Road Trip!

Christine Goerke as Elektra

San Francisco Opera, 2017

Photo by Corey Weaver, courtesy of SFO

When Houston Grand Opera announced their 2021-22 season, this was the principal cast for Dialogues of the Carmelites:

• Blanche: Natalya Romaniw 
• Madame Lidoine: Christine Goerke 
• Madame Croissy: Anna Caterina Antonacci 
• Mother Marie: Jennifer Johnson Cano 
• Sister Constance: Lauren Snouffer 
• Marquis: Rod Gilfry 
• Chevalier: Eric Taylor

That...is a terrific cast, and Anna Caterina Antonacci is rarely seen on these shores. (I've been lucky to see her four times.)

As it happens, it seems that she won't be appearing in this opera. The current cast is:

• Blanche: Natalya Romaniw 
• Madame Lidoine: Christine Goerke 
• Madame Croissy: Patricia Racette 
• Mother Marie: Jennifer Johnson Cano 
• Sister Constance: Lauren Snouffer 
• Marquis: Rod Gilfry 
• Chevalier: Eric Taylor

Making her role debut as the Old Prioress, one of my favorite singers, Patricia Racette. The chance to see her and another of my favorite singers - that would be Christine Goerke - as the New Prioress, well.

Patricia Racette as Cio-Cio-San

Marty Sohl / Metropolitan Opera

Opera America Awards

Opera America has made $225,000 in awards to assist in the production of a number of operas. Here are the works, composers, and companies involved. Congratulations to all of the recipients! I hope to hear your works.

AMERICAN OPERA PROJECTS with OPERA PARALLÈLE Today It Rains by composer Laura Kaminsky and librettists Mark Campbell and Kimberly Reed
	Today It Rains is set on the transformative train ride that Georgia O’Keeffe took from New York to Santa Fe in 1929, during which she began to redefine herself as an artist and confront certain aspects of her marriage to Alfred Stieglitz. Based on an original concept by Mark Campbell, with a projection design by Kimberly Reed, the production will be conducted by Nicole Paiement and directed by Brian Staufenbiel. For this same work, Opera Parallèle previously received two grants: a 2016 Repertoire Development Grant and a 2017 Commissioning Grant, part of the Opera Grants for Female Composers Program.
BETH MORRISON PROJECTS Magda/Max by composer Garrett Fisher and librettist Amy Schrader
	Magda/Max is inspired by the dramatic life and death of Magda Goebbels, unofficial first lady of the Third Reich. The story unfolds through the experiences of Max, a gay Jewish prisoner in a concentration camp who is beaten close to death for “deviant” behavior. In a fever-dream, he imagines himself as Madga Goebbels, lamenting a society that refuses to accept the new world order. As the war comes to a close, Max's fate becomes intertwined with the Nazi leaders trapped in Hitler’s bunker, and freedom is only attainable through the ultimate sacrifice.
BOSTON LYRIC OPERA Schoenberg in Hollywood by composer Tod Machover and librettist Simon Robson Based on a scenario by Braham Murray
	Schoenberg in Hollywood centers on influential composer Arnold Schoenberg and his late-career effort to assimilate into the culture of 1930s Los Angeles. The opera will explore the humor, heroism and pathos of Schoenberg’s struggle, as it imagines his complex life in Hollywood and uncovers its relevance for future generations. It will premiere at Boston Lyric Opera in fall 2018.
THE GLIMMERGLASS FESTIVAL Blue by composer Jeanine Tesori and librettist Tazewell Thompson
	Blue dives into the emotional epicenter of an African-American couple who lose their teenage son when he is killed by a police officer. Blue will premiere during the 2019 festival season and will be one of the subjects of “Breaking Glass,” a podcast and series of national forums hyperlinking opera and topical issues. For this same work, The Glimmerglass Festival previously received a 2016 Commissioning Grant, part of the Opera Grants for Female Composers program.
HOUSTON GRAND OPERA The Phoenix by composer Tarik O'Regan and librettist John Caird
	The Phoenix examines the life of Mozart’s friend and librettist, Lorenzo Da Ponte. After the composer's death, Da Ponte flees Europe for America. Pursued by tax collectors and wronged women, Da Ponte reinvents himself countless times as a priest, a poet, a father, a political exile, a grocer and a teacher. The Phoenix will premiere in March 2019 as part of HGO’s multidisciplinary initiative “Seeking the Human Spirit.”
LONG BEACH OPERA Five by composer Anthony Davis and librettist Richard Wesley
	Long Beach Opera will facilitate the revision and new premiere of the opera Five. The opera follows five African-American and Latino teenage boys who were wrongly convicted for the 1989 rape and beating of a white jogger in Central Park. The “Central Park Five” spent between 6 and 13 years in prison until they were exonerated by DNA evidence, following the confession of the true assailant.
THE METROPOLITAN OPERA Eurydice by composer Matthew Aucoin and librettist Sarah Ruhl
	Eurydice, based on the play by Sarah Ruhl, tells the Orpheus story from the perspective of Eurydice, using contemporary language to present the young lovers as quirky and conflicted. Eurydice meets her father in the Underworld, her memory erased, and they must re-establish their bond. When Orpheus arrives to bring her back to the land of the living, will she return with him? Eurydice was commissioned in 2015 by the Met Opera/Lincoln Center Theater New Works Program.
MINNESOTA OPERA The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by composer Paola Prestini and librettist Mark Campbell
	The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane is a family-friendly opera based on the young adult novel of the same name by Kate DiCamillo. It follows the adventures of an aloof toy rabbit named Edward whose comfortable life abruptly ends when he is thrown into the sea. His adventures take him far and wide until he finally opens his heart and finds his way back home. For this same work, Minnesota Opera previously received a 2017 Commissioning Grant, part of the Opera Grants for Female Composers program.
OPERA COLUMBUS The Flood by composer Korine Fujiwara and librettist Stephen Wadsworth
	A collaboration between Opera Columbus and ProMusica Chamber Orchestra,The Flood tells a story of human connection through loss and shared tragedy across multiple generations of one family, centered on the devastation caused by the Great Flood of 1913 in the Franklinton neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio. The Flood will receive its world premiere in Columbus in February 2019. For this same work, Opera Columbus previously received a 2016 Commissioning Grant, part of the Opera Grants for Female Composers program.
OPERA THEATRE OF SAINT LOUIS Fire Shut Up in My Bones by composer Terence Blanchard and librettist Kasi Lemmons
	Fire Shut Up in My Bones is based on the moving memoir by journalist Charles Blow, chronicling his coming of age in small-town Gibsland, Louisiana, formerly the site of a plantation. Blow learns to break the cycles of violence that ignite this community, which is tied together by deep bonds and the spirit of resilience.

