Il turco in Italia - Teatro Real de Madrid

In its most ambitious effort yet to bring the joy and artistry of opera to audiences everywhere during the Met’s closure, the company presented an unprecedented virtual At-Home Gala, featuring more than 40 leading artists performing in a live stream from their homes all around the world.

In the depths of the Rhine, the three Rhinemaidens guard the Rhinegold, a treasure of immeasurable value. The Nibelung dwarf Alberich is dazzled by the sight of it. The girls explain that whoever wins the gold and forges it into a ring will gain power over the world, but must first renounce love. Frustrated by his unsuccessful attempts to catch one of the girls, Alberich curses love and steals the gold. Wotan, lord of the gods, is reproached by his wife Fricka: he has promised to give Freia, goddess of youth, to the giants Fasolt and Fafner in return for their building a fortress for the gods. When the giants demand their reward, Loge, the god of fire, suggests an alternative payment: the ring Alberich has forged from the Rhinegold, and his other treasures. The giants agree, and Wotan and Loge leave for the Nibelungs’ underground home.

A masterpiece of bel canto at the Teatro Real in Madrid: conductor José Miguel Pérez-Sierra and director David McVicar take on Donizetti’s Maria Stuarda, with Lisette Oropesa in the title role.

Mozarts Don Giovanni, in the beautiful staging by legendary Franco Zeffirelli is a spectacle with a strong aesthetising component, a feast for the eyes. In this production Zeffirelli returns to a representative Super classic line, renewing the complex mechanisms of almost all his other productions (Il corriere musicale) with beautiful classic costumes by Maurizio Millenotti and lights by Paolo Mazzon (L'ape musicale). Carlos Álvarez is of beautiful voice (GP Opera) and presumably todays best Don Giovanni (L'ape musicale) while Irina Lungu is one of the best lyric sopranes (L'ape musicale). Donna Elvira, being sung by Maria José Siri was clearly and advantageously represented by her mellow and beguiling voice. (MTG Lirica)

Star tenor Jonas Kaufmann brings aching intensity and vocal charisma to the tortured title hero of Massenet’s Goethe adaptation. Sophie Koch, in her Met debut, is an appealing and elegant Charlotte, the object of Werther’s passionate affection that will lead to tragedy. Lisette Oropesa as Sophie, David Bižić as Albert, and Jonathan Summers as Le Bailli co-star. Richard Eyre’s atmospheric production is conducted by rising maestro Alain Altinoglu.

Gounod's Faust at the Bavarian State Opera: Jonathan Tetelman plays Faust, the scholar who makes a pact with Mephistopheles (Kyle Ketelsen) before seducing Marguerite (Olga Kulchynska). The unfortunate woman descends into madness but ultimately achieves redemption. Lotte de Beer directs this production, which marks Nathalie Stutzmann's debut in Munich as conductor.

A decade before the French Revolution, in a country riven with bitter polemics, Gluck throws the history of opera into confusion by raising it to an unheard-of peak of tragic intensity. Experiencing his two Iphigenias in a single evening goes beyond the norms of operatic life: it is to enter the very heart of the curse on the family of King Atreus of Mycenae, to follow a logical destiny through a cycle of endless violence. How does the victim of Aulis become the murderess of Tauris? That is the burning question that Dmitri Tcherniakov must adress, plunging the spectator into the midst of a household haunted by the dead and setting in train an implacable process of dehumanization, with parallels to our world today. Conducting Le Concert d’Astrée, Emmanuelle Haïm drives this dual tragedy to the summit of its expressive power, leaving humanity to be translated through arias of the utmost poignancy.

The electrifying Lise Davidsen tackles one of the ultimate roles for dramatic soprano: the Irish princess Isolde in Wagner’s transcendent meditation on love and death. Heroic tenor Michael Spyres stars opposite Davidsen as the love-drunk Tristan. Mezzo-soprano Ekaterina Gubanova reprises her signature portrayal of Brangäne, alongside bass-baritone Tomasz Konieczny, who sings Kurwenal after celebrated Met appearances in Wagner’s Der Fliegende Holländer and Ring cycle. Bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green makes an important role debut as King Marke.

This deliciously dark take on the beloved Brothers Grimm fairy tale, appealing to audiences of all ages, was part of the Met’s popular English-language holiday series. Alice Coote and Christine Schäfer star as the famous siblings lost in the woods, who battle the ravenous Witch—a zany portrayal by tenor Philip Langridge—while the Met orchestra, under the baton of Vladimir Jurowski, glories in the rich, folk-inspired score.

