Edmonton Opera recently received feedback from a concerned patron, noting we had missed an opportunity to contribute to important conversations happening in our communities related to violence against women. Our 2023 production of Carmen, which opened our 60th season, contains scenes of violence, including against women. We did not publicly address this difficult and troubling theme and we should have.  Many have written about this issue within opera generally, and in relation to Carmen specifically. In a 2022 blog posted by San Francisco Opera, SUNY professor of music Monica Hershberger ..read more

As we prepare to open our sold-out run of Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater this week at the Jubilee Auditorium, we asked director Jennifer Tarver about her Edmonton roots and how she is approaching this unique piece. What is your connection to the city of Edmonton? JT: My parents moved to Edmonton from New York when I was 3, and I grew up here.  My mother founded the Dance Program at Grant MacEwan and was the co-artistic director of the Alberta Contemporary Dance Company.  My father founded the play-wrighting program at the University of Alberta. I directed my first production at the Edmont ..read more

Frances Thielmann We're thrilled to announce that Frances Thielmann is joining our artistic team at Edmonton Opera! Frances will act as Head Coach for all productions in our upcoming season and contribute to the artistic values at the company. "I'm extremely excited to return to my hometown and work with the incredible talent that is at Edmonton Opera right now. Edmonton is quite a cultural hub, and I'm looking forward to being a part of it." Frances Thielmann, of Vancouver, completed her master’s degree in collaborative piano at the University of Toronto where she studied with esteemed piani ..read more

Edmonton audiences may know Rossini as the genius behind blockbuster comic operas like The Barber of Seville and Cinderella, but his final comedy Count Ory (or Le comte Ory in French) is only now gaining popularity at opera houses across the world. “For the life of me, I don’t understand why Le comte Ory isn’t the most produced of all Rossini operas,” says Brian Deedrick, director of this Western Canadian premiere. “It’s one grand and glorious cartoon! From the moment the curtain goes up, you sort of know that everything is going to turn out just fine in the end, which allows you to sit back a ..read more

Mezzo soprano Andrea Hill and soprano Lida Szkwarek will be playing the dynamic brother-sister duo in Hansel & Gretel. They recently sat down to chat about the music in this opera and their impressions of Edmonton Opera’s new production.  Andrea: What makes the music in this opera so compelling?  Lida: The way Humperdinck has composed music for each character really gives you a feel for their personalities. For example, the children’s music is so pure and shows their sporadic ideas, whereas the parents’ music is more stable. Another compelling part happens in ..read more

A major theme in Hansel & Gretel is hunger and the extent to which it can affect family relationships. Throughout the opera, starvation is an imminent reality for the children, and we see the amount of stress it causes the parents. The Mother’s shame and anger at being unable to provide for her children causes her to lash out and tell them to forage for food in the forest. The Father, on the other hand, often comes home drunk. Though Hansel & Gretel is a fairy tale, their family’s story is a reality for many people in our own community. After changes were announced to the Canada Food G ..read more

Is it based on a popular kids’ fairy tale? Yes. Does it have cutesy rhymes and folk melodies? Sure. But Hansel & Gretel is definitely not just for the little ones. In fact, if you bring kids to experience this opera, they will be at a pretty high level of music appreciation by the end of it. They’ll be ready for The Ring Cycle next! The maturity and complex musical themes in Hansel & Gretel are no surprise considering composer Engelbert Humperdinck (1854-1921) trained under Richard Wagner, who created masterpieces such as Parsifal, Tristan und Isolde, The Flying Dutchman, and of cours ..read more

As a Feature Celebration Site for Alberta Culture Days 2018, Edmonton Opera offered three days of free, family-friendly arts events at locations across the city from September 28-30. Albertans were welcomed to discover the diversity of arts and culture in our province by attending these exciting events! Our action-packed weekend began with an Open House at the Edmonton Opera Centre, where visitors were able to get a first look at the set of La Traviata in the rehearsal hall. They also received tours of our 22,000 square foot facility and interacted with production staff, who were in the midst ..read more

When I was first approached by Edmonton Opera General Director Tim Yakimec to direct Hansel & Gretel, he gently requested the piece not be a ‘lollipop and candy canes’ version of the opera. There was a desire to have something darker, which I believe suits the piece much better than a light-hearted fairy tale approach. The eerie elements of Hansel & Gretel have existed from its creation. Going back and reading the Brothers Grimm story, I realized this wasn’t a light little fairy tale. For example, in the original, the kids get kicked out of their house by their stepmother (not mother ..read more

As she prepares to wow Edmonton audiences with her talent, we asked soprano Laquita Mitchell to share some insights about her character in La Traviata and what she looks forward to in this production. Edmonton Opera’s La Traviata marks not only your company debut, but also your first time performing in front of a Canadian audience. What are you looking forward to the most for your Canadian debut? I’m looking forward to working with the esteemed creative team behind this wonderful production! As well as the music making that goes along with preparing one of Verdi’s greatest opera’s. You’ve been ..read more