Media Releases

For Immediate Release January 25, 2012
Media Contact Jelena Bojic, Director of Marketing & Communications
jelena.bojic@edmontonopera.com
780.392.7837

EDMONTON OPERA 2012/13 SEASON LAUNCH

Joel Ivany, Opera Director for
Les Contes D’Hoffmann

Season Launch at the
Edmonton City Centre Mall

Sandra Gajic, CEO of Edmonton Opera

In announcing its 49th season, Edmonton Opera shows it is willing to break some new artistic ground by presenting five opera productions in its 2012/13 season, up from its usual three per year. The Opera will also add a traditionally popular Sunday afternoon matinee to the season as well as presenting a new Canadian series of two new second stage productions.

The Mainstage Series will start with the grandest of all operas, Aida, presented in honour of Verdi’s 200th anniversary. This inspired tale of Egypt, with its seductive slave dances, soaring arias and surging choruses will be a visually striking presentation on a new opera set and in wonderful new costumes built by our Costume Designer Deanna Finnman. Directed by Serbian opera director, Dejan Miladinovic, this Aida will feature artists Angela Brown, Carl Tanner, Elena Bocharova, Donnie Ray Albert, Burak Bilgili and Mikhail Kolelishvili.
Whether you have never been to an opera before or are the aficionado, you will fall in love with the glorious music and the grand spectacle that Aida brings.
Jubilee Auditorium, October 19th, 21st (matinee), 23rd, 25th, 2012

Les Contes d’Hoffman, a dark fairy tale of a poet looking for love, will be presented in February. Directed by Joel Ivany, one of Canada’s most innovative young opera directors, this is Offenbach’s final masterpiece with gorgeous melodies, seductive love scenes, but most of all – fantastic characters. David Pomeroy, Richard Paul Fink, Teiya Kasahara, Ileana Montalbetti, Krisztina Szabo and Lauren Segal join us for Les Contes d’Hoffman.
Jubilee Auditorium, February 1st, 3rd (matinee), 5th, 7th, 2013

Eugene Onegin, Tchaikovsky’s beautiful lyric opera, based on Pushkin’s novel, is filled with drama, beauty and romantic obsession. Directed by Maria Lamont, a Canadian Opera Director whose accomplishments include La Scala, Canadian Opera Company, Le Grand Theatre de Luxembourg and more, this Onegin will feature a cast lead by Tatiana Kuznetsova and Phillip Cutlip, including Andrej Dunaev, Olga Savova, Maria Kataeva and Ilya Bannik.
Jubilee Auditorium, April 19th, 21st (matinee), 23rd, 25th, 2013

ATB CANADIAN SERIES

A world premiere and co-production with Tapestry New Opera, Shelter is a fable about a father who protects his family at any cost, a mother who chases storms, and a nuclear physicist being a midwife to a child who glows in dark. Following this amazing story are the Atomicalia exhibit and a panel of discussions, led by University of Alberta Festival of Ideas “The Highway of the Atom – from Great Bear Lake to Japan”.
La Cite Francophone, November 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th, 2012

Svadba (Wedding) is an electrifying new opera about a night before the wedding, when girlfriends prepare the bride to be in a ravishing Balkan rite of passage. Composed by Montreal’s Ana Sokolovic, whose beautiful style of composition draws on her native Balkan music, combining opera with folk music, thereby creating an unforgettable experience for audience.
Eva O.Howard Auditorium at Victoria School of Arts, January 12th, 13 (matinee), 16th (matinee), 18th, 19th, 2013.

Important dates:

On sale now: 2012/13 season subscriptions are on sale now, available through our Box Office at 780.429.1000 or website www.edmontonopera.com