The impulsive and charismatic Don Giovanni travels through Europe seducing women, accompanied by his long-suffering servant Leporello. But when Don Giovanni commits murder, he unleashes a dark power beyond his control. Kasper Holten’s production is rich in both colourful comedy and exhilarating drama. Set designs by Es Devlin (Les Troyens) and costume designs by Anja Vang Kragh (Stella McCartney, John Galliano for Christian Dior), with video projections by Luke Halls and choreography by Signe Fabricius, portray the visually entrancing world of Don Giovanni. At the heart of the production are the beauty and invention of Mozart’s dazzling score, which ranges from gorgeous arias and dramatic duets to the brilliant layering of dance melodies that bring Act I to a virtuoso close.

John Nelson conducts the Orchestra and Choir of the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Handel's Messiah. Soprano, Sara Blanch; mezzo-soprano, Sasha Cooke; tenor, Krystian Adam; bass, Alex Esposito. Choir master, Andrea Secchi.

In 1991, Laurence Equilbey's creation of Accentus revolutionized the world of vocal music. To celebrate its 30th anniversary, the choir, accompanied by a quartet of top-flight soloists, gave a grand concert at the Philharmonie de Paris in March 2023. Mendelssohn, whose choral works are among the jewels of vocal music, was honored.

Rome, 79 AD. The emperor Titus narrowly escapes the attack his best friend Sextus has plotted against him under pressure from his beloved Vitellia. Titus is faced with the heartrending choice of following his feelings and granting his friend clemency, or following his reason and condemning him. In La Clemenza di Tito Mozart returned to opera seria just a few months before his death. He had not worked in this genre since Idomeneo. For a long time this work, quite unjustifiably, remained in the shadow of his other great masterpieces, despite the fact that much of the music he wrote for this work is among the best in his oeuvre. Having previously staged Idomeneo, Ivo van Hove, now together with Ludovic Morlot, is presenting a new interpretation that will undoubtedly do full justice to the everlasting topicality, powerful drama and musical splendour of this mixture of friendship and revenge, passion and politics.

"This is Vienna State Opera live at home". April 2015. 'L'italiana in Algeri' (English: 'The Italian Girl in Algiers') is an operatic dramma giocoso in two acts by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian libretto by Angelo Anelli, based on his earlier text set by Luigi Mosca. It premiered at the Teatro San Benedetto in Venice on 22 May 1813. The music is characteristic of Rossini's style, remarkable for its fusion of sustained, manic energy with elegant, pristine melodies.

At the Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux, Raphaël Pichon conducts a new production of Rameau's opera Dardanus, with the ensemble Pygmalion, in a staging by Michel Fau and a choreography by Christopher Williams.

For the 13th edition of the Concert de Paris, at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, the Orchestre national de France, the Choeur and Maîtrise de Radio France, conducted by Cristian Măcelaru, along with leading international soloists, will perform a program with a Brazilian flavor, in celebration of the Brazil-France 2025 season.

The staging of Gioacchino Rossini's two-act comic opera, with libretto by Cesare Sterbini, at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma during the 2016/2017 season.

The Vienna State Opera is staging Otto Schenk's production of Gaetano Donizetti's "L'elisir d'amore" (The Elixir of Love), which combines humor and drama with a happy ending. Maria Nazarova sings the role of Adina and Bogdan Volkov sings the role of Nemorino. Already extremely popular during Donizetti's lifetime, this opera buffa tells the story of the young farmer Nemorino, who is in love with the wealthy landowner Adina. With the help of a love potion from the charlatan Doctor Dulcamara, he hopes to win her heart.

Isabella is a strong, independent woman who has no intention of giving in to the clumsy advances of the powerful Mustafà. In this production by Mosh Leiser and Patrice Caurier, which plays on preconceptions about culture clash, Mustafà is no longer a handsome Ottoman, but a shady gangster who traffics in electronic goods in the port of Algiers. Make of it what you will...

Les Indes Galantes (The amorous indies), is an opera-ballet created by Jean Philippe Rameau in 1735. He was inspired for one of the dance by tribal Indian dances of Louisiana performed by Metchigaema chiefs, in Paris in 1723. Clément Cogitore adapts a short part of the ballet by mobilizing a group of Krump dancers, an art form born in Los Angeles black ghetto in the 1990s. Its birth occurred in the aftermath of the beating up of Rodney King and the riots, as well as police repression it triggered. Amidst this coercive atmosphere, young dancers started to embody the violent tensions of the physical, social and political body. Both the tribal dance performed in Paris in 1723, and the rebelious Krump dancers of the 1990s shape a reenactment of Rameau’s original libretto, staging young people dancing on the verge of a volcano.

