San Diego, CA – San Diego Opera is grateful to announce its 2020-2021 season, after the premature ending of the Company’s previous season this winter in response to the global coronavirus pandemic. San Diego Opera hopes its decision to announce its upcoming season at this time serves a beacon of hope for a future when the community can once again safely come together in a celebration of song. San Diego Opera continues to closely monitor the recommendations of public health and government officials and is prepared to make adjustments to its season in consideration of the health and well-being of our patrons, artists, and staff.
“I’m very excited by the dynamic lineup we’ve put together for next season, both in terms of repertoire and world-class artists. Most of this season was planned before covid-19 affected all of us, and we are working diligently to find ways to bring these wonderful productions to our audiences in ways that will preserve their health and safety and the health and safety of our artists and staff, while following the recommendations of public health officials,” shares San Diego Opera General Director, David Bennett. “We also are able to reschedule two of the three postponed productions from our spring 2020 next season, thereby honoring our commitments to our community and to these amazing artists.”
The season begins on October 24, 2020 with Puccini’s masterpiece La bohème presented at the San Diego Civic Theatre in a production new to San Diego audiences. La bohème is a fitting opera to mark the Company’s return to the stage; it was the first opera San Diego Opera produced in 1965, and it was the opera that marked the rebirth of the Company in 2015 with the appointment of David Bennett as the Company’s new General Director. The Main Stage season continues February 13, 2021 with a double-bill of one act Puccini operasSuor Angelica and Gianni Schicchi. These are the first Company performances of Suor Angelica and Gianni Schicchi has not been seen on the San Diego Opera stage since 1972. The Main Stage season will continue with Rossini’s The Barber of Seville which opens April 24, 2021, rescheduled from the 2020 season with nearly all of the original casting intact.
The Company’s dētour Series will open on November 18, 2020 with its annual One Amazing Night. San Diego Opera will be announcing the featured artist shortly, who will be appearing in concert with the San Diego Symphony. The series continues on December 4, 2020 at The Balboa Theatre with the return of All is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914, a telling of the Christmas Truce of WWI and a celebration of the greatness we can achieve no matter how great the odds provided we work together. The series closes with the West Coast premiere of Aging Magician, a hybrid opera-theatre work that is a profound mediation on mortality and the legacy we leave behind.Aging Magician opens on Friday, March 26, 2021 at the Balboa Theatre and is produced by Beth Morrison Projects. Aging Magician was originally announced as part of the 2019-2020 season.
San Diego Opera’s ongoing commitment to presenting exceptional vocal talent continues with appearances by some of today’s most exciting singers including sopranos Angel Blue, Marina Costa-Jackson, and Andrea Carroll; mezzo-sopranos Stephanie Blythe and Emily Fons; bass-baritone Patrick Carfizzi; baritone David Pershall and tenors Joshua Guerrero and Piotr Buszewski.
Conductors for the season include San Diego Opera’s Principal Guest Conductor, Yves Abel, Valerio Galli, and Bruce Stasyna. Stage directors include Paul Curran, Keturah Stickann, and Jimmy Featherstone Marcheso.
Pre-production artwork and artist headshots for the season is online at: https://sandiegoopera.smugmug.com/20202021-PreProduction-Artwork/n-XGsZhR
For more information, please visit https://www.sdopera.org
