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Richard Margison's Daughter Lauren Manages Classical And Crossover

May 26, 2015, 5:00 pm
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The 23-year old daughter of famed opera tenor Richard Margison is now emerging into the world of classical music as a strong contender to continue his musical legacy. Not only has the soprano proven that she has the chops to make it on the classical side, she also sings pop, jazz, Broadway, and folk music with equal panache. Her mother, Valerie Kuinka, is a stage director and violist. While pregnant with Lauren, she played in the orchestra for the opera in Toronto. Lauren joined the Canadian Children's Opera Chorus at age seven and was quickly promoted to the principal chorus. Richard’s own upbringing was a musical one. His mother was a piano teacher and his father was an amateur singer with a strong baritone voice, who also played viola with the Victoria Symphony early on. Lauren has performed at events like the TD Toronto Jazz Festival and shared stages with Gordon Lightfoot, Rufus Wainwright and more. Experience two videos of Lauren Margison after the jump to hear the diversity of this young singer. [Source]



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Bryan Hymel On Family, Santa Fe Opera, High Notes, "Les Troyens"

May 26, 2015, 6:45 pm
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Shaken, Not Stirred: Bryan Hymel brings cool to opera with his heroic high notes. (Photo: Dario Acosta)
"French grand opera makes great demands on singers, with performances clocking in at times that rival Wagner and orchestras crowding the pit. New Orleans native, Bryan Hymel (pronounced ee-mel) will continue to embrace that repertoire in performances of epic works like Les Troyens in San Francisco next month and Les[sic] Damnation de Faust in Paris this coming December. In between, he’ll sing the roles of the Duke in Rigoletto and Don Jose in Carmen at Santa Fe and Washington National Opera respectively. His bow as Rodolfo at the Met last year earned him continued praise from the New York press, which had welcomed his triumph on short notice in 2012, stepping in for a save-the-day kind of performance in Les Troyens appropriate for someone whose voice type is most often described as heroic. His list of awards is long, and illustrious, and includes the Metropolitan Opera’s Beverly Sills Artist Award and first
prize in the Loren L. Zachary Vocal Competition. His debut recording, Héroïque, which includes a selection from Les Troyens, has earned rave reviews. Often noted are his exceptional high notes, or as one reviewer put it, his 'particular facility above the stave.' Also praised are his idiomatic, unaffected French, with some reviewers even suggesting that he is a successor to the great French tenor Georges Thill, someone Hymel himself speaks of with great admiration. Hymel is no stranger to San Francisco, having participated in San Francisco Opera’s Merola program in 2001, but his Aeneas, next month — which he sings opposite Susan Graham’s Dido — will mark his house debut. He has been in town for two weeks of rehearsal for the six performances, which take place from June 7 to July 1. I asked him how it’s going. It’s going great. It’s wonderful to come back to this production. The first thing I saw was the horse, which is always great. But when I went to my costume fitting and saw my costume, it brought back so much from that exciting time in London. I get goosebumps now just talking about it. It’s a lovely team here. A lot of familiar faces on the production staff from London and great to see Susie (Susan Graham) here. Actually, a lot of my buddies that I kind of came up with are in this show, those formative years of summer programs and that kind of stuff, so it’s really great for me to kind of come full circle. In London it was great, but it was definitely kind of me on my own. I guess I knew Eva-Marie (Westbroek) but it was a whole new crew. This one is more like a homecoming." [Source] Read the interview by clicking here.
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Maria Callas Vocals Appear In "The Cleveland Show" On TBS

May 27, 2015, 6:00 am
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Season 2, episode 22, of The Cleveland Show is titled "Hot Cocoa Bang Bang." The plot summary is as follows: "Cleveland takes the entire family to a comic convention in an attempt to sell his comic book, Waderman. While there, Donna is horrified to find out that Robert Rodriguez is screening a Blaxploitation film that she starred in when she was younger, and Cleveland Jr., tired of Comic-Con being a playground for Hollywood to peddle their projects, gathers a band of geeks together to take the Con back to its true origins." [Source] During one of the scenes the aria "La mamma morta," from Giordano's opera Andrea Chénier (sung by soprano Maria Callas), can be heard in the background. Listen to the remastered version of the aria sung by the soprano, after the jump. Watch the full episode here.
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Alumni Deborah Voigt Returns To California State University - Fullerton