Three colours, three moods, three registers. And yet Puccini conceived this triptych as a whole from the outset. He interweaves these three one-act operas, from Il tabarro, a drama of passion set on the quays of the Seine in the early 20th century, to Gianni Schicchi, a burlesque farce set in medieval Florence, and Suor Angelica, a mystical tragedy set in a 17th-century convent.

Part of the celebrations for the 150th anniversary of the death of the Pesaro composer, Il Barbiere di Siviglia staged in Lugano, is the result of a virtuous collaboration that involved Swiss Radio and Television, LuganoInScena and LuganoMusica. The musical part was entrusted to Maestro Diego Fasolis who, together with his Barocchisti ensemble, was involved in the project from the very beginning. Internationally renowned soloists such as Edgardo Rocha (who embodies the Count of Almaviva), Riccardo Novaro (Bartolo), Lucia Cirillo (Rosina), Giorgio Caoduro (Figaro), Ugo Guagliardo (Basilio) and Alessandra Palomba (Berta) performed on stage.

The tragedy of Romeo and Juliet and their forbidden love has inspired countless versions, from opera to cinema. Among the most evocative is that by Vincenzo Bellini, one of the most infrequently performed bel canto composers. I Capuleti e i Montecchi returns to La Scala in a new production conducted by Speranza Scappucci and marking the debut of Adrian Noble, artistic director of the Royal Shakespeare Company for thirteen years. The cast features some of the most outstanding contemporary Bellini voices.

Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland — her name will be linked in perpetuity with another name: Elizabeth I of England. Mary and Elizabeth: two queens, two adversaries, two women in the middle of the 16th century. Although ‘sisters and cousins’, they never actually encountered each other in the flesh — contrary to the fictional conceit.

A seldom-performed gem of a Rossini opera: his opera buffa La Gazzetta in a filmed production by the Opéra Royal de Wallonie-Liège.

This new disc from the Zurich Opera presents just about as thoughtful and coherent account of Rossini's Otello as one could hope for. This isn't the first time the company has made something of a splash with the bel canto repertory. Some will remember their CD release, a few years back, of Bellini's Norma, also featuring Bartoli. That set got very mixed reviews, and those who hated that will probably hate this too, no doubt before they even watch it. But for those not initiated in the trench warfare that music loving often attracts, this disc will be most welcome. The world class cast, led by Cecilia Bartoli and tenor John Osborn, are (mostly) young, committed and talented. They deliver, here, an intense performance that makes a very strong case for this neglected opera.

The new production of Lucia di Lammermoor, which was scheduled to inaugurate the 2020-2021 season, brings the opera back to the La Scala stage after its historical edition in 1967 with Claudio Abbado and Renata Scotto. One of the highlights of this production is the casting of Scotto's pupil, Lisette Oropesa, in the role of Lucia, joined by Juan Diego Flórez, who plays the role of Edgardo. Together, they form a duo that shines with their elegance, virtuosity, and stylistic awareness.

In an apparent idyll high in the Swiss Alps, a secluded village society prepares for the next wedding. Amina is to be the lucky one this time. The groom Elvino, however, soon turns his attention back to his former wife because Amina sleepwalks into the bed of a stranger who has just arrived. Count Rodolfo, son of the former lord of the manor and travelling incognito, cannot convince the villagers of his innocence nor that of Amina, until she sleepwalks again and the collective belief in the supernatural is put to the test. Deutsche Oper am Rhein’s new production is conducted by bel canto specialist and Principal Guest Conductor Antonino Fogliani and is directed by Johannes Erath, whose poetically subtle stagings have been seen in Munich, Frankfurt, Vienna, Palermo and beyond.

Puccini’s passionate opera is conducted by Antonio Pappano and stars a superb young cast including Nicole Car, Michael Fabiano and Mariusz Kwiecień, in a new production by Richard Jones.

Wolf-Ferrari’s comic opera La vedova scaltra (The Cunning Widow), is among the works he based on plays by Goldoni. It matches closely the conventions of 18th-century opera buffa in its witty if sceptical look at the mechanisms governing the interplay of human relations. Four hopeful suitors, English, French, Spanish and Italian, vie for the hand of Rosaura, the cunning widow of the title, who disguises herself to meet each wooer, eventually choosing the only one who can demonstrate his sincerity. This production, filmed live at the Teatro La Fenice in February 2007 in celebration of the 300th anniversary of the birth of Goldoni in Venice in 1707, is the first to appear on DVD.

Three colours, three moods, three registers. And yet Puccini conceived this triptych as a whole from the outset. He interweaves these three one-act operas, from Il tabarro, a drama of passion set on the quays of the Seine in the early 20th century, to Gianni Schicchi, a burlesque farce set in medieval Florence, and Suor Angelica, a mystical tragedy set in a 17th-century convent.