was both comical and delightfully wicked Hurtado embodied this character impeccably with every shrill maniacal laugh and impressive melodic line.   UNR Opera’s depiction of Hansel and Gretel added an interesting twist to the century old tale alongside their incredible talent Hansel and Gretel is a notable children’s classic UNR decided to make the performance inspired by a video game adventure; a story everyone in the family could enjoy.   shares the opera’s vision and creative choices.  “Everyone knows the story of Hansel and Gretel so it’s pretty easy to grasp,” Holcomb said Doing the 8-bit set makes it more accessible to people who wouldn’t normally go to opera.”   UNR reimagined a dark fairy tale with 8-bit set pieces and pixelated art on the programs Costumes were also brilliantly crafted by Gene Brown to match the tone of this retelling The witch’s team of gingerbread men were comically timed and emulated the quintessential image of the whimsical cookie character Hansel and Gretel’s costumes were excellent for the setting of the 1800s.    Nevada Chamber Opera transformed a dark children’s fairy tale into a pixelated and even comedic story The riveting scores and cast of dynamic vocalists created a memorable performance Opinions expressed in The Nevada Sagebrush are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily express the views of The Sagebrush or its staff Kamryn Main is a student at the University of Nevada studying Journalism She can be reached at emilyhess@sagebrush.unr.edu and website in this browser for the next time I comment The Metropolitan Opera’s 2024-25 season of Saturday matinee broadcasts continues with Verdi's "Il Trovatore" (The Troubadour) Baritone Igor Golovatenko is the unbending Count di Luna with bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green as the soldier Ferrando Italian conductor Daniele Callegari leads the ensembles in a co-production of the Metropolitan Opera Lyric Opera of Chicago and San Francisco Opera From the Met: "Verdi’s turbulent tragedy of four characters caught in a web of family ties politics and love is a mainstay of the operatic repertory The score is as melodic as it is energetic with infectious tunes that are not easily forgotten "The vigorous music accompanies a dark and disturbing tale that revels in many of the most extreme expressions of Romanticism unlikely coincidences and characters who are impelled by raw emotion rather than cool logic." Read the synopsis from the Metropolitan Opera Libretto: Salvadore Cammarano with additions by Leone Emanuele Bardare the product of a movement to resurrect ancient Greek drama Story ideas? Email VP/News Jim Rossow at jrossow@news-gazette.com The Lyric Theatre @ Illinois ended its spring 2025 season with a remarkable production of Claudio Monteverdi’s trailblazing opera “Orfeo.” I attended the opening night on April 24 many composers have made modernized versions of it and many so-called authentic versions have been staged and recorded Monteverdi chose one of the most famous myths of ancient Greece The renowned musician Orfeo suffers the loss of his bride and he travels to the Underworld to bring her back to the land of the living to grant Orfeo’s wish but with the proviso that Orfeo not look back at his wife until they are out of the Underworld Orfeo breaks that rule by looking at Eurydice who descends to the stage as “deus ex machina.” Because this opera is written in a Renaissance/Baroque style and employs neo-platonic allegorical personas it might seem antiquated to a modern audience and the splendid staging of this production that the opening night performance had strong emotional power united to bring out the still-vital forces in this masterwork This production had in its favor an outstanding singer he was able to portray all the facets of his role then the courageous artist trying to get back his beloved and finally the stage of philosophical serenity He was joined by fresh-voiced Jessica Blomberg in the role of his ill-starred wife as the prologue La Musica introduced the plot and Lila Dettelback as Speranza (Hope) offered sympathetic advice as she guided Orfeo to Hades Ominously costumed Aidan Singh played Charon and he added a comic note to the grim voyage to Hades Grandly bedecked Kasey Sliwinski as Hades’ King Plutone gave little relief to Orfeo showed that the forces of nature echoed Orfeo’s laments shared with Orfeo the glories of the night sky Music director Andrea Solya’s conducting drew a well-coordinated performance from the chorus the string players on stage and the quartet of trombones from the balcony Dawn Harris’ direction maintained a lively flow of action and Rachel Rizzuto’s choreography gave delight to the eye Brian Sidney