Saariaho specialist Clment Mao-Takacs conducts an international cast of singers and actors in this towering work performed in nine languages. Appealing to more than just the city's elite, Merola raised 2441 contributions of $50 each from many "founding members. San Francisco Hotels ; Inn at the Opera; Search. San Francisco Opera is a member of. And on Friday night at the War Memorial Opera House, the San Francisco Ballet proved that . Gaetanos Donizettis The Elixir of Love (LElisir dAmore) returns to the War Memorial Opera House stage in a co-production with Lyric Opera of Chicago from Opera North in the UK by director Daniel Slater and choreographer Tim Claydon. Ambitious programming initiatives and plans for a second, smaller performance venue went by the wayside. [26] In 2013, the company presented three world premieres: Nolan Gasser and Carey Harrison's The Secret Garden, based on the children's book by Frances Hodgson Burnett (and staged in conjunction with UC Berkeley's Cal Performances);[27] Mark Adamo's The Gospel of Mary Magdalene;[28] and Tobias Picker and J. D. McClatchy's Dolores Claiborne,[29] based on the novel by Stephen King. In January 2001, Rosenberg announced her first artistic initiative for San Francisco Opera, "Animating Opera", a multi-year plan of interwoven themes and series. San Francisco Opera livestreams are made possible, in part, by Geoge and Leslie Hume. The staff is friendly and efficient and very helpful. San Diego Opera is a widely respected member of the international opera community and an invaluable cultural resource to the San Diego region. Conductor John Kennedy, who led the works 2021 world premiere at Spoleto Festival USA, leads Giddens and Abels expansive score which synthesizes strains of bluegrass, spirituals, the West African kora, folk music and jazz into a compelling theatrical experience. We have been thrilling audiences in San Francisco since 1923. Incorporated within the production programming of "Animating Opera" was the America staged premiere of Messiaen's Saint-Franois d'Assise, Virgil Thomson's The Mother of Us All, as well as a commission for a new work by John Adams and Peter Sellars entitled Doctor Atomic, which premiered on 1 October 2005. However, he has maintained an association with SFO and conducted the 2010/11 production of Der Ring des Nibelungen as well as 2015's Les Troyens.[7]. War Memorial Opera House301 Van Ness AvenueSan Francisco, CA 94102-4509, (415) 864-3330Mon 10am-5pmTue-Sat 10am-6pm, Performance days: 10am through first intermission, AboutEmployment | AuditionsPress RoomBlogVisitPerformance Archive, Opera ShopStreaming the First CenturyBohme Out of The Box, SF Opera GuildMerola Opera ProgramOpera Center, San Francisco Opera is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. He trained a chorus, assembled an orchestra from members of the San Francisco Symphony, and enlisted some of opera's top singersmany of them stars from the Metropolitan Opera in New York. Fidelio, directed by Matthew Ozawa, runs at the San Francisco Opera (301 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco, California) through October 30. Join the SF Opera Community envisioning a vibrant arts world. In addition, the opera will be available on-demand for 48 hours after the performance. After closing at the end of the 1995 Fall season for "a 21-month, US$88.5 million renovation, San Francisco's War Memorial Opera House reopened on 5 September 1997 with a gala concert celebrating this occasion, as well the 75th anniversary of the San Francisco Opera. Merola's tenure lasted 30 years. As a reaction to the economic climate of the times, in 1982 McEwen, created the "San Francisco Opera Center" to oversee and combine the operation and administration of the numerous affiliate educational and training programs. The production used imagery from various eras of American history and had a feminist and environmentalist viewpoint. Job Location : War Memorial Opera House - San Francisco, CA . Our federal tax ID is 94-0836240, ng opera stages in this episode from the Companys award-winning. 