NEWS: Fallout from Classical Music’s Sexual Misconduct Disclosures Arts Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - July 29, 2018July 29, 2018 The Covent Garden Theatre in London burns in 1856. The day after the Arts Reader ran its feature on sexual misconduct in opera, the Star Tribune ran its own feature on lapses in sexual assault and rape investigations in the State of Minnesota. Four days later, the Washington Post published the
Fringe File 2018 #17 – Hanne Appelbaum’s Top 10 Must-Sees Arts Dance Music Opera Theatre Visual Arts by Hanne Appelbaum - July 28, 2018July 28, 2018 A photo from last year's Fringe production of MEDUSA by Vox Medusa and Infiammati FireCircus. Photo by Max Haynes. If in doubt, set it on fire. That's my mantra for this year's Fringe festival: if you're not at all sure where to start, hit up Vox Medusa with Infiammati FireCircus's MEDUSA. This
FEATURE: Opera, Sexual Misconduct, and Daylight Arts Comedy Dance Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - July 21, 2018August 1, 2018 This story includes a graphic discussion of sexual assault. One night in July, wigmaster Jolie O’Dell turned out the lights and went to bed. She awoke, she says, to find herself being groped by her house guest, a bass-baritone opera singer named Matthew Stump. Stump masturbated as he fondled her; amidst
REVIEW: It’s the Journey and the Candy in Fellow Travelers (Minnesota Opera) Arts Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - June 19, 2018June 24, 2018 The cast of Minnesota Opera’s Fellow Travelers. Photo by Dan Norman. Fellow Travelers, a fantastic new opera that opened at the Cowles Center on Saturday, is one of Minnesota Opera's best newer works of recent years. The music is beautiful and interesting, the story fraught with passion and the lure of
NEWS: Jerome Foundation Announces Inaugural Organization Grant Recipients Arts Dance Music Opera Theatre Visual Arts by Basil Considine - June 15, 2018June 15, 2018 A photo collage of artists and art funded by the Jerome Foundation. The Jerome Foundation today announced $4,159,500 in grants to 84 arts organizations in Minnesota and New York City. These grants to nonprofit arts organizations comprise inaugural offering of the foundation's new Organization Grants Program. The two-stage application process attracted 254
REVIEW: Excess and Glitter in Thaïs (Minnesota Opera) Arts Music Opera Theatre by Amy Donahue - May 27, 2018June 24, 2018 Gerard Schneider as Nicias, Kelly Kaduce as Thaïs, and Lucas Meachem as Athanaël with the cast of Thaïs. Photo by Cory Weaver. Sometimes, going to the theatre means checking your attitudes at the door. There's a certain market for pieces that have been edited to be politically correct and/or align with
FEATURE: On the Sweet, Seductive Decadence in Minnesota Opera’s Thaïs Arts Dance Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - May 11, 2018June 24, 2018 A scene from Jules Massenet and Anatole France's classic opera Thaïs, opening tomorrow at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts in St. Paul, MN. Photo by Cory Weaver. Thaïs opens tomorrow at Minnesota Opera. The opera features some of the most beautiful music ever written, notably the famous Meditation (see below)
BREAKING NEWS: Iowa Soprano 1 of 5 Winners at Met Opera Grand Finals Concert Arts Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - April 29, 2018April 29, 2018 Soprano Jessica Faselt (right) during the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions at Bethel University in March. Photo courtesy of the Met National Council Upper Midwest Region. The votes are in for the final round of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. The five winners, chosen based on their performances in the
NEWS: Finalists Announced for Metropolitan Opera’s Annual Talent Search Arts Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - April 23, 2018April 23, 2018 The finalists for the 2018 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. L-R: Carlos Santelli, Ashley Dixon, Jessica Faselt, Gretchen Krupp, Danielle Beckvermit, Emily Misch, Madison Leonard, Megan Grey, and Hongni Wu. New York is heating up, and it's not just the temperature outside. Over the weekend, the Metropolitan Opera wrapped up the
NEWS: Four Humors to Host New MN Theater Awards Arts Music Opera Theatre Visual Arts by Basil Considine - April 17, 2018April 17, 2018 A medieval medical manuscript describing the four humors of the body. One of the big questions on the mind when the Ivey Awards announced their closure in February was, "Will anyone step up and take their place?" The answer, it turns out, is yes – and, at least to start, it's Four