{"id":58519,"date":"2019-02-04T23:18:16","date_gmt":"2019-02-05T04:18:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=58519"},"modified":"2019-02-05T08:42:14","modified_gmt":"2019-02-05T13:42:14","slug":"the-scoop-coc-2019-20-season-goes-back-to-basics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2019\/02\/04\/the-scoop-coc-2019-20-season-goes-back-to-basics\/","title":{"rendered":"THE SCOOP | COC’s 2019-20 Season Goes Back To Basics"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"COC
The Canadian Opera Company announce six operas, including Dvo\u0159\u00e1k’s Rusalka with Sondra Radvanovsky as part of the 2019-20 season.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Season announcements have been coming in fast and furious over the past week, including the Canadian Opera Company (COC), who has just unveiled a 2019\u201320 season featuring six productions at Toronto’s Four Season Centre on Monday night.<\/p>\n

The biggest take away is not so much the operas themselves, but the COC’s exploration of productions of well-trodden repertoire supported by a mixture of Canadian and international casting and creative direction.<\/p>\n

As COC General Director Alexander Neef tells it, \u201cthis season, we have curated a selection of operas that are magnetic for their extraordinary scores and vivid storytelling \u2014 and remarkable for their ability to tap into the emotions and motivations that unite us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fall (Turandot<\/em> and Rusalka<\/em>)<\/h3>\n
\"Irene
Irene Theorin as Turandot in Turandot (Teatro Real Madrid, 2018) (Photo: Javier del Real)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The COC launch the 2019\u201320 season on September 28 with Puccini\u2019s Turandot.<\/em><\/p>\n

Directed by Robert Wilson<\/strong> with design by Stephanie Engeln<\/strong>, the mood is described as modern with clean lines and reserved means.<\/p>\n

Soprano Tamara Wilson<\/strong> will share the title role of Turandot with soprano Marjorie Owens<\/strong> \u2014\u00a0both COC role debuts. Russian tenor Sergey Skorokhodov<\/strong> and Bulgarian tenor Kamen Chanev<\/strong> also debut in the shared role of Calaf with bass Stefan Kocan<\/strong> singing the defeated King Timur, and father of Calaf sung by tenor Sergey Skorokhodov<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"Lyric
Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Rusalka<\/em> Dress Rehearsal at the Civic Opera House in Chicago (Photo: Todd Rosenberg)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The second opera of the season is Anton\u00edn Dvo\u0159\u00e1k\u2019s\u00a0Rusalka, <\/em>which opens\u00a0on\u00a0<\/em>October 12 for seven performances at the Four Seasons Centre.<\/p>\n

Last seen at the COC in 2009 with director Dmitri Bertman, this new production will be lead by Scottish opera and theatre director Sir David McVicar<\/strong> with superstar soprano Sondra Radvanovsky<\/strong> in the title role. Czech tenor Pavel \u010cernoch<\/strong> will play the Prince who takes her heart. Soprano Keri Alkema<\/strong>, who performed alongside Radvanovsky in the COC\u2019s 2018\u2019s Anna Bolena, is cast as the Foreign Princess.<\/p>\n

The cast also includes British bass Matthew Rose<\/strong> and Slovak bass Stefan Kocan<\/strong> sharing the role of Rusalka\u2019s father, Vodnik. They are joined by Russian mezzo-soprano Elena Manistina<\/strong> as the witch Je\u017eibaba.<\/p>\n

Winter (The Barber of Seville<\/em> and Hansel & Gretel<\/em>)<\/h3>\n
\"Alek
Alek Shrader as Count Almaviva (far right) in the Canadian Opera Company production of The Barber of Seville, 2015, (Photo: Michael Cooper)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Rossini\u2019s crowd-pleasing The Barber of Seville<\/em> returns after a four-year absence at the COC \u2014\u00a0 this time as a co-production with Houston Grand Opera, Op\u00e9ra National de Bordeaux, and Opera Australia.<\/p>\n

Directed by Joan Font,<\/strong> the founding member of Els Comediants, we can expect a larger than life approach, especially with the ever-entertaining Italian baritone Vito Priante<\/strong> as Figaro. COC Ensemble Studio alumni Emily D\u2019Angelo<\/strong> will sing Rosina. Other cast members include tenor Santiago Ballerini<\/strong>, baritone Renato Girolami<\/strong> and bass Brandon Cedel<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The production runs for eight performances starting January 19, 2020, with Italian conductor Speranza Scappucci<\/strong> leading the COC Orchestra in her COC mainstage debut.<\/p>\n

