Opera Box Score

We take an inside look at Chicago Opera Theater’s 2018-2019 season announcement, and we score it on the Dodson Scale™. Will COT make it into the plus points column...? But first, the Boston ‘Globe’ recently published an in-depth article on James Levine, featuring interviews with two dozen former students, one of whom describes the conductor’s years at the Cleveland Institute of Music as a “cult”. We'll tell you what these interviews add to the on-going Levine saga... And it’s the ‘Two Minute Drill’: everything you need to know from the past week in Operaland, and our hot takes on those stories... Plus, Oliver plays ‘Monday Evening Quarterback’ on the recent production of Mozart’s “Così fan tutte” at Lyric Opera of Chicago... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Matthan Black – a familiar voice on our show – is back in Chicago for a spell, visiting from New York City, where he now resides. He fills us in on what’s happening in small-scale and storefront opera in the Rotten Apple... Then, ‘Fantasy Fachball’ returns for a sister showdown, when Oliver and Matt each pick a set of sopranos to compare and contrast in singing a duet from Mozart's "Così fan tutte". Matthan and Weston are the judges... Plus it’s the ‘Two Minute Drill’: everything you need to know from the past week in Operaland, and our hot takes on those stories... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Tonight, Oliver and Tobias go ‘Inside the Huddle’ with baritone Anthony Clark Evans.  The 2017 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World main prize finalist is currently singing the role of Riccardo in Bellini’s “I Puritani” at Lyric Opera of Chicago... And then, the Metropolitan Opera just announced its 2018-2019 season.  We crunch the numbers of those titles on the Dodson Scale™ in 'Chalk Talk'.  Also, James Levine has finally stepped aside as the Met's Music Director and, in an appointment that surprised precisely no one, the forty-one-year-old Québécois conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin has been named as Levine’s successor.  We’ll tell you how that affects the Met’s season... Plus, it’s the ‘Two Minute Drill’: everything you need to know from the past week in Operaland, and our hot takes on those stories... Double plus, we’ll squeeze in Oliver playing ‘Monday Evening Quarterback’ on Chicago Opera Theater’s production of Puts and Campbell’s opera “Elizabeth Cree”... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Librettist Mark Campbell joins us 'Inside the Huddle' live via phone. His latest collaboration with composer Kevin Puts is the opera “Elizabeth Cree”, currently playing at Chicago Opera Theater. Hear Mark talk about how he got into the mind of a nineteenth-century serial killer... But first, Lyric Opera of Chicago recently announced its 2018-2019 season a few weeks ago. Our team scores the season using a metric we're calling 'The Dodson Scale'... And, it’s the ‘Two Minute Drill’: everything you need to know from the past week in Operaland, and our hot takes on those stories... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Weston, Tobias and Matt react to Sunday’s Super Bowl (where a backup quarterback stepped in for an injured QB to win the game) by talking about singers who have stepped in last minute and won over audiences and critics alike -- as well as their colleagues -- to become stars themselves... Plus, Oliver plays ‘Monday Evening Quarterback’ via phone and reviews Bellini’s “I Puritani” at Lyric Opera of Chicago... And then, it’s the ‘Two Minute Drill’: everything you need to know from the past week in Operland, and our hot takes on those stories... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Our ‘Fantasy Fachball’ segment returns! Tobias and Cummings each pick a tenor to battle it out in an excerpt from Gounod’s “Faust”... But first, we take a closer look at the recent season announcements from San Francisco and Los Angeles Operas, and Oliver plays ‘Monday Evening Quarterback’ by reviewing the recent Met in HD version of Puccini’s “Tosca’... Plus, it’s the Two Minute Drill. You get all your opera headlines from the past week and our hot takes on them... https://www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Countertenor Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen returns to the show, live by phone from Houston. We ask him about his work at Houston Grand Opera, and his life post-Hurricane Harvey... And then, in ‘Chalk Talk’, it’s operatic pot pourri: we get you details on the latest competitions, repertoire lists, and a special focus on opera in Washington, DC... Plus, it’s the 'Two Minute Drill'. You get all your opera headlines from the past week and our hot takes on them... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Tonight, we reach into our Listener Mailbag, answering the question: “What would be the handful of operas, from the nineteenth century to the present, that you would consider the most representative if you were tracking an evolution of the form?” Check out our team's thoughts... Then, last month in the New York Times, Anthony Tommasini called it “the best opera recording ever”. We’ll tell you what is, and what we think of it... And then, it’s the Two Minute Drill. You get all your opera headlines from the past week and our hot takes on them... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Tonight, Oliver goes ‘Inside the Huddle’ with soprano Janai Brugger, who is currently singing the role of Liu in Puccini’s “Turandot” at Lyric Opera of Chicago... But first, Weston Williams has spent the better part of the last decade trying to blend in with opera and classical music professionals across the US, despite his distinct lack of professional training in singing, musicianship, or composition. He’s had brief stints as a journalist for WBHM in Birmingham, Alabama, and as a writer for the Christian Science Monitor. Weston joins us to talk all things opera-related... And then, it’s the 'Two Minute Drill'. You get all your opera headlines from the past week and our hot takes on them... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

