The SunBreak » opera

What We’re Hearing This Month: Classical Music Picks For May

Dana Wen — Sat, 10 May 2014 14:55:42 +0000

Though May is already in full swing, there are still plenty of options for classical music fans looking for live music. This month's offerings run the gamut from opera and chamber music to modern dance and ballet.

In the Nordic-West, Seattle Opera’s “Ring” Fills a Great Hall

Michael van Baker — Thu, 08 Aug 2013 20:14:27 +0000

The word for “settler” among the Vikings was “Landnám’s man”; the first arrival in an area “took” the land and named it. There was a lexicon of settlement, made up of family names and the names for geographic features, descriptions of the kinds of settlements, and relationships between them. “Torp,” for instance, referred to an … Continue reading →

In “The Gondoliers,” Gilbert & Sullivan Patter Song Visits Venice

Philippa Kiraly — Thu, 27 Jun 2013 19:00:57 +0000

The Gondoliers (July 12 to 27 at the Bagley Wright Theatre) calls for 17 principal roles and no less than three prominent young couples, but Seattle G & S, now in its 59th season, has had no trouble finding singers for all those roles.

Two Women on the Verge in “Suor Angelica” & “Voix Humaine”

RVO — Tue, 07 May 2013 22:40:21 +0000

Portrayed by the amazing Nuccia Focile, Elle is part courage, part anger, and partly on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Focile navigates the story with uncommon acting chops and a luscious, supple voice that conveys both the depth of Elle’s despair and the character’s strong will.

Vespertine Opera’s Playful Les Mamelles de Tirésias at Columbia City Theater

Margaret Higginson — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 18:28:54 +0000

Full of double entendres, word play (the relationship and translation between French and English is a fertile field), and a playful disregard of logic and sense, the story will amuse you. The singing will also please you; the small cast is full of young rising singers.

Teatro Zinzanni’s “Dinner at Wotan’s” Takes Acrobatics to Valhalla

Margaret Higginson — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 20:00:46 +0000

Teatro ZinZanni’s newest show, Dinner at Wotan’s, is a whirlwind of songs you know and songs you don’t, gravity-defying acrobatics, cabaret, and one memorable bubble bath. Based (extremely) loosely on Nordic mythology, the show combines '80s power ballads, traditional Swedish songs, an aria from Verdi’s La Forza del Destino (“Pace, pace mio Dio”), and even some of Wagner’s Ring Cycle.