With a story that highlights how far we’ve come and how far we still have to go, Chicago Opera Theater presents the world premiere of Dan Shore’s Freedom Ride, which centers on a pivotal moment in the civil rights struggle.

Rather than depicting nobility or mythology, ‘verismo’ opera tells stories of everyday people, and ‘Cavalleria rusticana’ by Pietro Mascagni is a premiere example of the genre.

It’s Baroque opera, minus the sobriety. The serious operas of Handel and Gluck get the parody treatment in this excerpt from the 1737 opera The Dragon of Wantley performed by Haymarket Opera Company!

A lifelong pacifist, Britten used his music to advocate for peace. Baritone Benjamin Luxon, who created the title role of the composer’s pacifist opera Owen Wingrave, reflects on Britten’s legacy of music and pacifism.

Soprano Sondra Radvanovsky’s renowned vocal prowess is on impressive display at Lyric Opera of Chicago in The Three Queens. Also on display are three stunning gowns by designer Rubin Singer, who’s designed for stars like Beyoncé and Renée Fleming.

“It has been said that a society can be judged by the way it treats its animals,” composer David T. Little says in the program notes for his chamber opera, Dog Days. Based on a short story by Judy Budnitz, the opera is set in a war-torn future that’s not too far away from our own time.

Two operatic opus ones will have their Chicago premieres this weekend, and they both command a chorus of well over 100. Chicago Opera Theater opens its 2019-20 season with a double bill: Joby Talbot’s Everest and Rachmaninoff’s Aleko.

It’s not easy to get to Glyndebourne, and that’s the point. “We’re forcing people to slow down their busy lives,” says Gus Christie, the opera festival’s executive chairman, “and to come in and soak it all up.” Discover the multi-sensory experience – the aromas of the gardens, the taste of champagne bubbles, the sounds from the stage – that is Glyndebourne.

Audiences will be irate this weekend at the Siskel Center. No, not the people in the theater, but the onscreen audiences portrayed in In the Mouth of the Wolf. The made-for-TV documentary depicts the infamously fanatical opera culture of Parma, Italy through the lens of a troubled production of Verdi’s Luisa Miller.

There are baritones, and then there are Verdi baritones. They are the elite performers, athletes among baritones, thrilling their fans with blazing top notes and plumbing the depths of some of the most dramatically complex roles in opera.

Giordani had a heart attack at his home in Sicily.

The opera legend indicated that he would never again perform at the Met.

More than 60 years after Marian Anderson broke the color barrier at the Met, Black singers still face unique obstacles within the opera industry. “We’ve made some strides, but not a whole lot,” said Professor Naomi Andre.

Wine and music pair together in perfect harmony. Check out these 6 pairings from maestro and wine ambassador Enrique Mazzola.

“Mostly when you sing in the opera house you have this wall of sound in front of you and the only thing is to go and sing as loud as you can, and this is not making music,” she said. “It’s 80 against one, and you will never win.”

Los Angeles Opera said Tuesday it will immediately open a “thorough and independent investigation” into allegations of sexual harassment against the opera star Plácido Domingo, the company’s general director.

Regardless of his relationship to Mozart, Salieri was a successful composer in his own right, and we should not forget his music – particularly his operas!

For decades, Plácido Domingo has tried to pressure women into sexual relationships by dangling jobs and then sometimes punishing the women professionally when they refused his advances, numerous accusers told The Associated Press.

“My hope is the film goes a step toward that agenda of his which was to democratize the art form and broaden the audience reach.”

Gelb said the season that ended Saturday saw 69 percent of box office revenue capacity realized, up from 67 percent in each of the previous two seasons and a low of 66 percent in 2015-16.

Moby-Dick is a Great American Novel, no doubt. But that fact doesn’t make Herman Melville’s 600+ page opus any less intimidating.

“With this kind of comedy, there is no fourth wall. We’re very aware of the audience; we’re not pretending they’re not there.”

The “People’s Diva” first delighted Chicago audiences as she performed the title role in Carlisle Floyd’s Susannah in 1993.

For naysayers who think classical music is on the decline, these Chicago-based performing groups offer the perfect response. All founded in the past three years, they’re offering fresh takes on repertoire familiar and unfamiliar, expanding the musical canon and enlivening the musical life of our city.

They’re classics for a reason! We found the top 30 most popular operas worldwide since 2004. Can you name them?