Michael Spyres

Premiered in 1787, “Don Giovanni” exposes the timeless theme of a man hovering between vitality and destruction. Neither morality nor the law can stop this serial lover in his quest to conquer all women as he places his own pleasure above all other principles. Today, the rich depth of Mozart’s masterpiece still astonishes audiences with its mix of comedy and seriousness, pleasure and love, entertainment and murder. At the helm of this new Salzburg Festival production, in a near-live broadcast from the Great Festival Hall, director Romeo Castellucci promises to focus on the ambiguity and inner turmoil of this serial lover whose immoral behaviour condemns him to a deadly solitude. The exceptional cast – featuring Italian baritone Davide Luciano (Don Giovanni), Russian soprano Nadezhda Pavlova (Donna Anna) and Finnish bass Mika Kares (the Commendatore) – is accompanied by the chorus and musicians of the musicAeterna ensemble, conducted by Vitaly Polonsky and Teodor Currentzis.

Beethoven's only opera came to the stage of the Opéra Comique in Paris in 2021 in a sensational production. The work of conductor Raphaël Pichon and director Cyril Teste reveals their appreciation for a work that is rarely performed in France. At the center of the plot is Leonore, who, disguised as a man, searches for her husband Florestan.

After marrying the emperor of the south-eastern islands, the daughter of the king of the spirits lost her magical powers without acquiring the shadow that would seal her place in the human world. Under the baton of Klaus Mäkelä, Barrie Kosky transforms Strauss’s most ambitious opera into an allegory of the awakening of consciousness.

Adolphe Adam’s Le Postillon de Lonjumeau was a great success at its premiere in 1836, and, along with the ballet Giselle, has remained one of the composer’s most popular works. Following the great French tradition, this opéra-comique has it all: 18th-century Rococo Parisian glamour and a perilous love story involving the dashing and flirtatious Chapelou and his opposite, the powerful and clever Madeleine. This lavish and spectacular production from the Opéra Comique in Paris received widespread critical acclaim and also features costumes by the iconic French fashion designer Christian Lacroix.

The Vienna Symphony Orchestra, conducted by its new conductor Petr Popelka, celebrates Johann Strauss II in the splendid setting of the Teatro Rossetti in Trieste.

The electrifying Lise Davidsen tackles one of the ultimate roles for dramatic soprano: the Irish princess Isolde in Wagner’s transcendent meditation on love and death. Heroic tenor Michael Spyres stars opposite Davidsen as the love-drunk Tristan. Mezzo-soprano Ekaterina Gubanova reprises her signature portrayal of Brangäne, alongside bass-baritone Tomasz Konieczny, who sings Kurwenal after celebrated Met appearances in Wagner’s Der Fliegende Holländer and Ring cycle. Bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green makes an important role debut as King Marke.

Priestess Julia watches over the eternal flame of the goddess Vesta. While the Great Vestal condemns to death every virgin who breaks her vow of chastity, Julia is delighted to be reunited with Licinius, who has returned from war as a victorious Roman general. One night, as the two lovers swear their love before the temple altar, the eternal flame goes out…

Composed in 1707 in Rome, Handel's Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno is an oratorio in two parts with a libretto written by Cardinal Benedetto Pamphili. Staged by Krzysztof Warlikowski and conducted by Emmanuelle Haïm, this sublime performance was presented at the Aix-en-Provence Festival in 2016.