READER SUBMISSION: Evan Hughes

Evan Hughes (Photo: Matthu Placek)

This is our third straight post of our beloved "Reader Submissions." The latest is California native Evan Hughes, who is currently a member of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development program. The UCLA graduate attended the Curtis Institute of Music and was a regional winner and a national Semi-Finalist in the 2010 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and was the grand prize in the Marilyn Horne Foundation Competition.

Hughes recently performed Aronte in Gluck’s Armide presented by the Met in collaboration with the Juilliard School; he also performed Don Basilio in Rossini's Il Barbiere di Siviglia at the Teatro Petruzzelli in Bari, Italy with Lorin Maazel and reprised the role in the summer at the Castleton Festival, where he also sang the bass solo in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, both projects being conducted by Mr. Maazel.

Evan Hughes (Photo: Matthu Placek)

Hughes started the season as Don Alfonso in a production of Mozart's Così Fan Tutte directed by Stephen Wadsworth and conducted by Alan Gilbert at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater at Lincoln Center. Later this season he will make his Metropolitan Opera debut as Crebillon in Puccini's La Rondine.

A champion of contemporary music, Hughes appeared in Elliott Carter’s Syringa with the Met Chamber Ensemble at Zankel Hall (Carnegie) and the Tanglewood Music Festival, conducted both times by James Levine, and more recently he premiered Carter’s Three Explorations at Alice Tully Hall with the Axiom Ensemble and Jeffrey Milarsky. Another milestone in the bass-baritone’s exploration of Elliott Carter’s music was On Conversing with Paradise as part of a festival of cultural exchange entitled Ascending Dragon in Los Angeles, Hanoi and in other parts of Vietnam.

Barihunks Allicock and Hughes up for $100,000 prize!!!

Evan Hughes

Barihunks Aubrey Allicock and Evan Hughes are among 16 young musicians up for a $100,000 cash prize from Warner Music to be given annually to a promising musician between the age of 18 - 35. The Warner Music Prize was created to bolster rising musicians with notable talents or achievements.

This year's inaugural award will be presented to an artist presented by Carnegie Hall who has shown exemplary musicianship in their solo roles throughout the 2014-2015 concert season.

The winner will be announced in the Spring of 2015, after the candidates have been thoroughly evaluated by a juror panel comprised of accomplished classical musicians and key industry leaders. In addition to the cash prize, the winner of the 2015 Warner Music Prize will be showcased at the Warner Music Prize Gala on October 27, 2015 at Carnegie Hall. Money raised at the gala will benefit the Harmony Program and the Weill Music Institute, both of which aim to provide music education to underserved demographics.

Aubrey Allicock

Musicians under consideration will perform at Carnegie-Hall, with Aubrey Allicock scheduled for December 4th and Evan Hughes for March 8th. Other artists under consideration are sopranos Sarah Shafer and Jennifer Zetlan; mezzo-sopranos Jamie Barton, Rachel Calloway, Cecelia Hall, Alisa Kolosova, and Peabody Southwell; tenor Dominic Armstrong; violinists Augustin Hadelich and Itamar Zorman; cellist Brook Speltz; double bassist Roman Patkoló; harpist Sivan Magen; and pianist Behzod Abduraimov.

Allicock just made his Metropolitan Opera debut as Mamoud in John Adams' The Death of Klinghoffer starring fellow barihunk Paulo Szot. Performances run through November 15th and tickets are available online.

Evan Hughes is on the roster of the Semperoper in Dresden, Germany. His roles this season include Zoroastro in Handel's Orlando and Achilla in Giulio Cesare, Don Basilio in Rossini's Barbiere di Siviglia, Pietro in Verdi's in Simon Boccanegra, Colline in Puccini's La bohème and Emma Becker in Peter Ronnefeld’s Nachtausgabe.

Don't forget to order your 2015 Barihunks Charity Calendar, so you can enjoy 19 of operas hottest men all year!

Santa Fe Opera announces 2014 season with Greer Grimsley, Kostas Smoriginas and Evan Hughes

Evan Hughes, Greer Grimsley & Kostas Smoriginas

The Santa Fe Opera has announced its 2014 Summer Festival Season and despite all the buzz about the riveting Anna Caterina Antonacci appearing as Carmen, there is plenty to get excited about for barihunk lovers. Joining Antonacci in Carmen will be Kostas Smoriginas as Escamillo and Evan Hughes as Zuniga. We named Antonacci, along with Susan Graham and Joyce Di Donato as our favorite divas in our "Top 25 of 2012" feature. She may be the most compelling performer of the last generation and any of her appearances should be a destination for the serious opera aficionado. Throw in two sexy barihunks and this is one of the hottest tickets of 2014.