75% of our revenue comes from donations. Teaching Artist at San Francisco Opera San Francisco State University Visit Us. Above: members of the young artist program perform with Susan Graham in a 2019 recital. San Francisco Opera Orchestra 1954-1959. after the San Francisco Symphony, he played in the Long Beach Municipal Band in the 1960s and the Long Beach Symphony) Studied at Oshkosh State Teachers College - Wisconsin in 1939. Then head of the Canadian Opera Company in Toronto, Mansouri had received an education in medicine in Los Angeles, but gave it all up upon becoming fixated on opera, first as a young tenor with UCLA's Opera Workshop, and then with opera in general. About Press Room Blog Visit Performance Archive. Pay-what-you're-able with a minimum ticket price of $9.99. The cast features baritone John Moore in his Company debut as the iconoclastic Steve Jobs, a role for which he has won praise with companies in Seattle, Atlanta, Austin and Kansas City. You, as our audience, complete the cycle; one that begins with the . On Sunday, September 10, Kim and the Orchestra, along with vocal soloists from the Companys fall season, take to Robin Williams Meadow in Golden Gate Park for the annual Opera in the Park free concert. For the complete press release, including cast and calendar, open the PDF version above. Adler was often regarded as a difficult, sometimes tyrannical person to work for. Artists making house debuts include sopranos Claire de Svign, Julie Fuchs, Brittany Renee, Lucy Shelton, Anna Simiska, Slvka Zmenkov; mezzo-soprano Judit Kutasi; countertenors Nicholas Tamagna, Carlo Vistoli; tenors Roberto Alagna, Bille Bruley, Jonah Hoskins, Jamez McCorkle, Miles Mykkanen; baritones Norman Garrett, Thomas Lehman, John Moore, George Petean, Lauri Vasar; bass-baritones David Bii, Renato Girolami, Kwangchul Youn; bass Wei Wu; interdisciplinary musician Vilma J; and conductors John Kennedy, Clment Mao-Takacs, Ramn Tebar. San Francisco Opera's inaugural international opera season was launched. Composer and performer Rhiannon Giddens Photo: Ebru Yildiz "Omar," a new operatic collaboration by Grammy Award-winning musician Rhiannon Giddens and composer Michael Abels, is scheduled for a world premiere in May at the Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, S.C, after which the piece will be performed by a consortium of co-commissioning companies, including the San Francisco Opera. The current chorus consists of two groups: the forty-eight-member Regular Chorus with twenty-six men and twenty-two women, and the Extra Chorus, which can expand the ensemble to 100 singers or more in larger operas. The husband-and-wife duo, each a celebrated artist on the worlds leading opera stages, headline Opera Ball, the annual benefit co-presented by San Francisco Opera and San Francisco Opera Guild. Characteristics of Merola's SFO included creating opportunities for young American singers regardless of the fact that the opera lacked a formal training program at that time, and also regular tours by the SFO to Los Angeles between 1937 and 1965, which expanded the season into November. Visit Us. The Samoan tenor reflects on the centrality of his family in his musical journey from New Zealand to the worlds leading opera stages in this episode from the Companys award-winning In Song series. Same day tickets, starting at 11:00 am at the box office. After being approached by Adler regarding the San Francisco opera job, he moved to the city in 1980 and involved himself totally in learning the running of an opera company. Arts advocate and San Francisco Opera board member Annette Campbell-White was honored at the sixth annual International Opera Awards (IOA) in London for her lifelong commitment to opera and . Education: Outlook, Ivanti, Mitel PBX, Opera PMS, Delphi FDC, InfoGenesis POS, PeopleSoft ERP. The final performance of Cos fan tutte on Saturday, April 1, at 7:30pm will be livestreamed on thedallasopera.TV. The acclaimed new work Innocence, from esteemed Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho with libretto by Sofi Oksanen and text dramaturgy and multilanguage translations by Aleksi Barrire, has its American premiere in June 2024. Eun Sun Kim said: The works of Wagner and Verdi are cornerstones of the operatic repertoire as we know it. One was to expand the season which in Merola's time ran from the Friday after Labor Day until early November (when the Metropolitan Opera's season began) in order to capitalize on the availability of singers by presenting up to fourteen operas with two or three performances each. February 23, 2023. In a season like no other in the company's 99-year history, San Francisco Opera plans to return to live performance at the War Memorial Opera House with an abbreviated 2021-22 bill of five fully staged productions and two special concerts. SFO's has simulcast nine operas to AT&T Park since 2007 that have collectively drawn more than 165,000 opera fans. Adler conducted most of the program, which featured performances by many of the surviving singers who had appeared with the company during its history. Our federal tax ID is 94-0836240. By "hand holding" her through the various stages of training, he prepared her for the role of Azucena in Il trovatore for the summer 1986 season