The Harlem Chamber Players to Present HARLEM SONGFEST II in June
by Chloe Rabinowitz - May 23, 2023
The Harlem Chamber Players will mark its 15th Anniversary and Black Music Month with a musical extravaganza Harlem Songfest II, celebrating Black opera singers and the music of Black composers, including women, on Friday, June 9, at 7 p.m. at Miller Theatre at Columbia University.
Review: On Site Opera's TABARRO Brings Noir Puccini to New York's South Street Seaport
by Richard Sasanow - May 17, 2023
IL TABARRO has a special relationship to New York, since it’s the only Puccini to premiere here at the Metropolitan, in 1918. While it’s only the first third of the trio of short operas that go by the title IL TRITTICO, no one attending the other night’s performance by On Site Opera in partnership with the South Street Seaport Museum should have felt short-changed. It definitely felt like an evening’s worth of opera--and a fine one.
New York Festival Of Song Hosts Annual Gala FEELIN' GROOVY: SONGS OF THE 60S
by A.A. Cristi - Apr 17, 2023
New York Festival of Song (NYFOS) hosts its annual spring gala, Feelin' Groovy: Songs from the 60s, on Monday, May 15, 2023 at 6:30 p.m. at the Racquet & Tennis Club on Park Avenue. In support of NYFOS's 35th season, the gala features a performance of songs by Laura Nyro, Simon & Garfunkel, Joni Mitchell and the Beatles, along with some Motown hits.
On Site Opera To Present Puccini and Adami's IL TABRRO Aboard The Lightship Ambrose
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Apr 6, 2023
On Site Opera, New York's pioneering opera company rooted in site-specific storytelling and the immersive experience, in partnership with the South Street Seaport Museum, brings drama and tragedy to Pier 16 on and around the historic lightship Ambrose with Puccini and Adami's Il tabarro (The Cloak), May 14-17.
LOTNY to Present AMERICAN ONE ACTS in May
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Apr 4, 2023
The little OPERA theatre of ny (LOTNY) will present American One Acts, a double bill, conducted by Gregory Hopkins and directed by Philip Shneidman, from May 31 - June 4, 2023 at Baruch Performing Arts Center.
SAS Performing Arts Concert Opera Presents Puccini's IL TRITTICO
by A.A. Cristi - Mar 1, 2023
SAS Performing Arts Concert Opera presents the only New York City performance of the Puccini work Il Trittico. Il Trittico is comprised of three one act operas; Il Tabarro (The Cloak), Suor Angelica (Sister Angelica), and Gianni Schicchi.
Review: THE SAN DIEGO OPERA'S PUCCINI DUO at San Diego Civic Center Theater
by Ron Bierman - Feb 16, 2023
The big question for the evening was how mezzo-soprano Stephanie Blythe would do as the first woman in professional opera to sing the baritone title role in Gianni Schicchi. But the question wouldn’t be answered until the second one-act opera in San Diego Opera’s “Puccini Duo.” Blythe was first a contralto as the stern, unfeeling Principessa in Suor Angelica. This crushingly poignant half of the Duo is set in a 17th-century Italian convent where Sister Angelica has been living for seven years after her family banished her for the sin of giving birth to a boy out of wedlock. The one-hour opera builds slowly from a choir of offstage convent sisters singing adoringly of the Virgin Mary. From its first appearance the Opera company’s choir led by Chorus Master Bruce Stasyna sang with a solemn warmth consistent with the convent setting. When the sisters reach the stage, a monitor becomes the center of attention as she sings of a succession of minor sins and their punishments. Two sisters lose a day of holy celebration for arriving late to services, another is sent to her room for hiding two red roses in a sleeve of her habit.
Interview: Stephanie Blythe of SAN DIEGO OPERA'S PUCCINI DUO at The San Diego Civic Theater
by Ron Bierman - Feb 9, 2023
Stephanie Blythe’s dad had no use for singers. “He liked my voice, but I wasn't allowed to sing in the chorus. So all through junior high I wanted to be part of a rock band with my three best friends. But since we played euphonium, trombone, saxophone and flute, I was like, well, that's not going to work. We formed a barbershop quartet instead. And that was the singing I did in junior high. When I got into high school, my choral conductor Martin Banner insisted that I join the chorus and called my father to change his mind about that. Thank God for Martin Banner. Joining the chorus has led to everything for me.
Interview: Stephanie Blythe of SAN DIEGO OPERA'S PUCCINI DUO at San Diego's Civic Theater
by Ron Bierman - Feb 6, 2023
Stephanie Blythe is probably the only opera singer who represents an ukulele company. That she embodies the unexpected is further confirmed by her upcoming roles in the San Diego Opera's next production, two one-act operas by Puccini. The mezzo soprano will first sing a deeper contralto as the Principessa in Suor Angelica. Then, in title role of Gianni Schicchi, she'll be in the baritone range traditionally assigned to a male singer.
Houston Grand Opera Announces 2023 CONCERT OF ARIAS Winners
by Blair Ingenthron - Feb 4, 2023
Houston Grand Opera (HGO) has announced the winners for this year's Concert of Arias, the 35th Annual Eleanor McCollum Competition for Young Singers, held this evening at the Wortham Theater Center and livestreamed for audiences at home.