All of the Santa Fe Opera productions are new and three are being presented for the first time. They are Beethoven’s Fidelio, The Impresario by Mozart (presented as part of a double bill with Stravinsky’s Le Rossignol), and the American premiere of Dr. Sun Yat-sen by the Chinese American composer Huang Ruo.

Jonas Kaufmann & Kostas Smoriginas sing the Don José & Escamillo duet:

But the big attraction for us is the appearance of the world's reigning Wotan, Greer Grimsley, as Don Pizarro. Before heading to the great American Southwest, Grimsley will sing Wotan in the Metropolitan Opera Ring Cycle in May and in Seattle in August. He was last in Santa Fe in the 2006 Salome as Jokanaan. Evan Hughes, who was one of our reader submissions just a month ago, will also appear as Don Fernando.

Tickets will be available for purchase on June 28, 2013 by telephone 505-986-5900, toll free 800-280-4654, and in person.  Online sales begin in September.

Watch sexy Evan Hughes in Komische's "Semele"

Evan Hughes and Nicole Chevalier (left) and Nora Friedrichs (right)

American bass-barihunk had a breakout performance as the somnolent god Somnus in Handel's Semele at the Komische Oper in Berlin. He also elevated his status as an operatic sex symbol showing off both his luscious physique and resonant voice in his scene-stealing small role.

Fortunately, the opera is available online at OperaVision and is available for viewing HERE until November 11th. There are remaining live performances on May 26, June 3 and 15, and July 10. Tickets are available online.

Nora Friedrichs and Evan Hughes

The production got off to a rocky start when director Laura Scozzi fell ill shortly after rehearsals began, forcing the Komische Oper's intendant Barrie Kosky to take over the production. Kosky is one of opera's most original and entertaining directors, so the show went on, with the story being told in a flashback set in a burnt-out Baroque hall.

Evan Hughes and Nicole Chevalier (left) and Nora Friedrichs (right)

Semele was written in 1743 and tells the story of clashing gods and mortals, the folly of vanity, and the fatal consequences of forbidden passion.

The plot centers around the cautionary tale of the delectable Semele and the god Jupiter, who tempt fate with a dangerously imprudent love affair. The ambitious Semele craves immortality, but also holds a secret, while Juno, plots a fiery finish to the affair.

Evan Hughes to make San Diego Opera debut

Evan Hughes

American Bass-barihunk Evan Hughes whose photos as Somnus in the Komische Oper of Handel's Semele were quite popular with our readers, will be making his San Diego Opera debut on October 20. Hughes will be replacing Nicholas Brownlee as Figaro in Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro.

The cast will include fellow barihunk John Moore as the Count, Caitlin Lynch as the Countess, Sarah Shafer as Susanna, Emily Fons as Cherubino and the legendary mezzo-soprano Sussanne Mentzer as Marcellina. Additional performances are on October 23, 26 and 28 and tickets are available online.

The Southern California native will also be making debuts this season with Opera Philadelphia as Theseus in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the Bolshoi Theater as Astolfo in Vivaldi’s Orlando Furioso and at the Aldeburgh Festival. 

Evan Hughes steps in at Semperoper; Making role debut in NY

Evan Hughes as Somnus (Photos: Komische Oper and Leela Roos)

Barihunk Evan Hughes, who created quite a sensation as Somnus in Handel's Semele at the Komische Oper in Berlin last year, is stepping in to replace an ailing colleague at Dresden's Semperoper today.

Markus Marquardt had to withdraw as Leporello from the company's production of Don Giovanni, which features barihunk Ildebrando D’Arcangelo in the title role. He is expected to return for the remaining three performances on May 26 and June 16 and 20.

Hughes will be returning to his native country on July 18 and 20 to make his role debut as Papageno in Mozart's Die Zauberflöte with the Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center. He'll be alternating the role in the acclaimed Barrie Kosky production with Rodion Pogossov, who performs on July 17 and 19. Tickets and additional cast information is available online.

Evan Hughes to perform recital with Les Grandes Interprètes

Evan Hughes (photo: Leela Ross)

American bass-barihunk Evan Hughes will be performing a recital with Les Grandes Interprètes in Toulouse, France on December 10th with accompanist Hélio Vida. 

The program will include selections from Schumann's Kerner Lieder, Hans Christian Andersen Lieder and his Lieder sur des poèmes de Heine, as well as Sibelius' Runeberg Songs, Ireland's Sea Fever, Purcell's Cold Song and Finzi's Earth and Air and Rain. Tickets are available online.

