Adrian Kramer Bids Farewell to COC Ensemble Studio

Adrian Kramer

We've followed Adrian Kramer's career as he's honed his skills at the Canadian Opera Company Ensemble Studio over the last three years. It was exciting to see this talented young artist score huge successes at both the Castleton Festival and with the Chicago Opera Theater. [Don't miss the sexy pictures that we posted from COT].

Today, Kramer bids farewell to the COC Ensemble Studio with a concert featuring Schubert’s great song cycle, Die schöne Müllerin. The concert is at noon today at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto, so we figure that most readers won't make it.

However, you can click HERE and read his farewell interview. We wish him the best of luck in his career.

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Adrian Kramer, Paul LaRosa & Matt Boehler in Chicago Opera Theater's "Moscow, Cheryomushki"

Adrian Kramer (Sasha) and Emily Fons (Masha)

We have a particular soft spot for many of the smaller opera companies and the Chicago Opera Theater has long been one of our favorite companies..Not only do they take greater risks, but they often feature barihunks in the early stages of their careers. We loved Matt Worth there in their productions of Owen Wingrave Three Decembes and now they have Adrian Kramer in an orginal take on Shostakovich called "Moscow, Cheryomushki." The cast also includes two other barihunks who have appeared on this site, Paul LaRosa as Boris and Matt Boehler as Drebednev.

The Chicago Opera Theater is producing its own unique twist to Shostakovich's musical satire that takes a political poke at the Soviet Union's chronic housing shortages. Renowned Shostakovich scholar Gerard McBurney produced a musical score that captures this operetta's lighter mood. The  new production marks the 21st Chicago premiere since the innovative Brian Dickie arrived in 1999 to run the company. The opera will be sung in English with English supertitles.

Adrian Kramer (Sasha) and Emily Fons (Masha)

If you're in Chicago, you can preview the music at an event at LOKaL tonight from 6-8pm. The cost is $25 ($35 at the door) and includes hors d'oeveres, the Moscow martini and music from the show. Performances of the opera run from April 14-25. Visit the COT website for additional details.

Paul LaRosa

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"Castleton West" A Critical Success

Michael Weyandt & Matthew Worth

Loren Maazel took his Castleton Festival west to California from Virginia, where it was met with the same critical acclaim that it received back East. Many of the same singers returned to reprise their roles, but we found a new addition to the barihunk family in Michael Weyandt, who was a sexy Junius. Cal Performance in Berkeley mounted both the "Rape of Lucretia" and "Albert Herring."

Joshua Kosman, the respected and brutally honest reviewer for the San Francisco Chronicle, gave "The Rape of Lucretia" a great review, saying this about the trio of barihunks:

Tarquinius was embodied with sonorous menace by baritone Matthew Worth, and bass-baritone Michael Rice brought a gorgeous warmth of tone to the role of Collatinus, Lucretia's ostentatiously virtuous husband. Michael Weyandt did a muscular turn as the ambitious Junius...

We learned during the performance run that Michael Rice plans on making this his final performance on the opera stage. Luckily, we'll still be able to enjoy him on his wonderful OperaNow! podcast, one of the most enjoyable shows about classical music around. We wish him well in his future endeavors. He's one of our favorite people in opera!

Michael Rice Sailing Off Into the Operatic Sunset

"Albert Herring" featured barihunk Adrian Kramer, who stole the show in the critical role of Sid. You can listen to this talented young Canadian at InstantEncore performing songs by Rorem, Barber and Danielpour.

The opera world should be grateful to Loren Maazel, whose Castleton Festival has reintroduced important operas to the repertory as well as talented young singers.

Adrian Kramer

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More "Hot Schrott" & "Top Gunn" from Vienna

Hot Shrott Shots: Onstage & Backstage in Vienna

 If you're a lover of barihunks, then you should be in Vienna. We've posted recently about Luca Pisaroni's critically acclaimed debut as Figaro in Le Nozze di Figaro at the Vienna State Opera. He is performing opposite the always hot and sexy Count of Erwin Schrott. Here are some additional photos of Schrott, who we didn't provide the same degree of coverage in our previous post. If Mae West were still alive she'd certainly be asking, "Is that a pistol in your pocket..." [Yes, the picture enlarges if you click on it].

Nathan proves he really is a "Top Gunn" in Vienna

Head down the Opernring and onto Friedrichstrasse to get to the Theater an der Wien where Nathan Gunn is in the best shape of his life as Tarquinius in The Rape of Lucretia. He made a woman faint in New York and we suspect that he's having the same effect on audiences in Austria. By the way, the lucky soprano is the gifted Angela Kirschschlager.

Matt Worth reprises his sexy Tarquinius in California

Fans of The Rape of Lucretia in Northern California will be delighted to know that Loren Maazel is bringing his highly acclaimed production to Berkeley on March 24 and 25 at Cal Performances. The production includes two of our favorite singers, who both appeared on our Barihunks Best of 2010 list. Matt Worth will take on the role of Tarquinius, while OperaNow blogger and hunk Michael Rice plays Collatinus. On the following two nights, Maazel will perform Albert Herring with barihunk Adrian Kramer.