to great acclaim. Michael Christie conducts the fast-paced, electro-acoustic work. Baritone George Petean joins the Company as Count di Luna, and mezzo-soprano Anita Rachvelishvili, whom conductor Riccardo Muti praised as without doubt the best Verdi mezzo-soprano today on the planet (New York Times), completes the powerful quartet in the pivotal role of Azucena. Dulcamara, the miracle worker whose elixir provides the liquid courage Nemorino needs to express his true feelings, is performed by Italian baritone Renato Girolami. Saids two-hundred-year-old autobiography comes vividly to life on the lyric stage in Omar, the first opera by MacArthur Fellowship genius award recipient Rhiannon Giddens and composer Michael Abels, known for his music for films, including Jordan Peeles Get Out, Us and Nope. These free, live performances of an abridged version of Giacomo Puccinis La Bohme will travel to outdoor locations throughout the Bay Area this spring. During the 2022-23 Season, the third performance of every opera will be available as a livestream. The updated setting for this funny and heart-warming 1832 romance, which includes Donizettis cherished aria Una furtiva lagrima (A furtive tear), takes place on the Italian Riviera during the 1950s. CO-COMMISSION AMERICAN PREMIEREINNOCENCE music by Kaija Saariaho, libretto by Sofi Oksanen, text dramaturgy and multilanguage translations by Aleksi BarrireJune 121, 2024, Kaija Saariaho; Sofi Oksanen; Aleksi Barrire; Ruxandra Donose; Lucy Shelton; Vilma J; Clment Mao-Takacs. Led by experienced teachers, workshops will explore the unique experiences within us all as participants build storytelling literacy skills in a creative and collaborative environment. To begin the first season of its second century, San Francisco Opera will introduce a new, multi-season initiative where Kim will conduct works by both Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner every season while the Company simultaneously reaffirmed its commitment to expanding the repertoire with three co-commissioned new works by leading composers of today. San Francisco Opera is a member of. Several innovations undertaken by Adler included the Merola Opera Program (named after the first general director). [19][20] Luisotti made his SFO debut in 2005 with La forza del destino, and returned in 2008 to conduct La bohme prior to assuming the role of music director. Discover more about opera with education classes, articles, and more. Auditorium of the War Memorial Opera House at the War Memorial and Performing Arts Center. His passion for opera in general led him to visit the Royal Opera House in London and a lowly paid job with Decca Records in that city. Madame Butterfly (Jun 9, 2023 at 7:30pm Pacific) ON SALE NOWDie Frau ohne Schatten (Jun 20, 2023 at 7pm Pacific) ON SALE NOWEl ltimo sueo de Frida y Diego (Jun 22, 2023 at 7:30pm Pacific) ON SALE NOW100th Anniversary Concert (Jun 16, 2023 at 6:00pm Pacific)* ON SALE NOW, *On demand will not be available for this performance. San Francisco Opera presents the operas American premiere. Rosenberg returned to Germany to work with Sir Simon Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic as its Intendantin. This one-hour version of Puccini's opera will be sung in Italian and feature English dialogue. Alumni of the program have made important debuts at the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, Covent Garden, San Francisco Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin and English National Opera, to name just a few. It became clear to Merola that a more solid financial base was needed, so he set about fundraising for a full season of opera in the fall of 1923. I am so proud that we are telling so many new stories this season, and Im excited to continue our innovation explorations as we chart a course for the future of opera. Recognized as one of the worlds foremost young artist programs, the Merola Opera Program trains tomorrows opera superstars and presents the annual Merola Summer Festival. Alexander is a graduate of the prestigious Merola program at the San Francisco Opera, and is the recipient of the 2013 John Moriarty Award for his outstanding contribution to Central City Opera. Handels 1730 comedy Partenope returns in the Olivier Award-winning production by director Christopher Alden. . Austrian soprano Christina Gansch, who won plaudits in last summers Don Giovanni as Zerlina, adds Pamina to her gallery of Mozart portrayals on the War Memorial Opera House stage. . His replacement was announced to be Matthew Shilvock in September 2015. Meet new people, get insider scoop and save big on some of the best seats in the house. . NEW SAN FRANCISCO