Upcoming performances include Theseus in Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream with Opera Philadelphia in February and Citheron in Rameau's Platée with Semperoper Dresden in April.

Barihunk Trio in Dresden Don Giovanni

Evan Hughes (photo Leela Rose) and with Guido Loconsolo in Don Giovanni

The Semperoper Dresden just opened Mozart's Don Giovanni with the barihunk trio of Lucas Meachem as the Don, Guido Loconsolo as Leporello and Evan Hughes as Masetto. The production runs through July 3rd and the cast includes Maria Bengtsson as Donna Anna, Aga Mikolaj as Donna Elvira, Peter Sonn as Don Ottavio, Christina Bock as Elvira and Michael Eder as the Commendatore. Tickets are available online.

Guido Loconsolo sings the Catalog Aria from Don Giovanni:

Lucas Meachem can next be seen at the San Francisco Opera as Dr Malatesta in Donizetti's Don Pasquale, Chorèbe in Berlioz's Les Troyens at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and Sharpless in Puccini's Madama Butterfly at the Dallas Opera.

Evan Hughes is now a member of the ensemble at the Semperoper Dresden and can be seen in upcoming performances as Schaunard in Puccini's La bohème, Cesare Angelotti in Puccini's Tosca and Guglielmo in Mozart's Così fan tutte.

Guido Loconsolo can next be seen as Publio in Mozart's La clemenza di Tito at the Teatro Real de Madrid. He also appears on an new CD of Don Giovanni on Sony Classics with Andrei Bondarenko in the title role.

BARIHUNKS “BEST OF 2013”

It's time for for annual feature highlighting the best of the year on Barihunks. This is our most popular post every year and we spent weeks combing through the archives to present you the "BEST OF 2013"!!!

Christiaan Smith-Kotlarek and Zachary Gordin

1.     Hottest photos - Christiaan Smith-Kotlarek & Zachary Gordin: We can't even begin to tell you the chatter that these two photographs created. They are both featured in our 2014 Barihunks Charity Calendar and have instantly become fan favorites. For any of you doubters out there, these guys not only look hot, but they can sing! Christiaan Smith-Kotlarek recently wrapped up a run as Schaunard in La Bohème with Kentucky Opera and will be part of the Virginia Opera young artist program in 2014. Gordin is a popular singer and coach with San Francisco Bay Area audiences. He was a huge hit at the Olympic Music Festival in Washington last year singing Hahn and Schumann. He's been asked back this year to perform "Arias and Arguments: From Love to Loss in Four Acts."

Xavier Edgardo & Doug Carpenter

2.     Most Popular Barihunks: Doug Carpenter and Xavier Edgardo: It's almost impossible to gauge who the most popular barihunks are on the site. If you go purely by hits, any singer who showed a lot of skin onstage (especially if they went the full monty!), will generate a disproportionate amount of traffic. If we look at comments, emails and who we get asked about the most, then Puerto Rico's Xavier Edgardo and America's Doug Carpenter lead the pack. Edgardo, who was a standout as a young artist and choral performer in Puerto Rico is headed to San Francisco next year to further hone his talents. Carpenter won the prestigious Lotte Lenya Competition this year, which you can enjoy in its entirety HERE.

Romain Dayez

3.     Hottest Newcomer –  Romain Dayez: We introduced readers to this 24-year-old Belgian singer back in February and he's proved as fascinating as he is sexy. Although much of his early career was focused on oratorios and baroque repertoire, he is constantly involved in innovative new programming, including performances with the Parisian rappers Milk Coffee & Sugar. He is currently the director of the ALLIAGE Art Project. His most recent show with Alliage was "De Profundis" featuring the music of Philip Glass, Arvo Pärt and Solange Labbe. We tried to get him in the calendar this year, but couldn't get a Hi-Res photo. Keep your fingers crossed for 2015!

Evan Hughes

4.     Best Reader Submission – Evan Hughes: California native Evan Hughes came to our attention as a member of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist  program. He was a regional winner and a national Semi-Finalist in the 2010 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and was the grand prize in the Marilyn Horne Foundation Competition. A champion of contemporary music, he has performed Elliott Carter’s Syringa with the Met Chamber Ensemble at Zankel Hall and Tanglewood under James Levine, premiered Carter’s Three Explorations at Alice Tully Hall with the Axiom Ensemble and Jeffrey Milarsky and performed Carter’s On Conversing with Paradise as part of a festival of cultural exchange entitled Ascending Dragon in Los Angeles, Hanoi and in other parts of Vietnam.

