Lawrence Brownlee News

David B. Devan, General Director and President of Opera Philadelphia, today announced the commissioning of a new opera based on the life of legendary saxophonist Charlie Parker (1920-1955), one of the most influential soloists in the history of jazz and a central figure in the development of bebop. American tenor Lawrence Brownlee will star as Parker in a work written for him by composer Daniel Schnyder, with a libretto by poet and playwright Bridgette A. Wimberly. Soprano Angela Brownwill costar as Charlie's mother, Addie Parker. The opera is being developed in partnership with Gotham Chamber Opera.

From the depths of hell to the heights of paradise, the four great operas of Seattle Opera's 2014/15 season will take operagoers on a fantastic journey. During this important season, leadership will pass from Speight Jenkins, who has been General Director of Seattle Opera for a remarkable 31 years, to Aidan Lang, who was announced as Jenkins' successor in June, 2013.

Live From Lincoln Center will broadcast the Richard Tucker Music Foundation's 2013 gala concert, one of the most highly anticipated events of the opera season, from Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. The concert event will celebrate the legendary tenor's centenary with an illustrious all-American group of singers, and honoring this year'sRichard Tucker Award winner Isabel Leonard. The 'Richard Tucker at 100: An Opera Celebration' broadcast-hosted byAudra McDonald and featuring interstitial interviews with the artists, segments from backstage, and a short documentary on Richard Tucker's life-is taped from a concert on November 17, and will air on PBS stations tonight, January 10, 2014 at 9:00 p.m. (ET) (check local listings).

Ethereal swaths of smoke combine to form familiar yet odd images: flowers that grow in slow motion as if by magic, elephants floating in cocktail glasses, flying flutes, dancing bells, an enigmatic black cat-anything is possible in LA Opera's new staging of Mozart's The Magic Flute. Created by the British theater group 1927 in collaboration with Barrie Kosky, artistic director of the Komische Oper in Berlin, the staging had its production premiere in that city last year, playing to sold-out houses and rave reviews. London's The Guardian described 1927's distinctive aesthetic: 'A perfect mixture of all the things worth loving: silent films, the cabaret of the Weimar Republic, David Lynch and the Brothers Grimm.' To view a video preview, please click here.

Tonight, November 17, the Richard Tucker Music Foundation celebrates the 100th anniversary of the legendary tenor's birth with a star-studded gala at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center. Isabel Leonard, the 2013 Richard Tucker Award-winner and a rising star in the U.S. and abroad, joins an outstanding group of singers including Stephanie Blythe, Stephen Costello, Joyce DiDonato, Renee Fleming, Christine Goerke, Susan Graham, Greer Grimsley, Angela Meade, Eric Owens, Ailyn Perez, Matthew Polenzani, and Patricia Racette. With the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and the New York Choral Society led by Riccardo Frizza they will present a program of arias and ensembles by Verdi, Bellini, Rossini, Dvorak, Puccini and Offenbach. Following the concert, which is being taped for broadcast on PBS's Live From Lincoln Center on January 10, 2014 at 9:00 p.m. EST (check local listings), the foundation will host a gala dinner on the Grand Promenade of Avery Fisher Hall.

On November 17, the Richard Tucker Music Foundation celebrates the 100th anniversary of the legendary tenor's birth with a star-studded gala at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center. Isabel Leonard, the 2013 Richard Tucker Award-winner and a rising star in the U.S. and abroad, joins an outstanding group of singers including Stephanie Blythe, Stephen Costello, Joyce DiDonato, Renee Fleming, Christine Goerke, Susan Graham, Greer Grimsley, Angela Meade, Eric Owens, Ailyn Perez, Matthew Polenzani, and Patricia Racette. With the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and the New York Choral Society led by Riccardo Frizza they will present a program of arias and ensembles by Verdi, Bellini, Rossini, Dvorak, Puccini and Offenbach. Following the concert, which is being taped for broadcast on PBS's Live From Lincoln Center on January 10, 2014 at 9:00 p.m. EST (check local listings), the foundation will host a gala dinner on the Grand Promenade of Avery Fisher Hall.

In response to strong ticket demand, General Director Plácido Domingo has announced today that LA Opera has scheduled an additional performance of Mozart's The Magic Flute, conducted by Music Director James Conlon, on December 13 at 8:30pm to accommodate audiences who would otherwise be left out.

Now in its 16th season, Lincoln Center's acclaimed series American Songbook will continue to expand its scope celebrating the best in American singing and songwriting. New this year, the opening night concert will befree, in the David Rubenstein Atrium, on Wednesday, January 22, 2014. 'Live From Lincoln Center,' the Emmy Award-winning program broadcast nationally on PBS stations, will shoot four of the first week's American Songbook concerts in The Allen Room: by James Naughton, Lawrence Brownlee, Jason Isbell, and Patina Miller. These performances will be broadcast nationally beginning in Spring 2014. In addition, American Songbook concerts taking place in the Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse at Lincoln Center will be live-streamed via http://watch.lincolncenter.org.

Live From Lincoln Center will broadcast the Richard Tucker Music Foundation's 2013 gala concert, one of the most highly anticipated events of the opera season, from Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. The concert event will celebrate the legendary tenor's centenary with an illustrious all-American group of singers, and honoring this year'sRichard Tucker Award winner Isabel Leonard. The "Richard Tucker at 100: An Opera Celebration" broadcast-hosted byAudra McDonald and featuring interstitial interviews with the artists, segments from backstage, and a short documentary on Richard Tucker's life-is taped from a concert on November 17, and will air on PBS stations on Friday, January 10, 2014 at 9:00 p.m. (ET) (check local listings).