May 27, 2015, 9:15 am
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CSUF Star Alumni: The School of Music turned opera stars
like Deborah Voigt, Rodney Gilfrey, Charles Castranovo,
and most recently Renée Tatum.
"Opera star and alumna Deborah Voigt will offer a 7 p.m. master class Monday, June 8, at Clayes Performing Arts Center's Meng Concert Hall. Participating School of Music students include: Trinidad Cano, Juliet Kidwell, James Lesu'i, Megan Ralston, Amanda Salmen and Joslyn Sarshad. A brief Q&A session with the soprano will follow. Cal State Fullerton students, faculty and staff can stop by the School of Music office in the CPAC 220 Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. for a complimentary ticket. Tickets are also available for purchase online or at the door....After her June 8 master class at Cal State Fullerton, alumna Deborah Voigt will perform at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall in Costa Mesa June 11-13." [Source, Source]
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Renée Fleming Honored By Daughter's Alma Mater Harvard

May 28, 2015, 10:43 am
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Talented Offspring: Amelia Ross, daughter of Renée Fleming,
is a Harvard University alumni and singer as well.
"One of the most acclaimed opera singers and sopranos of all time, Renée Fleming sang 'America the Beautiful' at Harvard's 364th Commencement on May 28, 2015 at Tercentenary Theatre." The star also received an honorary Doctorate of Music from the prestigious University. It also happens to be where her eldest daughter Amelia Ross attended college. As a graduate of the 2014 class, Ms. Ross has experience as Treasurer of the Harvard-Radcliffe Gilbert & Sullivan Performers as well as a Tanglewood Office Associate for the Boston Symphony Orchestra. She also speaks German and French. Watch videos of the young singer performing during her time at Harvard, in the title role of Massenet's Cendrillon and in Gilbert & Sullivan's HMS Pinafore, after the jump. [Source]




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Andris Nelsons Innaugural Concert With Kaufmann & Opolais To Air

May 28, 2015, 2:01 pm
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"Andris Nelsons’s first season as music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra has come and gone — but in case you missed it entirely, you wanted more, or you just wondered what all the buzz was about, you can now catch a glimpse of the new partnership from the comfort of your living room. On Friday at 9 p.m., PBS will broadcast the young Latvian conductor’s inaugural concert with the orchestra, recorded live in Symphony Hall last September....Among the highlights on the night itself were the contributions of the two star vocal soloists, especially tenor Jonas Kaufmann’s outstanding performance of'In Fernem Land' from Act III of Lohengrin, an account whose intensity and poetry is conveyed here. The Latvian soprano Kristine Opolais, Nelsons’s wife, sings a vivid 'Un Bel Di' from Madama Butterfly as well as a smoldering duet with Kaufmann: 'Tu, Tu, amore? Tu?' from Puccini’s Manon Lescaut, a work this pair is slated to perform together next season in a new Met production directed by Richard Eyre. For an additional opening night souvenir, the two singers also offered as an encore a melting, sweet-toned account of 'O Soave Fanciulla' from the Act I finale of La Bohème." [Source]
(Photo: Chris Lee)
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Anna Netrebko Ushers Out John Copley "La Bohème" At ROH

