The first opera to be performed in Verona Arena was Aida in 1913, staged to commemorate the centenary of Verdi's birth. Since then there have been 517 performances of Aida. The opera has been performed every year but one since 1980, it has been performed in over 40 seasons since 1946 but prior to that there were performances of Aida in just 1913, 1920, 1927 and 1936. In fact, since the 2nd World War the Arena seems to have become something of an Aida industry.

The count of performances since 1913 for the top 10 operas is quite revealing, with Aida leading by far:-
Aida = 517
Carmen = 177  read more »

Don Carlos at Covent Garden 12.10.58 From The Scotsman (n.b.date) To mark the centenary of the opening of the present Royal Opera House in Covent Garden a new production of Verdis Don Carlos was given on Friday night. A magnificent cast has been assembled to give the work in Italian, with Luchino Visconti and Carla-Maria Giulini , the most renowned producer and conductor in Italy today. No expense has been spared to make this new offering a celebration worthy of the occasion. On many similar occasions when such an effort is made, with all the stops pulled out, the result falls short of expectation. But this presentation of Don Carlos exceeds hope, and is nothing short of magnificent.  read more »

(Photo: Cory Weaver for Portland Opera)

Julia Sheridan, publicity and publications manager at Portland Opera has informed me that NPR's Morning Edition will broadcast a 7-minute story on the Portland Opera Chorus this Friday, May 9. She thinks that it will run at about 7:50 but doesn't have a confirmed time yet.  read more »

You can hear the next two weekends Metropolitan Opera broadcasts live from the stage of New Yorks Lincoln Center on WITF 89.5 Saturday at 1:30pm. You can also see it live through a high-definition broadcast at select movie theaters across the region. This Saturday, its Benjamin Brittens Peter Grimes , generally regarded as one of the major 20th Century operas in the repertoire today, and next week its Wagners Tristan und Isolde , perhaps one of the most significant operas of the 19th Century and one you dont get much chance to see because its so hard to cast and its also freakin long (the Mets production is scheduled to begin at 12:30 and conclude before 6pm).  read more »

If there is one opera that qualfies as the all-time audience favourite, it is Puccini's La boheme. It is by far the most performed opera in the 125 year history of the Metropolitan Opera, surpassing other popular works the likes of Aida and Carmen. The current Met production by Franco Zeffirelli, first seen in the 1981-2 season with Teresa Stratas and Jose Carreras, is the most performed production in the history of this house.

— Read more at
La Scena Musicale

"La Bohme" is updated to a world of "wild and crazy guys" at the Washington National Opera ; a video of a decomposing rabbit appears in "Parsifal" at Bayreuth. Some people call this kind of opera production Regietheater (director's theater); others, Eurotrash opera. The basic idea is that it puts as much emphasis on the direction as on the music, and it's led to all kinds of strange productions: Aida as a cleaning lady, Simon Boccanegra as a Mafia don, "Nabucco" with a swarm of bees in lieu of a chorus. — Read more at washingtonpost.com

Below is a list of Royal Opera House productions and co-productions currently expected (*subject to change*) to show at UK cinemas over the coming year. The Empire chain and the Vue chain are both involved, but specific locations will vary for each production. The full list of cinemas participating in the first screening can now be found  on the Royal Opera House website , and I assume details for the later ones will be added in due course. As a price guide, the Empire Leicester Square is charging 20 for the first screening, and the Vue Islington 15.  read more »

(Photo: Corey Weaver for Portland Opera) Soprano Lisa Daltirus is staring in the title role of Portland Operas "Aida," which opens tonight at Keller Auditorium. Earlier this year, Daltirus did a fantastic performance of "Tosca" with Seattle Opera and will be doing "Aida" with them in August. I talked to her a couple of days ago in order to find out more. Tell us a little of your background and how you got interested in opera?  read more »

image: D*FaceENO's credit must be well and truly crunched. They're offering tickets for a limited range of performances at 10 each. The seats on offer are in the balcony and back two rows (I and K) of the dress circle only. Balcony seats are narrow and uncomfortable with limited leg room and the view is distant, but sound is generally good. The dress circle seats are more comfortable (leg room still a squeeze) but you can't see the top of the stage or surtitles, and the sound isn't great due to the overhanging upper circle above. What a choice, eh?  read more »