CCM’s Undergraduate Voice Students Shine in ‘Serse’

One of Handel’s most performed operas comes to life at the hands of talented undergraduate students when CCM presents the annual Opera d’arte production on March 30 and 31 in the Cohen Family Studio Theater. Admission is free but reservations are required.

The CCM Undergraduate Opera program’s 2010 and 2011 productions were both recognized by the National Opera Association‘s Annual Production Competition. The 2012 production of Serse is conducted by Brett Scott with stage direction by Kenneth Shaw.

CCM Slideshows: Don Giovanni

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

CCM’s Mainstage Opera Season opened last evening with Mozart’s extraordinary take on the Don Juan legend, Don Giovanni.

The Cincinnati Enquirer‘s Janelle Gelfand includes the opera in her round up of entertainment options for a Valentine treat here and CityBeat‘s Anne Arenstein provides a similar recommendation here.

LISTEN: CCM’s ‘Don Giovanni’ Featured on Around Cincinnati

Director Nicholas Muni discussed CCM’s Mainstage Opera Series production of Don Giovanni with Anne Arenstein on this past Sunday’s installment of WVXU’s Around Cincinnati. You can listen to the full discussion here.

Re-Imagined ‘Don Giovanni’ Opens CCM’s Mainstage Opera Series

Photography by Mark Lyons.

CCM opens its Mainstage opera series with one of the most performed and revered operas in the entire repertoire, Mozart’s Don Giovanni. CCM Professor of Opera and Distinguished Artist in Residence Nicholas Muni directs the talented students of CCM in this timeless tale of a philandering man, his many conquests and his ultimate condemnation. Don Giovanni runs February 9-12 in CCM’s Patricia Corbett Theater on the University of Cincinnati campus.

Note: This production features adult themes and situations and is intended for mature audiences.

CCM Wins Big in National Opera Association’s Annual Production Competition

CCM's Spring 2011 Mainstage Production of Poulenc's 'Dialogues of the Carmelites.' Photography by Mark Lyons.

The National Opera Association has announced the results of its annual Opera Production Competition and CCM’s 2010-11 Mainstage, Studio and Undergraduate Series of Operas have again received some of the competition’s highest honors.

Battle of the Countertenors: CCM Studio Opera Brings Handel’s ‘Giulio Cesare in Egitto’ to Life

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Embroiled in a bitter struggle for power, Giulio Cesare in Egitto (Julius Caesar in Egypt) recounts the passion between Cesare and Cleopatra as they form an alliance against the Egyptian queen’s brother Tolomeo, who is attempting to usurp control of Rome and Egypt. Admission is free, but reservations are required. Tickets become available on Monday, May 23 at noon—please contact the CCM Box Office at 513-556-4183 to reserve. Learn more about this opera after the jump.

“The Cunning Little Vixen” Gives Undergraduate Opera Students a Chance to Shine

CCM Undergraduate Opera students gain experience in Janáček’s reflective opera The Cunning Little Vixen, playing at 8 p.m. in the Cohen Family Studio Theater on April 1 & 2. The opera, which was adapted from a daily newspaper comic strip, is an anthropomorphic fable that jumps from the human to the animal world. In the human realm, the protagonists fret about loneliness and isolation, lost youth and old age. Janáček uses the animals to pay homage to the amazing beauty and power of nature and marvel at the natural cycle of birth, love and death.

CCM Slideshows: Of Mice and Men

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Based on the classic novel by Nobel Prize-winning author John Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men tells the story of George and Lennie, two displaced farm hands during the Great Depression. Chasing the American dream to someday own their own stake of land, the pair travels across the California countryside in search of work. When their journey leads them into trouble, one friend must make a tragic choice to save the other. Sung in English with supertitles. Opening night will feature special pre- and post-performance talks by Maestro Carlisle Floyd.