(Los Angeles) October 31, 2013 — Ethereal swaths of smoke combine to form familiar yet odd images: flowers that grow in slow motion as if by magic, elephants floating in cocktail glasses, flying flutes, dancing bells, an enigmatic black cat—anything is possible in LA Opera's new staging of Mozart's The Magic Flute. Created by the British theater group 1927 in collaboration with Barrie Kosky, artistic director of the Komische Oper in Berlin, the staging had its production premiere in that city last year, playing to sold-out houses and rave reviews. London's The Guardian described 1927's distinctive aesthetic: “A perfect mixture of all the things worth loving: silent films, the cabaret of the Weimar Republic, David Lynch and the Brothers Grimm.” To view a video preview, please click here.

Now in its 16th season, Lincoln Center's acclaimed series American Songbook will continue to expand its scope celebrating the best in American singing and songwriting. New this year, the opening night concert will befree, in the David Rubenstein Atrium, on Wednesday, January 22, 2014. 'Live From Lincoln Center,' the Emmy Award-winning program broadcast nationally on PBS stations, will shoot four of the first week's American Songbook concerts in The Allen Room: by James Naughton, Lawrence Brownlee, Jason Isbell, and Patina Miller. These performances will be broadcast nationally beginning in Spring 2014. In addition, American Songbook concerts taking place in the Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse at Lincoln Center will be live-streamed via http://watch.lincolncenter.org.

Just ahead of Lincoln Center's official announcement tomorrow, October 29, The New York Times has revealed the lineup for this year's American Songbook series, which will run January through March 2014 in the Allen Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center.

Ball gown and tuxedo or fleece vest and birkenstocks-in Seattle, it doesn't matter! Come as you are to the first production of Seattle Opera's 50th Anniversary season. Donizetti's The Daughter of the Regiment tells the story of Marie, a tomboy forced against her will to become a lady. This light-hearted opera features a girl with a whole regiment full of fathers, some of the composer's most romantic music, a formidable grand dame duchess played by a man, and a tenor who hits nine high Cs in the space of one minute. Seattle Opera's production, set in the 1940s, opens tonight, October 19, and runs for seven performances through November 2.

Ball gown and tuxedo or fleece vest and birkenstocks-in Seattle, it doesn't matter! Come as you are to the first production of Seattle Opera's 50th Anniversary season. Donizetti's The Daughter of the Regiment tells the story of Marie, a tomboy forced against her will to become a lady. This light-hearted opera features a girl with a whole regiment full of fathers, some of the composer's most romantic music, a formidable grand dame duchess played by a man, and a tenor who hits nine high Cs in the space of one minute. Seattle Opera's production, set in the 1940s, opens on Saturday, October 19, and runs for seven performances through November 2.

THE MET: LIVE IN HD's Summer Encores series will broadcast Rossini's ARMIDA today, July 10 at 7 p.m. (find local theaters here). The production features Renée Fleming as the mystical sorceress in a spectacular production by Tony Award winner Mary Zimmerman. Hosted by Deborah Voigt. Scroll down for a sneak peek at the production!

A season of timeless beauty and fun begins today, June 28th, at the Santa Fe Opera. Discover this summer's new, rarely performed and longtime favorites in stylish productions presented by an unforgettable group of artists and musicians. It's world-class opera in an incredible setting.

THE MET: LIVE IN HD's Summer Encores series will broadcast Rossini's ARMIDA on Wednesday, July 10 at 7 p.m. (find local theaters here). The production features Renée Fleming as the mystical sorceress in a spectacular production by Tony Award winner Mary Zimmerman. Hosted by Deborah Voigt. Scroll down for a sneak peek at the production!

Beginning Wednesday, June 19, the Metropolitan Opera and NCM Fathom Events will once again present Summer HD Encores, a series of encore performances from the groundbreaking Live in HD series, in nearly 400 select U.S. cinemas nationwide

After an intense semi-final round of competition, the Metropolitan Opera today announced the names of ten finalists who will sing on the Met stage in the 2013 National Council Auditions Grand Finals Concert on Sunday, March 10 at 3:00 p.m., with the MET Orchestra conducted by Marco Armiliato. The auditions, which are celebrating their 60th anniversary this year, have been an important stepping stone in the career of many of the opera world's leading artists. 20 gifted young singers from around the country arrived in New York on Thursday afternoon to prepare for today's semi-final round, in which they sang on the Met stage for the first time in their careers before a panel of judges. After deliberations, the panel has narrowed the field to ten singers who will move to the final phase of the competition.

The Metropolitan Opera's 2013-14 season will feature many of the world's greatest singers, conductors, and theater artists in 26 operas, including six new productions, of a varied repertory that ranges from the Baroque era to the 21st century. Met Music Director James Levine will return to the Met podium for the first time in two years, conducting three operas with which he has long been associated: a new production of Verdi's final masterpiece Falstaff, Mozart's Cosi fan tutte, and Berg's Wozzeck. Met Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi will be conducting two operas in the 2013-14 season, Rossini's La Cenerentola and Puccini's Madama Butterfly.