OPERA CO-PRODUCTIONTHE ELIXIR OF LOVE (LELISIR DAMORE) by Gaetano DonizettiNovember 19December 9, 2023, Pene Pati; Slvka Zmenkov; David Bii; Renato Girolami; Ramn Tebar. Tickets: Mini subscriptions (3 or 4 operas) from $78, full subscriptions . San Francisco Opera known for commissioning numerous world premieres, training some of opera's greatest young artists and being one of the world's leading opera companies. The organization was . Dastoor, a native of Pasadena, began her professional career at Opera San Jos in 2007, when she was hired by the company's founding director Irene Dalis as a member of the resident company. Baritone Norman Garrett makes his house debut in the double roles of Omars brother, Abdul, and Abe; baritone Daniel Okulitch portrays both Johnson and Owen and tenor Barry Banks is the Auctioneer and Taylor. A woman is set against totalitarian society in Wagners epic masterpiece in which a knight in shining armor offers aid with a condition impossible to keep. A gem in San Franciscos architectural crown, the 3,146-seat War Memorial Opera House is a California Historical Landmark. Calhoun currently holds the chair for the Marketing Committee and is a member of the board's Executive, Directors and Officers, Finance, and Strategy Development committees. San Francisco Opera Center, Marin Symphony, Santa Rosa Symphony, Vallejo Symphony, Pacific Chamber Symphony, Eastern Music Festival. The first official performance given by San Francisco Opera was La bohme, with Queena Mario and Giovanni Martinelli, on September 26, 1923, in the city's Civic Auditorium. . San Francisco Opera: "Sweeney Todd," through Tuesday, Sept. 29, . 3 of 24 4 of 24 Members of the audience gave a standing ovation to the first half of the opera presentation. . Three esteemed international artists make their San Francisco Opera debuts in this production: Estonian bass-baritone Lauri Vasar as Papageno, South Korean bass Kwangchul Youn as Sarastro and Polish soprano as the Queen of the Knight. The average opera runs about three hours in . Beginning with this glorious gem of the operatic canon, presented in director David Aldens production from Londons Royal Opera, Covent Garden, Eun Sun Kim and the Company initiate a multi-season journey through the composers works. Thirdly, a characteristic of the Adler years was his interest in developing stronger connections to opera stage directors in an attempt to strengthen the dramatic and theatrical elements of the works. The 1923-24 season, for example, included productions of Andrea Chnier (with Beniamino Gigli), Mefistofele (again with Gigli), Tosca (with Giuseppe De Luca and Martinelli), and Verdi's Rigoletto (with Queena Mario, De Luca and Gigli). The building was designed by Arthur Brown Jr., the architect who conceived Coit Tower and City Hall. Member benefits include attendance at vocal master classes, invitations to special events and ticketing privileges. War Memorial Opera House 301 Van Ness Avenue San Francisco, CA 94102-4509. Music Director Eun Sun Kim conducts Mozarts timeless, exhilarating work of art. Chinese tenor and recent San Francisco Opera Adler Fellow Zhengyi Bai portrays Monostatos. The Orchestra's most treasured relationship is the one we have with you, our audience. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. Tippi (born Erik Mead ), died Aug. 25, 1991, at age 39. Box Office (415) 864-3330 Mon 10am-5pm Tue-Sat . The complete cycles in June 2011 were conducted by Donald Runnicles and featured cycle role debuts of Mark Delavan (Wotan) and Nina Stemme (Brnnhilde) as well as Jay Hunter Morris (making his role debut in the title role of Siegfried) and Ian Storey[es] (making his role debut as Siegfried in Gtterdmmerung. Photo: Santiago Mejia / The Chronicle. San Francisco Opera's Second Century Dawns with New Music and Fresh Explorations, Music Director Eun Sun Kim To Lead Annual Presentations of Works by Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner Beginning with IL TROVATORE and LOHENGRINCompany Premieres of Repertoire-Expanding Co-Commissions:THE (R)EVOLUTION OF STEVE JOBS by Mason Bates and Mark CampbellOMAR by Rhiannon Giddens and Michael AbelsINNOCENCE by Kaija Saariaho, Sofi Oksanen and Aleksi Barrire, Other 202324 Season Highlights Include:New Co-Production of Gaetano Donizettis THE ELIXIR OF LOVE by Daniel SlaterBarrie Kosky and Suzanne Andrades Staging of Mozarts THE MAGIC FLUTEReturn of Handels PARTENOPE in Christopher Aldens ProductionOPERA BALL Headlined by Roberto Alagna, Aleksandra Kurzak and Eun Sun KimOther Special Events Include Free Opera in the Park and The Elixir of Love EncounterThird Performance of Each Mainstage Opera Will Be Livestreamed.