Opera Company welcomes Ciabatti as resident music director

The Opera Company of Middlebury is introducing Filippo Ciabatti as its resident music director.

Great opera doesn’t need to be about anything — sometimes all we crave is unforgettable music and fabulous voices. But Opera Company of Middlebury’s “Glory Denied,” opening Sept. 27 at Town Hall Theater in Middlebury, offers more and should not be missed.

Going forward, the program will now be known as the Youth Opera Company of OCM.

This musical event would get rave reviews anywhere in the country.

The Opera Company of Middlebury’s production opens on June 2 and should not be missed. Not only is the music as powerful as you’d expect, but the 19th century politics are also hauntingly current to us today. 

Landing a singing role on the professional opera stage is never easy. The audition process is rougher than the NFL Combine, and more selective than getting into Middlebury College.

The organization 100+ Women Who Care of Addison County had their first in-person meeting at Holley Hall in Bristol on Tuesday, April 18. More than 70 area women participated in person or on Zoom.

Standouts among this superflux of gods and action are Jupiter, lustily sung by the redoubtable Joshua Jeremiah, who also brings his assured vocalism and physicality to the role, commanding, as Jupiter should, the stage and attention.

Jacques Offenbach’s opera “Orphée aux enfers” is full of irreverent chatter and absurd story turns, but the cast and crew who are readying to stage the 19th century work are dealing with a plot twist that didn’t come with the script.

Is “Orphee aux Enfers” the funniest opera of all time? Opera Company of Middlebury Artistic Director Doug Anderson thinks it is.

On Sunday, Nov. 7, Town Hall Theater and Opera Company of Middlebury present a preview showcase performance of “Aliceheimer’s,” the new chamber opera by composer Erik Nielsen and artist, writer and anthropologist Dana Walrath.

Opera Company of Middlebury mastered the genre in last week’s production of Tchaikovsky’s “Maid of Orleans,” with spectacle, soaring melodies and powerhouse voices.

Opera Company of Middlebury is rehearsing now for the opening of “The Maid of Orleans” on Oct. 1, at Town Hall Theater.

Tchaikovsky called it “my masterpiece,” and yet his opera about Joan of Arc has virtually disappeared since its debut in 1881.Why?“Epic is the best word for this score,” explained Opera Company of Middlebury’s music director Michael Sakir. “This is balls … (read more)

The Opera Company of Middlebury will host a conversation with Middlebury College history professor Louisa Burnham on Friday, Sept. 17, from 4-5 p.m., in Unity Hall, at the Congregational Church, 30 North Pleasant Street in Middlebury.Burnham has explored … (read more)