Bembridge’s scenic design created splendid vistas especially the green world at the end of the opera The lighting design by Sarah Goldstein aptly underlined the dramatic crises of the story Others who contributed to such an accomplished production were sound designer Lizi Shaul media designer Lili Federico and stage manager Jessica Reddig Director of the Lyric Theatre Julie Jordan Gunn said in her speech before the opera began that during the 2025/26 season the Lyric Theatre will offer the 2017 musical “Anastasia” (based on the 1997 Disney animation film) and the 1998 opera “Little Women” by composer Mark Adamo John Frayne hosts ‘Classics of the Phonograph’ on Saturdays on WILL-FM and, in retirement, regularly teaches at the Osher Lifelong Learner Institute in Champaign. His email is frayne@illinois.edu The concert of the Champaign-Urbana Symphony on April 12 had a special By Scott CantrellSpecial Contributor The opera “contains explicit material including simulated sex acts it may be the most insistently sexualized opera I’ve seen although much about it is powerful both dramatically and musically the plot can challenge some other operas for implausibility is performed in a new staging by Francesca Zambello HGO presents six productions a season on a budget of $33 million News RoundupsCatch up on the day's news you need to know GoogleFacebookBy signing up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy young Bess weds a Norwegian oil-rigger named Jan Although — maybe because — Bess has been raised in a repressive Calvinist community she immediately becomes the sexual aggressor Jan suffers a brain injury that leaves him paralyzed below the waist he commands Bess to have sex with other men Her increasingly risky liaisons get her expelled from the community punctuated with flashes of bright winds and percussion Her vocal writing isn’t conventionally tuneful but even extremes of pitch and volume have their own inevitability Breaking the Waves was revived in Houston by Sara Brodie Designer Soutra Gilmour supplied costumes and a set mainly consisting of a big revolving cluster of sharp-tipped columns sometimes transformed by Will Duke’s projections Lauren Snouffer, the excellent Mélisande in the Dallas Opera’s recent Pelléas et Mélisande Ryan McKinny’s dense bass-baritone suited Jan’s transition from tenderness to rage and back again who cares for Jan even as he watches over Bess’ precarious mental state was portrayed in considerable complexity by tenor David Portillo Mezzo Maire Therese Carmack and soprano Michelle Bradley were dramatically and vocally powerful as Sam Dhobhany boomed imposingly as Jan’s roughhewn friend Terry With baritone Michael Mayes as the imposing and sonorous Councilman the male chorus served variously — and sang stirringly — as stern proclaimers of the law HGO chorus director Richard Bado had done excellent work HGO artistic and music director Patrick Summers coordinated the very tricky proceedings on Wednesday with a sure and sympathetic hand and the orchestra supplied a vast range of sounds and effects The first two acts were brilliantly imagined and emotionally gripping Tannhäuser is about a group of medieval knight-troubadours The opera’s eponym has left after a dispute and yielded to the seductions of Venus — yes that Venus — in her love-nest grotto and Tannhäuser decides to return to the company of the knights After Wolfram von Eschenbach hymns the virtues of courtly love Tannhäuser shocks — and infuriates — the assembly by praising physical pleasures is persuaded to send Tannhäuser off to Rome to seek absolution for his sins from the pope but salvation comes from Elizabeth’s death Venus inhabits not a grotto of sensuous delights but a chichi 1920s salon The song contest happens in what looks like a spare Quaker meetinghouse the knight-troubadours in stern 19th-century cutaways And why would these stern Protestants advocate blessing from a pope part of the meetinghouse had been blasted away with snow falling through the missing roof The cast supplied a lot of powerful singing Tuesday night It probably didn’t help that all the principals were singing their roles for the first time Sasha Cooke’s Venus sang in such unremitting quadrissimo that her seductive words would have scared off any lover Tamara Wilson began Elizabeth’s celebratory “Dich teure Halle” with an enormous but steely sound that yielded to warmer effects as the opera progressed Sometimes girlish giddiness was at odds with her matronly look although maybe it suggested arrested development in the repressive milieu Alexandros Stavrakakis bellowed not very aristocratically Luke Sutliff and Cory McGee were competent if not particularly distinctive as the finest singing of the nearly four-hour evening came from Ani Kushyan’s bright-toned and the big HGO contingent sang with well-focused authority over a wide dynamic range Conductor Erik Nielsen sensitively shaped introspective music but also maintained sure control over dramatic passages Aside from some fuzzy chords at the beginning and a couple of messy violin spots Houston Grand Opera’s production of Breaking the Waves repeats at 2 p.m. May 2. $24 to $220. Tannhäuser repeats at 7 p.m. May 3 and 8, and 2 p.m. May 11. $24 to $352. Performances in Brown Theater of Wortham Theater Center, 501 Texas St., Houston. 