By: Katy Lindhart Aida is just a few short weeks away — do you have your tickets yet?  Our one-night-only performance of Aida on November 10 will be presented as a staged concert, allowing us to focus on the intimacy that lies at the core of this wonderful opera, and — of course — its breathtaking music. Conducted by BLO Music Director David Angus, this cast of accomplished Verdians will thrill and move you.  We are thrilled to welcome Morris Robinson back to the BLO stage, where he sang his first operatic role — in Aida! — in 1999. [...]

  Catch Boston Lyric Opera's Artistic Director Nina Yoshida Nelsen on Mix 104.1's Good Vibe Tribe!  She talks about what an Artistic Director does and why everyone should give opera a try. If you're new to opera or curious about it, this is a must-listen! Nina absolutely nailed it. Big thanks to the MIX team—we can't wait to invite you to a future show!

By: Katy Lindhart In his long career, Giuseppe Verdi wrote an astonishing twenty-eight operas, based on diverse sources — from Shakespeare to Victor Hugo to real world history. Despite the wide variety of stories, many of his operas share common themes. The relationship between father and child, for instance, is highlighted in Don Carlo, Rigoletto, Simon Boccanegra, La traviata, and several others. Fate and destiny, issues of class and social station, and torn allegiances all feature prominently as well. Perhaps due to the complex political landscape of his time, Verdi’s works also explore socio-political oppression and abuse of power. [...]

By: Katy Lindhart What were you doing when you were fourteen? If you’re Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, you were hard at work on an operatic commission for Milan: Mitridate, re di Ponto. Composed in 1770, Mitridate is a remarkable synthesis of Baroque virtuosity and Classical clarity and expressiveness, showcasing the young composer’s exuberance and emerging voice, while still existing within the confines of the Italian opera seria (“serious opera”) genre. The virtuosic vocal writing in Mitridate demonstrates an understanding of the Baroque traditions Mozart inherited, reminiscent of the florid, intricate vocal writing of his predecessors, like George Frideric Handel and [...]

Opera is Impossible by Anne Bogart In his gorgeous recent book The Impossible Art: Adventures in Opera, composer Matthew Aucoin details the many impossibilities inherent in the opera experience. From its inception, he writes, opera undertook the daunting task of recreating Greek drama, a form that no one alive at the time had ever heard or experienced. He goes on to elaborate opera’s balancing act throughout history, for performers and spectators alike. Perhaps due to its unique position at the intersection of musical composition, theatrical performance, poetic expression, and visual artistry – not to mention its ability to interweave [...]

Opera’s Next Act: 5 Questions on the Future of Opera with BLO Artistic Director Nina Yoshida Nelsen As opera continues to evolve in response to cultural, technological, and society shifts, BLO remains at the forefront, reimagining classic repertoires, integrating bold contemporary works, and making opera more accessible to everyone in our community. We love opera for where it’s been and where we’re going. In our series, Opera’s Next Act, BLO’s artistic leadership will share in their own words what excites them about opera’s past, present and future— beginning with our Artistic Director, Nina Yoshida Nelsen. About Nina Nina Yoshida [...]

Calling All Opera Lovers: Give It Up for Love Thank you to our BLO audiences who participated in our Opera Lovers Survey. Whether it’s the timeless classics or the groundbreaking new work, your choices reflect a true appreciation for the art form. Your tastes and deep love for opera are what makes our community so vibrant! What was the first opera you ever saw? One of the many good things about opera is that there are so many to choose from! The top three first-time operas [...]

We Gave It All For Love! We can hardly believe it, but we are at the end of our 2023/24 mainstage season! Opera is a team sport, and we could not be more grateful for the artists, directors, designers, dramaturgs, BLO staff, backstage crew, board members, volunteers, and audiences that make what we do possible. THANK YOU! For the first time since August, our team has an opportunity to look back and see all that we’ve accomplished — we’re pretty proud, if we do say so ourselves! Here are some of our favorite moments from the past year.   [...]

Dear Friends, It is a busy spring at Boston Lyric Opera! After back-to-back productions of Joseph Bologne’s The Anonymous Lover and Matthew Aucoin and Sarah Ruhl’s Eurydice, we are moving ahead with a summer full of opera and plans for the newly announced 2024/25 Season, our most expansive season yet with new locations and partners. During our 2023/24 season so far, Boston Lyric Opera has reached over 620,000 homes through live opera performance. Our annual BLO Street Stage series launches June 1 with a return to Rowe’s Wharf in partnership with The Greenway and an appearance at Plaza Betances [...]

We can hardly believe it, but we are at the end of our 2023/24 mainstage season! Opera is a team sport, and we could not be more grateful for the artists, directors, designers, dramaturgs, BLO staff, backstage crew, board members, volunteers, and audiences that make what we do possible. THANK YOU! For the first time since August, our team has an opportunity to look back and see all that we’ve accomplished — and we’re pretty proud, if we do say so ourselves! Here are some of our favorite moments from the past year. A groundbreaking Madama Butterfly This September, [...]