Hadleigh Adams globetrotting with Handel's Messiah

Hadleigh Adams

Bass-barihunk Hadleigh Adams is going to rack up some frequent flyer miles singing Handel's Messiah this holiday season. Fresh off a huge success as Schaunard in Puccini's La boheme at the Lyric Opera of Kansas City, he heads across the globe to his native New Zealand.

He will sing his first Messiah with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra on December 7th in Wellington. He then hops back on a plane to his home base of San Francisco for three performances of Handel's holiday classic with the American Bach Soloists on December 11, 12 and 13. He then heads south to the Lone Star State for three more Messiah's with the Houston Symphony Orchestra on December 20. 21 and 22.

Composed in just 24 days in 1741, the Messiah received a lukewarm reception at its first London performance. However, over the years it has grown in popularity. Although Messiah is structured like an opera, it features no characters or dialogue.

He'll wrap up the year back in San Francisco for the American Bach Soloists New Years Eve concert. He'll be joined by mezzo-soprano Sarah Coit for arias and duets from Handel, Rameau, Vivaldi and Monteverdi.

Veritable feast of barihunks in San Francisco Opera's Billy Budd

John Chest as Billy Budd at the Deutsche Oper Berlin (Photo: Marcus Lieberenz)

In celebration of Herman Melville's bicentennial and the 100th anniversary of the posthumous discovery of the author's unfinished manuscript of Billy Budd, the San Francisco Opera will present Benjamin Britten's operatic version from September 7-22.

This will be only the fourth time that the opera has been performed in the company's history. It was last performed during the 2004-05 season with barihunks Nathan Gunn as Billy Budd, Philip Skinner as Mr. Ratcliff, Mel Ulrich as Donald, Daniel Okulitch as the Gunner's mate, Lucas Meachem as the Novice's Friend, Troy Cook as Mr. Flint and Joshua Bloom as the First Mate.   

Nathan Gunn  as Billy Budd at the SF Opera (Photo: Merkle)

The all-male cast of 75 principle artists and choristers, will be led by barihunk John Chest in the title role. Chest returns to San Francisco, where he was a member of the Merola Opera Program. Chest has performed the role twice with the Deutsche Oper Berlin in 2014 and 2017.

The cast also include a veritable feast of barihunks and bass-barihunks, including Christian van Horn as the evil John Claggart, Hadleigh Adams as Arthur Jones, Christian Pursell as Lieutenant Ratcliffe, Wayne Tigges as Mr. Flint, John Brancy as Donald, Edward Nelson as Bosun, Sidney Outlaw as First Mate, Kenneth Overton as Second Mate, Eugene Villanueva as the Novice's Friend and Philip Skinner as Dansker. The critical role of Captain Vere will be sung by tenor William Burden.   

The production will be by Tony Award-winning director Michael Grandage, who unveiled this staging at the 2010 Glyndebourne Festival and revived it at the Brooklyn Academy Of Music  in 2014. 

Tickets and additional cast information is available online.

Hadleigh Adams to make European opera stage debut in Netherlands

Hadleigh Adams (Photo right: Cory Weaver)

Bass-barihunk Hadleigh Adams will make his long overdue European debut in a staged performance of an opera. The San Francisco-based singer will appear in Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night Music at the Nederlandse Reisopera from March 16th through April 9th. Tickets and additional cast information is available online.

Adams will be performing the role of the buffoonish, hypocritical, yet charming Count Carl-Magnus Malcolm, who sings the popular piece "In Praise of Women." The most famous piece from the opera is Desiree's "Send in the Clowns," which has been popularized by numerous singers, including Judy Collins, Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra and Sarah Vaughan.

Adams has previously performed in Europe, but not in a professionally staged operatic production. He attended the Guildhall School of Music in London, where he sang Figaro in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro, and also performed Bach's St Matthew Passion at the Royal National Theatre in London, as well as Stravinsky's Oedipus Rex in a concert performance with the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

Dov'è la figlia? from Hadleigh Adams on Vimeo.

