Opera

Rock 'n' Roll High School, Sort Of

"Heart of a Soldier": Opera Set on 9/11 Inert, Cluttered, and Inane

He Just Never Noticed

Verdi's Massive 'Aida' Shines at SF Opera

Cory WeaverAida​Giuseppe Verdi's Micaela Carosi as Aida @ September 24, 2010War Memorial Opera HouseBetter than: The D-Backs (we hope) The forthcoming observation about San Francisco Opera's production of Aida is not intended to be dismissive of the backflipping acrobats, the dancers, the endle ... More >>

Outsider Sopranos

Cory WeaverAida​Giuseppe Verdi's Micaela Carosi as Aida @ September 24, 2010War Memorial Opera HouseBetter than: The D-Backs (we hope) The forthcoming observation about San Francisco Opera's production of Aida is not intended to be dismissive of the backflipping acrobats, the dancers, the endle ... More >>

Fall Arts: A designer and a diva give flavor to "Aida"

Cory WeaverAida​Giuseppe Verdi's Micaela Carosi as Aida @ September 24, 2010War Memorial Opera HouseBetter than: The D-Backs (we hope) The forthcoming observation about San Francisco Opera's production of Aida is not intended to be dismissive of the backflipping acrobats, the dancers, the endle ... More >>

Spaghetti Western

Cory WeaverAida​Giuseppe Verdi's Micaela Carosi as Aida @ September 24, 2010War Memorial Opera HouseBetter than: The D-Backs (we hope) The forthcoming observation about San Francisco Opera's production of Aida is not intended to be dismissive of the backflipping acrobats, the dancers, the endle ... More >>

Friday Night: Verdi's Otello at War Memorial Opera House

Terrence McCarthy​Verdi's Otello War Memorial Opera HouseFriday, Nov. 13, 2009Better than: Most professional athletes' returns from retirementLocal opera fans may not realize it, but they owe a debt of gratitude to Giulio Ricordi and Arrigo Boito. Without the machinations of these two -- a music p ... More >>

Friday Night: Richard Strauss' Salomé at War Memorial Opera House

Richard Strauss' SaloméWar Memorial Opera HouseFriday, Oct. 30, 2009Better than: Sunday schoolTerrence McCarthyGreer Grimsley (Jokanaan)​Of the six operas that comprise San Francisco Opera's fall 2009 season, Richard Strauss' Salomé is the outlier -- a production that, by design, represents some ... More >>

Five Classical Music and Opera Events to See This Fall

Richard Strauss' SaloméWar Memorial Opera HouseFriday, Oct. 30, 2009Better than: Sunday schoolTerrence McCarthyGreer Grimsley (Jokanaan)​Of the six operas that comprise San Francisco Opera's fall 2009 season, Richard Strauss' Salomé is the outlier -- a production that, by design, represents some ... More >>

The Maestro

For S.F. Opera's new music director, conducting is a lot like making love.

Saturday Night: Henry Purcell's Dido and Aeneas at 409-499 Illinois

​Henry Purcell's Dido and Aeneas409-499 IllinoisAugust 22, 2009Better than: Most other activities in office-park courtyards (smoke breaks, sack lunches)Whatever way you like your opera, San Francisco probably has a company that can accommodate your preferences. Those looking for the traditional ni ... More >>

Last Night: The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess at War Memorial Opera House

Cory WeaverEric Owens (Porgy) and Laquita Mitchell (Bess)Better than: Being trampled -- in your own seat -- by half the people in your section as they make for the Irish coffee at intermission. More on that later.On the BART ride home after San Francisco Opera's Sunday evening performance of George ... More >>

Free Opera on a Big TV

Cory WeaverEric Owens (Porgy) and Laquita Mitchell (Bess)Better than: Being trampled -- in your own seat -- by half the people in your section as they make for the Irish coffee at intermission. More on that later.On the BART ride home after San Francisco Opera's Sunday evening performance of George ... More >>

Friday Night: Verdi's Rigoletto at the Cowell Theater

David Cox as RigolettoVerdi's Rigoletto Cowell Theater, Fort Mason April 17, 2009 Better than: Most other artistic endeavors involving singing clowns. Feminists beware: Any production of Giuseppe Verdi's 1851 Rigoletto may send you fleeing to a more, well, empowering environment at the intermissio ... More >>

Sunday: Mozart’s Idomeneo at the War Memorial Opera House

David Cox as RigolettoVerdi's Rigoletto Cowell Theater, Fort Mason April 17, 2009 Better than: Most other artistic endeavors involving singing clowns. Feminists beware: Any production of Giuseppe Verdi's 1851 Rigoletto may send you fleeing to a more, well, empowering environment at the intermissio ... More >>

Hidden Dragon Lady

Amy Tan's opera puts Chinese culture into perspective.

