Aida
Music by Giuseppe Verdi
Libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni
Conducted by David Angus
Emerson Colonial Theatre
Sunday, November 10, 2024 | 3:00PM
Don’t miss this one-night engagement of Verdi’s thrilling masterpiece. In the lands of ancient Egypt, commander Radamès must choose between his love for the Ethiopian princess Aida and his loyalty to his sovereign king. In this specially staged concert, Aida will captivate audiences with its heartrending arias, dramatic duets, and some of the most thrilling choral works ever to be performed.
BLO Music Director David Angus takes the helm of this production that features Michelle Johnson as Aida, Diego Torre as Radamès, Alice Chung as Amneris, Morris Robinson as Ramfis, and Brian Major as Amonasro. The Boston Lyric Opera Orchestra and Chorus perform Verdi’s thrilling score and join with Boston’s choral community, including the Back Bay Chorale, for the monumental Act Two Triumphal March.
Following the performance of Aida, audiences are invited to join us for The Opera Gala 2024, which will be raising funds in support of BLO’s free youth and community programs. For sponsorship and gala ticket information, click here.
Michelle Johnson | Aida
![Michelle Johnson | Aida in BLO's 2024 production of Aida](https://blo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Cast_Michelle-Johnson.png)
Other recent performances include Tosca, Tosca, Opera Columbus; Mimì, La bohème, Nashville Opera; Aida, Aida, Opera Grand Rapids and Opera Carolina, Turandot, Turandot, Opera Southwest; Santuzza, Cavalleria rusticana and Emelda Griffith (cover), Champion, Boston Lyric Opera; and Bess, Porgy and Bess, Des Moines Metro Opera.
Johnson has made a name for herself as a highly sought-after Aida, performing Verdi’s tragic heroine with Glimmerglass Music Festival, Opera Santa Barbara, Knoxville Opera, Opera Idaho, and Sarasota Opera, among others. Adept in verismo repertoire, Johnson has also performed the title roles in the rarely performed Sakuntala and Fedora performed with Teatro Grattacielo.
Concert highlights include Verdi’s Requiem, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Vaughan Williams’ Dona nobis pacem, and Strauss’s Vier letzte Lieder with esteemed orchestras worldwide. She has also collaborated with renowned conductors for special concerts, including an all-French opera concert with Maestro Michel Plasson in Montpellier, France, and an all-Verdi concert with The Princeton Symphony Orchestra and Maestro Rossen Milanov.
A distinguished alumna of the Academy of Vocal Arts, Boston University Opera Institute, and New England Conservatory, Johnson has been recognized with prestigious awards from organizations like the Sullivan Foundation, Gerda Lissner Foundation, and the Giulio Gari Foundation.
Alice Chung | Amneris
![Alice Chung | Amneris in BLO's 2024 production of Aida](https://blo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Cast_Alice-Chung.png)
Selected role credits include Azucena (cover), Il trovatore; Carmen (cover), Carmen; Dame Quickly (cover) Falstaff; Die Hexe, Hänsel und Gretel; Dritte Dame, Die Zauberflöte; Eduige, Rodelinda; Ježibaba, Rusalka; La Zia Principessa, Suor Angelica; Maddalena, Rigoletto; Mrs. Grose, The Turn of the Screw; and Suzuki (Madama Butterfly).
On the mainstage, Ms. Chung has performed and worked with Arizona Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, Hawai’i Opera Theatre, Houston Grand Opera, Kansas City Symphony, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Naples Philharmonic, Opera San Jose, San Francisco Opera, Tulsa Opera, United States Naval Academy, and West Edge Opera.
Ms. Chung trained at The Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia and has participated in the prestigious Merola Opera Program, among others. Ms. Chung is the artistic director and co-founder of Wear Yellow Proudly.
Diego Torre | Radamès
![Diego Torre | Radamès in BLO's 2024 production of Aida](https://blo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Diego-Torre12.png)
Torre’s recent international engagements have included Canio, Pagliacci in Kansas City; Dick Johnson, La fanciulla del West in Mexico City; Canio, Pagliacci, Grand Théâtre de Genève and Oviedo; Calaf, Turandot and Manrico, Il trovatore in Torino; Cavaradossi, Canio, and Turiddu in Genoa; and Zemlinsky’s Eine florentinische Tragõdie in Oviedo.
Torre holds a Bachelor of Music from the National Autonomous University of Mexico. He was a Domingo-Thornton Young Artist at Los Angeles Opera in 2008.
Brian Major | Amonasro
![Brian Major | Amonasro in BLO's 2024 production of Aida](https://blo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Cast_Brian-Major.png)
Morris Robinson | Ramfis
![Morris Robinson | Ramfis in BLO's 2024 production of Aida](https://blo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Cast_Morris-Robinson.png)
Chelsea Basler | High Priestess
![Chelsea Basler | High Priestess in BLO's 2024 production of Aida](https://blo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Cast_Chelsea-Basler.png)
Stefan Egerstrom | Il Re
![Stefan Egerstrom | Il Re in BLO's 2024 production of Aida](https://blo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Cast_Stefan-Egerstrom.png)
Fred C. VanNess, Jr. | Messenger
![Fred C. VanNess, Jr. | Messenger in BLO's 2024 production of Aida](https://blo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Cast_Fred-C.-VanNess-Jr_.png)
Mr. VanNess is a member of Castle of our Skins, an organization dedicated to celebrating Black artistry through music. Recent performances include Remember the Sea, Castle of our Skins; Tide Flowers, University of Rhode Island Artist Series; Elijah, Rhode Island Civic Chorale & Orchestra; Ballad of the Brown King, Portsmouth Pro Musica; Schöpfungsmesse, Concord Chorale; Judas Maccabeus, Handel by Candlelight; and solo recitals with Lake Charles Symphony, Salem Philharmonic, and Coushatta Casino Resort.
Mr. VanNess has developed and performed two one-man shows: When I Think of Home…, McNeese State University; and Beethoven to Broadway, Larcom Theatre. He received his GPD from Longy School of Music and MM from Louisiana State University. He was awarded first place for the North Shore Star and is a recipient of The Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana Career Grant.
David Angus | Conductor
![David Angus | Conductor for BLO's 2024 production of Aida](https://blo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Creative_David-Angus-AIDA.png)
Prior to his time at BLO, Angus was music director of The Glimmerglass Festival and Chief Conductor of the Symphony Orchestra of Flanders. He has led orchestras and choirs throughout Europe, particularly in Scandinavia, including the Lahti Symphony Orchestra and several Danish orchestras. Born in England, he has conducted most of the major orchestras in Great Britain, including the London Philharmonic, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Hallé Orchestra, most of the BBC orchestras, the London Mozart Players, and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. He recently debuted with the Toscanini Orchestra in Parma and the Porto Symphony Orchestra in Portugal. He returned to Wexford Festival Opera, the Hong Kong Philharmonic, the LPO, and the Huddersfield Choral Society, as well as to his former orchestra in Belgium. Angus was a boy chorister at King’s College under Sir David Willcocks and read music at Surrey University. He was a conducting fellow at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, where he won several prizes for opera conducting.
Nathan Troup | Staging Coordinator
![Nathan Troup | Staging Coordinator for BLO's 2024 production of Aida](https://blo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Creative_Nathan-Troup.png)