News
Opinion: How can diverse identities experience Messiah?
An old professor of mine startled me recently, asking, “What’s it like singing Messiah as a Jewish person?” I was taken aback, never having given the matter much thought. “It’s beautiful music and story-telling, like all my other repertoire,” I replied, perplexed at...
Review: Messiah/Complex joyfully proves beauty of a vast ‘Canadian’ experience
I feel I must preface this review with the confession that I have never--not ever--seen a holiday-season Messiah. I am grateful that Messiah/Complex, a filmed collaboration between the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) and Against the Grain (AtG) Theatre, seen Dec....
Lived Experience: Transgender opera singers still fear coming out and losing work
The November 2020 opening of Orchestre Classique de Montréal’s production of Laura Kaminsky, Mark Campbell, and Kimberly Reed’s chamber opera As One opened up another frustrating conversation about where transgender people belong in the performing arts. Navigating...
6 Canadian Messiah productions to usher in the holidays at home
As advent calendars continue the countdown to a bittersweet 2020 holiday season, opera companies keep inline with tradition--or should we say online--via streamable versions of the Handel classic. Keep reading for a complete list of Messiah shows to curl up to with a...
4 wisdoms for artists from opera life coach Rebecca Hass
In November 2020, Opera Canada magazine spoke with Rebecca Hass, mezzo-soprano and creative wellness coach, about her work with opera artists. 1. Opera artists face specific challenges that require specific solutions Nearly 13 years into her life-coaching career,...
Canadian Michael Cavanagh appointed Royal Swedish Opera Artistic Director
Canadian opera director Michael Cavanagh has been appointed Artistic Director of the Royal Swedish Opera, the company announced in a press release on Nov. 30th. Cavanagh has directed over 150 opera productions at 32 companies in Canada, U.S. and Europe. His...
Opera Mariposa hosts discussion for Deaf and disabled perspectives in opera
On Dec. 1st, Opera Mariposa is creating a platform for Deaf and disabled perspectives in opera via an online panel discussion on accessibility, inclusion and pursuing live music safely during COVID-19. With Making Opera Accessible: during the pandemic and beyond, the...
Opinion: Casting cis singers to play trans characters in opera is artistically sub-par
On paper, As One seems perfect. At a time when high-profile trans stories with trans people in the creative team are still few and far between, As One—an opera with music by Laura Kaminsky and words by Mark Campbell and Kimberly Reed—not only has a trans...
COC names Perryn Leech as its next General Director
After a year-long, international search, the Canadian Opera Company (COC) has named Perryn Leech its next General Director in a press release on Nov. 30th. Leech is currently Managing Director of Houston Grand Opera (HGO) and officially begins at the COC as of March...
Call For Pitches from LGBTQ2S+ writers
CALL FOR PITCHES: From what Opera Canada magazine can tell, important voices were silenced last weekend regarding casting choices of trans characters in the opera As One. We want to publish opinions from LGBTQ2S+ writers who have more authority on this issue than our...
Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Rubies 2020–“We need to listen as much as to guide”
2020 Rubies Honouree: Yannick Nézet-Séguin Let’s begin with a bit of perspective. Back in 2003, when I first interviewed 2020 Rubies honouree Yannick Nézet-Séguin for an article in Opera Canada’s ‘Debut’ column, it was clear that at 27, he was already earmarked for a...
For Transgender Awareness Week, OCM streams As One
To honour International Transgender Awareness Week on Nov. 20th, Orchestre classique de Montréal (OCM) presents a Quebecois premiere of As One starring baritone Phillip Addis (Hannah before) and mezzo-soprano Sarah Bissonnette (Hannah after). As One is an...