Latest Articles
Offenbach’s “Ein Ehemann vor der Tür”: A New Student Production In Leipzig
The students of Leipzig’s Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy Hochschule had planned to put on Offenbach’sUn Mari à la Porte / Ein
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One Singular Sensation? Hahn’s “Ciboulette” Re-Released On DVD By Naxos
It’s back again: the performance of Reynaldo Hahn’s Ciboulette, filmed at Opéra Comique in February 2013, has been re-released on
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Peter Oliver Loew über Polen in der deutschsprachigen Operette
2013 wurde dem Slawisten und Historiker Peter Oliver Loew (er ist seit 2019 Direktor des Deutschen Polen-Instituts Darmstadt und seit
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CIBOULETTE: Opérette in 3 acts by Reynaldo Hahn
The most successful stage musical work of Reynaldo Hahn, Ciboulette was written to a text by two of the most
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The First Truly “Complete” Recording Of Kálmán’s “Gräfin Mariza” On CPO
Did it really take until 2021 for a complete Countess Mariza recording to come out? Of course, there have been
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“Bitte Britisch”: Wenn Frankensteins Monster die Hose runterlässt
Vermutlich kennen Fans der Mel-Brooks-Filme den ekstatischen Liebesschrei „A Sweet Mystery of Life“ besser als die meisten Operettenfans hierzulande. Denn
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Kosky macht Kopfkino: Minimalistisches Mahagonny
Kurz nachdem im Spätsommer die lang erwartete (und mehrfach verschobene) Dreigroschenoper am Berliner Ensemble herauskam und ekstatische Reaktionen hervorrief, ging
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A “Candid” Version of Bernstein’s Operetta At The Enescu Festival
Leonard Bernstein’s one-and-only operetta Candide is slated to premiere at the Enescu Festival in Bucharest on Friday, 24 September. It
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Ersan Mondtag’s Over-The-Top Gay Production Of “Der Silbersee”
Kurt Weill’s “Wintermärchen” Der Silbersee is not exactly an operetta, more of a fairy tale “with music” that tells the
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The Patriarchy Thinks Dicks Smell Like Roses: “Lila Lied” As Queer Cabaret At SchwuZ
“Welcome to the 20s” says the poster for Lila Lied, “The Queer Cabaret” that was presented in Berlin’s SchwuZ. In
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Curtain Raisers: “Les Deux Aveugles” and “Cox and Box” At Wilton’s Music Hall
Opera della Luna, under the artistic direction of Jeff Clarke, has built a well-deserved reputation for staging inventive productions of
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Richard Genée’s “Die Antisemiten” (1868): Solo Scene Translated Into English
With a title like Die Antisemiten (The Antisemites) attached to a “Grand Opera” you have the immediate attention of most
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“Bitte Britisch”: Staatsoperette Dresden Takes Us On A Musical Journey
I was surprised, and delighted, to hear that the Staatsoperette Dresden are to give an all-“Britisch” concert, taking in a
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Berliner Ensemble: “Dreigroschenoper” As Cellblock Tango Without Fosse
It’s not unusual for Barrie Kosky to stage something outside of Komische Oper, but usually he doesn’t do it in
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Adam Benzwi Discusses “Dreigroschenoper” & Singing Brecht/Weill Today
Pianist and musical director Adam Benzwi was slated to premiere “his” Dreigroschenoper interpretation – in collaboration with stage director Barrie
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Fancy A Slice Of Gänzl? “Gilbert & Sullivan: The Players And The Plays”
I’m the oldest standing member of the Operetta Research Center. I was one of the fairies who presided at its
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The World’s First Queer Operetta Is Coming To BKA
The BKA Theater (Berliner Kabarett Anstalt) just announced that “the world’s first queer operetta” will premiere on 6 October, 2021,
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Paul O’Montis: Biography Of A “Vortragskünstler” Adored By Elderly Ladies & Young Gentlemen
Most operetta fans will know Paul O’Montis because he made a famous recording of “Was kann der Sigismund dafür, dass
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Live In Buxton: The 27th International Gilbert & Sullivan Festival
The 27th International Gilbert & Sullivan Festival takes place at Buxton every year, before moving on to Harrogate. International even
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“Magna Mater”: Operetta As a Dionysian Festival That Points To The Future
It’s impossible to just write a review about the artistic merits (or non-merits) of the new tutti d*amore production that’s
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Gilbertmania in Spain: Revivisting Jean Gilbert (1879-1942)
When Max Winterfeld – better known by his artistic name Jean Gilbert – arrived in Spain in 1934, the country
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First Full Recording Of Johann Strauss’ “Waldmeister” (1895)
The label Naxos is continuing its Johann Strauss series with a new recording of late operetta Waldmeister, which originally premiered
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Charell’s “Casanova” & Spoliansky’s “Zwei Krawatten“ Come To Staatsoperette Dresden
Using the famous line “Die ganze Welt ist himmelblau,” the artistic director of Staatsoperette Dresden, Kathrin Kondaurow, has presented her
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Jean Gilbert’s “Kinokönigin” (1913) Is Returning To The Stage In Leipzig
There’s interesting news from Leipzig, where the Musikalische Komödie has just announced what they’ll be doing in the 2021/22 season.
