Opera Canada

by | Jul 6, 2026 | Featured, News The board and staff of Opera Canada are saddened to hear of the passing of Rob Herriot on July 3rd at 60 years old. Rob was well known across North America for his work in both opera and musical theatre. Most recently, he directed Così fan tutte at Vancouver Opera and Nuova Vocal Arts and The Marriage of Figaro at Manitoba Opera – he had longstanding relationships with both Nuova and Manitoba Opera.

Matthew Black as Jupiter and Teresa Tucci as Eurydice in Toronto City Opera’s Orpheus in the Underworld (Photo: Dahlia Katz) by | Jun 30, 2026 | Featured, Reviews There was a moment of solemnity at Trinity-St Paul’s before Toronto City Opera’s (TCO) opening night performance of Orpheus in the Underworld.

Gavin MacKenzie (Don Alfonso) and Emma Lavigne (Despina, in disguise as the doctor) in Nuova Vocal Arts’ Così fan tutte (Photo: Nance Price) by | Jun 25, 2026 | Featured, Reviews The Nuova Arts Festival presented three productions this season at Fort Edmonton Park’s Capitol Theatre, a 243-seat venue harkening back to the days of silent film.

La Fée prepares Cendrillon for the ball in Comic Book Opera’s presentation (photo: Comic Book Opera – Hannah Berg, Aida Bishop, Hunter Murray, Lee Conrad) by | Jun 23, 2026 | Featured, Reviews Edmonton’s Douglas Graham has sung professionally and experienced the journey of the emerging artist’s short, hopeful stints with development programs, but he also knows that life often means only intermittent employment.

Heels or flats? HEELS duh – I am a verified shoe addict. Top 3 favourite composers? This is ever evolving and nobody can truly pick favorites, this year I will say however that I listened to A LOT of Fazil Say, Osvaldo Golijov and ROSALĺA. Listening to these composers has made me so inspired and excited to be a an artist in classical music.

Jorell Williams and Mireille Asselin in front of Andrew Lieberman’s unit set for 10 Days in a Madhouse, with Sandra Horst conducting the chamber orchestra on top (photo: Eric Forget Photography) by | Jun 19, 2026 | Featured, Reviews June in Toronto is traditionally a quiet month when it comes to opera.

Canadian baritone Joshua Hopkins takes us to San Francisco, California, where he is singing the role of Figaro in Rossini‘s The Barber of Seville at San Francisco Opera until June 20th (tickets and info). Joshua is a Juno award-winning and Grammy nominated artist.

William Kentridge’s multimedia set for L’Orfeo at Glyndebourne (photo: Richard Hubert Smith) by | Jun 16, 2026 | Featured, Reviews With its gorgeous grounds in the rolling south downs of Sussex and lush gardens, Glyndebourne is a magical place, seemingly a bubble protected from the realities of the outside world by beauty, grace and 150-pound cashmere pashminas sold at the irresistible shop. But is it really?

The company of Parḗlios, a new work presented by Opera 5 (photo: Emily Ding Photography) by | Jun 15, 2026 | Featured, Reviews Toronto is in the grip of FIFA madness; honking cars and red- and white-clad soccer fans fill the streets. I needed respite from the frenetic mood of the opening game and found it when I stepped into Theatre Passe Muraille.

When was your first singing lesson? Probably not a surprise but singing has always been a part of my life. My first singing “lessons” were at the farm next to ours with my dad’s cousin, preparing for the Saskatchewan Valley Music Festival, where I competed as both a pianist and singer starting when I was six years old. Drink of choice? Chardonnay, of course. Heels or flats? I’m barely 5’2”… heels. What’s something most people don’t know about opera life?