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Shakespeare operas

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Adapting Shakespeare's 'Antony and Cleopatra' for opera
Amina Edris as Cleopatra in Antony and Cleopatra
Shakespeare & Beyond

Adapting Shakespeare's 'Antony and Cleopatra' for opera

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Author
Lucia Scheckner
Get an insider's look at adapting a Shakespeare play for opera with this blog post by the dramaturg and libretto consultant for the new John Adams opera of "Antony and Cleopatra."
Q&A: Allan Clayton on playing Hamlet in Brett Dean's opera
Allan Clayton as Hamlet
Shakespeare & Beyond

Q&A: Allan Clayton on playing Hamlet in Brett Dean's opera

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Author
Shakespeare & Beyond
Hamlet sings! A new opera version of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" is onstage now at the Metropolitan Opera, with tenor Allan Clayton resuming the title role that he played for the opera's world premiere at the Glyndebourne Festival in 2017. Read our Q&A with Allan Clayton.
Venus and Adonis: The classical myth that inspired Shakespeare's epic poem and John Blow's 17th-century opera
Venus and Adonis
Shakespeare & Beyond

Venus and Adonis: The classical myth that inspired Shakespeare's epic poem and John Blow's 17th-century opera

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Author
Esther French Ryan Brown

What many consider to be the earliest known English opera shares its mythological subject with Shakespeare’s most popular published work during his lifetime: the epic poem Venus and Adonis. Here we see great artists from different centuries using different art…

Shakespeare and opera: Jealousy and tragedy in Verdi's Otello
Desdemona and Otello
Shakespeare & Beyond

Shakespeare and opera: Jealousy and tragedy in Verdi's Otello

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Author
Francesca Zambello

Leah Crocetto (Desdemona) and Russell Thomas (Otello) in WNO’s Otello. Photo by Scott Suchman. I find it fascinating that Verdi’s last two operas were both inspired by Shakespeare: Otello (1887) and Falstaff (1893), yet they are very different in story,…

Verdi's Macbeth: "The opera without a love affair!"
Title page with Macbeth and witches
Shakespeare & Beyond

Verdi's Macbeth: "The opera without a love affair!"

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Author
Effie Papanikolaou

Macbeth posta in musica da Giuseppe Verdi e per grata memoria dedicato al suo amatissimo suocero Antonio Barezzi Riduzione per Pianoforte solo de E. Muzio. . 1847. FOLGER 266549“L’opera senza amore!” That was the Italians’ reaction to Verdi’s Macbeth when…

Charles Gounod: The tragedy of Romeo and Juliet in four beautiful duets
Romeo and Juliet at San Francisco Opera
Shakespeare & Beyond

Charles Gounod: The tragedy of Romeo and Juliet in four beautiful duets

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Author
Matthew Shilvock
Charles Gounod's 19th-century opera "Roméo et Juliette" is a love story of heartbreaking tragedy, punctuated by four masterful duets. Matthew Shilvock of San Francisco Opera explains why the work is such a masterpiece.
A feast of Falstaff: Sir John in opera
Falstaff
Shakespeare & Beyond

A feast of Falstaff: Sir John in opera

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Author
David Ward
There’s no other character from Shakespeare who has charmed the imaginations of opera composers and librettists more than Sir John Falstaff.
Shakespeare and opera: Verdi, Rossini, and other composers inspired by the plays
Shakespeare & Beyond

Shakespeare and opera: Verdi, Rossini, and other composers inspired by the plays

Posted
Author
David Ward
Shakespeare and opera is a winning combination, with the plays providing compelling dramatic material and a ‘name’ that would help sell tickets.