\"Against
Against the Grain Theatre Founder and Artistic Director, Joel Ivany<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Arguably one of the most looked forward to productions of the season is Engelbert Humperdinck’s Hansel & Gretel,\u00a0<\/em>directed by Toronto\u2019s own\u00a0Joel Ivany<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Co-produced with the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, the new production will begin a seven-performance run starting February 6, 2020.<\/p>\n

The Grimm fairy tale cast includes Canadian baritone Russell Braun<\/strong> as Peter, American mezzo-soprano Emily Fons<\/strong> as Hansel, and soprano Simone Osborne<\/strong> as Gretel. Toronto favourite mezzo-soprano Krisztina Szab\u00f3<\/strong> will sing the role of Gertrude, and tenor Michael Colvin<\/strong>\u00a0will play the diabolical witch.<\/p>\n

Johannes Debus<\/strong> conducts the COC Orchestra and the Canadian Children\u2019s Opera Company.<\/p>\n

Spring (Aida\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0The Flying Dutchman<\/em>)<\/h3>\n
\"Rosario
Rosario La Spina as Radames (back) and Sondra Radvanovsky (front) as Aida in the Canadian Opera Company\u2019s production of Aida, 2010 (Photo: Michael Cooper)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Giuseppe Verdi\u2019s Aida<\/em> makes a surprise return in the spring season with Tim Albery’s<\/strong> stark take on the war-time epic about love gone wrong. According to the COC, set designer Hildegard Bechtler<\/strong> will set the opera from it\u2019s original ancient Egypt, to\u00a0the modern-day Middle East.<\/p>\n

Faithful opera patrons will recall COC’s production of\u00a0Aida<\/em>\u00a0in 2010 with Albery and Bechtler was largely panned by critics and audience members alike. Seeing it return is a curious surprise, and a rare second chance to redeem the original production.<\/p>\n

Cast members to look forward include soprano Tamara Wilson<\/strong>, in the title role, tenor Russell Thomas<\/strong> as Radames, bass Goderdzi Janelidze<\/strong> as the high priest Ramfis, and mezzo-soprano Cl\u00e9mentine Margaine<\/strong> as the princess Amneris. The cast also includes Richard Wiegold<\/strong> as the king of Egypt, and baritone Roland Wood<\/strong> playing Amonasro.<\/p>\n

Conductor Jader Bignamini<\/strong> makes his COC mainstage debut with the COC Orchestra. Aida\u00a0<\/em>runs seven performances, April 18 through May 8, 2020.<\/p>\n

\"Adam
Adam Luther (at the wheel) as The Steersman and Evgeny Nikitin as The Dutchman with the COC Chorus in the Canadian Opera Company\u2019s production of The Flying Dutchman, 2010 (Photo: Michael Cooper)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Any traditionalist would agree that no opera season is complete without Wagner, and the COC are taking heed. Closing out the season will be a revival production of\u00a0The Flying Dutchman<\/em>, which opens May 1.<\/p>\n

The seven performance revival brings director Christopher Alden<\/strong> and designer Allen Moyer<\/strong> back together with promising voices:\u00a0Vitalij Kowaljow<\/strong> (Dutchman), soprano Marjorie Owens<\/strong> (Senta), mezzo-soprano Ewa P\u0142onka<\/strong> (Mary), bass Dmitry Ulyanov<\/strong> (Daland) and tenor Miles Mykkanen<\/strong> (Steersman). Powerhouse German-Canadian tenor Michael Schade<\/strong> completes the cast with his role debut as Erik.<\/p>\n

COC Ensemble Studio<\/h3>\n

Besides the season announcement, the COC has also announced four new artists admitted to the 2019\/20 COC Ensemble Studio. They are tenor Matthew Cairns<\/strong>, bass-baritone Vartan Gabrielian<\/strong>, mezzo-soprano Jamie Groote<\/strong>, and pianist and intern coach\u00a0Alex Soloway<\/strong>. They will join the Ensemble Studio in August 2019.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Canadian Opera Company announce six operas, including Dvo\u0159\u00e1k’s Rusalka with Sondra Radvanovsky as part of the 2019-20 season. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":58523,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[25164,39,43,63],"tags":[628],"yst_prominent_words":[26606,26604,26592,26595,6885,6871,8540,8545,10057,10782,26596,7306,6886,6884,8550,6911,26605,26602,26593,26594],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/02\/COC-2019-20-season.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-fdR","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58519"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58519"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58519\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":58540,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58519\/revisions\/58540"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58523"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58519"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58519"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58519"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=58519"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}