Beyond the valley of the gods
The Bayerische Staatsoper’s Ring cycle scores another triumph with Tobias Kratzer’s take on Die Walküre.
Recent Stories
Aegean in place
Greek National Opera’s Medea in the ancient theater at Epidaurus is an intermittently rewarding exercise in nostalgia.
I’ll take the fall
The days are getting shorter, but you can keep the prattle going this fall’s Talk of the Town! You will, you can, you must join in the discussion about: Great mezzo soprano performances (October),
Gained in translation (November), Teleport me back to… (December).
Ma queer immortelle
San Francisco Opera hosts an exuberant tribute to queerness past and present.
Yannick Nézet-Séguin is a great opera conductor
Historically, conductors were often viewed as rigid, authoritarian figures. Yannick Nézet-Séguin completely subverts this stereotype.
By Leyla Gender-Bender
172 comments
Goodnight, Irene
Grand Tier Grab Bag features the American Zwischenfach mezzo Irene Roberts ahead of an eclectic season of Wagner.
Queening out
Brett Dean‘s Of One Blood casts a well-trodden Tudor tale in a poignant, new light.
Patrizia Ciofi should have made it to the Met
The artist who I feel should have made it to the Met is Patrizia Ciofi.
By Mr. Portafiori
104 comments
Giannina Arangi-Lombardi never made it to the Met
Giannina Arangi-Lombardi never sang at the Met.
Broadcast
Parsifal / Wiener Festwochen
Yi-Chen Lin conducts Russell Thomas, Dshamilja Kaiser, Albert Dohmen, and Kartal Karagedik in a performance recorded earlier this month in Vienna
Streamed June 27, 2026 at 1:00 PM
60 comments
Broadcast
Siegfried / Royal Ballet and Opera
Antonio Pappano conducts Andreas Schager, Elisabet Strid, and Christopher Maltman in a performance recorded in London in March
Streamed June 27, 2026 at 1:00 PM
18 comments
Broadcast
Simon Boccanegra / Dutch National Opera
Fabio Luisi conducts George Petean, Federica Lombardi, and Riccardo Massi in a performance recorded earlier this month in Amsterdam
Streamed June 27, 2026 at 1:00 PM
3 comments
Et O ces voix d’enfants
Brundibár at the Opéra Comique combines whimsy with historicity to sobering effect.
Andrée Esposito and Alain Vanzo should have made it to the Met
This Mireille duet unites Andrée Esposito and Alain Vanzo and shows the timbral and stylistic qualities that made them exemplary.
By Krunoslav
153 comments
Broadcast
Lucia di Lammermoor / Teatro alla Scala
Rosa Feola goes mad in a live broadcast from Milan
Streamed June 26, 2026 at 2:00 PM
9 comments
A little tenderness
The premiere recording of David T. Little’s What Belongs to You reveals a work of both tenderness and artistic tenacity.
Broadcast
Giulio Cesare / Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino
Raffaele Pe sings the title role opposite the Cleopatra of Mariangela Sicilia in a live broadcast from Florence
Streamed June 25, 2026 at 1:00 PM
Comment
Broadcast
Die Walküre / Bayerische Staatsoper
Vladimir Jurowski conducts Nicholas Brownlee, Miina-Liisa Värelä, Joachim Bäckström, and Irene Roberts in the opening of the Munich Opera Festival
Streamed June 25, 2026 at 11:00 AM
99 comments
There are no dead
John Danaher pays an operatic tribute to the writings of James McCourt, an author who captured the spirit of opera as queer and dangerous like no other.
Mahler if ya hear me
Yannick Nézet-Séguin, leading the Met Orchestra, and Joyce DiDonato continue their exploration of Mahler at Carnegie Hall.
Ebe Stignani and Anita Cerquetti should have made it to the Met
Subtlety is for cowards, say the blazing Anita Cerquetti and the blaring Ebe Stignani.
Poetic license
Parterre Box shines a light on Liparit Avetisyan, who made his Met debut as Alfredo earlier this spring.
Broadcast
Asmik Grigorian Gala / Wiener Konzerthaus
Asmik Grigorian sings arias from Tchaikovsky, Verdi, and Puccini with the Vienna Radio Symphony.
Streamed June 23, 2026 at 1:30 PM
Comment
Fifty percent illusion
Opera Theatre of Saint Louis does its best to give magic in its summer productions of Roméo et Juliette and A Streetcar Named Desired.