Performing Arts

NEW YORK—Looking straight at the viewer, Zuzana Ruzickova, then 87, detailed the horrors of three Nazi concentration camps, and then the following communist regime takeover, in measured tones and with great clarity. “When people ask me how I was able to survive, I always say, ‘It was a hundred miracles,'” Ruzickova said. She’s sitting at […]

NEW YORK—In 2010, The Metropolitan Opera presented a new production of Bizet’s “Carmen” starring Elina Garanca and Roberto Alagna, and the pair created a sensation as the tempestuous couple. For the first production of the 2018–2019 season, they are reunited in “Samson et Dalila,” another French opera about a lovelorn military man falling for a […]

The delightful new release “Vivaldi: Concerti da Camera” from the French label Calliope presents us with a disc of chamber music by Antonio Vivaldi: seven of his concerti da camera played by the French ensemble Il Delirio Fantastico, directed by Vincent Bernhardt. Vivaldi didn’t call these pieces “concerti da camera” (chamber music); he simply referred to them as concertos, […]

NEW YORK—When the artists gets on stage, the first thing they’re asked is: “You could perform anywhere in the world. Why are you here? What are you getting out of this?” That’s because the musicians invited by soprano Allison Charney to her PREformances series are world-class artists at the top of their games, like NY […]

The Danish String Quartet has been garnering awards and thrilling audiences since it made its debut in 2002 at the Copenhagen Festival. The quartet is known for its thoughtful albums and live appearances, where the members perform both contemporary works and earlier composers who influenced them. They have also highlighted compositions by Scandinavian composers. The […]

Just recently, 27-year-old violinist Richard Lin took home one of the largest classical music prizes when he won gold medalist at the 10th Quadrennial International Violin Competition of Indianapolis (IVCI). It’s not his first win—Lin has already netted top prizes at Sendai, Wieniawski, Singapore, Shanghai, and other competitions. Former IVCI top prize winners include Leonidas Kavakos, […]

NEW YORK—The dazzling performer and playwright Mikel Murfi portrays an extraordinary assortment of people (and animals) in “I Hear You and Rejoice,” the companion piece for his earlier work “The Man in the Woman’s Shoes.” Both plays, which stand alone as single efforts, are being presented in rotating repertory at the Irish Arts Center in […]

Ricky Ian Gordon (b. 1956 in Oceanside, NY) has long been recognized as one of America’s leading composers of art songs and operas. His opera of “Grapes of Wrath” was a triumph when it was performed in a concert version at Carnegie Hall in 2010. Among his exciting works in progress is the opera “Intimate […]

The 8th International Classical Chinese Dance Competition, hosted by New Tang Dynasty (NTD), attracted over 190 dancers from more than ten different countries and regions to participate in this year’s competition. After going through screening in the North American Division and the Asia Pacific Division, approximately 60 dancers stood out and came to Manhattan, New […]

Just over 500 years ago, Martin Luther triggered what would become the Protestant Reformation with a document protesting corruption in the Catholic Church. At its heart, his Reformation was a movement about the nature of sin and the means of salvation, about the power of the church versus the authority of scripture. But it also […]

What do Wagner’s “Imperial March,” Sarasate’s “Carmen Fantasy,” and the erhu folk tunes of Northeast China have in common? Not much, at first glance. But Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra’s ability to move from one perfect stylistic rendition to the next in mere minutes is an exercise in proving that, truly, music is a universal language. […]

In her 25 years of producing concerts, Marna Seltzer has heard every perceived barrier to classical music, and at Princeton, she's been experimenting with how to do away with them.

Dasha Koltunyuk noticed something happening at the end of every guided meditation session and thought it was something she could bring into concerts.

Something odd happened to him recently: He sat in front of a symphony orchestra, and all that familiar tension bunched up in his neck and back and shoulders just melted away.

Gordon Getty (b. 1933) is a distinguished composer of songs and operas inspired by poetry. “Beauty Come Dancing” is a new release on the Pentatone label of Getty’s choral works performed by The Netherlands Radio Choir led by chorus master Klaas Stok, and The Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by James Gaffigan. This is the […]

This album is the fifth in Deutsche Grammophon‘s project to record the major Mozart operas with Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducting the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, live in concert at Baden Baden, and all with Rolando Villazón singing the leading tenor role. A strong cast surrounds Villazón’s distinctive yet problematic account of the title role of Mozart’s “La Clemenza di Tito.” The cast includes Marina […]

NEW YORK—The Pond Theatre Company, an American home for emerging British and Irish playwrights, is presenting the world premiere of “The Naturalists,” by Jaki McCarrick, at Walkerspace on Walker Street in Manhattan’s Tribeca area. The play is an earthy depiction of a small group of individuals living on the edge of society. Set in 2010 […]

Almost a hundred fans welcomed the arrival of Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra at the Taoyuan International Airport in Taiwan on Sept. 12.

From the opening notes of soprano Nadine Sierra’s stunning debut album, “There’s a Place for Us” (on Deutsche Grammophon), it is clear that she is a major singer. Having evoked an enthusiastic response from audiences and critics at The Metropolitan Opera, she went on to win the prestigious Richard Tucker award in 2017, and at […]

NEW YORK—Following Lillian Hellman’s first major hit on Broadway, “The Children’s Hour,” came the overly heavy, melodramatic offering “Days to Come,” now being presented by the Mint Theater Company, which specializes in resurrecting old plays with merit. Does this play have merit? Critics and audiences have had strong positive and negative opinions. Certainly much of […]