In Bellini’s Norma, rising star Angela Meade is the Druid priestess who secretly carries on a love affair in the midst of the Gallic-Roman wars. When her lover’s affections shift, the mystic Norma turns warrior, prepared to seek revenge. Classical WETA’s Nicole Lacroix hosts this audio preview of Bellini’s Norma, which opens March 9 in the Kennedy Center Opera House.
Musical excerpts courtesy of EMI Classics.
Intensely romantic and beguiling, Manon Lescaut is the first tragic heroine in a long list of Puccini favorites. Patricia Racette makes her role debut in John Pascoe’s “impassioned, sensual production” (Baltimore Sun). Classical WETA’s Nicole Lacroix hosts this audio preview of Puccini’s Manon Lescaut, which opens March 2 in the Kennedy Center Opera House.
Musical excerpts courtesy of EMI Classics.
Take a look at the making of Washington National Opera’s production of Nabucco, performed last April.
Related: Celebrating the 200th anniversary of Verdi’s birth, London’s Royal Opera House asked people worldwide to record their own versions of the chorus “Va Pensiero” from Nabucco. (source NPR)
Big thank you to Buzzfeed for naming us one of the 54 Best Tumblrs started in 2012!
Take a peek Behind the Curtain.
It’s almost impossible to attend a Donizetti opera and not be tempted to exit the theater whistling one or another of his tunes. The beguiling beauty of these melodies, so abundantly distributed throughout Anna Bolena, can make each one seem to be an end in itself. That’s the line of thinking that led to so many of his operas not being taken seriously in the days when bel canto was trivialized as a passing “interlude” before the age of Verdi and Wagner dawned.
But Donizetti’s breakthrough in works like Anna Bolena is rooted in a keenly theatrical sensibility.
Looking to liven up your night at the opera? Try one of Washington National Opera’s Signature Drinks for the fall!
Off to England with Anna Bolena? Enjoy a Lavender Pimm’s Cup:
Swordfighting your way through Spain with Don Giovanni? Nothing beats a great glass of red wine:
Both will be offered for the duration of the performances. Drink up!
American soprano Sondra Radvanovsky makes her role debut in Washington National Opera’s season-opening production of Donizetti’s Anna Bolena beginning September 15 in the Opera House.
Q: How did you choose opera as a career path?
A: I’ve loved opera since I was a very, very young child. My mother brought me a record player when I was five years old; I started singing along, then harmonizing at five, six years old and loved it. Then I was eleven years old and saw Plácido Domingo on television singing opera and that was it. Sold. Thank you very much. I want to do that.
Q: Take us through the process of preparing a role for the first time.
Andrew Foster Williams on why it’s important we make opera available to everyone. See him, Sonia Ganassi, the Domingo-Cafritz Young Artists, the WNO Orchestra, and conductor Emmanuel Villaume in the Washington National Opera 2012–2013 Season Preview Concert this Wednesday from 6-7 p.m. in the Opera House. It’s a FREE event, so bring your friends!
In part 2 of our new Making of Opera series, Nabucco costume designer Mattie Ullrich shows us her artistic process, from imagination to creation.
Ever wondered how those big drops you see in opera houses across the globe are painted? The answer: very carefully. Here are some images of the drops for Nabucco that were painted in Venice by the world-renowned Paolino Libralato and his two assistants.
They mix their paints from powders, just as scene painters have done for centuries, creating a sense of depth and texture onstage that cannot be achieved by any other method. Libralato’s work is rarely seen in the US, so don’t miss the opportunity to check out his master craftsmanship!