Since its premiere in 1973, A Little Night Music has become a staple of Broadway musical theaters and opera companies, toeing the lines between a musical, operetta and opera. Numerous writers and critics have argued whether the piece should be categorized as a musical or an operetta/opera. Although the piece is best known for its runs on Broadway and London's West End, a number of opera companies have produced the piece, including the New York City Opera, Michigan Opera Theatre, Houston Grand Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Opera Australia and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.

Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler were inspired by the Ingmar Bergman film Smiles of a Summer Night, which involves the romantic lives of several couples. A film of the musical was released in 1977 featuring Elizabeth Taylor, Len Cariou, Lesley-Anne Down, and Diana Rigg.

On June 4th, Adams returns to California to join the San Francisco Symphony on June 4th for Carl Orff's Carmina Burana. He then performs in Gounod's Roméo et Juliette at both the Cincinnati Opera and the San Francisco Opera.

Sexy photos of Hadleigh Adams in Quartett; Opening today at West Edge Opera

Heather Buck and Hadleigh Adams (Photo: Cory Weaver)

Bass-barihunk Hadleigh Adams is headling this year's West Edge Opera Summer Festival in Luca Francesconi’s Quartett, directed by Elkhanah Pulitzer. The enigmatic and controversial opera is based on the 1982 play by the [East] German playwright Heiner Muller (itself based on Pierre Choderlos de Laclos' Les Liasions dangereuses), which emphasized the author's abiding concerns, including the inherent cruelty of human existence, the way all relationships ultimately come down to struggles for possession and defeat of "the other."

Elkhanah Pulitzer is directing three performances, which opens tonight and has additional performances on August 16 and 19 at the Craneway Conference Center in Richmond, California, which is a former Ford assembly plant on the  San Francisco Bay designed by the legendary industrial architect Albert Kahn. West Edge Opera has become renowned for their choice of unusual and interesting locations to stage their operas.

Heather Buck and Hadleigh Adams (Photo: Cory Weaver)

Hadleigh Adams will perform the role of the Vicomte de Valmont, joined by soprano Heather Buck as the Marquise de Merteuil. The Marquise de Merteuil and the Viscount de Valmont are trapped in a salon having renounced all sense of love and play seductive mind games taking on the roles of the lovers Tourvel and Volanges. Hence, the title Quartett.

Composer Luca Francesconi described the piece as a challenge to our ideas of opera, of society, of the dominance of Western thinking: “Don’t dare to come if you can't accept that you need to analyze what you do and who you are. This piece is violent, it’s sex, it’s blasphemy, it’s the absence of mercy.”

Heather Buck and Hadleigh Adams (Photo: Cory Weaver)

The opera was originally commissioned by La Scala and has since been performed at the Royal Opera in London, Vienna, Buenos Aires, Barcelona, Rouen, and at the Spoleto Festival. The score features two orchestras: a live chamber orchestra with electronics, and a recorded full orchestra and chorus created for the La Scala Premiere.

The remainder of West Edge Opera's season includes Claude Debussy’s lone opera Pélleas and Mélisande, with tenor David Blalock and Kendra Broom in the title roles, along with Efrain Solis as Golaud, contralto Malin Fritz as Geneviéve, and bass-baritone Philip Skinner singing the role of King Arkel. Remaining performances are on August 12 and17

Heather Buck and Hadleigh Adams (Photo: Cory Weaver)

The final offering is Matt Marks and Paul Peers’ Mata Hari, which originally premiered at the New York’s Prototype Festival in January of 2017. The cast includes mezzo-soprano Molly Mahoney as Sister Leonide,  tenor Samuel Faustine as Vadime, and Daniel Cilli, Nikolas Nackley and Jason Sarten as the military men that become Mata Hari’s lovers and targets. There is one remaining performance on August 18.

Tickets for all three shows are available online.

After Quartett, Hadleigh Adams returns to his home base at the San Francisco Opera to sing Angelotti in Puccini's Tosca this Fall with Carmen Giannattasio in the title role and tenor Brian Jagde as her lover. 

