Seattle Opera rises from the ashes with La bohème

By Erica Miner, 17 October 2021

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“Ginger Costa-Jackson... lit up the stage in every attention-grabbing moment”

Reviewed at Marion Oliver McCaw Hall, Seattle on 16 October 2021

Puccini, La bohème

Seattle Opera

Joseph Colaneri, Conductor

David Gately, Director

Chad Jung, Lighting Designer

Yosep Kang, Rodolfo

Karen Vuong, Mimì

John Moore, Marcello

Ginger Costa-Jackson, Musetta

Ashraf Sewailam, Colline

Eugene Villanueva, Schaunard

Barry Johnson, Alcindoro, Benoît

Seattle Opera Chorus

Seattle Symphony

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Thomas May, 16th January

Presented without staging, Seattle Opera’s concert Daphne places Strauss’ extreme vocal demands and saturated orchestral writing in sharp relief, offering a high-risk encounter with a rarely heard late opera.

****1

Mozart meets Vaudeville in Seattle's silent movie Magic Flute

Erica Miner, 22nd February

Eye-popping, hand-drawn animation melds with Mozart's fantastical world and the silent film era to create a colorful and energetic new-to-Seattle production.

***11

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Erica Miner, 12th October

A world premiere opera about the Fisk Jubilee Singers, the intrepid troupe of African American singers who changed music history.

*****

Alcina in Seattle: captivating, flirtatious, sometimes weird

Rosie Rogers, 25th October

Thoughtful cuts, an extremely skillful orchestra and active, inventive staging made this sexy dark comedy engrossing and highly watchable.

*****

Frederick Ballentine’s Loge shines in Das Rheingold

Rosie Rogers, 12th August

Despite some confused visual elements, an excellent musical performance makes Seattle Opera's production well worth watching.

****1

Huang Ruo’s riveting Bound makes Seattle Opera debut

Erica Miner, 10th June

Bound tells of a second generation of Asian immigrants, born and raised in the US, their problematic association with their cultural heritage, and the difficulties and challenges they face, bound to their culture but trying to be wholly accepted as American.

*****

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Erica Miner

As a Metropolitan Opera violinist Erica performed with James Levine, Leonard Bernstein and countless opera luminaries. Now an award-winning author, screenwriter, arts journalist and lecturer, Erica’s opera presentations include Wagner Societies in California, New York, Boston, North Carolina and Sydney, Australia. Her recently released novel Aria for Murder, the first in her ‘Operatic Mystery’ series, authentically reflects her experiences in the Met Orchestra. Sequels are due in 2023 and 2024. Erica’s personal website is here.