Juilliard Announces 2017-18 Season of Operas and Vocal Arts Performances

Juilliard's Ellen and James S. Marcus Institute for Vocal Arts, under the leadership of Artistic Director Brian Zeger, announces its 2017-18 season of opera and vocal arts performances. Highlights of the upcoming season include three mainstage operas: W.A. Mozart's romantic comedy La finta giardiniera, conducted by Joseph Colaneri, who makes his first Juilliard appearance, and directed by faculty member Mary Birnbaum in November; Otto Nicolai's Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor (The Merry Wives of Windsor), sung in German with Shakespeare's verse spoken in English, conducted by Teddy Poll and directed by faculty member John Giampietro in February; and Jean-Philippe Rameau's Hippolyte et Aricie in an original, new production, conducted by Stephen Stubbs and directed by faculty member Stephen Wadsworth with choreography by alumnus Zack Winokur, in April.

Juilliard's undergraduate opera, only open to the Juilliard community, will feature Benjamin Britten's The Burning Fiery Furnace, conducted by Mark Shapiro and directed by faculty member Edward Berkeley. The performance will begin with Sephardic songs, Canciones Sefarditas by Manuel Valls, followed by Britten's opera with Juilliard undergraduate singers and a small ensemble from the Juilliard Orchestra.

In vocal arts performances, Juilliard singers join period-instrument ensemble Juilliard415 and Juilliard dancers in "The Genius of Monteverdi" on Thursday, October 5 in the Peter Jay Sharp Theater. Artist in residence William Christie conducts the program of works by Monteverdi, Castello, and Farina.

Juilliard singers join the Juilliard Orchestra, conducted by EmManuel Villaume, on Monday, December 4 in Alice Tully Hall in a program featuring Ravel's one-act opera L'enfant et les sortilèges and other orchestral works by Ravel and Debussy.

Juilliard and New York Festival of Song will present "William Bolcom and John Corigliano: An 80th Birthday Tribute" featuring Juilliard singers and pianists Steven Blier and Michael Barrett on Thursday, January 11, at 7:30pm in Juilliard's Peter Jay Sharp Theater.

Other highlights include Juilliard Songfest, a program curated and performed by pianist Brian Zeger and featuring Juilliard singers, on Thursday, February 1 in Alice Tully Hall and the Vocal Arts Honors Recital (singers to be announced in December) on Thursday, March 22 in Alice Tully Hall.

Soprano Patricia Racette returns for a closed residency and will work with Juilliard singers on opera repertoire. Soprano and conductor Barbara Hannigan will also work with Juilliard singers in the fall.

Additional live-streamed vocal master classes will be announced at a later date.

Juilliard Opera 2017-18 Calendar of Events

Wednesday, November 15, 7:30pm

Friday, November 17, 7:30pm

Sunday, November 19, 2pm

Juilliard's Peter Jay Sharp Theater

La finta giardiniera, K. 196

Composer: W.A. Mozart

Libretto: Giuseppe Petrosellini

Conductor: Joseph Colaneri

Director: Mary Birnbaum

Featuring Juilliard singers and the Juilliard Orchestra

La finta giardiniera ('the disguised gardener'), a three-act opera buffa, was first performed in Munich in 1775, about two weeks before Mozart's 19th birthday.

Joseph Colaneri, who will be making his first appearance at Juilliard, will conduct Juilliard singers and the Juilliard Orchestra. Mary Birnbaum will direct the production.

Tickets for Juilliard Opera productions are $30 and will be available at events.juilliard.edu or at the Juilliard Box Office. Free tickets are available for Juilliard students; non-Juilliard full-time students with valid ID may purchase tickets for $15, only at the Juilliard Box Office.

Wednesday, February 14, 7:30pm

Friday, February 16, 7:30pm

Sunday, February 18, 2pm

Juilliard's Rosemary and Meredith Willson Theater

Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor (The Merry Wives of Windsor)

Composer: Otto Nicolai

Libretto: Salomon Hermann Mosenthal, based on the play The Merry Wives of Windsor by William Shakespeare

Conductor Teddy Poll

Director John Giampietro

Chamber version featuring Juilliard singers

Written in 1841, Nicolai's interpretation of Shakespeare's comedy The Merry Wives of Windsor was an important contribution to early German romantic opera. The opera will be sung in German with Shakespeare's verse spoken in English. The production will be updated to the 1940s during World War II and take place in an English factory.

Teddy Poll, who recently finished his tenure as a Rita E. Hauser Conducting Fellow at the Curtis Institute of Music, where he studied with Yannick Nézet-Séguin since 2014, will conduct. John Giampietro will direct the production.

Tickets for Juilliard Opera productions are $30 and will be available at events.juilliard.edu or at the Juilliard Box Office. Free tickets are available for Juilliard students; non-Juilliard full-time students with valid ID may purchase tickets for $15, only at the Juilliard Box Office.

Tuesday, April 17, 7:30pm

Thursday, April 19, 7:30pm

Saturday, April 21, 2pm

Juilliard's Peter Jay Sharp Theater

Hippolyte et Aricie

Composer: Jean-Philippe Rameau

Libretto: Abbé Simon-Joseph Pellegrin

Conductor: Stephen Stubbs

Director: Stephen Wadsworth

Choreographer: Zack Winokur

Hippolyte et Aricie was the first tragédie-lyrique composed by Jean-Philippe Rameau. The opera had its premiere by the Académie Royale de Musique at the Palais-Royal in Paris on October 1, 1733.

