by Natalie Mann, Lister reviewer Opera has a long and storied history of exposing society’s darkest secrets and turning the artistic forces of music to recount tales that many fear to whisper. The eye-opening opera Fallujah tells a brilliant story based on the life of US Marine Christian Ellis. The libretto and music blur the … Read more
Long Beach Opera has a world premiere coming up that touches a few nerves, and covers territory that is sorely unexamined. Fallujah is a new opera by Tobin Stokes and Heather Raffo that looks at not only the horrors of war, but the struggles of living beyond it. The first opera to address composed about the Iraq … Read more
Going back in time can be a real trip. The retrospective offered by Long Beach Opera in Hydrogen Jukebox promised to be not just a “level 1 or 2 trip…you can get that at any legal dispensary,” but “level 4 or 5 psychedelics, where the world is curved and warped, objects talk to you, time … Read more
Vocal focus from CCMN* Southern CA Vocal Events Lauri D. Goldenhersh’s Weekly Highlights The next two weeks marks the start and the finish of beautiful things! Anoush Opera brings a 19th-century Armenian village to life with a tragic love story presented by LARK MUSICAL SOCIETY and starring HASMIK PAPIAN and SHOUSHIK BARSOUMIAN. Four performances run … Read more
John Adams‘ The Death of Klinghoffer is an opera designed to leave its audience with much to contemplate, and it succeeds mightily. The subject has sparked repeated controversy since the 1991 premiere, so much so that most of the headlines in the last year that refer to the external conflict. (Do a quick Google search and … Read more
