Canonici sings Renaissance love songs

Step back to Valentine’s Day in 1550 with a cappella group Canonici, who present “Plaisir d’Amour: The Pleasure of Love” as part of the free Classical Tuesdays in Old Town series. The program includes Renaissance love songs in English, French and Italian. 7 p.m. Feb. 14. Free, all ages. Slavonian Hall, 2306 N. 30^th St., Tacoma. 253-752-2135, classicaltuesdays.blogspot.com

Kurt Weill with Tacoma Opera

Tacoma Opera’s annual Young Artists’ performances this weekend offer a cabaret version of music by Kurt Weill, the 20^th-century German composer and enormous stage influence, with works like “The Threepenny Opera.” Cast members include Celeste Godin, Woong Kim, Ksenia Popova, Bryan Hiroto Stenson and Heather Weirich. 8 p.m. Feb. 11, 2 p.m. Feb. 12. $30. Theatre on the Square, 915 Broadway, Tacoma. 253-627-7789, www.tacomaopera.com. Read more »

This weekend sees a first for me: Usually I’m the one watching and writing about local opera, but this Saturday and Sunday I’m in one. It’s “Amahl and the Night Visitors,” the sweet-and-short opera by Gian-Carlo Menotti about the Three Kings of the Christmas story; and the production is at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Tacoma, featuring members and a director from Tacoma Opera as well as church singers.

Don’t expect to see me on stage, though – my voice isn’t that good. No, I’ll be accompanying on piano, along with a harpist. It isn’t the first opera I’ve played for by any measure – my former career was playing double bass for symphony and opera orchestras – but it’s my first in Tacoma.

And the other first for me is seeing my two kids singing in an opera: my son in the children’s chorus, and my daughter in the lead role of Amahl.

“Amahl” was the first opera written just for TV, in 1951, and as such it’s very approachable for those of us who can’t sit through Verdi or Wagner. Just 50 minutes long, its music is modern yet sweet and tonal, with harmonious duets and witty humor. It tells (in English) the story of the Three Kings from the point of view of a poor crippled shepherd boy, Amahl, who gets a visit from the kings as they make their way to Bethlehem. Read more »

When an opera company mounts a regional premiere of a 200-year-old opera, you have to ask why no-one else has done it. The answer, once you see Tacoma Opera’s production of Rossini’s “The Turk in Italy,” on this weekend in the Rialto Theater, is clear: It needs a brilliantly even cast and a clever stage director. This production has both in spades, with the bonus of a skilled conductor, sensitive orchestra and a very versatile set.

In telling the story of a married couple torn apart by a woman who can’t stop flirting, this opera doesn’t exactly break ground plot-wise; nor does it go emotionally beyond Rossini’s usual froth – though that’s always lovely to hear. But three and a quarter hours of froth is pretty hard to take without something more, and for Tacoma Opera that something would be sheer vocal and comic chutzpah. Every one of the five main principals has superb control of these difficult lines, and each has a delightfully entertaining take on the opera’s stock characters.

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Tacoma Opera has hired Dr. Noel Koran as its new general director, three months after the resignation of former director Kathryn Smith, the company announced today. Koran was selected by the Tacoma Opera board of directors after a national search, and has extensive experience directing opera in the Northwest.

“We are thrilled to have someone of Noel’s caliber and experience leading Tacoma Opera, said board member Peter Serko.  “It really is a dream come true, he definitely has the skill and experience to take us to the next level.”

Koran
comes to Tacoma from directorship positions at Roque Opera …

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Tacoma Opera has just announced that its general director Kathryn Smith has been appointed the new general director of Madison Opera, in Madison, Wisconsin. The move to the $2 million company comes after seven years for Smith at Tacoma Opera. She will assume her position on July 1, and the board of Tacoma Opera has begun a search for a new general director.

Smith, a Seattle native and Harvard graduate, came to Tacoma Opera in October, 2003 after six years at The Metropolitan Opera of New York, where she had been responsible for a $4.5 million budget as …

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Every year there’s an opera performance in Tacoma that’s unfamiliar to most of us. It features unknown artists, works we’ve maybe never heard of. It’s not in the Pantages or Rialto. But if you’re interested in up-and-coming singers, or just interesting opera, it’s worth a look: It’s the annual Young Artist Showcase by Tacoma Opera, staged in Theatre on the Square. This year the works are Haydn’s “The Budding Soprano,” telling the story of a diva-in-training, and Chabrier’s “An Incomplete Education,” a hilarious situation where a pair of newly-weds realize that they’ve never been told – er – …

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This weekend is a first for me: Usually I’m the one watching and writing about local opera, but this Saturday and Sunday I’m in one. It’s “Amahl and the Night Visitors,” the sweet-and-short opera by Gian-Carlo Menotti about the Three Kings of the Christmas story; and the production is at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Tacoma, featuring members and a director from Tacoma Opera as well as church singers.

Don’t expect to see me on stage, though – my voice isn’t that good. No, I’ll be accompanying on piano, along with a harpist. It isn’t the first opera I’ve …

Read more »

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Classical Tuesdays

The Classical Tuesdays in Old Town series this month features a UPS faculty-based string quartet playing Gabriela Frank’s “Legends,” a composition reflecting her heritage and travels. 7 p.m. Nov. 9. Free. Slavonian Hall, 2306 N. 30^th St., Tacoma. classicaltuesdays.blogspot.com

Tacoma Opera drinks “The Elixir of Love”

A flirty soprano, a gullible tenor and a cunning baritone get together for Donizetti’s “The Elixir of Love,” staged this weekend by Tacoma Opera. 8 p.m. Nov. 5, 2 p.m. Nov. 7. $25-$64. Rialto Theater, 310 S. 9^th St., Tacoma. 253-591-5894, 253-627-7789, www.tacomaopera.com

“The Cradle Will Rock” …

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