Hadleigh Adams in sexy, controverial Quartett at West Edge Opera

Hadleigh Adams and Heather Buck (photo: Cory Weaver)

Bass-barihunk Hadleigh Adams will headline this year's West Edge Opera Summer Festival in Luca Francesconi’s Quartett, directed by Elkhanah Pulitzer. The enigmatic and controversial opera is based on the play by the [East] German playwright Heiner Muller, which emphasized the author's abiding concerns, including the inherent cruelty of human existence, the way all relationships ultimately come down to struggles for possession and defeat of "the other."

Elkhanah Pulitzer will direct three performances of the opera on August 11, 16 and 19 at the Craneway Pavilion in Richmond, California, which is a former Ford assembly plant on the  San Francisco Bay designed by the legendary industrial architect Albert Kahn. West Edge Opera has become renowned for their choice of unusual and interesting locations to stage their operas.

Hadleigh Adams will perform the role of the Vicomte de Valmont, joined by soprano Heather Buck as the Marquise de Merteuil. The Marquise de Merteuil and the Viscount de Valmont are trapped in a salon having renounced all sense of love and play seductive mind games taking on the roles of the lovers Tourvel and Volanges. Hence, the title Quartett.

The Seduction Scene from Quartett at La scala:

Composer Luca Francesconi described the piece as a challenge to our ideas of opera, of society, of the dominance of Western thinking: “Don’t dare to come if you can't accept that you need to analyze what you do and who you are. This piece is violent, it’s sex, it’s blasphemy, it’s the absence of mercy.”

The opera was originally commissioned by La Scala and has since been performed at the Royal Opera in London, Vienna, Buenos Aires, Barcelona, Rouen, and at the Spoleto Festival. The score features two orchestras: a live chamber orchestra with electronics, and a recorded full orchestra and chorus created for the La Scala Premiere.

The remainder of the season includes Claude Debussy’s lone opera Pélleas and Mélisande, with tenor David Blalock and Kendra Broom in the title roles, along with Efrain Solis as Golaud, contralto Malin Fritz as Geneviéve, and bass-baritone Philip Skinner singing the role of King Arkel. Performances are on August 4, 12 and17

The final offering is Matt Marks and Paul Peers’ Mata Hari, which originally premiered at the New York’s Prototype Festival in January of 2017. The cast includes mezzo-soprano Molly Mahoney as Sister Leonide,  tenor Samuel Faustine as Vadime, and Daniel Cilli, Nikolas Nackley and Jason Sarten as the military men that become Mata Hari’s lovers and targets. Performances are on August 5, 10 and 18.

Tickets for all three shows are available online.

After Quartett, Hadleigh Adams returns to his home base at the San Francisco Opera to sing Angelotti in Puccini's Tosca this Fall with Carmen Giannattasio in the title role and tenor Brian Jagde as her lover. 

Hadleigh Adams to star in Fellow Travelers at Minnesota Opera

Hadleigh Adams

New Zealand-born barihunk Hadleigh will take on the role of Hawkins Fuller in Gregory Spears' Fellow Travelers at the Minnesota Opera opposite hunkentenor Andres Acosta.

Fellow Travelers, which was written in collaboration with librettist Greg Pierce and director Kevin Newbury, was developed in a 2013 Opera Fusion workshop. Barihunk Joseph Lattanzi sang the world premiere in Cincinnati in 2016 and reprised the role in Chicago.  

The opera is set in Washington D.C. against the backdrop of the McCarthy-era "lavender scare" and tells the story of Timothy “Skippy” Laughlin, an aspiring young journalist, and Hawkins “Hawk” Fuller, a handsome, profligate State Department official. A chance encounter with Hawk leads to Tim's first job in the Nation's capital, and his first love affair. As his involvement deepens, Skippy struggles to reconcile his political convictions, his religious beliefs, and his love for Fuller – an entanglement that will end in a stunning act of betrayal. The libretto is based on the novel by American novelist, essayist and critic Thomas Mallon.

Performances will run from June 16-26 and tickets and additional cast information is available online. The gay-themed opera will overlap with Twin Cities Pride, which takes place June 23-24.