713-228-6737, houstongrandopera.org. Thank you for reading. We welcome your thoughts on this topic. Comments are moderated for adherence to our Community Guidelines Please read the guidelines before participating It was a night of glamour and glitz in 1950 at the Municipal Auditorium in Oklahoma City a collage of photos from the event was published in The Daily Oklahoman Among the captioned photos was an image of theatergoers waiting in the lobby: Throngs of people waited in the lobby until the last minute before rushing to their seats They wanted to see the glitter and glamor as it came in — and it was there tickets changed hands in the milling lobby crowd Patrons who bought tickets months ago held onto them a full-page advertisement had announced the availability of tickets to the one-night-only production of "Carmen." The Oklahoma Publishing Company and WKY radio station were sponsors of the show The Metropolitan Opera association is bringing grand opera to Oklahoma City for the first time May 3 The opera will be the well known and popular "Carmen" by Bizet with a top-flight cast headed by Rise Stevens ballet and technical service staffs are large and costly and their financial guarantees are formidable admission prices for this performance compare favorably with those for concerts of comparable calibre in New York and other metropolitan centers A price scale to fit every income bracket has been established Tickets for boxes and choice orchestra seats were priced at $9.76; center rear of orchestra and part of the mezzanine cost $7.32; sides of the main floor rear of mezzanine would be $4.88; sides and rear of first balcony were $2.44; and all of the second balcony was $1.83 Preparations for the opera began to take shape just days before the curtain would rise the tour director for the Metropolitan Opera arrived in Oklahoma City on March 23 to oversee backstage work and planning needed for the 300 touring members Robinson explained what it would take to host the opera in Oklahoma City: Then he mentioned others — a business staff of five a makeup crew of three and four assistant conductors who would sing in the title role of "Carmen," traveled by train and arrived in Oklahoma City on May 1 When asked what she would do with the extra time remaining before the performance The night many in the city had been anticipating finally came and the opera reportedly left an impression as told in a story on May 4 in The Daily Oklahoman: If operatic first nighters really wanted to see opera at its finest gave a superb performance of "Carmen" in the company's first performance in Oklahoma City It was the ideal vehicle for the festive occasion which marked what we hope will be a long term relationship with the New York company This first weekend of May brings a wide variety of arts options to explore across metro Detroit Here are just five you may want to add to your calendar Detroit’s comic book legacyFrom the earliest days of fandom to the rise of iconic superheroes and gritty anti-heroes Detroit has been a quiet but powerful force in shaping comic book history May 3 (Free Comic Book Day) at the Detroit Historical Museum Villains: Detroit’s Comic Book Story" will share the histories of the iconic characters and local creatives who helped define the modern world of comics Villains" also shines a spotlight on the many Detroit-affiliated writers publishers and fans whose work brought characters to life helped stories find wide audiences and pushed the boundaries of visual storytelling Visitors will discover how Detroit creatives like Rich Buckler Arvell Jones and Matt Feazell changed the game The exhibition opens to the public at noon; Detroit Historical Society members can enjoy members-only early access at 10 a.m Detroit Historical Museum, 5401 Woodward Ave., Detroit. detroithistorical.org May the Fourth Be With YouIn honor of Star Wars Day (May 4) at the Macomb Center for the Performing Arts the Macomb Symphony Orchestra will perform a wide canvas of John Williams’ legendary music from across the “Star Wars” galaxy All ages are welcome for this thrilling afternoon Macomb Center for