Canadian Opera Company opens season with Roméo et Juliette

Stephen Costello (Roméo) and Kseniia Proshina (Juliette)

Alex Hetherington (Stéphano) and Justin Welsh (Grégorio)

Gordon Bintner (Mercutio)

Kseniia Proshina (Juliette)

By John Gilks, 28 September 2025

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Reviewed at Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, Toronto on 27 September 2025

Gounod, Roméo et Juliette

Canadian Opera Company

Yves Abel, Conductor

Amy Lane, Director

Emma Ryott, Set Designer, Costume Designer

Charlie Morgan Jones, Lighting Designer

Canadian Opera Company Orchestra

Canadian Opera Company Chorus

Stephen Costello, Roméo

Kseniia Proshina, Juliette

Robert Pomakov, Frère Laurent

Gordon Bintner, Mercutio

Angelo Moretti, Benvolio, nephew of Montaigu

Megan Latham, Gertrude, Juliette's nurse

Owen McCausland, Tybalt

Mark Stone, Count Capulet

Ben Wallace, Pâris

Alex Halliday, Duke of Verona

Alex Hetherington, Stéphano

Justin Welsh, Grégorio

Michael Barry, Choreography

Canadian Opera Company’s Barber proves as fresh as ever

John Gilks, 5th February

The Barber is back in Toronto with an excellent cast, young and old, and it’s as lively, colourful and energetic as ever.

****1

Christopher Alden’s Rigoletto returns to Canadian Opera Company

Michelle Assay, 28th January

Christopher Alden’s Victorian-era Rigoletto still divides opinions, despite top-notch performances all around in this Toronto revival.

***11

Canadian Opera's Orfeo returns elegant, restrained and very satisfying

John Gilks, 9th October

The restrained beauty of Robert Carsen’s production of Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice is matched by musical elegance in its revival current revival at the Four Seasons Centre.

*****

Eugene Onegin revival fails to find the magic spark in Toronto

John Gilks, 2nd May

Robert Carsen’s 1997 production of Eugene Onegin has aged remarkably well but the latest Canadian Opera Company revival of it doesn’t quite recapture its magic.

***11

COC triumphs with Kentridge’s brilliantly conceived Wozzeck

John Gilks, 25th April

William Kentridge's production of Berg’s Wozzeck has it all: wonderfully imaginative and disturbing designs, terrific acting and singing plus fabulous orchestral playing.

*****

Musically and visually stunning, La Reine-garçon ticks all the boxes

John Gilks, 31st January

Bilodeau and Bouchard’s La Reine-garçon is contemporary opera at its best, telling a great story with outstanding music and stunning visuals.

*****

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John Gilks

John trained as a mathematician before working all over the world in management consulting. He’s now settled in downtown Toronto as an e-health strategy consultant. His operatric interests are eclectic but lean to the very early and very modern. He is also passionate about art song. His writings can be found in Opera Canada magazine and in his blog. He is owned by a small, grey cat called Jane.

Shakespeare in New York: Canadian Opera Company again opens season with Gounod