Celine Bryne as Magda, Leonardo Capalbo as Ruggero, and the Minnesota Opera Chorus in Minnesota Opera’s new production of La Rondine. Photo by Cory Weaver. There is a temptation that directors and designers face to re-encapsulate or reframe an old stage work for today's audience. Sometimes it is about trying to highlight
Tag: Minnesota Opera
REVIEW: It’s the Journey and the Candy in Fellow Travelers (Minnesota Opera)
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
REVIEW: Excess and Glitter in Thaïs (Minnesota Opera)
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
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)
NEWS: Silent Nights Return in Minnesota Opera’s 2018-2019 Season
A scene from Minnesota Opera's 2011 production of Silent Night. Photo by Michal Daniel. Minnesota Opera announced its 2018-2019 season last night. The company, one of the ten largest opera companies in the United States, will produce five mainstage operas at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts in St. Paul, MN:
REVIEW: Music, Laughter, Locked in a Closet: The Marriage of Figaro (Minnesota Opera)
Johanni van Oostrum as Countess Almaviva, Richard Ollarsaba as Figaro, Angela Mortellaro as Susanna, Jacques Imbrailo as Count Almaviva, Andres Acosta as Don Basilio, Nadia Fayad as Marcellina and Matt Boehler as Doctor Bartolo in Minnesota Opera’s The Marriage of Figaro. Photo by Dan Norman. Minnesota Opera's The Marriage of Figaro opened on
REVIEW: Brilliant Music, Inconsistent Tone in Don Pasquale (Minnesota Opera)
Craig Colclough as the titular Pasquale in Minnesota Opera’s Don Pasquale. Photo by Dan Norman. Minnesota Opera's production of Don Pasquale, currently playing at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, is suffused with all the lovely music that you've come to know and expect, well-performed and a joy to hear. The updated
FEATURE/PREVIEW: The Tale of the Raucous Don Pasquale (Minnesota Opera)
A scene from Arizona Opera's 2015 production of Don Pasquale. The same production design will be used in Minnesota Opera's upcoming production of the same opera. Photo by Ed Flores. For an opera that people thought was going to be a failure, Don Pasquale (1843) certainly has done very well for itself. Today,
NEWS: Minnesota Opera Announces Additional Shows
A photo of the Arizona Opera production of Don Pasquale, from which the design of Minnesota Opera's upcoming production is taken. Photo by Ed Flores. Minnesota Opera announced today that it was adding a sixth opera and three concerts to its previously announced 2017-2018 season. The season, which normally ends in May, will
REVIEW: Patchy La Bohème Shines Through (Minnesota Opera)
Scott Quinn (Rodolfo) and Nicole Cabell (Mimì) in Minnesota Opera's production of La Bohème. Photo by Dan Norman. Minnesota Opera's new production of La Bohème is uneven. There are parts that are exceedingly beautiful and engaging, and there are some that are noticeably not on the same level as the others. Call it