Roberto Tagliavini makes his Lyric Opera of Chicago debut tonight

Roberto Tagliavini (Photos courtesy of Arena di Verona)

Italian bass-barihunk Roberto Tagliavini will make his debut at the Lyric Opera of Chicago in Verdi’s Il trovatore as Ferrando, which opens today and runs through December 9th.

He'll be joined by another singer making his house debut, the amazing Polish baritone Artur Ruciński, who is sing the Count di Luna. The rest of the all-star cast includes tenor Russell Thomas as Manrico, soprano Tamara Wilson as Leonora, and mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton as the tortured gypsy Azucena,

Tickets are available online.

Upcoming performances for Tagliavini include Pagano in Verdi's I Lombardi at Opera de la ABAO  in January, Zaccaria in Verdi's Nabucco at the Bavarian State Opera and Basilio in Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia in Parma.

Another famous singer with the same last name, Ferruccio Tagliavini, who was one of the greatest tenors of his era, made his U.S. debut in Chicago as Rodolfo in 1946.

Barihunk trio in Paris Opera's "out of this world" La bohème

Roberto Tagliavini, Andrei Jilihovschi and Alessio Arduini

Artur Ruciński will sing Marcello and Alessio Arduini will alternate the role of Marcello with Andrei Jilihovschi in the Paris Opera's new production of Giacomo Puccini‘s La Bohème, which is set in outer space. The new production, directed by Claus Guth, opens on December 1st and runs through December 31st at the Opéra Bastille.

The new staging is set a century from now, “in a future devoid of hope in which love and art become the sole means of transcendence.”

Paris Opera's La bohème (photo: © Bernd Uhlig/OnP)

The casts includes barihunk Roberto Tagliavini as Colline, Sonya Yoncheva and Nicole Car as Mimi, Aida Garifullina as Musetta, and Atalla Ayan and Benjamin Bernheim as Rodolfo.

Andrei Jilihovschi, who is new to this site, was born in Moldavia in 1985 and studied music at the Stefan Neaga College in Chisinau, specializing in choral direction while also taking voice lessons. He made his stage performance debut at the Conservatory in the title role of Eugene Onegin.

He was a soloist at the Saint Petersburg’s Theatre Mikhailovsky, where he sang the role of Belcore in L’Elisir d’amore, Schaunard in La bohème, Robert in Iolanta, the Prince in Boris Asafiev’s Cinderella, Silvano in Un ballo in maschera, Baron Douphol in La traviata, and Dancaïre in Carmen. This is his debut role with the Paris Opera.

Gianluca Margheri, Cody Quattlebaum and Ken Mattice

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