Houston Grand Opera Season Announcement, 2017-18

Houston Grand Opera season 2017-18, copy/paste from PDF. Some comments in line.

Verdi: La traviata
October 20, 22m, 28, Nov. 1, 3, 5m†, 11†, 2017
Violetta Valéry Albina Shagimuratova #
Alfredo Germont Dimitri Pittas
Giorgio Germont George Petean *
Conductor Eun Sun Kim *
Director Arin Arbus
Set Designer Riccardo Hernandez
Costume Designer Cait O’Connor *
Lighting Designer Marcus Doshi *
Projection Designer Christopher Ash *
Choreographer Austin McCormick *
Chorus Master Richard Bado #
Houston Grand Opera Orchestra and Chorus
A co-production of Houston Grand Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago and Canadian Opera Company

Handel: Julius Caesar
October 27, 29m, Nov. 4, 8, 10, 2017
Julius Caesar Anthony Roth Costanzo *
Cleopatra Heidi Stober #
Cornelia Stephanie Blythe
Sextus Megan Mikailovna Samarin #
Ptolemy David Daniels
Achillas Federico De Michelis #
Conductor Patrick Summers
Director James Robinson
Associate Director Michael Shell *
Set Designer Christine Jones
Costume Designer James Schuette
Lighting Designer Christopher Akerlind
Houston Grand Opera Orchestra


A Houston Grand Opera production
World Premiere
The House without a Christmas Tree
A Chamber Opera in One Act
Based on The House without a Christmas Tree, a book by Gail Rock
Music by Ricky Ian Gordon; Libretto by Royce Vavrek
Sung in English with projected English text
November 30, Dec. 2, 3m, 6, 8, 10m, 14, 16m, 17m, 2017
Addie Mills Lauren Snouffer #
James Addison Mills III (“Dad”) Daniel Belcher #
Miss Thompson/ Heidi Stober #
Helen Mills/
Adelaide Mills
Grandma Mills Patricia Schuman
Conductor Bradley Moore
Director James Robinson
Set Designer Allen Moyer
Costume Designer James Schuette
Lighting Designer Christopher Akerlind
Houston Grand Opera Orchestra and Juvenile Chorus
Commissioned and produced by Houston Grand Opera

