The Festival Season
The Santa Fe Opera's 2010 Season includes three “top-ten” operas—celebrated classics by Puccini, Mozart and Offenbach—along with a major world premiere and a charming comedy by Benjamin Britten.
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View the 2010 Festival Season JULY or AUGUST performance calendar now.
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The season opens with a new production of Madame Butterfly, perhaps the most beloved of all operas, which has not been staged here in more than ten years. Kelly Kaduce returns as Puccini’s heartfelt heroine Cio-Cio-San, joined by Elizabeth DeShong as Suzuki and Brandon Jovanovich as Pinkerton. Antony Walker and Lee Blakeley make their Santa Fe debuts as conductor and stage director.
Performance dates: July 2, 7, 10, 16, 23; August 2, 9, 14, 20, 26
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The powers of music and of love unite to triumph over evil in The Magic Flute, Mozart’s ultimate opera. Director Tim Albery’s production was a sold-out sensation in 2006 and it returns under conductor Lawrence Renes to cast its radiant harmonies over Santa Fe audiences. Joshua Hopkins and Andrea Silvestrelli return as Papageno and Sarastro, joined by Ekaterina Siurina as Pamina, Erin Morley as the Queen of the Night, and Charles Castronovo as Tamino.
Performance dates: July 3, 9, 14; August 5, 10, 16, 23, 27
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The Tales of Hoffmann is Offenbach’s glorious final masterpiece and it has never before been seen in Santa Fe. Tenor Paul Groves stars in the title role, the poet who duels with the unscrupulous Councilor Lindorf over the most glittering of all prizes—the opera star Stella. This new production, conducted by Stephen Lord and directed by Christopher Alden, features Erin Wall as the four heroines, Kate Lindsey as Nicklausse, and Wayne Tigges as the four villains.
Performance dates: July 17, 21, 30; August 3, 7, 11, 17, 24, 28
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Life is a Dream will be The Santa Fe Opera’s newest world premiere. Based on a towering masterpiece from “The Golden Age of Spanish Drama,” the opera by Lewis Spratlan explores provocative questions about the nature of perceptions and reality—and won the 2000 Pulitzer Prize in Music. Conductor Leonard Slatkin and director Kevin Newbury lead a cast that features Ellie Dehn, Roger Honeywell, James Maddalena and John Cheek in the leading roles.
Performance dates: July 24, 28; August 6, 12, 19
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Albert Herring proved that Benjamin Britten could create comedies that were just as successful as his dramatic masterworks such as Peter Grimes and Billy Budd. A turn-of-the-last-century English village is shocked to discover that chaste young women are in perilously short supply, so bashful Albert is crowned “King of the May Festival,” only to launch a night of revelry that leaves his elders aghast and his chums impressed. Fast-rising young tenor Alek Shrader stars in the title role, joined by Christine Brewer as the imperious Lady Billows. This new production is conducted by Sir Andrew Davis and directed by Paul Curran.
Performance dates: July 31; August 4, 13, 18, 21, 25
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See the stars of tomorrow! The Apprentice Singers and Technicians are essential to the fabric of The Santa Fe Opera and their exceptional talents will shine on their own on August 15 and 22. The singers take the spotlight center stage, as the technicians command all the production aspects behind-the-scenes. Each evening offers its own unique program of fully staged scenes from popular operas, making both nights’ perfect events for the whole family. Reserved seats are just $15 for adults and $5 for children ages 6 to 17.