Opera

SFCV’s perceptive writers report on topics relevant to opera.

Janos Gereben - May 23, 2023

Die Frau ohne Schatten had its U.S. premiere in San Francisco and is a complicated piece to bring to the stage.

Victoria Looseleaf - May 22, 2023

The Korean soprano brings her Italian training and experience of motherhood to the role of Cio-Cio-San.

Jim Farber - May 16, 2023

Russell Thomas, Rachel Willis-Sørensen, and Igor Golovatenko make powerful impressions in a well-staged production.

Michael Zwiebach - May 16, 2023

It’s the latest accolade for an opera that continues to wow audiences and critics alike.

Victoria Looseleaf - May 15, 2023

Unfolding over six hours, Stranger Love is composer Dylan Mattingly’s attempt at a transformative work that marries philosophical ideas and everyday experience.

Jason Victor Serinus - May 15, 2023

The composer talks about For a Look or a Touch and Another Sunrise, presented by Music of Remembrance this month.

Lisa Hirsch - May 9, 2023

Toshi and Bernice Johnson Reagon’s operatic rendering of Octavia Butler’s novel is scarily on point but also musically winning.

Nicholas Jones - May 9, 2023

The group’s season-ending concert was devoted to Handel’s Apollo and Daphne and Jean-Philippe Rameau’s Pygmalion.

Emery Kerekes - May 8, 2023

From New York: The Metropolitan Opera star makes a recital debut that is alternately gripping and hilarious.

Victoria Looseleaf - May 8, 2023

The star bass talks about his career, fighting for the underdog, and being a family man.