May 28, 2015, 7:34 pm
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Living on Love: Rodolfo (Joseph Calleja) and Mimì (Anna Netrebko) struggle to make ends meet,
but they still have each other until death do them part at Covent Garden.
"So now we bid farewell to another dear old friend, as John Copley’s venerable production of Puccini’s weepie, rich in period detail and devoid of interpretative tricks, is being laid to rest after four decades in service, embracing twenty-six revivals and well over two hundred sold-out performances. To be honest, this loyal carthorse of a show does seem a trifle sclerotic nowadays. I’ve seen stagings recently that feel more youthfully raw and emotionally urgent; aspects of its 'realism' look dated; and the second interval slows the pace down unhelpfully. But the tableaux for the snowy Barrière d’Enfer and bustling Café Momus remain wonderfully atmospheric, and the straightforward characterisations never inhibit the singers. Richard Jones, rumoured to be
Herr Direktor: Read more about 
John Copley by clicking here.
commissioned for a replacement, will have his work cut out to provide anything sturdier. Copley, a spry octogenarian, returned to rehearse this final outing and made a lively job of it. Sharp cameos from Ryland Davies (Alcindoro) and Donald Maxwell (Benoit) sprinkled light relief. Marco Vinco’s Colline mourned his pawned coat in style, Lucas Meachem presented an exuberant jock of a Marcello, and Jennifer Rowley was a brassy Musetta, with a touch of Ethel Merman about her gusto....His Mimi was the mercurial Anna Netrebko, in lustrous voice. She is not a subtle artist, and having adjusted her focus to more dramatic repertory, her resinous soprano can’t convey the fragility of the consumptive flower-girl. She also failed to float the rapturous 'ball of light' note at the end of Act I. But she never just phones it in or holds back à la Gheorghiu, and here she gave of herself unstintingly, most notably in an affecting account of the third act - one of Puccini’s most masterly inspirations." [Source]
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Angela Gheorghiu Discusses Falling In Love And Being A Diva

May 30, 2015, 12:07 pm
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Angela Gheorghiu photographed by Gabi Hirit 
with styling by Domnica Margescu and
 Maurice Munteanu.
In the June issue of Elle magazine (Romania), soprano Angela Gheorghiu talks intimately about falling in love with one of her fans, Mihai Ciortea, at the lowest point of her career. They have been together for two years now and are happier than ever. She also goes into detail about how she feels about the word "Diva" and whether it is a compliment, accolade, or even an insult when describing bad behavior. For the fashion shoot she wears a Dolce & Gabbana, possible not hearing about their most recent scandal. The magazine will have more of the interview with photos, out on newsstands now. [Source]
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French Opera Singer Ève Brenner's Son Is Making It Big In Hollywood

May 30, 2015, 2:44 pm
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Gilles Paquet-Brenner directs actress Charlize Theron in Dark Places (2014).
Gilles Paquet-Brenner born September 14, 1974, in Paris, is a director and screenwriter. He is the son of opera singer Ève Brenner. Gilles Paquet-Brenner was fascinated by film from an early age. He made ​​his directing debut with the short film 13 minutes 13 dans la vie Josh et Anna (1998). He continued two years later with La Marquise, with Patrick Bruel, Marion Cotillard and Stomy Bugsy. He made his mark in 2001 with his first feature film Les Jolies Choses (with Marion Cotillard , Patrick Bruel, Titoff, Ophélie Winter, and Stomy Bugsy) which won an award at the Deauville festival. In 2003, he directed the police comedy hit Gomez et Tavarès, in which we find Stomy Bugsy, Titoff - both already employed by the director for Les Jolies Choses - and Jean Yanne. In 2007, two of his films are released a few months apart: U.V. with Laura Smet and Jacques Dutronc and Gomez vs Tavarès, always with Titoff and Stomy Bugsy. In 2009, he signed his first American film, Walled In, with Pascal Greggory and Deborah Kara Unger. This low-budget horror film came out on DVD in Mexico and the United States, but remains unreleased in France. In 2010, Elle s'appelait Sarah, with Kristin Scott-Thomas and Mélusine Mayance, was acclaimed by critics worldwide. The film was also featured in several prestigious festivals such as the San Sebastian Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival film. Kristin Scott Thomas received the César Award for Best Actress. The film received the Audience Award and Best Director at International Film Festival in Tokyo. He wrote and directed the thriller Dark Places, based on the novel Les Lieux sombres by Gillian Flynn . Chloë Moretz, Tye Sheridan and Charlize Theron appear in the 2014 film. [Source] Here is a video of his mother performing "Le matin sur la rivière" on television in 1976. Watch more Ève Brenner videos, and read some of her biography, after the jump.