the Performing Arts, 44575 Garfield Rd., Clinton Twp. macombsymphony.org the world’s oldest and largest art glass gallery Habatat represents the finest glass artists in the world working with collectors and museums internationally More than 400 works of art glass are featured in Habatat's 16,000-square-foot gallery Habatat Detroit Fine Art, 4400 Fernlee Ave., Royal Oak. habatat.com Ever wondered how a new opera comes together will present “Be Beautiful Inside,” a workshop performance review and provide feedback for the musical work based on Beth Griffith-Manley’s book “I Am Beautiful Inside & Out.” (The author will also be in attendance.) The performers hail from Motor City Lyric Opera’s Opera on Wheels Ensemble: Angela Bonello Will Fishwick and Lydia Bangura along with instrumentalists Sonia Lee and Jean Schneider The Schvitz Detroit, 8295 Oakland Ave., Detroit. facebook.com/TheMotorCityLyricOpera at Beverly Hills’ Seligman Performing Arts Center Chamber Music Detroit will take guests on a sonic journey spanning centuries The Miró Quartet will pay homage to the 1938 collaboration between Benny Goodman and the Budapest String Quartet with special guest bass/baritone Joseph Parrish and clarinetist David Shifrin The evening will open with Mozart’s clarinet quintet and proceed to encompass big band songs arranged for baritone and quartet such as “Begin the Beguine” and “A Night in Tunisia,” as well as Goodman tunes arranged for clarinet and quartet Seligman Performing Arts Center, 22305 West 13 Mile Rd., Beverly Hills. chambermusicdetroit.org Tickets start at $30; digital streaming available for $12.50 Contact Free Press arts and culture reporter Duante Beddingfield at dbeddingfield@freepress.com Sorry, you must be using a modern browser with JavaScript enabled to view videos Nassim starts the fire with a marathon slide before running an absolute clinic from SD to Barci in this power-packed part We use cookies and similar technologies to help personalize content, tailor and measure ads, and provide a better experience. 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See our ethics policy “It’s a unique opportunity to do something that’s not super abundant in California,” George Dingle says is helping to envision the 1,000 square feet They’re keeping the cozy fireplace and prominent bar and planning to add British racing green walls and blood red leather banquettes They refurbished the original tables from Monsieur Benjamin and will cover them with fresh white tablecloths And they’ve already started collecting some eccentric animal artwork — picture raccoons and flamingos dressed in Victorian clothes George Dingle is promising a proper Sunday roast with Yorkshire pudding and glossy gravy “A little bit of love handle…” the chef confirms “There are enough places where you can get French fries these are English chips.” There will be a few concessions to SF cravings — of course you could have a hot date at the bar with caviar she wants to keep things friendly with everything under a hundred dollars She’ll be pouring sparkling wine from England She’s also excited to source closer to her hometown in the Santa Cruz Mountains and Santa Lucia Highlands; she went to the same high school as Scott Caraccioli and appreciates the pinot noir and Chardonnay of their region as well as forgotten grapes like negrette and Cabernet Pfeffer They’ll have a few good English ales on rotating taps inspired by the legendary hotel bars of London Chef Corey Lee called him back to lead Monsieur Benjamin in 2018 despite the pandemic interruption and a resulting visa scare She also started at Monsieur Benjamin in 2018 where initially she butted heads with the new English chef when both of us held on as tightly as possible to MB because that was like our rock,” Anissa Dingle says “That’s where we learned that we both cared about the industry and had the same dreams and aspirations.” The couple married in 2023 with a roast dinner reception at Monsieur Benjamin As for the Sunday roast, those can be hard to find in the city. The iconic House of Prime Rib takes loose inspiration from England, with its thin slices and Yorkshire pudding, but spins quickly into American steakhouse classics. The Cavalier claims to be a London-inspired brasserie, although none of the owners appear to be Brits. When they’re craving a scampi, they pop round the Pig & Whistle But this English-born and star-powered chef is excited to share his personal perspective are you going to do bangers and mash?’” George Dingle says People have only one impression of British food But we just want to do some cool British staples and food that we like eating.” Dingles Public House (333 Fulton Street) is opening as soon as fall 2025