San Diego Opera Podcast

The wonderful young stage director Kyle Lang brought us terrific productions of The Pirates of Penzance and As One in the last couple of seasons. He's back for Carmen, and that's truly something to be excited about! Listen in as he tells us all about his approach to this classic opera and how each of the principal characters fit in the tragic story. Enjoy!

Tenor Robert Watson, our Don Jose in Carmen opening this week, has a lot to say about this character. Jose has one of the most interesting character arcs in all opera, moving from lyrical naif to obsessive lover with all of the musical changes that arc demands. The young singer talks about his beginnings as well, hailing from Kansas City (like colleague co-star Scott Conner, our Escamillo) and coming up through the ranks in the German fest system. Enjoy!

Bass Scott Conner sings the role of Escamillo in our production of Carmen by Georges Bizet. Listening to this voice...even his speaking voice...you'll want to hear him let loose in the Civic Theatre with the wonderful Toreador Song, an entrance aria like no other! Scott hails from Kansas City and in this interview he talks about his background, his studies and the roles that he's portraying all over the world. On top of it, he's a delightful guy! Enjoy.

Mezzo-soprano Ginger Costa-Jackson obviously loves the opera Carmen, and has some definite viewpoints when it comes to the main character she portrays. It all boils down to being fully present, completely focused when playing this volatile character, she says. In this delightful interview she digs a little deeper for us and gives the audience a preview of what her Carmen will be! Enjoy.

Conductor Adam Turner recently became the Artistic Director and Conductor for Virginia Opera, making him one of the youngest AD's in the American opera world. This is his third time at the helm for Jake Heggie's Three Decembers, and in this interview he reflects on the piece, on chamber opera generally, and on his career. Enjoy this fifth and final interview of the principals in this production!

Director Karen Tiller has directed Three Decembers three times now, and obviously loves this opera by Jake Heggie. In this interview she talks about her love for the piece as well as for her deep appreciation for its connection between drama, text and music. At the heart of the matter, she says, the message of this opera is that "life is messy", a direct quote from the libretto. Spend a few minutes with this artist and you'll see why we're so excited to present this opera, opening March 8th!

Soprano Kristin Clayton has had quite an eclectic career so far...singing roles like Mimi and Violetta, plus singing new roles and including working with a circus! She originated the role of Beatrice in Heggie's Three Decembers, and has an affinity for this wonderful character who is searching for memories of her father, being protective of her brother Charlie and dealing with the sometimes present, sometimes absent mother, Maddy. Join us for this fun conversation with a San Diego Opera debut artist!

Baritone Steven LaBrie sings the role of Charlie in Jake Heggie's opera Three Decembers. Charlie is the gay son of Madeline Mitchell (mezzo-soprano Frederica von Stade) and brother of Bea (soprano Kristin Clayton) in this intimate family drama. Steven hails from Dallas and has a charming story about his attraction to opera and, eventually, to singing as a career, in this lively interview in which he talks about his career and this wonderful chamber opera. Enjoy!

We already know what a delightful person and great artist Frederica von Stade is. We're welcoming her back to San Diego Opera in the role of Madeline Mitchell, the central character in Jake Heggie's Three Decembers. In this interview she talks about the opera and her role in it, with an additional few words about opera composer Dominick Argento who passed away just a few days before this interview (aged 91) and composed some lovely music for this singer. A wonderful few minutes with a charming lady! Enjoy!

Maestro Steven White is making his debut with San Diego Opera in this production of Rigoletto. (He also happens to be married to soprano Elizabeth Futral who has been with us on several occasions in the past, most notably as Violetta in our 2010 La traviata.) Steven is in love with this Verdi masterwork and has a lot of wonderful things to say about its musical structure in scintillating conversation with Nic Reveles. In fact, they both seem to enjoy "geeking out" over Verdi! Have fun with this dive into the deep end of one of Verdi's greatest works.

This is Canadian stage director Michael Cavanagh's debut with San Diego Opera and he's made quite an impression on the cast and crew working on Rigoletto with his positivity, collegiality and generous support of everyone involved in this important project! Listen in to this conversation with Nic Reveles as he gives us his point of view on Verdi's masterpiece and an inside look at what opera stage directors do. Enjoy!

Get ready for a delightful conversation with tenor, Scott Quinn, singing the role of the Duke of Mantua in San Diego Opera's production of Verdi's Rigoletto. Scott is singing the role of a narcissistic, entitled nobleman who uses women for his own pleasure and has utterly no empathy for them. Yet, Verdi gives this character some of the most beautiful and voluptuous music in the opera! Scott discusses that, as well as his past journey into the opera world and a comment or two about how tenors successfully achieve those high notes! Enjoy!

Soprano Alisa Jordheim is a wonderful young singer making her role debut as well as her company debut with us as Gilda in Rigoletto. In this conversation with Dr. Nic she talks about being a grad student and finding herself in a production of the same opera with Stephen Powell (singing Rigoletto in our production), as well as the challenges of the role. In a fascinating detour, she talks about the importance of breath and where a good singer's breath must emanate from. Listen in and enjoy!

Baritone Stephen Powell is one of our favorite singers here at San Diego Opera, having sung ten productions with us over the years. He's bringing us his very special take on one of the strangest yet most powerful characters in all opera, and a favorite of the composer himself: Rigoletto. It's a role that demands absolutely everything: technique, musicality, a strong voice and physicality. In this conversation with Nic Reveles the singer shares his ideas about this role as well as some of the other Verdi roles that he has sung (and would like to sing!) Enjoy!

Director Alan Hicks is new to San Diego Opera, holding a joint position as Assistant Stage Director for the company and as head of the opera program at San Diego State University. In this interview he shares his preparation for the WWI opera All Is Calm, and brings his insight to this intimate and stunning musical theatre experience. Enjoy!

Juan Carlos Acosta has a long-standing relationship with San Diego Opera, as a student at our Student Dress Rehearsals, as a subscriber, as a member of the San Diego Opera Chorus and now as conductor of our upcoming production: All Is Calm. In this interview he talks about the challenges of keeping a 16-member all-male chorus on track (and on pitch!) without the presence of an orchestra or some kind of instrumental accompaniment. This unique opera has got Juan Carlos and our Dr. Nic very excited about upcoming opening on December 7. Enjoy!

In this fascinating interview, Maestro John Nelson shares his thoughts about Mozart, the brilliant young cast of The Marriage of Figaro, Stephen Lawless' flawless production (which, according to Nelson is the most musically effective production of an opera that he's ever seen), and spirituality as communicated in the famous 'perdono' scene at the end. (No spoilers here!) Enjoy!

Sopranos Sarah Shafer and Caitlin Lynch sing the roles of Susanna and the Countess Almaviva, respectively, in our production of The Marriage of Figaro. Ms. Lynch catches up on Rosina a few years into her role as the wife of Count Almaviva and Ms. Shafer lets us in a bit on the back story of Susanna, the Count's current target for seduction. The plot thickens in this conversation with two wonderful debut artists in this Mozart classic. Enjoy!

Bass-baritone Evan Hughes and baritone John Moore play Figaro and Count Almaviva, respectively, in our upcoming production of Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro. In this wonderful conversation with Nic Reveles they talk about their careers, their roles and the contributions of the author of the plays that this opera (and Rossini's The Barber of Seville) are based on: Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais. These singers also find a lot in this opera for us to think about in terms of current affairs. Enjoy!

Bizet's opera Carmen is right up there with La boheme and Aida in terms of popularity, and so it returns to SDO with a new production for us, and a brilliant new cast of young singers. In this interview with General Director David Bennett, he talks about the return of opera's favorite femme fatale!