Huang Ruo and David Henry Hwang’s ‘The Monkey King’ persuasively conjured the spirit of Chinese opera; Matthew Ozawa’s new Wagner production had admirable clarity. By Heidi Waleson Nov. 19, 2025 at 4:31 pm ET Kang Wang in ‘The Monkey King.’ CORY WEAVER/SAN FRANCISCO OPERA San Francisco Huang Ruo’s “The Monkey King,” which had its world premiere at the San …
Continue reading “A Propulsive Premiere and a Thoughtful ‘Parsifal’ at San Francisco Opera”
Les Arts Florissants performed a concert in dialogue with an exhibition devoted to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher; Sonnambula, the museum’s ensemble-in-residence, collaborated with singer Davóne Tines to reconstruct a 1605 court entertainment. By Heidi Waleson Nov. 4, 2025 at 5:09 pm ET Singers of Les Arts Florissants. CHRIS SUNWOO/THE FRICK COLLECTION New York The Oct. …
Continue reading “Adventures in Early Music at the Frick Collection”
Nadine Sierra stars in the company’s new production, thoughtfully directed by Rolando Villazón, of Bellini’s opera about a woman coming up against the strictures of a Swiss village. By Heidi Waleson Oct. 8, 2025 at 5:13 pm ET Nadine Sierra in ‘La Sonnambula.’ PHOTO: MARTY SOHL/MET OPERA New York For the new Metropolitan Opera production of Vincenzo Bellini’s “La Sonnambula” …
Continue reading “‘La Sonnambula’ Review: At the Met Opera, a Sleepwalking Soprano Shines”
The company opened its 50th season with a gleefully silly, powerfully sung production that set the 1825 comedy in an art gallery; in New York, Samoan tenor Pene Pati brought warmth and expressiveness to a recital at Park Avenue Armory. By Heidi Waleson Oct. 1, 2025 at 5:01 pm ET A scene from the opera. PHOTO: STEVEN PISANO …
Continue reading “Il Viaggio a Reims’ Review: Opera Philadelphia’s Raucous Rossini”
An adaptation of Michael Chabon’s novel about the creation of a comic-book hero at the outset of World War II struggled to come to life in the company’s season-opening production, directed by Bartlett Sher. By Heidi Waleson Sept. 23, 2025 at 5:22 pm ET Andrzej Filończyk and Miles Mykkanen PHOTO: EVAN ZIMMERMAN / MET OPERA Like many contemporary …
The countertenor stars and sings in Charles Ludlam’s irreverent 1983 play about the legendary diva, directed by Eric Ting at New York’s Little Island. By Heidi Waleson Sept. 15, 2025 at 5:03 pm ET Anthony Roth Costanzo in ‘Galas.’ PHOTO: NINA WESTERVELT New York The countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo has a seemingly endless appetite for work and risk—just last year, …
Continue reading “‘Galas’ Review: Anthony Roth Costanzo Gives Voice to Maria Callas”
The upstate New York opera company’s 50th-anniversary season stretches from Puccini to a world premiere, and shines in stagings of Sondheim and Stravinsky. By Heidi Waleson Aug. 13, 2025 at 5:00 pm ET John Riddle (left) and the cast of ‘Sunday in the Park With George.’ PHOTO: BRENT DELANOY/THE GLIMMERGLASS FESTIVAL Cooperstown, N.Y. The Glimmerglass Festival, which celebrates …
Continue reading “2025 Glimmerglass Festival Review: Singing Across Centuries”
The summer program—featuring ‘Die Walküre,’ ‘The Marriage of Figaro,’ ‘La Bohème,’ ‘Rigoletto’ and ‘The Turn of the Screw’—offers largely standard repertoire enriched with subtle surprises and compelling performances. By Heidi Waleson Aug. 4, 2025 at 4:30 pm ET Ryan Speedo Green and Tamara Wilson in ‘Die Walküre.’ PHOTO: SANTA FE OPERA/CURTIS BROWN Santa Fe, N.M. This summer’s Santa …
Continue reading “Santa Fe Opera Review: The Fresh in the Familiar”
The French ensemble made its New York debut with an immersive experience at the luxury department store Printemps and a concert at L’Alliance; at City Center, the local bel-canto company presented a nuanced rendition of Bellini’s ‘La Sonnambula.’ By Heidi Waleson July 30, 2025 at 4:05 pm ET A moment from ‘The Affair of the Poisons.’ PHOTO: KEVIN …
The college’s SummerScape festival stages Bedřich Smetana’s tuneful 1868 opera, which finds the title character imprisoned for murder even as he attracts the romantic interest of his victim’s sister. By Heidi Waleson July 30, 2025 at 4:11 pm ET John Matthew Myers and Cadie J. Bryan PHOTO: MARIA BARANOVA Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y. This year’s opera rarity at Bard SummerScape, …
Continue reading “‘Dalibor’ Review: At Bard, Beauty From Behind Bars”
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