2015-2016
Happiness is updating your calendar! From Arizona to Vienna (VA), from Canada to Texas, from Handel to Hanlon, and with my favorite opera of all time in the mix? Next year is shaping right up. Hope to see you somewhere along the way!
Category: im Graben
Scenes
Tonight was the Butler Opera Center’s scenes program. I love scenes programs: the sheer variety of repertoire, the quick changing up of style, story, and singers. I love watching our student conductors lead with confident and expressive hands. I love hearing the surprises: a new steadiness of tempo, a beautiful … Continue Reading →
Ariadne: finished, we begin.
Finished? But our opening night of Ariadne in Naxos at the Glimmerglass Festival is two days away. Why after the dress rehearsal am I talking about being finished? I love this moment after the dress rehearsal, but not because all the work is done. We have come so far, the cast, the … Continue Reading →
96 hours
That’s how long we spent between first rehearsal and dress rehearsal. How does that even work? A whirlwind schedule like that can function if you have important people in place. First and foremost, of course, we have our cast from the premiere performances in Houston: the incomparable Frederica von Stade, … Continue Reading →
A Coffin in Egypt
I am thrilled to announce that in April, I’ll be conducting the West Coast premiere of Ricky Ian Gordon’s new opera, A Coffin in Egypt. The performances will take place at The Wallis Annenberg Center, and the centerpiece of this one-woman tour-deforce is the indefatigable Frederica von Stade. I’ve worked with … Continue Reading →