Later this summer, Hadleigh Adams can be seen at West Edge Opera as Vicomte de Valmont in Francesconi's Quartett. He then heads to the mainstage of the San Francisco Opera for Angelotti in Puccini's Tosca.

Crossing with Rod Gilfry makes NY debut at BAM

Rod Gilfry as Walt Whitman in Crossing

Matthew Aucoin's opera Crossing is making its New York premiere at the Brooklyn Academy of Music from October 3-8. The ageless barihunk Rod Gilfry returns in the role of Walt Whitmen, whose Civil War diary that he kept while working as a nurse inspired the opera.

Crossing explores how the individual experiences of soldiers are remembered and told. As Whitman listens to wounded veterans share their memories and messages, he forges a bond with a soldier who forces him to examine his own role as writer and poet. The opera, directed by Diane Paulus, begins with Walt Whitman's prologue, delivered while facing the audience in front a bunch of rickety hospital beds. Whitman sings, “What is it, then, between us?,” a key line from his poem “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry.” While caring for the injured soldiers, Whitman is drawn to a haunted-looking soldier names John Wormley, who is sung by tenor Alexander Lewis. The opera deals with a number of "crossings," including between poet and reader, performer and audience, and the contradictory elements of Walt Whitman himself.

The cast also includes a spate of barihunks, including Davone Tines as a South Carolina slave, Hadleigh Adams, Michael Kelly as a soldier, Ben Lowe, Matthew Patrick Morris and Jorell Williams. Tickets are available online.

The opera heads to California for its West Coast premiere in May 2018 for a concert performance at the Los Angeles Opera, which also stars Rod Gilfry. The opera originally premiered in May 2015 at the Shubert Theater in Boston.

Paull-Anthony Keightley reaches semis of Australian Singing Competition

Paull-Anthony Keightley

Paull-Anthony Keightley will be a semi-finalist in the 2017 Australian Singing Competition, which has a top prize of AUD $30,000. The money can be used for to assist with a program of study and/or singing activity. Other prizes include an audition with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, a one-hour studio recording from FIne Music 102.5, a Vocal Training Course at the Guildahall School of Music, one year’s study at the Royal Northern College of Music , a AUD $2,000 scholarsip from the Royal Over-Seas League, a cash grant of AUD $8,000 to enable the recipient to study the Italian language in Italy, a scholarship of up to AUD $7,000 to fund travel and accommodation to attend the Israeli Opera Young Artist Program, a three-week program at State Opera House of Saarbrücken, and many additional prizes.

A number of barihunks who are familiar to readers have also reached the semi-finals, including Morgan Pearse, Hadleigh Adams, Sam Roberts-Smith (who won in 2009), Duncan Rock (who won in 2006) and Paul Whelan (who won in 1987). The semi-finals concert will be held on June 4 and the finals on July 15. Tickets are available online. 

West Australian Opera's feature on Paull-Anthony Keightley

Keightely made his principal debut with West Australian Opera in Puccini's Gianni Schicchi while he was the 2016 Wesfarmers Young Artist. He recently appeared as Sciarrone in company’s production of Puccini's Tosca while continuing as a member of the Young Artist Programme.

Keightely’s other operatic credits include Leporello in Don Giovanni, Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, Frank in Die Fledermaus, Fiorello in Il barbiere di Siviglia, Pasquale in Orlando Paladino and Don Andronico in Don Procopio.

Paull-Anthony Keightley is a graduate of Manhattan School of Music and the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA). 

Upcoming engagements include the baritone soloist in Faure’s Requiem with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra, bass soloist in Bach’s Cantata BWV. 147 with the Perth Symphonic Chorus, Colline in Puccini's La Bohème with Freeze Frame Opera and Zuniga in Bizet's Carmen with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra.

Hadleigh Adams Takes on Three 20th Century Masters

Hadleigh Adams

Barihunk Hadleigh Adams is returning to Australia, where he was a Gertrude Johnson Scholar at The Opera Studio in 2009. He'll be singing Sam in Bernstein's Trouble in Tahiti alongside Sophie Yelland, another Opera Studio graduate. The musical, which follows the day in the life of a desperately unhappy married couple, will be performed in a chamber version for seven players. Tickets are available online.