Ève Brenner, née le 11 septembre 1941 à Saint-Chartier, est une chanteuse d'opéra française, rendue notamment célèbre par sa chanson grand public Le Matin sur la rivière en 1976. Elle a deux enfants, Aude Brenner, chanteuse, et Gilles Paquet-Brenner, producteur de cinéma. Ève Brenner est née de parent musiciens1 ; son père, Ludwig Brenner, est déporté en 1942. Sa mère, Jeanne Gadeau, dont le nom de scène était « Dogana », élève dès lors seule ses trois enfants. La famille regagne Paris à la fin de la guerre, avant que Jeanne Gadeau ne reparte avec son orchestre, laissant ses enfants à ses parents. A 14 ans, Ève Brenner quitte le lycée et ses études, pour entrer dans l'orchestre de sa mère. Vers 16 ans, elle décide de devenir danseuse professionnelle. À 20 ans elle entre au Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse de Paris (CNSM), classe chant art lyrique. À la demande des élèves des classes de composition du CNSM et notamment d’Olivier Messiaen, elle devient l'interprète d'élection des jeunes compositeurs et présente leurs œuvres pour les concours du prix de Rome. Elle participe à la vague de créations contemporaines aux festival de Royan, d’Avignon, de Besançon, de Vaison-la-Romaine, de Châteauvallon, de la Rochelle, de l’Opéra de Paris avec Carolyn Carlson, du Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie de Bruxelles, de Rome, de Vienne, de Berlin, de Florence, de Beyrouth, de Liège, d’Athènes. Elle fait partie du Groupe de recherche musicale de l’ORTF entre 1968 et 1975. Un compositeur suisse lui écrit un rôle sur mesure pour un opéra qui sera enregistré par la télévision allemande, « Le Diable dans la Bouteille » où elle joue le Diable. Elle a chanté en tant que soprano ou autres voix dans plus de soixante-dix œuvres, dont:
Ce dernier opéra n'existe cependant que sous forme d'enregistrement, à cause de la Révolution islamique en Iran en 1978. Elle enregistre pour EMI en 1976 un disque grand public Le Matin sur la Rivière et chante dans de multiples films tels que Manon des Sources, Jean de Florette, Papy fait de la résistance et dernièrement U.V. réalisé par son fils Gilles Paquet-Brenner avec Jacques Dutronc. À partir des années 1970, Ève Brenner enregistre de multiples disques grand public :
  • Le matin sur la rivière, 1976, Pathé
  • La sicilienne, 1977, Pathé
  • L'enfant, 1979, Pathé
  • A comme Amour, 1979, Delphine
  • Memories, 1980
  • Amoureuse, 1981, Philips/Phonogram
  • Au nom de l'amour, Delphine
  • Le rêve d’Ève, 1984, Philips/Phonogram
  • Ave maria norma, 1985, Carrère
  • Keep going, 1987, CBS/Red cat 




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Rolando Villazón "Traviata" Is Circus Clowns And A Willy Decker Clock

May 30, 2015, 9:41 pm
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Time Stands Still For No One: La Traviata in Baden-Baden 
 (Photo: Andrea Kremper)
The new production of Verdi's La Traviata directed by Roland Villazón had its premiere on May 21, 2015, and the critics are giving their opinions on the opera that features soprano Olga Peretyatko and tenor Atalla Ayan. The first production Mr. Villazón directed for the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden was Donizetti's L'Elisir d'Amore in 2012. Watch a video featuring interviews and backstage rehearsals for La Traviata, after the jump.


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Soprano Angela Meade Married By Justice Ruth Bader-Ginsburg

May 30, 2015, 11:01 pm
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The Bride Wore Blue: Soprano Meade on
her special day (Photo: Facebook)
Congratulations to Metropolitan Opera star Angela Meade on her marriage to tenor John Myers on May 23, 2015, in Philadelphia. The ceremony was officiated by Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. As the opera world knows, Justice Ginsburg is a huge fan of singers. In fact, she previously presided over the ceremony of countertenor David Daniels back in June 21, 2014. Below is a picture from the 2013 Tucker Gala featuring Angela Meade, Justice Ginsburg, Barry Tucker, and Renée Fleming. The soprano will return to the MET as Leonora in Verdi's Il Trovatore during February 2016. See another image of the happy newlyweds at the Supreme Court with Justice Ginsburg and a shot from the 2014 Tucker Gala, after the jump.






