Frick in the sheets Frick in the sheets

The Jupiter Ensemble with Lea Desandre and Anthony Roth Costanzo offers sleek and sexy HIP inaugurates the Frick Collection’s new Stephen A. Schwartzman Auditorium

Now you Caesar, now you don’t Now you Caesar, now you don’t

Before stopping at Carnegie Hall this weekend, The English Concert returned to the Bay Area last week with a fiery performance of Giulio Cesare

Aïda Aïda

A live broadcast from New York

Camille says you <em>must</em> watch <em>Senso</em> Camille says you <em>must</em> watch <em>Senso</em>

Visconti’s masterpiece and one of the great filmed sequences of opera.

Madama Butterfly

Eleonora Burrato and Jonathan Tetelman lead a performance from Berlin recorded last week with Kirill Petrenko conducting

Little girls get bigger every day Little girls get bigger every day

Elza van den Heever and Peter Mattei (and the stage elevator) elevate an assertive, if not definitive, new Salome at the Met

Il trovatore Il trovatore

A performance recorded last fall in New York

Remko Jas says you <em>must</em> watch <em>The Fifth Element</em> Remko Jas says you <em>must</em> watch <em>The Fifth Element</em>

After seeing The Fifth Element I wanted to see Inva Mula live, which I did (Nanetta, two years after the movie) and she certainly did not disappoint!

The other Mr. Brownlee The other Mr. Brownlee

While the thoroughly established Lawrence Brownlee reprises his familiar Count Almaviva in the Met’s Barbiere di Siviglia, parterre box calls your attention to another Mr. Brownlee making waves: Nicholas Brownlee.

Siegfried Siegfried

A live video stream from Atlanta Opera

Fjord every stream Fjord every stream

Lise Davidsen‘s singular Senta dominates the forces of the Norwegian National Opera in a roiling new recording of Der fliegende Holländer out now on Decca Classics

Darby Fegan says you <em>must</em> watch <em>Philadelphia</em> Darby Fegan says you <em>must</em> watch <em>Philadelphia</em>

One of the most moving scenes in film, accompanied by Callas‘s iconic singing.

Force of habit Force of habit

Turmoil and injustice in the federal government; turmoil and grief in the Catholic Church: the time sure seems right for a staging of Francis Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites.

Ritorna vincitrice Ritorna vincitrice

Elina Garanca is back at the Met for the first time since 2020 — her Amneris is, in a word, sensational.

Kevin Ng says you <em>must</em> watch <em>Marie Antoinette</em> Kevin Ng says you <em>must</em> watch <em>Marie Antoinette</em>

Sofia Coppola‘s cult classic Marie Antoinette is best known for blending a whimsically baroque visuals with a post-punk score.

Momentum mori Momentum mori

A fine Don Giovanni at Opera Philadelphia rounds out the company’s inaugural season under Anthony Roth Costanzo

Masques et bergamasques Masques et bergamasques

John Yohalem wraps up Donizetti Month at parterre box with a look back at nearly six decades of Donizetti operagoing.

A favorite Donizetti performance from Mister Snow A favorite Donizetti performance from Mister Snow

As a beginning freshman in college at CSU Long Beach, I was cast in my first opera – the chorus for L’Elisir d’amore ( performed in English as “The Elixir of Love”).

A masked ball A masked ball

Opera San José (OSJ) concluded its eclectic 41st Season with another first, Héctor Armienta’s Zorro, which received its Northern California premiere at the California Theatre on Friday, April 19th.

Salome Salome

A live broadcast from New York

Sex power god Sex power god

Breaking the Waves and Tannhaüser at Houston Grand Opera are a can’t-miss doubleheader of sex and miracles.

A favorite Donizetti performance from Belfagor A favorite Donizetti performance from Belfagor

This early performance of Anna Bolena’s final scene is just one of the most poised and magical pieces of bel canto singing I’ve ever heard. It must have been extraordinary to hear her at the outset of her career.

Patrick Mack 1964-2025 Patrick Mack 1964-2025

parterre box is very sad to learn of the passing of beloved writer Patrick Mack in Los Angeles yesterday.

Smash or pass Smash or pass

The long-awaited Broadway musical adaptation of the NBC series Smash is “not Bombshell – it’s just a bomb,” according to David Fox and Cameron Kelsall.