Seattle Opera concludes its 24/25 season in May 2025 with TOSCA, Puccini’s beloved thriller. Jonathan Dean introduces the charismatic characters, cinematic music, and wild story that have made TOSCA one of the world’s favorite operas. Musical examples from Seattle Opera archival recordings of Tosca made in 2001 (Antonello Allemandi conducts Carol Vaness), 2007 (Vjekoslav Sutej conducts Lisa Daltirus, Frank Porretta, Jr., and Greer Grimsley) and 2015 (Julian Kovatchev conducts Ausrine Stundyte, Mary Elizabeth Williams, Marcy Stonikas, Stefano Secco, and Greer Grimsley. Special example featuring ..read more

Mozart’s miraculous final masterpiece returns to Seattle Opera in February/March 2025. Seattle Opera Dramaturg Jonathan Dean introduces the beloved music of THE MAGIC FLUTE, with musical examples from archival Seattle Opera recordings made in 1999 (Daniel Beckwith conducts Nathan Gunn, Paul Charles Clarke, John Osborne, Philip Skinner, Ana Maria Martinez, and Cyndia Sieden); 2011 (Gary Thor Wedow conducts Doug Jones, Alissa Henderson, Benjamin Richardson, and Casi Goodman); and 2017 (Julia Jones conducts Christina Poulitsi, Amanda Forsythe, Randall Bills, Jacqueline Piccolino, Nian Wang, Jenni ..read more

In January 2025 Seattle Opera will present two concert performances of LES TROYENS À CARTHAGE, the second part (Acts 3, 4, & 5) of Berlioz’s monumental masterpiece LES TROYENS. Seattle Opera Dramaturg Jonathan Dean introduces the music of Berlioz and this full-length program, sharing musical examples from recordings of Georges Thill singing French tenor arias; Les Troyens conducted by Colin Davis in 1969 (with the orchestra and chorus of Covent Garden and Jon Vickers); from 2000 (Davis conducting the London Symphony orchestra and chorus, Ben Heppner, Michelle DeYoung, and Sara Mingard ..read more

Seattle Opera presents the world premiere of JUBILEE, a new opera celebrating spirituals. Created by Tazewell Thompson, librettist of BLUE, JUBILEE tells the story of how a group of African American singers toured America and Europe in the 1870s, using this wonderful music—America’s first great contribution to the world of music—to raise money to build Fisk University. Seattle Opera Dramaturg Jonathan Dean introduces JUBILEE, whose score consists of newly orchestrated arrangements of over 40 beloved spirituals, sung by thirteen singers. Musical examples in this podcast include spirituals sung ..read more

For Summer 2024, Seattle Opera will present PAGLIACCI, by Ruggero Leoncavallo, a masterpiece of Italian opera all about lust and jealousy, passion and murder; a show about reality and artifice, comedy and tragedy, freedom and fate. (It’s not about pizza.) Seattle Opera Dramaturg Jonathan Dean introduces PAGLIACCI with musical examples from Seattle Opera’s 2008 archival recording, conducted by Dean Williamson and starring Antonello Palombi as Canio, Nuccia Focile as Nedda, Morgan Smith as Silvio, Gordon Hawkins as Tonio, and Doug Jones as Beppe. Special musical examples feature Enrico Caruso, S ..read more

Figaro! Figaro! Figaro! Rossini’s cheerful comedy rounds out Seattle Opera’s season in May 2024. Seattle Opera Dramaturg Jonathan Dean introduces THE BARBER OF SEVILLE with musical examples drawn from Seattle Opera archival recordings from 1992 (conducted by Edoardo Mueller and starring John Del Carlo and Kevin Langan); 2011 (conducted by Dean Williamson and starring José Carbo, Lawrence Brownlee, Sarah Coburn, and Kate Lindsey); and 2017 (conducted by Giacomo Sagripanti and starring Sofia Fomina, Matthew Grills, Will Liverman, Kevin Glavin, and Daniel Sumegi ..read more

Enjoy this sample-platter of music and voices from Seattle Opera’s 2024/25 season. Dramaturg Jonathan Dean and Aren Der Hacopian, Director of Artistic Administration and Planning introduce a mainstage season including Pagliacci (Aug ‘24), Jubilee (World Premiere, Oct ’24), Les Troyens à Carthage in concert (Jan ’25) The Magic Flute (Feb/Mar ’25) and Tosca (May ’25). Musical clips include tenor Diego Torre (Canio in Pagliacci at Lyric Opera Kansas City); Monica Conesa (Seattle’s Nedda, here singing “Casta diva” in Jordan last year); spirituals from Jessye Norman & Kathleen Battle, Paul Robe ..read more

ALCINA, opening October 14th, will be only the fourth-ever Handel opera given at Seattle Opera. General Director Christina Scheppelmann, stage director Tim Albery, and conductor Christine Brandes discuss this great opera composer, and the rebirth of interest in his work, with Dramaturg Jonathan Dean. Starting about 19 minutes in, all three share favorite music from Handel operas. Musical excerpts include singing “Va, tacito” from Giulio Cesare (Marijana Mijanovic and Les Musiciens du Louvre conducted by Mark Minkowski); “Vivo in te” from Tamerlano (Karina Gauvin and Max Emanuel Cenčić, with Il ..read more

Seattle Opera Dramaturg Jonathan Dean investigates two voice types infrequently encountered in opera: trebles (boy sopranos and adolescent female sopranos) and countertenors. Features conversation with Seattle Opera coach-accompanist Jay Rozendaal, and musical examples: TURN OF THE SCREW (Rafi Bellamy Plaice and Forrest Wu), LAKMÉ (Harolyn Blackwell), THE MAGIC FLUTE (Johanna Mergener, Emili Rice, and Isabel Woods), HANSEL & GRETEL (Sasha Cooke and Ashley Emerson), SIEGFRIED (Juls Serger and Julianne Gearhart), FALSTAFF (Peter Rose), Freddie Mercury, Colm Wilkinson, and Will Oakland, I PUR ..read more

Learn more about this fresh, fascinating, and wholly operatic new work, which will play on www.king.org on Saturday June 13 at 10 am PST. Seattle Opera Dramaturg Jonathan Dean introduces The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, the opera with music by Mason Bates and libretto by Mark Campbell. Musical examples from the new recording of the opera made at Santa Fe Opera, summer 2017, and available from Pentatone records, with Edward Parks (Steve Jobs), Garrett Sorenson (Woz), Jessica E. Jones (Chrisann), Sasha Cooke (Laurene), and Wei Wu (Kōbun), conducted by Michael Christie ..read more