The replacements
Second casts in Don Giovanni and Turandot at the Metropolitan Opera offer mixed blessings.
East Coast
We wear the masque
A brief concert at the Frick Collection teases the multifaceted artistry of Davóne Tines
Tag team
The women were the highlights of Washington National Opera’s militaristic Aïda
Don Giovanni
Daniele Rustioni leads a live broadcast from New York
Streamed November 6, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Comment
I’m still thinking about John Dexter’s I vespri siciliani
My first reaction in 1974 wasn’t good. The production was full of stairs, and I was afraid Montserrat Caballé would fall at any moment.
By Gregory B. Mowery
Comment
Beyond the merely pretty
J’Nai Bridges makes a sophisticated companion to the Morgan Library & Museum’s Renoir Drawings exhibit.
“An opportunity to deliver”
Daniele Rustioni, who starts his tenure as Met Principal Guest Conductor with Don Giovanni this week, might just be the opera conductor we’ve all been waiting for — and he’s betting on a long haul.
La fille du régiment
A live broadcast from New York
Streamed October 31, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Comment
Grail against the machine
A new production of Parsifal at San Francisco Opera stirred something deep inside Michael Anthonio about how music soothes the soul
Frieze frame
Shirin Neshat‘s Aïda in Paris is a typical instance of what happens when an artist is brought in to direct an opera.
Vigorous to rigorous
Dmitry Matvienko led a performance of Mussorgsky and Shostakovich at La Monnaie with meticulous rectitude.
School gyrls
What Opera Lafayette’s Dido and Aeneas lost in gravitas it gained in charm and specificity.
“By boycotting us, you are killing art”
Brendan Latimer sits down with Francesca Zambello and members of the cast of Washington National Opera’s production of Aïda to discuss the complicated legacy of one of Verdi’s most beloved works and the tricky business of “inventing the truth.”
Up the creek and over the hill
Matthias Goerne‘s Die schöne Müllerin at Carnegie Hall offers a hoary and excessive collection of mannerisms and vocal tics that served the artist more than the music itself.
The open wound that will never heal
In his new production that opens at San Francisco Opera this weekend, Matthew Ozawa is creating a Parsifal for the cancel culture age.
Don Giovanni
A live broadcast from New York conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin
Streamed October 20, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Comment
Avec la victoire, l’instant du bonheur
Buoyed by a strong cast, The Metropolitan Opera continues its autumn bel canto streak with a winning revival of Donizetti’s La fille du regiment.
La fille du régiment
A live broadcast from New York starring Lawrence Brownlee and Erin Morley
Streamed October 17, 2025 at 7:25 PM
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Psychic gestures
Rolando Villazón opens up about his production of La sonnambula, how he develops characters, and what makes opera dance.
The scorned mother of us all
Seeing Sondra Radvanovsky as Medea at Lyric Opera of Chicago sprawled across the floor, soaked in her children’s blood, is proof that we’re witnessing an utterly haunting singer-actor.
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).