R. Strauss: Elektra
January 19, 21m, 27, 31, Feb. 2, 2018 [Nice cast and maybe this offers clues to us.]
Elektra Christine Goerke
Chrysothemis Tamara Wilson #
Klytaemnestra Michaela Martens *
Orest Greer Grimsley #
Aegisth Chad Shelton #
Conductor Patrick Summers
Production David McVicar
Revival Director Nick Sandys*
Set and Costume Designer John Macfarlane
Lighting Designer Jennifer Tipton
Chorus Master Richard Bado #
Houston Grand Orchestra Orchestra and Chorus
A Lyric Opera of Chicago production


Rossini: The Barber of Seville
January 26, 28m, Feb. 3, 8, 10, 2018
Figaro Lucas Meachem *
Count Almaviva David Portillo
Rosina Sofia Selowsky#
Don Basilio Eric Owens #
Doctor Bartolo Peixin Chen #
Conductor Julian Wachner *
Director Joan Font
Set and Costume Designer Joan Guillén
Lighting Designer Albert Faura
Choreographer Xevi Dorca
Chorus Master Richard Bado #
Houston Grand Opera Orchestra and Chorus
A co-production of Houston Grand Opera, Canadian Opera Company, Opéra National de Bordeaux, and Opera Australia


West Side Story
Based on a Conception of JEROME ROBBINS
Book by ARTHUR LAURENTS, Music by LEONARD BERNSTEIN, Lyrics by STEPHEN SONDHEIM
Entire Original Production Directed and Choreographed by JEROME ROBBINS
Sung in English with projected text
April 20, 22m, 28, May 1, 3, 4, 6m, 2018
Maria Andrea Carroll #
Tony Norman Reinhardt #
Anita Alicia Gianni #
Riff Brian Vu *
Conductor Timothy Myers
Director Francesca Zambello [Well, she did direct our Show Boat!]
Choreographer Julio Monge *
Set Designer Peter J. Davison
Costume Designer Jessica Jahn
Lighting Designer Mark McCullough
Houston Grand Opera Orchestra
A co-production of Houston Grand Opera, Glimmerglass Festival, and Lyric Opera of Chicago [And that tells you where this production is headed, eh?]

Bellini: Norma
Sung in Italian with projected English translation
April 27, 29m, May 5, 8, 11, 2018
Norma Liudmyla Monastyrska
Adalgisa Jamie Barton #
Pollione Simon O’Neill
Oroveso Peixin Chen #
Conductor Patrick Summers
Director Kevin Newbury
Set Designer David Korins *
Costume Designer Jessica Jahn
Lighting Designer Duane Schuler
Chorus Master Richard Bado #
Houston Grand Opera Orchestra and Chorus
A co-production of San Francisco Opera, Canadian Opera Company, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and Gran Teatre del Liceu [If you're a subscriber to SFO, you have likely seen this, with a different cast]

It's a Wonderful Life Comes to San Francisco

Back in October, 2014, when David Gockley announced his retirement, the press release included the following:

In the near future, San Francisco Opera will see three additional new operas planned by Gockley including Marco Tutino and Fabio Ceresa’s La Ciociara (Two Women) in June 2015, Bright Sheng and David Henry Hwang’s Dream of the Red Chamber for Fall 2016, and a soon-to-be-announced commission from Jake Heggie for Fall 2017.

But, in fact, the new opera for fall, 2017, is John [Coolidge] Adams' new opera, Girls of the Golden West.

Today came the press release for the Heggie opera, It's a Wonderful Life. It will be performed in the fall of 2018. It should not be a surprise that we got the information now, as the opera is about to open at Houston Grand Opera, one of the other co-commissioners. (The third commissioning organization is the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.) The opera is based on the famous Frank Capra film and on Philip Van Doren Stern's short story "The Greatest Gift."

Patrick Summers will conduct, with the cast to be announced at a later date. The production team is the same as for Moby-Dick, a previous Heggie opera, which has been quite a success:  director 
Leonard Foglia, set designer Robert Brill, costume designer David C. Woolard, lighting designer Brian Nason and projection/video designer Elaine J. McCarthy. The Houston cast is excellent and personally I hope that it comes here unchanged.