San Francisco Opera Gala Opening Night Event One Week Away

Iréne Theorin will portray
Puccini's icy princess.

"It’s not too late to part-take in of the most prominent events in the San Francisco musical and social scene. On September 9th, join Encore!, the San Francisco Opera’s club for opera aficionados, as they host the opening night gala at City Hall. As the second largest opera company in North America, the San Francisco Opera has been host to opera’s jewels like conductor Sir Georg Solti, director Francis Ford Coppola and lirico-spinto soprano Renata Tebali. The 2011/12 season will feature John Adams’ Nixon in China, a long sought after program. This magical evening will begin with cocktails at 5PM, followed by an elegant seated dinner at 6PM in City Hall and then attendees will head to the War Memorial Opera house and enjoy a performance of Puccini’s Turandot. The festivities continue back at City Hall at around 11PM after the performance with dessert and dancing into the wee hours of the night. One must first join Encore! and then purchase tickets for the gala which at this point start at $425 for Dress Circle Rear placement. A table for 10 Patron tickets is $6,000 (call (415) 621-4403 for orders and use this form) and if you can only make the performance, tickets are still available starting at $129." [Source]

Check out an image from the Hockney production and watch a clip of Iréne Theorin singing the "Riddle Scene" from Turandot at Covent Garden after the jump.

"Puccini’s final masterpiece opens the season under the baton of Music Director Nicola Luisotti, who conducted this melodically rich, colorfully orchestrated work to great acclaim at London’s Royal Opera House in 2009. This passionate tale of a princess whose cruelty masks her fear of love features some of the composer’s most glorious music, including the stirring anthem “Nessun dorma.” It will be performed by an outstanding cast led by Swedish soprano Iréne Theorin, “the world’s reigning Turandot” (Opera Britannia); Adler Fellow Leah Crocetto, an “outlandishly gifted soprano” (San Francisco Chronicle); and Marco Berti, “one of the preeminent Italian singers of his generation” (MusicalCriticism.com). The lavish production, featuring David Hockney’s “dazzling sets” (San Francisco Chronicle), returns in November with an equally impressive ensemble led by soprano Susan Foster, whose “acting is as impressive as her powerful, well-controlled, emotionally compelling voice” (Washington Post), and Walter Fraccaro, a "husky-voiced" tenor whose singing is "burnished and impassioned" (The New York Times)." [Source]

Are Domestic Opera Companies Beginning Their Final Descent?

How many are standing around watching the
collapse of opera houses across the United States?

Seems as though New York City Opera was the first company in the United States to really yell "Fire!" loud enough for people to start paying attention to their imminent collapse. Now other companies are following suit, beginning with Washington National Opera, San Francisco Opera and Austin Lyric Opera.

San Francisco Opera Announces Wagnerian Cast Change

Tenor replacement: Jay Hunter Morris

"David Gockley, General Director of San Francisco Opera, has announced a casting change in the Company’s upcoming presentation of Richard Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung). American tenor Jay Hunter Morris will now sing the title role of “Siegfried” replacing acclaimed Wagernian tenor Ian Storey, who was originally announced to sing the role in both Siegfried and Götterdämmerung, the third and fourth operas of the composer’s epic four-opera cycle. Mr. Storey will only sing in Götterdämmerung, a performance that will mark both his Company and role debuts. The premiere of Siegfried is slated for Sunday, May 29th followed by the premiere of Götterdämmerung a week later on Sunday, June 5th. Three complete cycles of the Ring will be presented at the War Memorial Opera House from June 14th to July 3rd, 2011." [Source]