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Benjamin Britten's Barihunks In Berkeley

Opera fans on the West Coast learned this week that they are going to experience the amazing Britten operas that conductor Lorin Maazel has been performing at his ranch in Castleton. Maazel is bringing the barihunk laden "Rape of Lucretia" and "Albert Herring" to Cal Performances in Berkeley. Both operas will be fully staged. Maazel's Castelton Festival has become something of a cult among opera connoisseurs and this promises to be some of the most visually and vocally exciting Britten to hit California in recent memory. Also, make sure to check out classical music critic Anne Midgette's post on this road tour.

[Michael Rice]


Heading the cast of "Rape of Lucretia" will be two of our favorite young barihunks, Matthew Worth and Michael Rice (a.k.a. Steamy Rice). We once had a post called "Our Michael Rice Crush" where we spelled out a number of reasons why we love this young singer. Not only is he eye candy and a wonderful singer, but he is the host of the OperaNow! podcast, one of the most entertaining shows about opera to be found anywhere. You can subscribe to his podcast on iTunes.

[Matthew Worth]


Matthew Worth has become one of the most popular barihunks on this site, often receiving as many hits as established stars like Teddy Tahu Rhodes, Erwin Schrott and Nathan Gunn. He has rapidly developed a reputation in the opera world as a talented young singer, gifted actor and wonderful colleague. Opera fans in the Bay Area should race to buy tickets to see this young singer before he is gobbled up by the Metropolitan Opera and other large companies.

Fans of Matthew Worth in the Midwest can see him from May 8-16 at the Chicago Opera Theater performing the role of Charlie in Jake Heggie's "Three Decembers" opposite Federica von Stade.

[Adrian Kramer]


The second offering at Cal Performances will be "Albert Herring," which along with "Rape of Lucretia" is probably one of Britten's most unfairly neglected operas. It was also written as a companion piece to "Rape of Lucretia" and is another one of Britten's exploration of a societal outcast, a theme that is quite pronounced in his more famous operas "Billy Budd" and "Peter Grimes."

Adrian Kramer, a graduate of The Curtis Institute of Music, will be singing the role of Sid in "Albert Herring," as he did at the Castleton Festival.

Visit the Cal Performances website for ticket and performance information.

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Los Angeles Times: "Opera Barihunks Hit A Muscular Tone"

[Nathan Gunn in Billy Budd]

[Matthew Worth]

[Tom Forde]




Kudos to the Los Angeles Times for Irene Lacher's wonderful article on Nathan Gunn and the rising popularity of barihunks. Two of our favorite young singers, Matthew Worth and Tom Forde, were featured, as well.

Forde will be performing the title role in Mozart's the Marriage of Figaro at the Tacoma Opera on March 5 & 7.

Matthew Worth has been receiving acclaim for both his voice and his good looks. Here are two recent reviews.

Ted Mahne wrote in the New Orleans Times-Picayune: "Matthew Worth offered a particular highlight as Mercutio. He gave an agile and pleasing rendering of the tricky 'Queen Mab' aria. A striking performer, watch for his star to rise."

Jerry Floyd wrote in Opera about Worth's performance in "The Rape of Lucretia" at Castleton: "A trio of barihunks proved that well-trained, carefully directed younger singers can deliver polished, high-quality portrayals; especially Worth, whose wrathful Etruscan character seemed intuitively to sense the consequences of his assault on Lucretia."

Oddly, Worth's management site doesn't have his schedule.

Since the L.A. Times raised the issue of barihunks, here are a few more of our favorites:

[The super sexy Randal Turner, who we're hoping to see in the U.S. soon]

[Exotic Wes Mason, who will be starring in "Before Night Falls" in Ft. Worth]

[Kelly Markgraf will be in Omaha singing Count Almaviva]

[Adrian Kramer sporting his guns]


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Barihunk Feast at Castleton Festival in Virginia

Matthew Worth (above)

Paul LaRosa (above)

Allen Boxer (above)

Adrian Kramer (above)

Michael Rice (above)

If you want an unbelievable barihunk feast for the eyes, head to Virginia for Lorin Maazel's Castleton Festival. Whenever, there is a lot of Benjamin Britten on the program, you can pretty well be guaranteed that there will be some eye candy and Castleton has gone all out.

Recent performancees of "The Rape of Lucretia" have kept this site busy, as opera companies are realizing that casting barihunks in this opera makes the rape scene all the more powerful. We predict that Matthew Worth will become known as the greatest Tarquinius to ever grace the stage. He'll be reprising the role that he performed here a few years ago when he caught the attention of opera houses across the globe. Worth has already become a favorite on this site, frequently getting more hits than better known barihunks.

The hunky Paul LaRosa also returns to this opera after honing his skills at the Merola Opera Program and at Julliard. He'll be playing Junius. We've seen La Rosa onstage and off and we can attest to his raw sexuality. Check out his shirtless picture if you don't believe us!

Collatinus will be played by Allen Boxer, a bass-baritone from Cincinnati. He is also returning in the same role. Apparently the mantra at Castleton is, "Why mess with a good thing?"

Adrian Kramer is a graduate of The Curtis Institute of Music and is also making his return to the festival as Sid in "Albert Herring." He has already performed the barihunk role of Papageno and we're hoping that there are plenty more to come. Check out his MySpace page where you can hear some amazing sound clips. This guy has quite a future.

Even John Gay's "The Beggar's Opera" is getting in the barihunk act. Mr. Peachum will be played by Michael Rice, a recent graduate of the master degree program at the Manhattan School of Music who has previously worked with Maestro Maazel

For more information visit: http://www.chateauville.org/event/program/castleton_festival_the_rape_of_lucretia_6

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