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CONTENTS 14 30 FRONT OF HOUSE | Contents 74 ‘I prefer female characters when they have a serious side to them.’ Venera Gimadieva C O L L E C T I O N P O T T E R T U L LY 35 FRONT OF HOUSE 5 EDITORIAL The social impact of opera 6 FEEDBACK Your thoughts and suggestions 9 NEWS & NOTES New leadership in Wexford and Pesaro| Iford Opera lives on in new venues| Bath Opera’s opportunities for gifted amateurs | Clonter Opera Theatre celebrates its founders 80th | and more… MAIN STAGE 14 ALL THE RIGHT MOVES Soprano Venera Gimadieva is a rising star of bel canto, bringing an unusual strength and modernity to the tragic heroines she plays. We trace her journey from exotic Tatarstan to the great stages of the opera world 22 WEEKEND IN… Naples – Southern Italy’s historic city is known for its cuisine, but also boasts the oldest continuously used opera theatre in the world 24 GODS AND MONSTERS Composer Gavin Higgins introduces his new score for Covent Garden 26 FOLLOW THE ARROWS Japanese contemporary opera at Tokyo’s New National Theatre 30 VISIBLE DIFFERENCE Focus on Vilnius City Opera, a small but adventurous company that’s changing the face of opera in Lithuania 35 LEGENDARY SINGERS Benjamin Ivry shines a spotlight on the fascinating career of soprano Lisa Della Casa 38 STUDIO TIME Rosemary Joshua takes the helm of Amsterdam’s new Dutch National Opera 42 PROMISE FULFILLED Tackling the prejudice of an age at Heslinki’s Mirjam Helin Competition 44 ARTIST OF THE MONTH Wagnerian soprano Cornelia Beskow www.operanow.co.uk 47 TRAVELS WITH MY OPERA GLASSES Professor Anthony Ogus pays a long-overdue visit to the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples THE CRITICAL VIEW 53-72 LIVE REVIEWS La Scala stages a powerful new production of Verdi’s Attila | Stéphane Degout makes a star turn as Hamlet in Paris | Chiara Muti directs a richly coloured Così in Naples | Rare Donizetti operas take centre stage in Bergamo | Maria Callas returns to the stage as a hologram | World premieres in Vienna and Huddersfield | More new productions in London and Bologna 81 BOOKS A new history of Britain’s D’Oyly Carte Opera Company BACK STAGE 90 SQUILLO A change in culture is urgently required to attract younger opera audiences, argues Michael White 82-89 SPOTLIGHT Opera Now’s INTERNATIONAL GUIDE to the best live performances this spring PLUS Opera on screen 74 COMPANY PROFILE Parma’s Verdi Festival celebrates the composer’s operatic genius 79 NEW RELEASES Opera on CD, DVD and Blu-ray Venera Gimadieva. Photo by P Vaan / L Semenyuk FEBRUARY 2019 Opera Now 3

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