San Diego Opera Announces 2014-15 Season After Rescue

Seats at San Diego Civic Theatre
wait to be filled with opera fans.

"San Diego Opera’s Board of Directors voted today to rescind the decision to close the Company after nearly two months of careful analysis, deliberation and fundraising. The Company originally announced its closure and the sale of its assets on March 19, 2014. The original closure date was scheduled to occur on April 14, 2014, the day after the Company’s final sold-out performance of Don Quixote. A vote by the Board on March 31, 2014, delayed that closure by two weeks until April 29, 2014. Another vote by the Board on April 18, 2014, extended that closure date to at least May 19, 2014. Today’s vote on May 16, 2014, overturns the original decision to close. 'The public spoke, we listened, and we’re open for business,' shares Board President Carol Lazier, 'and do we have some great news to share with you!' In light of this news, San Diego Opera is announcing its 2015 season, the Company’s 50th. La bohème, Don Giovanni, and Nixon in China are the three operas being performed at the San Diego Civic Theatre. The Company will also celebrate its 50th anniversary with special Gala Concerts of favorite arias, duets, ensembles and choruses with the San Diego Symphony at Copley Symphony Hall. Additional events and performances are in the works, and will be announced shortly. The Company has also announced that the ongoing crowd funding effort has resulted in a total of $2,116,376 in donations from 2461 of donors as of midnight Sunday, May 18, 2014. 48% of these donors have never given before and represent gifts from six countries – Austria, Australia, Canada, England, Italy, Mexico & 36 States. The gifts range from $10 – $50,000 with a median gift of $100. Now that the $1 million goal has been reached, and the Company has announced a 2015 season, both triggers of the escrow account have been met and donations will be moved from the escrow account into the Company’s 2015 fund to be used for the just-announced season." [Source] See details of the season, including artists performing, after the jump.

Iván Fischer Conducts and Directs Festival "Don Giovanni"

Hungarian conductor Iván Fischer will be joined by Budapest Festival Orchestra on August 4 & 7 at Rose Theater in New York City for the Mostly Mozart Festival to perform Don Giovanni. The production will be fully staged and conducted by Maestro Fischer. The production focuses on the human body with 16 stage actors forming the sets and props. Singers for the production will include Greek soprano Myrtò Papatanasiu as Donna Elvira, American soprano Laura Aikin as Donna Anna, Korean soprano Sunhae Im as Zerlina, Hungarian tenor Zoltán Megyesi as Don Ottavio, Italian baritone Riccardo Novaro as Masetto, Portuguese baritone José Fardilha as Leporello, Icelandic bass Kristinn Sigmundsson as the Commendatore and Greek baritone Tassis Christoyannis as Don Giovanni. [Source]