He then returns to his home base in the San Francisco Bay area for two performances. On October 9th, he'll join conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen and the Philharmonia Orchestra of London for their U.S. tour for Stravinsky's Oedipus rex with Michelle deYoung. Also on the program will be the composer's Symphony of Psalms. Performances will be at Zellerbach Hall in Berkeley. Tickets are available online.

He then heads down the road to join conductor Michael Morgan and the Oakland Symphony for their season opening performance of Gustav Mahler’s Rückert Lieder on October 14th. Also on the program will be the Delphi Trio performing Paul Juon’s Episodes Concertantes, Op. 45, Clark Suprynowicz’s Red States, Blue States and Edward Elgar’s In the South. Tickets are available online.

Teddy Tahu Rhodes to head Sweeney Todd cast in New Zealand

Teddy Tahu Rhodes and Antoinette Halloran in Sweeney Todd

Kiwi barihunk Teddy Tahu Rhodes will star in the new co-production of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd between New Zealand Opera and Melbourne's Victorian Opera. The production comes to New Zealand following a successful run in Melbourne in July, 2015. It will be performed at The Civic in Auckland  from September 17-24, the St James Theatre in Wellington from September 30 – October 5, and at the Isaac Theatre Royal in Christchurch from October 12-15. Tickets are available online. 

Joining Teddy Tahu Rhodes in the cast is Australian soprano Antoinette Halloran as Mrs Lovett,   Phillip Rhodes as Judge Terpin and Amelia Berry . Two of the singers are also alums of San Francisco's Merola Opera Program, which has featured a number of New Zealanders in their training program, including barihunk Hadleigh Adams, soprano Amina Edris and tenor brothers Pene Pati and Amatai Peti. Tenor James Benjamin Rodgers will sing Anthony Hope and baritone James Ioelu will sing Jonas Fogg.

Set in 19th century England, Sweeney Todd follows a murderous barber who, in order to take revenge on a corrupt judge who banished him, conspires with a local baker who is in desperate need of fresh meat for pies. 

Following his run in Sweeney Todd, Rhodes will be part of a Royal Caribbean opera cruise taking in Sydney, Mare Island and Noumea. He'll be joined by legendary soprano Kiri Te Kanawa, David Hobson, Cheryl Barker, Peter Coleman-Wright and members of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Bookings are available online.

Barihunk Hadleigh Adams featured in Opera News

Hadleigh Adams in Opera News (photo by Dario Acosta)

Barihunk Hadleigh Adams, who will open on July 31 as The Duke in Thomas Adès' "Powder Her Face," is the August feature in Opera News' Sound Bites. The performance in Oakland's historic train station with West Edge Opera has proven so popular with ticket buyers, that the innovative company has just added a fourth performance. The production also includes hunkentenor Jonathan Blalock.

We will be posting a more extensive piece on the production next week. Tickets are available online.

Barihunk trio in successful Pop-Up Opera in San Francisco nightclub

Hadleigh Adams at SF Opera's Lab Pop-Up Opera in San Francisco

For years, opera companies have been trying innovative ways to attract younger audiences to the artform. The San Francisco Opera may have figured out the formula, as their Pop-Up concert at The Chapel, an old mortuary converted into a 1914 nightclub, drew a packed audience of 500 rowdy attendees to the heart of San Francisco's hip Mission District.

Hadleigh Adams sings "Come un'ape ne'giorni d'aprile" from La Cenerentola:

Barihunk Hadleigh Adams was the perfect emcee, eliciting shouts from men and women to take off his shirt (which he didn't do!). He was joined by fellow barihunks Anthony Reed and Brad Walker, tenor Pene Pati, mezzo Laura Krumm and soprano Amina Edris. All are alums of the prestigious Merola Opera Program, who went on to become Adler Fellows with the San Francisco Opera. They were joined by Ronny Michael Greenberg at the piano, who recently accompanied barihunk Marco Vassalli for his U.S. debut recital.