Morgan Smith

5.      Best opera on DVD – Jake Heggie's Moby-Dick, San Francisco Opera & Morgan Smith: Composer Jake Heggie keeps turning out great operas and the San Francisco Opera captured an incredible performance of his latest piece, Moby-Dick. The all-star cast includes barihunk Morgan Smith, Jay Hunter Morris, Stephen Costello, Jonathan Lemalu, Talise Trevigne and is conducted by Patrick Summers. Smith plays the critical role of Captain Ahab's first mate Starbuck, the first mate and family man who tries desperately to dissuade Ahab from his single-minded, suicidal pursuit of Moby-Dick. The role includes more beautiful baritone music from Jake Heggie in the aria "Captain Ahab? I must Speak with you." Few, if any, composers have written for more baritone leads than Jake Heggie. For that, we are eternally grateful.

Duncan Rock, Curtis Sullivan and Kyle Ketelsen

6.     Best Live Performances - Duncan Rock (Rape of Lucretia – Glyndebourne); Curtis Sullivan (Abduction - Opera Atelier); Kyle Ketelsen (Faust -Méphistophélès): There were some amazingly hot performances from barihunks this year, but these three stood out for vocalism, characterization and critical acclaim. Financial Times music critic Andrew Clark, commented, "Musically and physically Duncan Rock’s Tarquinius has an imposing muscularity." Curtis Sullivan brought a sexiness to the role of Pasha Selim in the Opera Atelier's Abduction from the Seraglio which made us wonder why Konstanze wanted to be rescued. Kyle Ketelsen was the ultimate sexy, bad boy with his shirtless portrayal of Méphistophélès in Gounod's Faust in Zurich.

Left photo: Wes Mason, Michael Mayes, John Boehr & Anthony Reed. Right Photo: Jonathan Estabrooks, Philip Kalmanovitch, Cairan Ryan, Andrey Andreychik, & Pierre Rancourt

7.     Best group photos - Barihunks lunch in Ft. Worth; The "5 Barihunks" at "Jeunes ambassadeurs lyriques": Some group photos are serious, some not so serious. As our regular readers know, we occasionally host a Barihunks Lunch when a number of singers are in one location at any given time. The gatherings in Ft. Worth are always raucous and entertaining, especially when Michael Mayes and Wes Mason are at the table. Mason kept the group entertained with some amazing impesonations, while Michael Mayes was...well, he was Michael Mayes, as intense and entertaining off-stage and on-stage. (And you gotta love those Barihunk tee shirts!). Jonathan Estabrooks gathered five barihunks at the recent "Jeunes ambassadeurs lyriques" benefit gala. We can't think of a better way to warm up on a cold Canadian evening. 

Top: Muhammad Ali and Soloman Howard; Bottom: Emile Griffith and Aubrey Allicock

8.     Hottest Opera singer playing an Athlete– Soloman Howard as Muhammad Ali; Aubrey Allicock as boxer Emile Griffith: There were two sexy barihunks portraying boxers this summer, continuing the trend of librettos being based on contemporary subject from the news. These are usually dubbed CNN Operas, but perhaps the term ESPN Opera should be coined, as there are at least two operas in the works about baseball. Bass-Barihunk Soloman Howard portrayed Muhammad Ali in the world premiere of composer D.J. Sparr's "Approaching Ali" at the Washington National Opera and drew rave reviews for his portrayal. Aubrey Allicock took on the story of the lesser known boxer Emile Griffith in Tereence Blanchard' s Champion at the Opera Theatre of St. Louis. The bisexual boxer who killed boxer Benny Paret in a 1962 title match, died five weeks after the premier of the opera.

9.     Hottest Athlete playing an opera singer Justin Tucker: Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker has some major accomplishments under his belt for only being 23 years old. He has a Super Bowl ring and while playing for the University of Texas in 2011, he kicked the game winning field goal against arch rival Texas A&M University as the clock expired. Tucker hasn't just made a name for himself with his legs, he also has a serious set of pipes. A music major at the University of Texas, Tucker claims he can sing opera in seven different languages (English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Latin and Russian). He showed off his Italian skills recently by singing "Deh vieni alla finestra" from Mozart's Don Giovanni for Dr. Pepper's "1 of a Kind" web campaign, which debuted on YouTube.

10.  Best barihunks on Twitter – Luca Pisaroni & James Newby: We discovered James Newby via some Twitter messages going back and forth between friends suggesting one should be on Barihunks. 20-year-old James Newby then tweeted, "...this accolade could complete me as a human being!" We checked out Newby, who is in his second year of study at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, London and figured that we'd complete him as a human being. His tweets also led us to discover his barbershop quartet Short, Back and Sides singing "To Russia With (Gay) Love.” The video is intended to show the worldwide support for LGBT Russians from people across the globe.

