Latest Articles
Anton Henseler’s “Jacques Offenbach” (1930) In A First-Ever English Translation
The Offenbach bicentenary might be over – but there are still fascinating things coming out to celebrate the composer. One
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World Premiere Recording Of Johann Strauss’ “Blindekuh” On Naxos
As part of their Johann Strauss “rediscovery series” the label Naxos is releasing the 1878 operetta Blindekuh which premiered at
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Jeanette MacDonald & Nelson Eddy: The Glory of Hollywood Operetta in Jeanine Basinger’s “The Movie Musical”
One of the more joyous things about recent new studies on musicals is the fact that they include operettas, without
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Colonialism & Operetta. Or: What To Do With Leo Fall’s “Die Rose von Stambul”
At the end of March 2020, the Nationaltheater Weimar will host an international conference entitled “Musiktheater und Kolonialismus,” i.e. musical
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Revisiting Kurt Gänzl’s “Guide to Musical Theatre On Record”
“Wonderfully opinionated, outrageously frank, and always sensible” Yes, that was me. I suppose it still is … but in 1991
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THE NEW MOON: A Romantic musical play by Oscar Hammerstein & Sigmund Romberg
The team responsible for that overwhelming hit of 1926, The Desert Song, mined a similar vein for their next collaboration,
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“Babes In Toyland” In Zwickau-Plauen. Or: Performing Victor Herbert In Germany
The small theater in Zwickau-Plauen (Germany) presented Victor Herbert’s much-loved Babes in Toyland as their Christmas spectacle and gave the
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Carita von Horst (1864-1935): The Baroness Who Composed “Gentleman Jack” And Bamboozled Hitler
How many female operetta composers can you name? Here is one who was also a baroness, no less. Her operetta
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De-Nazifying The “Radetzky March” At The 2020 Vienna New Year’s Concert
The New Year’s concert from Vienna, with the Vienna Philharmonic, is a beloved tradition for many. It rarely has anything
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Fritz & Alfred Rotter: A Life Between Theatrical Glamour And Death In Exile
The Rotter brothers, Fritz and Alfred, were the most prominent private theater directors during the Weimar Republic before losing everything
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Composer Jerry Herman Dies At Age 88 In Miami
Some will claim that Hello Dolly, Mame or La Cage aux Folles are among the greatest modern operettas in the
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Paul Abraham’s “Dschainah – Das Mädchen aus dem Tanzhaus” Revived After 84 Years
If expectations are exceptionally high for a Paul Abraham operetta at Komische Oper Berlin that’s because, in the past, the
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“The Cambridge Companion to Operetta”: Taking A New Look At The Genre In English
It was about bloody time, you might say, that someone published a new English language reference book on the history
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“Follies” Set In Socialist East Germany: Sondheim At Staatsoperette Dresden
Stephen Sondheim’s Follies is the Mt. Everest of US-American musical theatre, his most searching and self-reflexive study of the genre
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The 40th Bundeswettbewerb Gesang Berlin – With The Stars Of Tomorrow
Bundeswettbewerb Gesang Berlin celebrated its 40th anniversary this year with a musical/chanson themed contest. The gala concert of the finalists
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Maury Yeston Meets Julian Slade. Or: “Amélie” At London’s The Other Palace
Amélie is a charming, whimsical, musical, based on a 2001 French Film, which was originally (2015) staged in California, and
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Gershwin’s Political Satire “Let ‘Em Eat Cake” At MasterVoices
Artistic Director Ted Sperling conducted a splendid concert reading of George and Ira Gershwin’s Pulitzer Prize-winning 1933 musical Of Thee
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Victor Herbert’s “The Debutante” (1914) Resurrected In New York
When Victor Herbert’s musical comedy The Debutante premiered in New York in 1914, it had the misfortune to occur the
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Jean Gilbert (1879-1942) As Part Of The New “Cindy & Bert” Show At Tipi Am Kanzleramt
Composer Jean Gilbert (1879-1942) might have been one of the most successful German operetta stars in the pre-WW1 years, he
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“Casta Diva”: The World’s First Gay Opera Guide With Two Operettas And Some Hidden Porn
So here it is, the world’s “first gay opera guide,” or so the publisher claims. It’s a small Berlin based
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Bringing Back Abraham: “Märchen Im Grand Hotel” At Staatstheater Hannover
It’s hard to believe, but this is actually only the second fully staged production of Paul Abraham’s Märchen im Grand
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Francisco Barbieri’s “Barberillo de Lavapies”: The Classic BBC Recording In English
This is totally delightful! Francisco Barbieri (1823-94) was the leading exponent of the zarzuela revival of the mid-19th century. He
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Leo Fall’s “Die Dollarprinzessin” With Ulf Schirmer From Munich
As part of their ongoing Leo Fall series, the label cpo has released a full cast album of Die Dollarprinzessin,
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The Songs Of Reynaldo Hahn On Palazzetto Bru Zane
For many, he’s just another famous representative of the Belle Époque, but there are few people that really know much
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Heymann, Offenbach & Ábrahám: New Albums And Concerts With The Capitol Symphony Orchestra
Here’s something truly special: an album of Werner Richard Heymann’s symphonic music that has not been available acoustically earlier and
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The Victor Herbert World Says Goodbye To Restorationist Quade Winter (1951-2019)
The Victor Herbert world says goodbye to one of its restorationists. Quade Winter of Pendleton, Oregon, died of cardiac arrest
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The New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players Give “Iolanthe” A Top Notch Performance
New York’s longest running professional Gilbert & Sullivan company returned to the Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College (near Lexington Avenue)
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Dagmar Manzel’s New Solo Album “Sehnsucht” – With Three Paul Abraham Tracks
The fact that Dagmar Manzel has been involved in the Weimar Republic operetta revival at Komische Oper Berlin from the
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“Mary Poppins” As London’s Unashamedly Old-Fashioned Christmas Spectacle
Mary Poppins is an unashamedly old-fashioned “feel-good musical,” at times very pantomimic in style, at times almost a “nostalgic operetta”
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The Revival Of Burlesque In Times Of Gender Debates: “Die 5 Glorreichen Sieben”
They are certainly five magnificent cowboys, but with a twist. The fact that they dance an Offenbach pas de deux
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Ready For Her Close-Up: Desirée Nick In “Gräfin Mariza” At Staatstheater Wiesbaden
There’s exciting news coming from Wiesbaden, Germany. The local Hessisches Staatstheater is presenting a new Gräfin Mariza production, directed by
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F. C. Burnand’s “Ixion”: The Original British Burlesque Hit Of 1863
I first came seriously in contact with F. C. Burnand’s burlesque, Ixion, when working on my biography of burlesque megastar,
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The 2020 Seasons At Léhar Festival In Bad Ischl And In Mörbisch
The operetta festival in Bad Ischl has ended its 2019 summer season with an 8 percent increase in audience numbers,
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“Mr. Offenbach Writes To Us”: Letters To Le Figaro And Other Texts
In their September newsletter, The Jacques Offenbach Society alerts its readers to a new book edited by Jean-Claude Yon. It’s
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“Offenbach Colorature”: The Award-Winning Solo Album By Jodie Devos
Any solo album that starts off by knocking you on the head with the boisterous couplet of the animal trainer
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The Walking Dead? “Operetta Made In Austria” With Ildiko Raimondi and Herbert Lippert
It’s a pretty grand claim to make: “With their multi-media stage show Operetta Made in Austria stage stars Ildiko Raimondi
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