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Elizabeth Novella Opens Mmuseumm 2 In New York City On High Note

June 1, 2015, 9:12 am
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Trilling Moment: Elizabeth Novella leads guests to Mmuseumm 2 with her voice.
If you saw the previous blog entry featuring filmmaker Casey Neistat and still couldn't figure out the owner of the soprano voice that opened his vlog sequence, the answer can now be revealed. The singer that helped launch the May 28th grand opening of New York City's Mmuseumm 2 is none other than Elizabeth Novella. The experience was captured by Casey Neistat in a new vlog (065) post as he met up with friends for the event. "Mmuseumm is a modern natural history museum devoted to the curation and exhibition of contemporary artifacts that illustrate the complexities of the modern world. Mmuseumm 1 presents 15 world-wandering exhibitions and next door, Mmuseumm 2 presents in collaboration with artist Maira Kalman, Sara Berman's Closet." [Source] Read a wonderful New York Times article about Mmuseumm 2 by clicking here. Mmuseumm 1 and 2 are open Saturdays and Sundays noon-6pm. More information can be found on their website. See the Casey Neistat video of the event (beginning at the 3:53 mark), and a few more photos, after the jump.






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Alyson Cambridge Helps Notorious RBG Continue Her Domination

June 3, 2015, 9:09 am
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Alyson Cambridge is escorted down the aisle by her father Richard Cambridge.
First it was the nuptials of David Daniels, then Angela Meade, and now Alyson Cambridge. Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, officiated the marriage of Alyson Cambridge to Timothy Eloe in the garden of the Anderson House in Washington, D.C. on May 30, 2015. "'Can anybody hear anything?' asked opera singer Alyson Cambridge, looking something far beyond statuesque in a white lace trumpet gown, as she and her almost husband, Timothy Eloe, try to fix Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s malfunctioning microphone. 'Noooooo,' was the collective answer from the wedding’s 100 black tie clad guests, sipping tall glasses of lemonade in the garden of the Anderson House. After a few minutes a new mike is found and Cambridge, an area native who’s appeared with the Washington National Opera, calls 'take two.''Okay, so we’ll start over,' said Ginsburg, who with frilly cuffs spilling out of her judge’s robe and thick black sunglasses looked as rock star as Prince. And the show goes on. It seemed appropriate for a relationship that started with the stage. In his personal vows, Eloe, a Chicago lawyer, said he first saw Cambridge, an
The soprano tears up during the ceremony officiated by Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
area native who’s performed multiple times with the Washington National Opera, on a 20-foot billboard for the musical Show Boat more than three years ago. Once the show’s Chicago run, which Eloe joked he’d seen more times than anyone else in the entire city, was over, Eloe told Cambridge he knew 'we were an us.' Cambridge, dabbing her eyes with a tissue handed to her by her maid of honor — Eloe’s 11-year-old daughter Christina — said she’d been surprised that a clean-cut former college football player turned out to be the perfect match for her 'slightly over the top personality.' After the rings — carefully guarded by Eloe’s two young sons, Daniel, 10, and William, 7 — Ginsburg wished the couple a lifetime of happiness 'serving each other and humankind in peace and hope.'" [Source] See a couple more beautiful photos taken by Erin Schaff of the Washington Post, after the jump.
Click on images to enlarge



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Isobel Buchanan Will Return To The Stage In Scotland On June 20