The SF Opera Lab explores innovative programming that celebrates the power of the human voice theatrically in intimate spaces beyond the War Memorial Opera House. They are also intended to be informal and drinks are allowed at the performance.

Hadleigh Adams & Laura Krumm sing "Dunque io son" from The Barber of Seville:

 The next SF Opera Lab production opens tonight with seven performances running through APril 10th. Michael Cavanagh will direct Ana Sokolović's Svadba-Wedding and audience members will be part of the action with actual champagne served at the wedding. Additional information is available online.

Hadleigh Adams will be performing Falke in Die Fledermaus with the Cincinnati Opera in June. Anthony Reed can be seen this season at the San Francisco Opera in Jenufa, Andrea Chenier, Aida and Madama Butterfly. Brad Walker will be appearing with the San Francisco Opera this season in Carmen, Andrea Chenier and The Makropulos Case.

NO JOKE: Barihunk Trio in Festive April Fool's Day Concert

Hadleigh Adams (Photo: Scott Wall/San Francisco Opera)

The innovative SF Opera Lab will be presenting their next Pop-Up concert on April Fool's Day with performances by barihunks Hadleigh Adams, Anthony Reed and Brad Walker. All three are alums of the prestigious Merola Opera Program who went on to become Adler Fellows with the San Francisco Opera.

The SF Opera Lab explores innovative programming that celebrates the power of the human voice theatrically in intimate spaces beyond the War Memorial Opera House. They are also intended to be informal and drinks are allowed at the performance. The concert will be performed at The Chapel, a converted mortuary that was built in 1914 and has been renovated into a live music venue. 
 

Bass-barihunks Anthony Reed and Brad Walker

The concert is on Friday, April 1st (doors at 8:15pm/show at 9pm) and there will be an after-party with a live DJ. Adams will perform and emcee the concert.  Tickets are $20 advance and $25 at the door. Seating is limited, so order tickets in advance.

Hadleigh Adams will be performing Falke in Die Fledermaus with the Cincinnati Opera in June. Anthony Reed can be seen this season at the San Francisco Opera in Jenufa, Andrea Chenier, Aida and Madama Butterfly. Brad Walker will be appearing with the San Francisco Opera this season in Carmen, Andrea Chenier and The Makropulos Case.

Hadleigh Adams joins cast of Pittsburgh Cosi fan tutte

Hadleigh Adams (right) at Pittsburgh Opera and in Bajazet (left)

Barihunk Hadleigh Adams has joined the cast as Guglielmo for Pittsburgh Opera's Così fan tutte. This summer, he was a smash hit in the title role of Pinchgut Opera's production of Vivaldi's Bajazet.

In Pittsburgh, he will join one of the most legendary baritones in recent decades, Sir Thomas Allen, who will direct the opera as well as sing the role of Don Alfonso.  The opera will be set on the Italian seaside.

The cast includes hunkentenor Christopher Tiesi as Ferrando, Sari Gruber as Despina, Danielle Pastin as Fiordiligi and Jennifer Holloway as Dorabella.  The production runs from November 7-15 and tickets are available online.

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Shirtless pictures of Hadleigh Adams from Bajazet

Hadleigh Adams in rehearsal as Bajazet

If web traffic to our site is any indication, then readers are clearly enjoying the posts about Hadleigh Adams preparing for the Southern Hemisphere premiere of Vivaldi's Bajazet at Australia's Pinchgut Opera. Earlier today, we posted an amazing rehearsal video of him singing "Dov'e la figlia?," which shows why he's more than just a pretty face...the man can SING! We figured that we're share a few photos, as well, because he's clearly as easy on the eyes as the ears.

Adams is returning to Pinchgut after a successful run as Pollux in their production of Rameau's Castor & Pollux in 2012. The company clearly recognizes his marketability, as he's part of their recent advertising campaign, which includes online banners, print ads and outdoor advertising. 