      Luca Pisaroni is a big star with a big presence on Twitter. He regularly posts updates about the cities he's visiting, the music he's performing, concerts with his father-in-law Thomas Hampson, and adventures with his dogs Lenny and Tristan. His wife Cate Pisaroni is also worth following. She is clearly his biggest fan and adds great content and commentary. In the age of self-marketing on the internet, this duo is the best.

11.  Best Barihunk Feature – Approval Matrix NY Magazine & Buzzfeed feature: In the Summer, Barihunks made the NY Magazine's "Approval Matrix" for the week of August 19th. The site landed in the HIGHBROW and BRILLIANT quadrant! We were joined by a pretty illustrious group that includes Orson Welles' rediscovered film "Too Much Johnson," PBS' "Judy & Gwen" all-female co-anchor team, Hanya Yanagihara's novel "The People in the Trees," Jeff Bezos, new owner of the Washington Post, Alissa Quart's "Republic of Outsiders" and Sophie Fontanel's "French spinster by choice."

      We weren't completely sure what "highbrow" really meant, but Virginia Woolf said, "There can be no two opinions as to what a highbrow is. He is the man or woman of thoroughbred intelligence who rides his mind at a gallop across country in pursuit of an idea." We'll take it.

Barihunk Xavier Edgardo and the Urban Dictionary

12.  Biggest Barihunk news – Urban Dictionary: August was a pretty heady month for us, as we also were entered into the Urban Dictionary.  

      BARIHUNK DEFINITION: A handsome or pretty baritone. Especially, but not exclusively,  one who removes his shirt for the sake of opera.  EXAMPLE: I'm going to the Marriage of Figaro because I like the opera but also to see the barihunks on display.

Sam Dundas: Yes, he sings in the shower

13.  Hottest Barihunk Singing in the Shower – Sam Dundas: We generally reserve our "skin shots" to pictures from productions, but when we saw this photo of Sam Dundas by Herald Sun photographer Craig Borrow we knew that we had to post it for readers. Dundas is one of the biggest talents from "Down Under" and he recently won the coveted $42,000 Lady Fairfax New York Scholarship. The prize allowed Dundas to come to the United States for six weeks of work on the opera skills of his choice. He has a busy year ahead with Opera Australia where he will be singing Papageno in Mozart's The Magic Flute, Prosdocimo in Rossini's The Turk in Italy (in swim trunks!), Ceprano in Verdi's Rigoletto, Belcore in Donizetti's The Elixir of Love, and Dr Malatesta in Donizetti's Don Pasquale.

Gregory Jebaily

Vasil Garvanliev

14.  Best Selfies – Gregory Jebaily and Vasil Garvanliev: We discovered South Carolina native Gregory Jebaily on the Operaticus Facebook site, where singers talk about keeping their voices and bodies in shape. They also tend to post lots of pictures and watching Gregory Jebaily transform into an "Echt-Barihunk" has been a joy. Jebaily made his operatic debut as Wagner in Dayton Opera’s April 2010 production of Gonoud’s Faust. He returned the next year as a Dayton Opera Artist in Residence and performed the role of Hortensius in Donizetti's La Fille du Regiment. For the past two years he's also been a studio artist with Kentucky Opera where he sang Dancaïro in Carmen and Hermann in Enemies: a love story by Ben Moore.

      Vasil Garvanliev takes the hottest selfies in the world. PERIOD. This Macedonian-Canadian singer has mastered the artform like no on else. We were so impressed with his work that he's appeared regularly on our Facebook sidebar and Twitter images. His calendar photos this year were highly original and slightly provocative. We can see why the visually conscientious Opera Atelier has made him a permanent member of their roster. Next season he'll be performing in their production of Lully's Persee, which will also be performed at Versailles, France.

15.  Best Underwear Shots – Christopher Burchett (Soldier Songs), Lauri Vasar (Il Prigoniero): Directors seem to love getting barihunks to strip down to their scivvies and we're not complaining! Two of the hottest performance in a pair of briefs this year came from Lauri Vasar as the Prisoner in Dallapiccola's Il Prigioniero at Opéra de Lyon and Christopher Burchett in David T. Little's Soldier Songs in New York City. We'll let the pictures do the talking.