June 3, 2015, 1:28 pm
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Soprano Isobel Buchanan with husband and
actor Jonathan Hyde. (Photo: Dan Wooller)
Soprano Isobel Buchanan is wagging a finger at me intently from across the kitchen table. 'I don't care how much anyone tells you about technique,' she says. 'Singing is all about the mind. The minute your confidence goes, everything else starts to fall apart too.' Buchanan has experienced it both ways. Hers was a stratospheric early career: in the 1970s she was Scotland's golden operatic talent, swept off to Australia by no less a figure than Joan Sutherland and catapulted into star roles and a staggeringly young international career. But an undiagnosed physical conduction left her confidence dented and she withdrew from the limelight. Now 61, she has recently returned to the stage thanks to proper medical care and recital formats in which she feels comfortable again. When she sings at the St Magnus Festival in Orkney this summer, it will be her first appearance in Scotland for decades. Buchanan was always a natural singer. Raised in Cumbernauld in a house 'where nobody watched the telly; people came round for a sing-song,' she says she used to 'fall out of bed singing.''Don't try this at home, kids,' she laughs, 'but I didn't even have to warm up. I would blast through things like Rejoice greatly' - a high, sprightly solo from Handel's Messiah, not your average warm-up of careful long notes and scales. At 17 she was offered a scholarship to the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland; barely three years later, she was spotted by Sutherland and the director Richard Bonynge, and invited to join their Opera Australia ensemble in Sydney. 'I was totally clueless,' Buchanan says, shaking her head at the memory. But the atmosphere in Australia was warm and supportive, like a family.' She was graced with the kind of light, instinctive voice that seemed to be able to handle anything: she was a 'happy-go-lucky' performer, she says, and recalls a typical request from Bonynge to learn the role of the Countess in Mozart's The Marriage Of Figaro in a week. 'Really I should have been singing Susannah first,' she laughs, referring to the opera's younger, airier female lead. 'But back then I just gave everything a go. People were saying, 'Gawd, this girl can sing anything'. Youth is a wonderful thing. I mean, I sang Strauss's Four Last Songs at the age of 19!'" [Source] Read the rest of the interview by clicking here. Isobel Buchanan and Jonathan Hyde are at Stromness Town Hall on June 20, part of the St Magnus Festival: www.stmagnusfestival.com. Be sure to see a video of her singing "Je dis que rien ne m'épouvante," from Bizet's Carmen, in 1978 under conductor Carlos Kleiber.
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Anna Caterina Antonacci Does Double Duty At San Francisco Opera

June 3, 2015, 1:42 pm
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Anna Caterina Antonacci stars in two roles during the San Francisco Opera's June season, which opens Sunday, June 7, 2015. She will play the role of Cesira in the world premiere of Marco Tutino's Two Women and also portrays Cassandra in Hector Berlioz's Les Troyens. (Photo: Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera)
"Anna Caterina Antonacci is an opera star who thrives on defying expectations. A mesmerizing performer with a supple and lustrous voice, Antonacci seems equally at home in roles written for soprano or for the lower-voiced mezzo-soprano. She has triumphed in one of the most popular of operas, Georges Bizet’s Carmen, but mostly she has sought out repertory off the beaten path. And while for many singers, appearing at the Metropolitan Opera represents the pinnacle of success, Antonacci has never sung there, and likely never will. But though her career is mainly in Europe, she has recently been making annual concert appearances in New York. In March, after she sang a program of French songs and Francis Poulenc’s monodrama La Voix Humaine, Zachary Woolfe wrote in The New York Times that 'her alertness to the texts and the unassuming grandeur of her presence made the night riveting.' Now she’s back in the United States again to headline the San Francisco Opera’s summer season, which opens Sunday, June 7. She will portray her touchstone role of Cassandra in Berlioz’s epic Les Troyens and also will star in the world premiere of an opera based on a classic book and film. In a recent interview with The Associated Press, the 54-year-old Italian singer talked about her unusual career and the roles she most responds to." [Source] Read the full interview, which covers how she chooses roles; creating the new operatic role of Cesira; interpreting the role of Cassandra in Les Troyens; why she infrequently performs in the United States; and what the future holds for her on the opera stage, by clicking here.
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Anna Netrebko Answers The Guardian's Probing Questions

June 3, 2015, 6:23 pm
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Anna Netrebko wears a Zac Posen gown in this
Dario Acosta portrait from 2013.
While in London for performances of La Bohème and in honor of her upcoming engagement at the Royal Albert Hall in Tchaikovsky's Iolanta, Anna Netrebko answered some musical questions posed by The Guardian in their "Facing the Music" series. Find out what music she listens to when traveling the world; why she recently purchased several Aida recordings; her thoughts on concert etiquette when it comes to applause; why the organ is an intriguing instrument to her; that time she enjoyed Elton John and Lady Gaga; the most recent Broadway musical she's seen (and loved...); whether a collaboration with Justin Bieber is in her future; and what she sings in the shower. Read the full questionnaire here.
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"Orange Is The New Black" Cast Member Is A Classically Trainer Singer

