Oct 06 The rising opera star who traded layups for librettos By Claudia Escobar and Chloe Veltman, KQED When J’Nai Bridges’ pro sports ambitions suddenly fell apart, she started focusing intently on developing her voice. Now, at the age of 29, the American mezzo-soprano is performing major roles for some of the world’s most renowned opera companies. Continue reading
Jun 09 Watch 7:50 New rendition of classic opera ‘Porgy and Bess’ offers a ‘greater truth’ By PBS News Hour Since its first performance in 1935, “Porgy and Bess” has earned acclaim as one of American history’s best pieces of musical theater. But over time, many have come to view the opera’s black characters as stereotypes. Now, a new production… Continue watching
May 10 Opera Colorado sings about sin in ‘The Scarlet Letter’ By Brad Turner, Colorado Public Radio Hester Prynne is one of the great feminist characters in all of literature, says librettist David Mason: full of dignity and courage, in a story that is as relevant today as when it was written. Continue reading
Aug 07 How opera helped a young singer from Ferguson succeed By Nine Network As the anniversary of Michael Brown's death approaches this weekend, young opera singer Melvin Bozeman reflected on his experience with the police in Ferguson and how the arts drove him to succeed. Continue reading
Aug 05 Watch 8:23 Civil War tragedy ‘Cold Mountain’ inspires opera By PBS News Hour "Cold Mountain," the bestselling Civil War novel by Charles Frazier, tells the story of a Confederate soldier who decides he has had enough and walks away in search of the woman he left behind. Now that epic has been distilled… Continue watching
Aug 05 Opera singer takes ‘bathroom break’ to a whole new level By artsdesk Jay Hunter Morris, an operatic tenor who appears in the world premiere of the Santa Fe Opera's "Cold Mountain," showed the NewsHour's Jeff Brown his favorite location to prepare before going on stage. Continue reading
Aug 05 Watch 1:29 ‘Cold Mountain’ opera singer finds creative place to warm up By Corinne Segal Continue watching
Feb 19 Watch 5:16 Diva Deborah Voigt on the ‘lonely business’ of opera that led to addictions By PBS News Hour Opera performer Deborah Voigt has starred on some of the world’s great stages, rising to be one of the most prominent singers of her generation. But she’s also made headlines for her figure, which has sometimes stopped her from portraying… Continue watching
Jul 06 Watch New opera tells story of Auschwitz prisoner and her SS overseer By PBS News Hour "The Passenger," an opera opening at the Lincoln Center Festival in New York on Thursday, is based on a radio play and novel by a concentration camp survivor, Zofia Posmysz. The opera tells the story of two women during the… Continue watching