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The Birth Of Operetta From A Gigantic Vagina: Dutch National Opera Academy Presents “Fledermaus”
Last week the Dutch National Opera Academy and Residentie Orkest presented Die Fledermaus in the Compagnietheater for four sold out
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Laurent Pelly’s “Barbe-bleue” From Opéra de Lyon Arrives On DVD
Laurent Pelly’s celebrated production of Offenbach’s Barbe-bleue from the Opéra de Lyon has finally arrived on DVD. It offers Yann
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Bare-Butted Dancers In A Screw-It-Together IKEA Box: “Pariser Leben” in Neustrelitz
The new intendant of the “Festspiele im Schlossgarten” in Neustrelitz – one and a half hours north of Berlin –
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“Sissi, Queen of Hungary”: Huszka’s Operetta Turned Into A “National Heritage” Production
The Hungarian “Monarchia Operett” (Monarchy Operetta Company [1]), under the artistic direction of dance comedian and costume designer Péter Erik
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LA VIE PARISIENNE Opéra-bouffe in 4 (originally 5) acts by Jacques Offenbach
In the midst of Meilhac, Halévy and Offenbach’s dazzling series of successes with the earliest of their famous opéras-bouffes –
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Reizvolle Ausgrabung: Benatzkys “Zur gold’nen Liebe” auf der Bühne Burgäschi
Die in der Schweiz glücklicherweise immer noch zahlreichen Amateur-Theatertrupen leisten gerade bei der Operettenpflege Beachtliches. Die „Bühne Burgäschi“ hatte zuletzt
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Apocalypse Now: Tutti D*Amore Presents “Magna Mater” As a Mashup Of “Schöne Galathée” & “Lysistrata”
The “tuttis” are at their exercise again, you might say. The Berlin Collective for Contemporary Operetta is presenting their queer-feminist
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Gustave Kerker’s “The Belle of New York” Is Coming To Theater für Niedersachsen
It was originally planned for May 2021, but didn’t happen because of you-know-what. However, Theater für Niedersachen (TfN) didn’t give
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Arnold Bennett Discusses Operettas & Musicals: Journal Entries 1897-1928
The English author Arnold Bennett (1867-1931) is best known as a novelist and playwright. He also kept a journal in
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A Murderous Musical Mystery Tour: “Express G & S” In London
Express G&S was conceived during lockdown, and is the well nigh perfect post-lockdown entertainment, especially for Gilbert & Sullivan aficionados,
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Post-Lockdown: An Unusual Feast Of Operetta For The United Kingdom
The various ‘lockdowns’ that we, in the UK, have lived under for the last 18 months have meant that several productions
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Barrie Kosky’s All-Singing, All-Dancing Yiddish Revue – Plus Other Farewell-Highlights
Of course he wasn’t going to present his last season as intendant of Komische Oper Berlin via Zoom or only
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