A shtetl aesthetic
Austin Opera’s moving production of Fiddler on the Roof grounds itself in lived tradition, to great effect.
Seokyoung Kim
Seokyoung Kim is a PhD candidate in musicology at the University of Texas at Austin. Her research interests include opera studies, contemporary music, the use of Eastern materials in American experimentalism, and music criticism. Her dissertation project examines Chinese-born composer Huang Ruo's opera M. Butterfly (2022), an adaptation of Puccini's Madama Butterfly, focusing on interculturality and issues of minority representation.
Celebrate good times
Austin Opera’s 40th anniversary gala celebrated the present while gesturing boldly towards the future.
Character assassination
Austin Opera’s 2024 production of The Manchurian Candidate proved to be a daring and timely commentary on political power in America, shortly after the 2024 election, just as it had been before the 2016 election.
Tenue farfalla
A revival of Huang Ruo’s M. Butterfly, a co-production between the Barbican and BBC Symphony Orchestra, landed in London last week.
Basque in the glory
For the opening night of Il Trovatore, Houston Grand Opera’s new production aimed high, bringing together a star-studded cast and a fresh, contemporary take on Verdi’s intense drama.
Carmen, domesticated
On May 2, Rebecca Herman‘s conceptualizing of Carmen was a significant departure from the traditional depiction of a marginalized “other,” maintaining a traditional staging in Seville.