James Conlon to Conduct MetOpera's A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, Begin. 10/11

Conductor James Conlon returns to the Metropolitan Opera to lead a revival of Benjamin Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream in commemoration of the 2013 Britten centenary, with six performances beginning Friday, October 11, 2013 at 7:30 p.m. The 1996 production by Tim Albery returns to the Met after ten years, and features a cast that includes Kathleen Kim as Tytania, Erin Wall as Helena, Elizabeth DeShong as Hermia, Iestyn Davis as Oberon, Joseph Kaiser as Lysander, Michael Todd Simpson as Demetrius, Matthew Rose as Bottom, and Riley Costello as Puck.

Additional performances take place Tuesday, October 15 at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, October 19 at 1:00 p.m.; Wednesday, October 23 at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, October 26 at 8:00 p.m.; and Thursday, October 31 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets, priced from $25 to $430, are available in person at the box office, by phone at (212) 362-6000, or online at metoperafamily.org.

The Met performances are part of Mr. Conlon's three-year homage to the composer, which encompasses opera, orchestral, and choral works performed throughout the U.S. and Europe. For the cycle he has programmed the operas Albert Herring, Billy Budd, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Noye's Fludde, Rape of Lucretia, and The Turn of the Screw; the three church parables The Burning Fiery Furnace, Curlew River, and The Prodigal Son; choral and orchestral works including Cantata misericordium, Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings, War Requiem, and the Violin Concerto among others. In Los Angeles this season, he is spearheading Britten 100/LA: A Celebration, a year-long city-wide festival that features performances, conferences, and exhibitions centered on Britten and his legacy. The festival culminates in spring 2014 with LA Opera's production of Billy Budd, staged by Francesca Zambello and conducted by Mr. Conlon.

Mr. Conlon traces his fascination with Britten's music back to 1967 when he attended the opening night performance of Peter Grimes at the Met and two lieder recitals by Britten and Peter Pears, co-librettists of A Midsummer Night's Dream, at Hunter College in New York. Since making his Met debut in 1976, Mr. Conlon has led more than 260 performances with the opera company.

John Von Rhein of the Chicago Tribune says, "Perhaps no single musician is delving more broadly into Britten's voluminous body of operatic, orchestral, vocal, choral, and chamber works than conductor James Conlon."

Mr. Conlon's upcoming Britten performances include conducting Sinfonia da Requiem with the Yale Philharmonia at Woolsey Hall in New Haven on Friday, October 18. As part of Britten 100/LA, Mr. Conlon will observe Britten's birthdate on Friday, November 22 with two free concerts including Friday Afternoons, choruses from A Ceremony of Carols, and Simple Symphony at the Jonathan Club in Santa Monica at 2 p.m., and Cantata misericordium, Rejoice in the Lamb, and Serenade for Tenor, Horn, and Strings at Saint James' Church in Los Angeles at 8 p.m. He will then lead performances of the War Requiem on Sunday, November 24 at Segerstrom Hall in Costa Mesa and Monday, November 25 at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. On Friday, December 6, he will conduct the church parable The Prodigal Son in another free concert at the First Congregational Church in Los Angeles, and on Sunday, December 22, he will give a talk on Britten, followed by a recital of the composer's art songs. For additional performances visit jamesconlon.com/britten.

Mr. Conlon has served as the music director of LA Opera since 2006, the Ravinia Festival, summer home of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, since 2005, and the Cincinnati May Festival since 1979.

Photo by Todd Rosenberg

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