Antoine Wagner: Gesamtkunstwerk in 2018

Interview

He remembers an early-1990s summer at the Bayreuth Festival, during the creation of the now-famed Harry Kupfer production of the Ring Cycle, conducted by Daniel Barenboim. Antoine and Barenboim's son, David, had renamed all of their He-Man figurines after Wagnerian characters.

La Gazzetta: The Funny Papers

Review

All the antics amount to nothing more than a big helium balloon and to keep the whole enterprise on the ground, director and designer Josh Shaw has approached it as if it were a musical-comedy. Every "song" is a "number" filled with coordinated movements and choreography.

The TSO's joyful ode to Oundjian

Review

The symphony itself feels like an entire world, encompassing at once the life of one man - I always like it to be Beethoven's - and the lives of all people. It feels as though Beethoven offers up his story first, a conversation starter with humanity, letting us know of his hardships and his joys and his sense of humour, like an invitation for us to respond.

The Medium: opera as film noir

Review

The film deserves broader exposure. Seven decades after Menotti composed the score and wrote the libretto, both still sound ever so inventive and contemporary. As a film director Menotti nurtured a naturalistic atmosphere in which it appears inevitable that his characters sing and in the process he has created a finely honed example of operatic film noir.

Don't miss: La gazzetta

Interview

"I look at an opera like Gazzetta as a special case for myself and for the POP audience. It's almost certain that no one in the audience will have every seen this opera, and the story is pretty easy to relate to - a father seeking fame and fortune puts his daughter out in public to gain attention for himself - so I feel comfortable keeping the concept pretty 'traditional'."

A next-level Fledermaus in Des Moines

Review

Although Frosch is a relatively minor character in the operetta, Brian Frutiger quite frankly stole the entire last act in my opinion. His physical comedy and drunken slur had the audience in stitches during his first scene, and I think he could have kept ad libbing for an hour without any complaints from the crowd.

Moving on up: Milan Milisavljević is MET's new Principal Viola

Interview

"Any section can have great harmony as well as tremendous strife. With a change of personnel and myself becoming Principal after twelve years of sitting Third Chair, I hope to usher an era of cooperation, artistic integrity and excellence that my section mates and I desired and can finally have."

Rusalka: Opera at its most operatic

Review

The last act brought the curse to its deadly conclusion. I could sense the audience collectively grimacing as Rusalka wandered onstage, knife in hand and feet bloodied. The pristine white floors became stained with pools of red where she discarded her silvery heels. The imagery and music made it clear. There will be no happy ending for the poor nymph.

An Insightful, Relevant Look At Divas

Review

But of course, I would be remiss if I did not mention Arielle Rogers as Sisieretta Jones. Arielle Rogers had easily the most to do throughout the night: Sisieretta eventually became the emotional core of the evening, and that is no small task.

Don't miss: the RCM's unsettling double-bill

Interview

"This piece shows us the extremes of real life relationships: friendships, dysfunctional marriages, unrequited love, toxic relationships, marital rape, etc. It explores how humans react differently to emotional and physical abuse, stress and loss. It really does cover a lot of ground for a work which is only 45 minutes or so in length!"