June 4, 2015, 7:20 am
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"As gripping as it is funny, Orange Is the New Black has become one of the most forward-thinking and revolutionary shows on television in just two years' time. The new issue of Rolling Stone (on newsstands this Friday) features stars Taylor Schilling and Laura Prepon on the cover and no-holds-barred interviews with the cast, creator Jenji Kohan and memoirist Piper Kerman, whose book inspired the series. Mac McClelland's cover story explores all of the reasons why the series has become mandatory viewing – how it primarily features women in its cast, shines a light on gay and transgender issues and gives a voice to one of the most marginalized groups in America: prisoners."
Actress Uzo Aduba as Suzanne "Crazy Eyes" Warren on Orange is the New Black. (Photo: Mark Seliger/RollingStone)
Uzo Aduba got the role of "Crazy Eyes" after a personal revelation.
The surreal moment Aduba got the phone call telling her she'd been cast is forever etched in her memory – and it seems even more surreal in hindsight. The high-school track star and classically trained opera singer vividly recalls watching an episode of Oprah's Master Class with guest Lorne Michaels on September 14th, 2012 at 5:43 p.m., when she saw a dreamy image of a swing hanging from a tree backed by a pink sunset and then the words, as Michaels said them, "Keep the faith." At that moment her phone rang with the offer. When she rewatched Master Class, the scene she saw wasn't there. Asked how she feels about having hallucinated the vision, she says, "Who cares? Because I know that's real." [Source]

Read more about Uzo Aduba, her career, and watch a singing performance, after the jump.

"Uzoamaka Nwaneka 'Uzo' Aduba is an American actress. She is known for her role as Suzanne 'Crazy Eyes' Warren on the Netflix television series Orange Is the New Black (2013–present), for which she won the 2014 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series and the 2015 Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series. Aduba was born in Boston, Massachusetts and raised in Medfield, Massachusetts, the daughter of Nigerian parents (of Igbo origin). Aduba graduated from Medfield High School in 1999. She attended Boston University, where she studied classical voice and competed in track and field. Aduba describes her family as a 'sports family.' Aduba first garnered recognition for her acting in 2003, when her performance in Translations of Xhosa at the Olney Theatre Center for the Arts earned her a Helen Hayes Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Play. In 2007, she made her Broadway debut, portraying Toby in Coram Boy. From 2011 through 2012, she sang 'By My Side' as part of the original revival cast of Godspell at the Circle in the Square Theatre. Her first television appearance was as a nurse on Blue Bloods in 2012. She also played the mother of the title character of Venice at The Public Theater in New York. In 2013, Aduba began portraying Suzanne Warren, also known as 'Crazy Eyes,' in the Netflix comedy-drama series Orange Is the New Black. Casting director Jennifer Euston explains the selection of Aduba for the role thus: 'Uzo Aduba...had her hair in those knots for the audition...They saw something amazing in her and were able to connect it to what they were looking for in Crazy Eyes.' In joining the series, Aduba obtained her Screen Actors Guild card, for which she relates, 'I was just like, 'Wow, this means I'm a full actor now.' It was such a big deal, and I remember being so thankful and feeling so proud.' She has been recognized for her performance as 'Crazy Eyes': Aduba won Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series at the 66th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards as well as Best Guest Performer in a Comedy Series at the 4th Critics' Choice Television Awards and was nominated for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film at the 18th Satellite Awards for her season 1 performance. Aduba's season 2 performance earned her the Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series as well as recognition for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series at the 21st Screen Actors Guild Awards and a nomination Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film at the 72nd Golden Globe Awards. In March 2014, Aduba performed at Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit concert Broadway Backwards. Aduba teamed with Rachel Bay Jones for a rendition of the song 'Lily's Eyes' from the play The Secret Garden." [Source]

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The Marcella Sembrich Museum Houses Her Personal Victrola Player

