The Canadian Opera Company announced today the details for their 2014-2015 season
This evening the Canadian Opera Company announced the details of its 2014-15 season to a house full of media, subscribers and opera-lovers. COC General Director Alexander Neef and Music Director Johannes Debus joined CBC’s Brent Bambury on stage at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing arts to unveil an exciting new season that promises something for everyone.
The COC’s 2014-15 season will feature six operas, four of them helmed by Canadian directors; three new productions, three revivals, all six operas will be COC productions or co-productions (as opposed to presentations of works mounted by other companies).
The new productions are Verdi’s Falstaff, Mozart’s Don Giovanni, and Rossini’s The Barber of Seville. The shows being revived by the COC in the season will be Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, Wagner’s Die Walküre (directed by Atom Egoyan) and a double bill of Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle and Schoenberg’s Erwartung (directed by Robert Lepage).
See below for more details:
From Press Release
The Canadian Opera Company unveiled a season dominated by the most important, respected and talked-about artists working on the operatic world stage today at a public launch of its 2014/2015 season at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts.
The company’s 64th season is comprised entirely of COC productions, featuring three new productions, developed in partnership with other premier opera companies, and revivals of three classic COC works that have defined the company’s reputation for artistic excellence and innovation. The COC presents Giuseppe Verdi’s Falstaff in a new COC production, a revival of its beloved production of Giacomo Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Don Giovanni in a new COC creation, the revival of its acclaimed staging of Richard Wagner’s Die Walküre, Gioacchino Rossini’s The Barber of Seville in a new COC production, and the return of the COC’s iconic double-bill of Béla Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle and Arnold Schoenberg’s Erwartung.
“The 2014/2015 season is one that I’d describe to audiences as an unforgettable journey of musical, sensory and artistic discovery, delivered by some of the most talented emerging and established stars operating on the world stage. This season features a line-up of the finest opera companies and artists working today, and that is a testament to the international draw of this company,” says COC General Director Alexander Neef. “We have made going to the opera next season as affordable to the community as possible. The level of talent coming to our company is extraordinary and we really believe that as many people as possible should be given every opportunity we can give them to experience these artists on our stage.”
Neef adds, “I’m particularly proud that the 14/15 season is comprised entirely of productions owned or co-owned by the COC. Our three new productions have been created with the world’s best opera companies and the three revivals are essential pieces in the company’s history. Ultimately, an all-COC season reflects the new artistic paradigm we’re in, in the consistency and quality of our works.”
The COC is bringing some of the world’s best artists and most compelling storytellers to its mainstage for the 14/15 season, many of whom are considered to be among the defining singers, conductors, directors and designers of their generation. Among those making their company debuts are singers Andrea Carè, Amanda Echalaz, Christine Goerke, Cecelia Hall, Jennifer Holloway, Kelly Kaduce, Serena Malfi, Heidi Melton, Patricia Racette, Johan Reuter, Stefano Secco and Alek Shrader; director Dmitri Tcherniakov; and conductors Michael Hofstetter andPatrick Lange. The COC also welcomes the return of a number of acclaimed Canadian and international artists including singers Frédéric Antoun, Jane Archibald, Russell Braun, Dwayne Croft, Gregory Dahl, Elizabeth DeShong, Gerald Finley, Clifton Forbis, Ekaterina Gubanova, Joshua Hopkins, Kyle Ketelsen, Marie-Nicole Lemieux, Simone Osborne, John Relyea, Michael Schade, Lauren Segal and Krisztina Szabó; directors Robert Carsen, Atom Egoyan, Robert Lepage, Brian Macdonald, and the production team of Els Comediants; conductor Rory Macdonald; and designers Susan Benson, Michael Levine and Michael Whitfield. COC Music Director Johannes Debus conducts three of the company’s productions this season. All performances take place in the company’s home, the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, and feature the internationally renownedCOC Orchestra and Chorus.
TICKET INFORMATION
Now on sale, subscriptions to the six mainstage productions for the COC’s 14/15 season range from $148 to $2,050, and may be purchased online at coc.ca, by calling 416-363-8231, or in person at the Four Seasons Centre Box Office, 145 Queen St. W., Toronto. Special value pricing is available on most levels of the Four Seasons Centre, including the Orchestra, Grand Ring box, and Ring 3 levels. Prices include HST. Special pricing is also available for seniors and children in all subscription series.
Single tickets to all of the COC’s 14/15 season productions are available to the public as of August 25, 2014. Single tickets prices range from $12 to $339 (includes applicable taxes). Tickets are available online at coc.ca, by calling 416-363-8231, or in person at the Four Seasons Centre Box Office, located at 145 Queen St. W.
For more information on specially priced tickets available to young people under the age of 15, standing room,Opera Under 30 presented by TD Bank Group, student groups and rush seating, visit coc.ca.
Photo by Michael Cooper