Susan Graham News
singer
- piano, voice
- mezzo-soprano
- opera
- United States of America
- opera singer, music teacher, pianist
Last update
2024-03-13
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2024-03-04 07:33:00
Musical strengths, visual confusion & two Rakes: English Touring Opera's new production of Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress
Stravinsky: The Rake's Progess - Act Three, scene one: the graveyardFrederick Jones, Jerome Knox - English Touring Opera (Photo: Richard Hubert Smith)Stravinsky: The Rake's Progress: Frederick Jones/Brenton Spiteri, Nazan Fikret, Jerome Knox, Trevor Eliot Bowes, Lauren Young, director: Polly Graham, conductor Jack Sheen; English Touring Opera at Hackney EmpireReviewed 2 March 2024A refreshing lack of preconceived ideas but visually confusing production offset by strong musical performances including Brenton Spiteri taking over the role of Tom with aplomb part way throughEnglish Touring Opera's Spring tour continued with the launch of Polly Graham's new production of Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress at the Hackney Empire on 2 March 2024, with Jack Sheen conducting. Frederick Jones was singing Tom Rakewell, but before the performance it was announced that Jones had recently returned after illness, and after the Act One the role was sung from the side of the stage by Brenton Spiteri (who is playing Edmondo […]
2024-03-03 11:44:44
The Rake’s Progress review – stylisation tips towards surrealism in ETO’s staging of Stravinsky parable
Hackney Empire, LondonPolly Graham’s new staging benefits from consistently fine singing as the indolent Tom Rakewell and the demonic Nick Shadow clash‘An opera of dazzling surfaces, knowing theatrical tropes and deliberate distancing effects,” is how director Polly Graham describes The Rake’s Progress, in a programme note for her new staging for
2024-02-22 08:09:00
Cinderella in the gas works: Royal Birmingham Conservatoire's site-specific production of Massenet's opera
[…] June. Previous productions have included Jonathan Dove's The Enchanted Pig (2023), Janacek's The Cunning Little Vixen (2023), Charpentier's Les Arts Florissants and Offenbach's Mesdames de la Halles (2022), Stephen McNeff's Banished (2022), Mark-Anthony Turnage's Coraline (2021) and Jeremy Sams' Baroque pasticcio, The Enchanted Island (2020).The conservatoire does not have it's own theatre, hence offering the students the added experience of working on a site specific production (Birmingham has a rich inheritance of this thanks to Graham Vick's work with Birmingham Opera Company) previous venues have included an old button factory, and a rave bingo venue in Digbeth – the Secret Space, whilst the Moseley Swimming Baths – an architectural wonder, is a possibility for the future.Each project involves, of course, not just singers but orchestral musicians from the conservatoire, and student set designers (from Birmingham City University, of which the conservatoire is part), student assistant directors, student repetiteurs, student assistant […]
2024-02-16 08:09:00
As Puccini's Manon Lescaut opens English Touring Opera's Spring tour, I chat to soprano Jenny Stafford who sings the title role in Jude Christian's new production
[…] with her to some performances. Jenny's husband is also a singer, and she comments that they sing to her son a lot!English Touring Opera's new production of Puccini's Manon Lescaut is directed by Jude Christian, conducted by Gerry Cornelius, with Jenny Stafford as Manon, Gareth Dafydd Morris as Des Grieux, Aidan Edwards as Lescaut and Edward Hawkins as Geronte. Opening at Hackney Empire on 24 February [further details]. Stravinsky's The Rakes Progress will be directed by Polly Graham, conducted by Jack Sheen with Nazan Fikret as Anne Trulove, Frederick Jones as Tom Rakewell, Jerome Knox as Nick Shadow, Trevor Eliot Bowes as Father Trulove and Lauren Young as Baba. Opening at Hackney Empire on 2 March [further details]
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