Stephen Stubbs will conduct the Juilliard singers and period-ensemble Juilliard415, and Stephen Wadsworth will direct this original, new production of Rameau's opera. Zack Winokur will choreograph.

Tickets for Juilliard Opera productions are $30 and will be available at events.juilliard.edu or at the Juilliard Box Office. Free tickets are available for Juilliard students; non-Juilliard full-time students with valid ID may purchase tickets for $15, only at the Juilliard Box Office.

Juilliard Vocal Performances 2017-18

Thursday, October 5, 7:30pm, Peter Jay Sharp Theater

Juilliard415

Juilliard Singers

Juilliard Dance

William Christie, conductor

Peter Farrow, choreographer

"The Genius of Monteverdi"

Works by Monteverdi, Farina, and Castello

Tickets are $20 and will be available at events.juilliard.edu or in person at the Juilliard Box Office. Tickets are free for Juilliard students; non-Juilliard full-time students with valid ID may purchase tickets for $10, only at the Juilliard Box Office.

Wednesdays at 6pm

October 18, November 29, December 11 (Monday), January 24, February 21, and April 4

All performances take place in Juilliard's Paul Hall

Juilliard Liederabend

Juilliard's Liederabend series showcases Juilliard singers in performances of song literature; Juilliard singers are paired with students from Juilliard's Collaborative Piano department.

Free; tickets are required and will be available at events.juilliard.edu or at the Juilliard Box Office.

Monday, December 4, 7:30pm, Alice Tully Hall

Juilliard Orchestra

EmManuel Villaume, conductor

Juilliard singers will perform Ravel's one-act opera L'enfant et les sortilèges. Other works on the orchestra program include Ravel's Menuet antique and Debussy's La mer.

Tickets are $30 and will be available at events.juilliard.edu, through CenterCharge (212) 721-6500, or at the Alice Tully Hall Box Office. Free tickets are available for Juilliard students; non-Juilliard full-time students with valid ID may purchase tickets for $15, only at the Juilliard Box Office.

Wednesdays on December 13 and April 25, 1pm, Alice Tully Hall

Juilliard's "Wednesdays at One"

Juilliard singers will be presented twice as part of Juilliard's "Wednesdays at One" series on December 13 and April 25.

The hour long concerts in Alice Tully Hall are free; no tickets are required.

Thursday, January 11, 7:30pm, Juilliard's Peter Jay Sharp Theater

Juilliard and New York Festival of Song

"William Bolcom and John CoriglianoL An 80th Birthday Tribute"

The evening features Juilliard singers and Juilliard faculty member and NYFOS artistic director, pianist
Steven Blier and associate artistic director of NYFOS, pianist Michael Barrett.

Tickets for $20 will be available at events.juilliard.edu or at the Juilliard Box Office. Free tickets are available for Juilliard students; non-Juilliard students with valid ID may purchase tickets for $10 at the Juilliard Box Office.

Thursday, March 22, at 7:30pm in Alice Tully Hall

Vocal Arts Honors Recital

Juilliard's annual Vocal Arts Honors Recital takes place on Thursday, March 22, at 7:30pm in Alice Tully Hall. Singers are nominated by Juilliard's voice faculty and selected by a group of distinguished judges. This season's singers and pianists will be announced in December.

Free tickets will be available at events.juilliard.edu or at the Juilliard Box Office.

Ticket and Box Office Information

Tickets for Juilliard Opera productions are $30 and will be available at events.juilliard.edu or at the Juilliard Box Office. Free tickets are available for Juilliard students; non-Juilliard full-time students with valid ID may purchase tickets for $15, only at the Juilliard Box Office.

Tickets for the New York Festival of Song at Juilliard concert are $20 and will be available at events.juilliard.edu or at the Juilliard Box Office. Free tickets are available for Juilliard students; non-Juilliard full-time students with valid ID may purchase tickets for $10, only at the Juilliard Box Office.

Tickets for the Vocal Arts Honors Recital are free and will be available at events.juilliard.edu or at the Juilliard Box Office.

About the Ellen and James S. Marcus Institute for Vocal Arts at Juilliard

Brian Zeger, Artistic Director

One of America's most prestigious programs for educating singers, Juilliard's Ellen and James S. Marcus Institute for Vocal Arts offers young artists programs tailored to their talents and needs. From bachelor and master of music degrees to an advanced Artist Diploma in Opera Studies program, Juilliard provides frequent performance opportunities, featuring singers in its own recital halls, on Lincoln Center's stages, and around New York City. Juilliard Opera has presented numerous premieres of new operas as well as works from the standard repertoire.

Juilliard graduates may be heard in opera houses and concert halls throughout the world; diverse alumni artists include well-known performers such as Simon Estes, Renée Fleming, Leontyne Price, Risë Stevens, Tatiana Troyanos, and Shirley Verrett. Recent alumni include Paul Appleby, Sasha Cooke, Isabel Leonard, Erin Morley, and Susanna Phillips.

Recognized as one of today's leading collaborative pianists, Brian Zeger has performed with many of the world's greatest singers in an extensive concert career that has taken him to the premiere concert halls throughout the United States and abroad. Recent recordings include Preludios - Spanish songs with Isabel Leonard, a recording of Strauss and Wagner lieder with Adrianne Pieczonka, Dear Theo: 3 Song Cycles by Ben Moore (Delos) with Paul Appleby, Susanna Phillips, and Brett Polegato, and All Who Wander, a recital disc with mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton. For more information about Mr. Zeger's activities, please visit his website, www.brianzeger.com.

Photo credit: Rosalie O'Connor