Seattle Opera will present two operas new to the company’s repertoire as part of its five-opera 2006-07 season at McCaw Hall.
Rossini’s “Italiana in Algeri” (“The Italian Girl in Algiers) and Handel’s “Giulio Cesare in Egitto” (“Julius Caesar”) will be performed for the first time here.
These works join three operas familiar to Seattle Opera’s audiences: Richard Strauss’s “Der Rosenkavalier,” Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” (in a new production) and Puccini’s “La Boheme.”
The company will also present a first-ever International Wagner Competition with singers performing in competition in August.
The new season brings many company debuts as well as the return of some of Seattle Opera’s favorite artists.
Season subscriptions are on sale now. The ticket range for renewals is $166 to $3,187; the range for new subscriptions is $198 to $3,187. Tickets for the Aug. 19 International Wagner Competition are $42 to $52.
The Seattle Opera Ticket Office is 206-389-7676, 800-426-1619, online at www.seattleopera.org.
The season opens in August with “Der Rosenkavalier” by Richard Strauss featuring Seattle Opera favorite soprano Carol Vaness singing her first Marschallin. Mezzo-soprano Alice Coote makes her Seattle Opera debut as Octavian.
Rossini’s “The Italian Girl in Algiers,” opening in October, is the second opera of the season. American mezzo-soprano Stephanie Blythe, seen here last summer as Fricka in Wagner’s “Ring,” sings the role of “Isabella” in the opening night cast.
The new production of Mozart’s “Don Giovanni,” which opens in January 2007, reunites Seattle Opera’s “Tales of Hoffman” production team of director Chris Alexander, set designer Robert Dahlstrom, costume designer Marie-Theresa Cramer and lighting designer Robert Wierzel.
The Don will be sung by two young baritones: Polish baritone Mariusz Kwiecien (last seen here in Donizetti’s “Don Pasquale”) and American singer Morgan Smith.
Handel’s “Julius Caesar in Egypt” opens in February 2007. Polish contralto Eva Podles (2002-03 Seattle Opera Artist of the Year) and a huge local favorite, sings the role of Julius Caesar, accompanied in the opening night cast by countertenor Brian Asawa (1996-97 Seattle Opera Artist of the Year).
The season concludes in May 2007 with Puccini’s “La Boheme,” one of the most popular operas ever. Italian soprano Nuccia Focile returns to the company to sing the role of Mimi in the opening night cast.
Terrence McCarthy photo
Jane Archibald and Catherine Cook appear in Rossini’s “The Italian Girl in Algiers” during a San Francisco Opera performance that will be seen at the Seattle Opera production this year.
Michael Cooper photo
Eva Podles sings the title character in Handel’s “Julius Caesar in Egypt,” which opens in February 2007.
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