Andrew Garland (left) and William Berger (right)

16.  Best Solo CD's – Andrew Garland and William Berger: If you love gingers, you can't find two barihunks who are hotter and who sing better than these two guys. Andrew Garland is a favorite of ours and his release on GPR Records entitled "American Portraits" is destined to be become a classic among American art song recitals. The CD features music by Stephen Paulus, Jake Heggie, Lori Laitman and Tom Cipullo. William Berger's new release is so new that we haven't even featured it on the site yet, but Hommage à Trois with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and the brilliant conductor Nicholas McGegan is one of the most delightful releases that we've heard in years. The recording pays hommage to three of the 18th century’s finest composers,  Mozart, Haydn, and Cimarosa and also features acclaimed soprano Carolyn Sampson in the duets. Berger was featured on the site for his amazing BariChunk to BariHunk transformation.

Kathryn Bates Williams and Jesse Blumberg in Green Sneakers

17.  Best Barihunk Solo Show – Green Sneakers at the Ft. Mason Center in San Francisco: We're huge fans of "Black Box Opera," where the intensity of a performance is immediate and close up. Ricky Ian Gordon is one of the busiest and most popular composers in all of opera today, but his works were not performed in San Francisco until January of this year. With help from a Barihunks Charity Calendar grant, Jesse Blumberg, the Del Sol Quartet and the talented young director John de los Santos put on a show for the ages. Audience members were in tears at the end of Gordon's most personal composition. The entire cast will reprise the performance with Opera Piccola of San Antonio on May 10 & 11 as part of a double bill with Gordon's Orpheus and Euridice.

Jud Arhur in a model shot and as Fafner

18.  Best Nude Scene – Jud Arthur as Fafner: Director Neil Armfield's Der Ring des Nibelungen at Opera Australia was quite the buzz even before it opened. Of course, our readers were buzzing about barihunk Jud Arthur's surprising entry from his cave as the mortally wounded Fafner, splattered with blood and completely naked. In the scene, Fafner, stripped bare, warns Siegfried of the Ring's power.

      Jud Arthur was born in New Zealand, worked as a farmer in Mosgiel, and then began a career as a professional rugby player. He's been one of the most popular regulars at Opera Australia for a decade now and also moonlights as a professional model.

19.  Best Ad Campaign – Glory Denied, Fort Worth Opera Festival: The ad campaign for Tom Cipullo's Glory Denied was literally stopping traffic this year. The innovative company, which brilliantly combines standard repertory with new works, created quite the buzz with these bus benches featuring barihunk Michael Mayes. Mayes portrayed Colonel Floyd James (Jim) Thompson, America’s longest-held prisoner of war. The opera looks back on Thompson's years as a captive in Vietnam and features Mayes in the title role. Fort Worth Opera often challenges their ticket holders with new works and the productions are often the audience favorites. This year they will present Daniel Crozier & Peter M. Krask's With Blood, With Ink and Kevin Puts' Silent Night with David T. Little and Royce Vavrek's JFK slated for the following season. Also, the aforementioned John de los Santos will direct Bizet's Pearl Fishers, part of their standard repertory along with Mozart's Cosi fan tutte.

Ryan McKinny backstage and onstage in Flying Dutchman

20.  Hottest Wagnerian – Ryan McKinny: When did Wagner become so sexy? Between Jud Arthur's naked Fafner and Ryan McKinny's smoking hot, leather clad Dutchman at the Glimmerglass Festival, we're beginning to see a trend that we really like. The Glimmerglass production was directed by the Queen Mother of barihunks, Francesca Zambello, and also featured the amazing soprano Melody Moore as Senta. All we can say is "ho-jo-to-ho-ho-jo-to-ho-ho-jo-to-ho."

21.  Best “Breakout” performance – Erik E. Larsen pants busting: Our post about Erik E. Larsen landed us in hot water with Facebook, who removed the post after a complaint from an offended reader (yes, Victorian England still exists!). We try to keep it (relatively) tasteful on Barihunks, but what do you expect us to do when someone tweets this photo with the caption "Hulked out of my pants" and hashtags it #Barihunks?  That's what Erik E. Larson (@unamplified) did on Twitter, so why not share it with our readers? Larsen is finishing his second year of study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and performed in their recent production of Mozart's Don Giovanni. He is also a member of the Madison Opera chorus. We hope to see (ahem) lots more of Erik Larsen (ahem, ahem). However, if he keeps tweeting about his love of "fried cream cheese" he may end up on BariChunks.

Steven Labrie and Peter Brathwaite

22.  Best Barihunk Supermodels – Steven Labrie MAC and Peter Brathwaite “Dockers”: Barihunk Steven LaBrie probably never guessed that he'd have something in common with drag icon RuPaul, but they are now both models for M∙A∙C Cosmetics. In July, the New York City-based company posted a notice that they were looking for a "classically trained male opera singer that has a young, hip, edgy appearance...Theatrical flair encouraged. Acting ability a plus." Labrie was chosen out of a slew of finalists and is now seen in ad campaigns and at promotional appearances for M∙A∙C.