Classical & Opera

Amy Tan's opera puts Chinese culture into perspective.

The Young Man's Dream

Woody Allen is back from his European vacation. Next, he directs Larry David in N.Y.C. and Puccini for L.A. Opera.

Go Grove

Woody Allen is back from his European vacation. Next, he directs Larry David in N.Y.C. and Puccini for L.A. Opera.

Wear Your Tiara

Woody Allen is back from his European vacation. Next, he directs Larry David in N.Y.C. and Puccini for L.A. Opera.

Lucia and the She-Bitch have a lot in common

Woody Allen is back from his European vacation. Next, he directs Larry David in N.Y.C. and Puccini for L.A. Opera.

Love Songs

Woody Allen is back from his European vacation. Next, he directs Larry David in N.Y.C. and Puccini for L.A. Opera.

Finishing touches put on Duke Ellington's opera

Woody Allen is back from his European vacation. Next, he directs Larry David in N.Y.C. and Puccini for L.A. Opera.

The Rose of Planet B612

Woody Allen is back from his European vacation. Next, he directs Larry David in N.Y.C. and Puccini for L.A. Opera.

The Bohemian Club

Woody Allen is back from his European vacation. Next, he directs Larry David in N.Y.C. and Puccini for L.A. Opera.

Rake It Up

Woody Allen is back from his European vacation. Next, he directs Larry David in N.Y.C. and Puccini for L.A. Opera.

Rake It Up

Woody Allen is back from his European vacation. Next, he directs Larry David in N.Y.C. and Puccini for L.A. Opera.

Philip Glass' Appomattox a Civil Bore

Woody Allen is back from his European vacation. Next, he directs Larry David in N.Y.C. and Puccini for L.A. Opera.

From Madama Butterfly to Barry Bonds: Opera at the Ball Park

Woody Allen is back from his European vacation. Next, he directs Larry David in N.Y.C. and Puccini for L.A. Opera.

The Lowdown

Stuck for ideas? These events should keep you busy till Christmas.

Hotel Casablanca

Stuck for ideas? These events should keep you busy till Christmas.

Misc. Reviews

Philip Glass' opera rises above tragedy

The Life and Times of Malcolm X

Avant-garde opera right in the heart of Oakland

Say Schwa

Spending depressed days at Tosca, eavesdropping on silly bands

The Nuclear Option

An original opera about the makers of the atomic bomb fails to ignite

Insane Clown Posse

Opera, fun? Golden Gate Opera takes the stuffing out of I Pagliacci

Living La Vida Loca

Fiesta in the Mission

Bohemian Rhapsody

Baz Luhrmann's La Bohème is real opera -- with an extra dash or three of spectacle

Baz's Bohème

Can the director of Moulin Rouge succeed in the opera?

The Magic Flute

S.F. Opera production

Truth in Dance

Mark Morris brings the U.S. premiere of Four Saints in Three Acts to UC Berkeley

Rebuilding Babylon

S.F. Opera's production of Nabucco seems straightforward, but the production crew knows better

Hear This

The Derriere Guard

Stage

The Derriere Guard

Ring Wrangling

Sex, war, and pointy helmets: a guide to the San Francisco Opera's Ring cycle, the only thing Bugs Bunny, Adolf Hitler, and Francis Ford Coppola ever agreed on

Swede Victory

Conductor Herbert Blomstedt rescues an obscure composer from the classical dustbin

Love, Undying and Otherwise

Conductor Herbert Blomstedt rescues an obscure composer from the classical dustbin

Night + Day

Conductor Herbert Blomstedt rescues an obscure composer from the classical dustbin

Night+Day

Conductor Herbert Blomstedt rescues an obscure composer from the classical dustbin