Opera in Concert, now also known as Voicebox, celebrates its 40th anniversary with a season of true rarities for Canadian soil, including the premiere in this country of Benjamin Britten’s coronation opera, Gloriana and a new baroque collaboration with Kevin Mallon and his Aradia Ensemble.
The season opens on Oct. 6 with slapstick comedy as company artistic director Guillermo Silva-Marin casts himself as the embattled theatre director in an adaptation of Mozart’s 1786 Singspiel, Der Schauspieldirektor.
Gloriana is performed in concert on Nov. 24., with Betty Waynne Allyson as Elizabeth I and Adam Luther as Essex. Peter Tiefenbach makes his début with Voicebox as piano accompanist/music director.
On Feb. 2, the company is joined by Kevin Mallon and his period-instrument Aradia Ensemble for a performance of Jean-Philippe Rameau’s Hippolyte et Aricie. The singing cast is spectacular, and should recreate the heady atmosphere that made for such a fine Naxos recording of Rameau’s Castor et Pollux 10 years ago.
The presence of soprano Meredith Hall, mezzo Allyson McHardy, tenor Colin Ainsworth and bass Alain Coulombe alone makes this a must-attend concert next year.
The four-performance season at the Jane Mallett Theatre concludes with Giuseppe Verdi’s Stiffelio on March 23. Michael Rose will provide piano accompaniment and musical direction.
All concerts are on Sundays at 2:30 p.m. You’ll find all the details here, once the company updates its website.
John Terauds