We celebrate one hundred, count ‘em, one hundred episodes of America’s Talk Radio Show About Opera. Our whole team will be on the air, plus we bring back past co-host Giovanna Jacques... We’ll recap the highs and lows of opera stories and productions from 2017, and we’ll play you the very first demo tape ever of Opera Box Score... And then, it’s the Two Minute Drill. You get all your opera headlines from the past week and our hot takes on them... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Tonight the OBS team gets you ready for the holidays. We reveal some of our favorite holiday opera recordings and share a few things from our Christmas lists... But first, the biggest story of 2017 continues: conductor James Levine, who was accused by four different men of sexual abuse, and who has since been suspended from his position as Music Director Emeritus at the Metropolitan Opera, has now spoken publicly about these accusations. We’ll tell you what’s surprising about his statement... And later, it’s ‘The Two Minute Drill’. You get all your opera headlines from the past week and our hot takes on them... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Operaland was rocked over the weekend when allegations of sexual abuse were leveled against famed conductor James Levine. Michael Rice, the disgraced Godfather of opera podcasting (wait, sorry, the creator of the OperaNow! podcast) joins Oliver and Tobias live via phone with his take on this developing story... Then, George plays ‘Monday Evening Quarterback’ and reviews last week’s Met in HD Encore screening of Thomas Adès “The Exterminating Angel”... Plus, it’s ‘The Two Minute Drill’: all your opera headlines from the past week and our hot takes on them... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

We look back at the career of Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky who died last week at the age of 55, and we take a closer look at the vocal technique of phrasing, for which Dima was so famous... But first, Oliver plays ‘Monday Evening Quarterback’ and reviews the production of Bizet’s “The Pearl Fishers” at Lyric Opera of Chicago... And later it’s ‘The Two Minute Drill’, when you get all your opera headlines from the past week and our hot takes on them... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

The OBS gets you ready for Thanksgiving! George and Matt share the music, composers, singers, directors and traditions that they’re thankful for. Pass the Pepto... And it’s the ‘Two Minute Drill’: all your opera headlines from the past week with our hot takes on them... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

In the ‘Hometown Team', Oliver hosts Alex Enyart, conductor of Chicago Fringe Opera’s upcoming production of “As One”, a chamber opera with a transgender protagonist... Then, Oliver and Matt play ‘Fantasy Fachball’. They compare and contrast two different singers tackling the same aria: Turandot’s number “In questa reggia” from Puccini’s eponymous opera. George picks a winner... And the ‘Two Minute Drill’ returns, featuring all your opera headlines from the past week and our hot takes on them, including us asking “Just how high can a person sing anyway?”... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Composer Julian Grant joins us live via phone! He’s part of the team behind “The nefarious, immoral but highly profitable enterprise of Mr. Burke and Mr. Hare”, a world premiere chamber opera at Boston Lyric Opera that opens this week. Find out exactly why the residents of Edinburgh in 1828 just weren’t dying quickly enough... And Oliver goes ‘Inside the Huddle’ with Rubén Dubrovsky, conductor and artistic director of Third Coast Baroque, a Chicago ensemble that reframes early music... But wait, there’s more! In ‘Monday Evening Quarterback’, Oliver and Matt review productions of Wagner’s “Die Walküre” at Lyric Opera of Chicago and Menotti’s “The Consul” at Chicago Opera Theater. See if George's boys can agree to disagree... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Well, it’s that time of year again: Gruesome masks. Screams of horror. Death by chocolate. It’s National Opera Week! A special welcome to all our listeners who are supporters of Opera America, the nation’s umbrella organization for the creation, presentation and enjoyment of opera. Tonight, George, Matt and guest Matthan Black get ready for Hallowe’en. We share some horror stories from our time in the opera business, we listen to some spooky opera excepts and we examine a few terrifying news items from the past week in Operaland... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

John M. Clum, Professor Emeritus of Theater Studies and English at Duke University, joins George and Oliver 'Inside the Huddle'. Professor Clum has written nine books about theater and staging. He’s also a playwright and an experienced stage director, as well as being a librettist for contemporary American operas... He’ll also be with us for ‘The Two Minute Drill’, when you get all your opera headlines from the past week, and our hot takes on them... And then, it’s our new segment ‘Fantasy Fachball’. Oliver and the Professor face off by backing different singers tackling the same aria. OBS co-host Matt Cummings will the judge as to who's the best. It could get nasty... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Stage director Amy Stebbins and composer Hauke Berheide are working on a new piece for children called “Einar hat einen Vogel”. They talk about what you need to remember when you’re writing for kids. And some picky critics tackle Dean Burry’s opera for children “The Scorpions’ Sting”, which was at Lyric Unlimited here in Chicago last weekend... But first, Amy and Hauke update you on what’s happening in opera in German-speaking Europe, including details on some important changes of artistic leadership that have taken place in the past year, including the promotion of several women at major German and Austrian houses... And then, it’s ‘Monday Evening Quarterback’ with creative consultant Oliver Camacho. Although he’s not live in studio tonight -- he’s sitting one out recovering from seeing five operas in four days -- Oliver checks with reviews of Verdi’s “Rigoletto” at Lyric Opera of Chicago and Sir John Eliot Gardiner’s Monteverdi trilogy... www.facebook.com/OBSCHI1/

Oliver goes ‘Inside the Huddle’ with countertenor Justin Kim. The Korean-American has established himself as one of the most sought-after countertenors of his generation, having already collaborated with such prestigious conductors as Sir John Eliot Gardiner... But first, it’s ‘The Hometown Team’, this week with Chicago’s Third Eye Theater Ensemble. The company presents Daniel Crozier's opera “With Blood, With Ink” which tells the chilling and beautiful story of the life of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, the iconic 17th century Mexican poetess and nun. Stage director Rose Freeman and mezzo-soprano Rena Ahmed join George live in studio... And then, it’s ‘The Two Minute Drill’: all the things you need to know from the past week in Operaland, plus our hot takes... http://facebook.com/obschi1