      If that model in the Dockers ad looks familiar, it might be because you've seen him on a London opera stage, on the cover an Amore CD or even in the Barihunks calendar. Peter Brathwaite was chosen as a brand ambassador for the pants company Dockers. He was named one of four "Men of Style" in their new campaign.  The Dockers' "Men of Style" campaign showcases some of the most influential men in the world of style and their stories.

Separated at Birth: Ben Affleck and Wes Mason

23.  Best Doppelganger – Wes Mason/Ben Affleck: When we looked at Wes Mason's new photos by Barihunk's official photographer Michael Yeshion, it struck us that he was channeling a pretty serious Ben Affleck look with the baritone beard and seductive "stare at the camera and look serious" pose. You can visit Mason's new website at www.wesmasonstage.com.

Erik Anstine in the Alps (nice tee shirt!)

24.  Hottest tee shirt model – Erik Anstine in the Alps: Let's face it, we've seen some sexy photos of baritones in their BARIHUNK tee shirts, but there is something about these pictures of Erik Anstine sleeveless up in the Swiss Alps that made us want to strap on our boots and hit the slopes. Anstine is currently on the roster of the Zurich Opera, where he performed Masetto in their new production of Mozart's Don Giovanni with fellow barihunk Peter Mattei in the title role and Wagner in Gounod's Faust alongside fellow barihunks Elliot Madore and Kyle Ketelson. Next season he can also be seen alongside the great mezzo Cecilia Bartoli in a Christof Loy production of Handel's Alcina.  Check out the entire 2013/2014 season at the Opernhaus Zürich website.

Morgan Pearse

25.  Best Barihunk Crack – Morgan Pearse “Imeneo”: What better way to wrap up our year end feature than with a shot of a rear end? Barihunk Morgan Pearse showed a little crack in his performance of the title role of Handel's Imeneo with the London Handel Festival. Pearse is the Royal College of Music’s inaugural Joan Sutherland Scholar studying with Russell Smythe. He was recently awarded top prize in the Singers Section of the Royal Over-Seas League Music Competition.

If you love barihunks, make sure to purchase our 2014 Charity Calendar. Every penny of profit goes to benefit young artists. Buy yours today!

Carmen performance with Barihunk Trio added at Santa Fe Opera

Evan Hughes (left & far right) and Daniela Mack as Carmen (Production photo: Ken Howard)

Due to a heavy demand for tickets, the Santa Fe Opera has added another performance of Bizet’s Carmen to the final week of its current season. The opera features the barihunk trio of Kostas Smoriginas as Escamillo, Evans Hughes as Zuniga and Dan Kempson as Le Dancaire. The sensational mezzo Daniela Mack, who was the runner up at the Cardiff Singer of the World Competition, is singing the title role.

A performance has been added on August 18th, making a total of thirteen performances of the popular French opera. The opera’s season will end with a performance of Carmen on August 23rd. Tickets are available online.

All three barihunks have been featured on our site before.

Kostas Smoriginas (photo: Ken Howard)

Lithuanian barihunk Kostas Smoriginas is making his Santa Fe Opera debut with this production and he appears to be an instant favorite with audiences. In 2010, he made his American opera debut as Figaro in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro at the Washington National Opera, a role he later repeated at the San Francisco Opera. He returned to Great Britain to appear as Escamillo in Carmen in Opera North’s new production, having made his debut in the role at Berlin’s Staatsoper.

Evan Hughes is a grand prize winner in the Marilyn Horne Foundation Competition, who is also making his debut with the Santa Fe Opera. A member of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program, he won praise as Don Alfonso in the 2012 production of Mozart's Cosi fan tutte at Lincoln Center. He made his Metropolitan Opera debut in 2013 as Crebillon in Puccini’s La Rondine .

Dan Kempson from Barihunks calendar (left) and in Santa Fe's Carmen (photo: Ken Howard)

Dan Kempson made his Santa Fe Opera debut during the 2012-13 season as Le notaire in Offenbach's Grande-Duchesse of Gerolstein. We recently featured him in performances of Philip Glass' Hydrogen Jukebox with Skylight Music Theatre and as Lieutenant Gordon in Fort Worth Opera’s production of Kevin Puts’ Silent Night. He will be making his debut with the Opera San Antonio as Badger the Miner in Tobias Picker's The Fantastic Mr. Fox on September 23rd.