Hadleigh Adams in rehearsal as Bajazet

Bajazet, a rarely performed operatic tragedy, premiered in Verona in 1735 and is a pastiche of Vivaldi's own arias, as well as those by Johann Adolph Hasse, Geminiano Giacomelli, Nicola Porpora and Riccardo Broschi. The opera is also known as Il Tamerlano and the story was also successfully set to music by Handel. The libretto revolves around romantic entanglements and love triangles and the struggle for power between Bajazet, ruler of the Turks, and Tamerlano, ruler of the Tartars.

Performances of Vivaldi’s Bajazet will be on July 4, 5, 7 and 8 at City Recital Hall Angel Place in Sydney.  Also in the cast is Christopher Lowrey as Tamerlano, Helen Sherman as Irene, Emily Edmonds as Asteria and Russell Harcourt as Andronicus. Tickets and additional production information is available online.

Hadleigh Adams singing "Dov'è la figlia?" from Bajazet

We've posted pretty extensively about barihunk Hadleigh Adams performing in the Southern Hemisphere premiere of Vivaldi's Bajazet, which you can read about HERE and HERE. We recently obtained a video of Adams singing the thrilling aria Dov'è la figlia?, which we wanted to share with readers. In case you live in a restricted area for the video, you can access it HERE. Otherwise, enjoy it below.

Dov'è la figlia? from Hadleigh Adams on Vimeo.
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If you still haven't gotten enough of this thrilling upcoming performance, here is an article from the Sydney Morning Herald.

Rehearsal photos of Hadleigh Adams in Bajazet

 

We have rehearsal pictures of barihunk Hadleigh Adams, who is getting ready for the Southern Hemisphere premiere of Vivaldi's Bajazet at Australia's Pinchgut Opera. Adams is returning to Pinchgut after a successful run as Pollux in their production of Rameau's Castor & Pollux in 2012. Adams has also been prominently featured in the company's recent advertising campaign including online banners, print ads and outdoor advertising.

Bajazet, a rarely performed operatic tragedy, premiered in Verona in 1735 and is a pastiche of Vivaldi's own arias, as well as those by Johann Adolph Hasse, Geminiano Giacomelli, Nicola Porpora and Riccardo Broschi. The opera is also known as Il Tamerlano and the story was also successfully set to music by Handel.

Counter-tenor Christopher Lowrey and Hadleigh Adams (Photo: Bridget Elliott)

The libretto revolves around romantic entanglements and love triangles and the struggle for power between Bajazet, ruler of the Turks, and Tamerlano, ruler of the Tartars. When Bajazet’s daughter Asteria is threatened with marriage to the invading ruler, she conspires to murder him. The plot thickens after Tamerlano’s former betrothed, Irene, turns up to reveal the scheme, having taken issue with being pushed aside onto Andronico, Tamerlano’s Greek ally, who is also in love with Asteria.

Vivaldi wove into the opera an underlying tale of power struggles and invasion, reflective of the ones going on at the time, when Neopolitan operas were trouncing their local Venetian counterparts in popularity. Music associated with Neapolitan composers is thus cleverly designated to the invaders Tamerlano, Irene and Andronico.

Counter-tenor Christopher Lowrey and Hadleigh Adams (Photo: Bridget Elliott)

Performances of Vivaldi’s Bajazet will be on July 4, 5, 7 and 8 at City Recital Hall Angel Place in Sydney.  Also in the cast is Christopher Lowrey as Tamerlano, Helen Sherman as Irene, Emily Edmonds as Asteria and Russell Harcourt as Andronicus. Tickets and additional production information is available online.

Adams has been a regular at the San Francisco Opera, after participating in the Merola Opera Program and becoming an Adler Fellow with the company. He performed a number of roles with the company, including Schaunard in La bohéme, Simon in Mark Adamo's The Gospel of Mary Magdalene, the Marquis in La Traviata, the Grand commissioner in Madame Butterfly and the Jailer in Tosca. He also performed Gendarme in Poulenc’s Les mamelles de Tirésias with San Francisco's innovative young company Opera Parallèle. He made quite a splash in baroque opera when he performed Claudius in Opera Omaha's production of Handel's Agrippina, which was dubbed by us as the "HOTTEST OPERA CAST" in our Best of 2014 feature.