June 4, 2015, 9:12 am
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A Portrait of Madame Sembrich
"In our series the Adirondack Attic, North Country Public Radio collaborates with Andy Flynn and his sources at the Adirondack Museum and other historical associations and museums in the region to bring local history stories to air. Andy recently spoke with Beth Barton Navitsky, Executive Director at The Sembrich opera museum in Bolton Landing, N.Y., about a record player once owned by opera star Marcella Sembrich. 'We’re looking at a 107-year-old Victor Victrola that was made in 1908,' Navitsky said. 'It is a standing model that stands about 4 feet high and 2 feet wide. It also has a Circassian walnut veneer on the cabinet. The Circassian walnut is an English walnut that has a pattern of swirls on the outside as well as the inside. To play the Victrola, you have to lift the lid. You have to put the needle down on the record disc. And then you need to open up the cabinet below so the built-in speakers can be sending out the sound.'....'This was given to Marcella Sembrich, and she was an internationally renowned Polish opera singer whose career spanned
Put a Needle on the Record: The very player that the soprano would listen to her own Victrola recordings.
over 40 years,' Navitsky said. 'When she retired, Madame Sembrich opened up her studio and she taught students from Juilliard and the Curtis Institute of Music, and she used the Victrola for her students to listen to other opera singers as well as her own singing. She recorded quite a few recordings also in records. And she, of course, used it for enjoyment.'...'Was this made specifically for her, or did she just go out and purchase it?' Flynn asked. 'Actually it was made specifically for her,' Navitsky said. 'It was one of the first 10 made, which was why the Victrola Repair company in Vermont has said that they feel it was of the best made because it was made for Madame Sembrich and she was well-known as a very popular opera singer of that time.' [Source] Hear samples of the soprano's Victrola recordings, after the jump.
The Opera Museum is located in the former teaching studio of the Metropolitan Opera Diva Marcella Sembrich - pianist, violinist, teacher, Polish patriot and benefactor - on the shores of Lake George in Bolton Landing, New York. Click here for more information.




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Rolex Sponsors New DG "Abduction" With Yannick Nezét-Séguin

June 4, 2015, 12:55 pm
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"Mozart's Die Entführung aus dem Serail features a star cast full of critically-acclaimed artists – including Rolando Villazón, Diana Damrau, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Anna Prohaska and Thomas Quasthoff. It is the third of DG’s series of seven Mozart operas conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and initiated by Rolando Villazón, in collaboration with Festspielhaus Baden Baden, U-Live, and sponsored by ROLEX." [Source] International release date is July 3, 2015. Purchase the recording by clicking here. Watch a video of the recording session featuring all of the artists, and the album cover art, after the jump. You can find the previous Mozart operas with Maestro Nézet-Séguin on DG by clicking here and here. 


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GQ Encourages A One-Night Stand With Carmen Based On Bieito

June 4, 2015, 1:36 pm
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"Calixto Bieito's raunchy production of Georges Bizet's Carmen at the English National Opera proves that opera is no longer for the old (or boring). For those of you hoping to expand your horizons, Carmen is the perfect introductory sampler to whet your appetite and keep you coming back for more. The image of opera-goers squinting into their binoculars with their powdery, wrinkly faces is over. A younger audience is quickly encroaching into operatic territory, and here's why. Opera's saving grace comes in the form of Carmen. Why invest in opera now when we've only just managed to master the musical? Sex, that's why, and lots of it. OK, not just sex, but other themes that we can also relate to such as love (love triangles, unrequited love) and lust....This Carmen could very possibly drive a new (younger) audience to the opera. When GQ saw the production, a lady sitting next to us said, 'It's a bit cruder than I remember,' during the intermission. This surprised us, as Carmen is the definitive story of action fuelled [sic] by sexual tension. The story is almost entirely based entirely on sex, infidelity, and hot-blooded desire. And if that doesn't draw younger people to the opera, we're not sure what will." [Source] For more information about Carmen at ENO, click here. Watch a trailer of the production, and see the full cast performing through July 3, after the jump.
Hopelessly Devoted To You: Don José (Eric Cutler) wants more than one night with Carmen (Justina Gringyte).


Carmen  Justina Gringyte
Don José  Eric Cutler
Micaëla  Eleanor Dennis
Escamillo  Leigh Melrose
Frasquita  Rhian Lois
Mercédès  Clare Presland
Moralès  George Humphreys
Dancairo  Geoffrey Dolton
Remendado  Alun Rhys-Jenkins
Zuniga  Graeme Danby
Conductor  Sir Richard Armstrong/ Martin Fitzpatrick (16 & 18 June)


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