Barihunk duo in Komische Oper's Don Giovanni

Evan Hughes as Leporello in Don Giovanni

Last night, bass-barihunk Evan Hughes made his Komische Oper debut as Leporello in Herbert Fritsch's colorful, whimsical and provocative production of Mozart's Don Giovanni. He'll be singing along side Günter Papendell, who is singing the title role. Performances with the barihunk duo run through June 4th when Philipp Meierhöfer takes over as Leporello.

Fritsch has drawn on the core of Don Juan story by bringing him to life as a malicious harlequin – a loser, audacious, side-splittingly funny and irresistible all at once.

Günter Papendell as Don Giovanni

Papendell, who has become a fan favorite at the Komische Oper, has been with the company since 2007 scored a huge success in this production last year. He can be see this season  as Escamillo in Bizet's Carmen, Pollux in Rameau's Castor and Pollux, Figaro in Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia, the title role in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin, Jason in Cherubini's Medea and Fritz in Wagner's Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. You can watch his Onegin performance online for free by clicking HERE. 

Hughes is currently a fest member at the Semperoper Dresden where he can be seen as the Marchese d'Obigny in Verdi's La Traviata, Masetto and Leporello in Mozart's Don Giovanni, Schaunard in Puccini's La bohème, Cesare Angelotti in Puccini's Tosca and Guglielmo in Mozart's Così fan tutte. 

John Brancy premieres Kapica's Force on both coast; Live stream available

The 2013 winners of the Music Academy of the West's Marilyn Horne Song Competition, baritone John Brancy and pianist Mario Antonio Marra, will perform the premiere of Force by up-and-coming composer Chris Kapica, Schumann's Dichterliebe, works by Dvorák, and American standards in a trio of East and West Coast recitals. The first will take place at the Music Academy's Hahn Hall in Santa Barbara, California on Tuesday, March 4, followed by Santa Monica's Broad Stage on Friday, March 7, and the National Opera Center in New York City on Sunday, March 16. The New York recital is part of OPERA America's Emerging Artist Recital Series, a showcase for finalists and prizewinners from the nation's most prestigious young artist programs and competitions.

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John Brancy

Barihunk John Brancy, who along with accompanist Mario Antonio Marra, won the 2013 Music Academy of the West's Marilyn Horne Song Competition, will perform concerts on both coasts as part of their prize. The first will take place at the Music Academy's Hahn Hall in Santa Barbara, California on Tuesday, March 4th, followed by Santa Monica's Broad Stage on Friday, March 7th, and the National Opera Center in New York City on Sunday, March 16. The New York recital is part of OPERA America's Emerging Artist Recital Series, a showcase for finalists and prizewinners from the nation's most prestigious young artist programs and competitions.

Brancy will perform the world premiere of cross-genre composer Chris Kapica's "Force," along with  Schumann's Dichterliebe, Dvorák's Three Modern Greek Poems, Op. 50,  Hoagy Carmichael's The Nearness of You, Jerome Kern's The Folks who Live on the Hill and Cole Porter's Night and Day.

baritone Edward Parks, and pianist In-Sun Suh (2008)

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Other baritones who have won the Marilyn Horne Song Competition include Edward Parks in 2008 and Evan Hughes in 2006.

Tickets for the March 4 recital in Santa Barbara are $25 general admission and $10 for students. Hahn Hall is located at the Music Academy of the West. Free parking will be available on the campus grounds. For more information, visit www.musicacademy.org.
Tickets for the March 7 recital range from $16 to $35. The Broad Stage is located at the Santa Monica College Performing Arts Center, 1310 11th St. in Santa Monica. For more information, visit http://thebroadstage.com or call 310-434-3200.
The recital in New York City on March 16, which will be live-streamed, will be presented as part of OPERA America's Emerging Artist Recital Series, which was inaugurated in September by 2012 Music Academy of the West Marilyn Horne Song Competition winners Tracy Cox and Maureen Zoltek. The National Opera Center is located at 330 Seventh Avenue. Tickets, which are $20, can be purchased online at www.operaamerica.org/recitals.

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Tickets for the March 4th recital in Santa Barbara are $25 general admission and $10 for students. For more information, visit www.musicacademy.org.  Tickets for the March 7th recital at the Santa Monica College Performing Arts Center range from $16 to $35. For more information, visit http://thebroadstage.com or call 310-434-3200.  The recital in New York City will be at the National Opera Center on March 16th. Tickets, which are $20, can be purchased online at www.operaamerica.org/recitals.

If you can't make any of the recitals, you're in luck as the March 16th performance will be live-streamed as part of OPERA America's Emerging Artist Recital Series.