Latest Articles
Yiddish Operetta Songs: A Re-Discovery On Auschwitz Memorial Day?
The 27th of January 2015 was a memorial day, not only in Germany, but there especially. 70 years ago the
read more
“Die schöne Helena” As A WW2 Drama Of Homosexuality
Considering that Offenbach’s La belle Hélène recently received two extremely “gay” interpretations at the opera houses of Hamburg and Berlin
read more
“Das Verdächtige Saxophon”: Albrecht Dümling’s Classic Re-Published
Finally: Albrecht Dümling’s great big book on music and operetta in Nazi times, Das verdächtige Saxophon, has been re-published. After
read more
“The Auto Race” And Other Tuned-Up Operettas From Early Broadway Days
If you wish to experience operetta off the beaten track, then look no further than this brand new CD with
read more
What Really Influenced Noël Coward’s “Bitter Sweet”: “Die Fledermaus” ?
Amazingly Noël Coward’s first musical book show was Bitter Sweet. Up to that point he had built his reputation as
read more
Flying Down To Berlin: For the First Operetta Festival At The Komische Oper
You know it’s finally happening when the first international guests fly in and need to be picked up at Tegel
read more
Have You Heard Of Henri Christine’s “Phi-Phi” (1918)?
Do you know Phi-Phi? Unless you are French or Hungarian and over 90 years of age, you won’t ever have
read more
A Musical Comedy Orgasm: Seeing “Clivia” In Berlin From A Broadway Perspective
Tuesday and Wednesday in Berlin were exasperating for me. A combination of misunderstandings, bad directions, getting lost, buying a theatre
read more
An American in Berlin: Seeing Operetta At The Komische Oper
Richard C. Norton, New York City based author of A Chronology of American Musical Theater, regular contributor to the Operetta
read more
Mixing Pop And Opera: Triumph Or Trouble?
In the music world, sometimes the concept of mixing vocal genres in the same performance works well, and sometimes it
read more
From Dingsda To The Mississipi: Bumping Into Alen Hodzovic Again
Perhaps you know that feeling: you see a super-duper operetta performer one day, and the next he’s vanished. Or so
read more
The “Dancing Conductor” Joseph R. Olefirowicz In Munich
If you’re watching this space, you might have registered some recent frustration with current operetta conductors who were not quite
read more
A Kálmán Bonanza For Christmas: “Mariza”, “Arizona Lady” & “Csárdásfürstin”
It’s a real Kálmán bonanza this holiday season. Wherever you turn, there is Kálmán, and more Kálmán. In St. Gallen
read more
4 For 45: Operetta Movie Classics On Sale At Warner
It is not quite an “indecent proposal,” as in the 1993 Robert Redford movie. But still, it’s a stunning offer:
read more
Serkan Kaya Redefines Operetta As Kalman’s Cowboy Hero in “Arizona Lady”
Truth be told: the performance of Turkish musical comedy star Serkan Kaya as a swaggering cowboy hero in Kalman’s Arizona
read more
Happy New Year: Josef Strauss Meets Offenbach For A Quadrille Ride
If you know your operetta history, you will be aware of the fact that Johann Strauss Jr. was the most
read more
Coffee With Jochen Kowalski – And Laughing With Novikova
Admittedly, Heilbronn is not the first city that comes to (my) mind when talking about operetta “Made in Berlin.” Still,
read more
The Man Behind “Die Fledermaus”: New Biography of Richard Genée
As the author of Die Fledermaus (1874) and a whole series of other famous Strauss operettas, Richard Genée is not
read more
“Bodies & Gender”: Operetta Symposium In Berlin
Finally, you might say. Or, as the Germans would put it: „Endlich!“ Yes, the Komische Oper Berlin will present the
read more
Reynaldo Hahn’s Magical “Ciboulette” From The Opéra Comique In Paris
Did anyone ever wonder what happened to Rodolfo after Mimi’s death? Truth be told, I did not. At least not
read more
A New German “Fiddler On The Roof” On CD
This past summer of 2014, Austria’s Mörbisch Lake Festival departed somewhat from its traditional programming of German operetta to present
read more
Celebrating Charles Kálmán’s 85th Birthday
In Vienna, a grand musical birthday celebration will be held in December. The “birthday boy” is Charles Kalman, oldest son
read more
Five Year Plan: Glorious Rarities At The Festival In Ischl
Yes, it might be true that the Austrian operetta festival in Bad Ischl is fighting for “pure survival,” as director
read more
Operetta From Socialist Germany: A Conference in Freiburg
Today and tomorrow, the Deutsches Musicalarchiv hosts its annual conference in Freiburg. Among the various talks on the history of
read more
Offenbach’s Bavarian Romp “Fantasio” – Finally On Disc And Complete
Offenbach aficionados may rejoice. Here is the first complete recording of his opéra comique in 3 acts, 4 tableaux, Fantasio.
read more
“Ich reiß’ mir eine Wimper aus”: How To Revive Operettas From The Nazi Era
It is an inventive new approach to an old question: how do we deal with the ideological baggage of operettas
read more
„Zwei Cowboys im 3/4-Takt: Emmerich Kálmáns Arizona Lady, oder wie die Wiener Operette in den Wilden Westen kam“
Zu Weihnachten 2014 schenkt die Komische Oper den Berlinern eine sehr späte – und überfällige – Hauptstadtpremiere von Emmerich Kálmáns
read more
War & Love : A Cabaret Evening At The Black Pig
Nothing makes love’s longing bloom as intensely as a heavy crisis! Or so the saying goes. At the restaurant Zum
read more
Popular Musical Theatre In London And Berlin: 1890 To 1939
Here is something really yummy: a collection of essays dealing with various aspects of popular musical theater at the beginning
read more
“Inszenierte Moderne”: A New Study About Operetta, Musical Comedy And Revue
One of the most interesting young German scholars in the field of operetta research and examining the entertainment industry, Tobias
read more
Out & Proud: “Csárdasfürstin” With Netrebko, Florez And Thielemann
Are you ready for this? The Semperoper Dresden and its musical director Christian Thielemann will dedicate the 2014 New Year‘s
read more
Art Is Calling For Me: Reviving Victor Herbert In 2014
The Artistic Director of the Victor Herbert Renaissance Project (VHRP), Alyce Mott, has already had a major triumph this year
read more
What Can You Expect From Nikolaus Harnoncourt Conducting Johann Strauss Jr.?
Yes, we all know that conductor Nikolaus Harnoncourt is one of the pioneers of the Early Music Movement. Together with
read more
Performing Operettas From Nazi-Times Today: Interview With Jakob Brenner
In Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, the Theater der Altmark will present a new production of Fred Raymond’s Maske in Blau. It’s
read more
“Stéphanie” – Developing A New Historic Operetta
Composing a brand-new operetta today is a daring endeavor. On the one hand, larger audiences are drawn to dramatic musicals
read more
Rodgers & Hammerstein’s “Allegro” Returns to New York
As this Off-Broadway revival of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein’s 1947 failure Allegro is directed by John Doyle – he
read more