News
News: Royal Theatre rent hike forces Pacific Opera Victoria’s hand
Rent hikes of up to 160% by Victoria, BC's Royal & McPherson Theatre Society has already forced the Victoria Symphony to move half of its programming to the University of Victoria and could have serious budgetary repercussions for one of its other main tenants,...
Opera Canada Awards — ‘The Rubies’ 2018: A Night of Celebration
October 22, 2018 - The 18th annual Opera Canada Awards — 'The Rubies,' was a stupendous success. Our sold out gala brought together members of the opera community from across the country including Winnipeg, Edmonton, Montréal, Victoria, as well as guests from across...
Setting the stage for Opera Atelier: a chat with set designer Gerard Gauci
From the dark, brooding tale of punishment that is Charpentier's Actéon to the ethereal splendour of Rameau’s Pygmalion, this Opera Atelier two-in-one production will bring mystical worlds of darkness and delight to life on October 25th. In fact—make that a...
The Rubies 2018: Spotlight on Wayne Gooding
For the first time in its 18-year history, the 2018 Rubies is honouring one of its own. Fittingly it’s Wayne Gooding, the recently retired editor of Opera Canada. Wayne joined OC in 1992 as a volunteer board member. Soon he was drafted to assume the role of Chair of...
Step into the world of Hadrian: interdisciplinary conference offers insights into new opera
Hadrian, Rufus Wainwright’s all-new operatic creation, is days away from hitting the main stage. As all eyes train on Toronto for its highly anticipated world premiere, the Canadian Opera Company is hosting a conference called “Hearing Hadrian,” aimed at exploring the...
The Rubies 2018: Spotlight on Dominique Labelle
Soprano and vocal pedagogue Dominique Labelle feels honoured to receive one of this year’s Opera Canada Awards (a ‘Ruby’). “It is humbling but heart-warming to be recognised by your country and your peers.” Dominique Labelle adds with a wistful grin, “in addition the...
Live-streaming: why are Canadian opera productions missing from the worldwide phenomenon?
The availability of live-streamed and on-demand opera has exploded in the last five years. Major companies like Royal Opera House (Covent Garden), Opéra national de Paris, Grand Teatre del Liceu (Barcelona) and Vienna State Opera have cinema distribution deals...
The Rubies 2018: Spotlight on Alexander Neef
Opera Canada Awards 2018 honouree, Alexander Neef, is in a thoughtful mood as he looks back on his time with the Canadian Opera Company. “It was a pretty unique situation,” he says, recalling his arrival in Toronto in 2008, “of a company that had just built one of the...
Preview: dark comedy meets fantasy in City Opera Vancouver’s “operatic thriller” Nigredo Hotel
City Opera Vancouver opens its 2018 season this week with a new production of the classic '90s Canadian opera, Nigredo Hotel. An intriguing blend of genres, the one-act chamber opera is a “bizzare, comic and macabre” psychological thriller, simultaneously “sarcastic...
News: Musique 3 Femmes announces winners of new prize supporting emerging female opera creators
Musique 3 Femmes has announced the winners of a new prize honouring emerging Canadian women composers and librettists. The $25,000 Mécénat Musica Prix 3 Femmes Award recognizes all-female creative teams who demonstrate “extraordinary promise in the field of opera...
Preview: Opera up close and personal at Manitoba Underground Opera
From the stony ruins of a historic cathedral to the stately grandeur of Manitoba’s Legislative Building, Manitoba Underground Opera (MUO) brings the musical form to spaces out of the ordinary each summer. Founded in 2008 by Winnipeg-raised conductor Brendan McKeen,...
News: Opera Canada to participate in mentorship program for emerging arts critics
The Emerging Arts Critics programme (EAC) is an initiative aimed at supporting and fostering the next generation of arts critics and writers, helping them develop the tools needed to authoritatively write about and review ballet, music and opera performances. This...