Inside Vancouver Opera

Vancouver Opera honours Black History Month with a special audio documentary about BC Choral legend and music educator Jim Johnson and his wife, choral conductor and teacher Sheila Johnson. Recorded, edited and produced by Ashley Daniel Foot Music performed by The Concenti Singers and the Cowichan Valley Youth Choir

Lessons and Prizes and Rome, OH MY! Bizet takes the Paris Conservatoire by storm—culminating in an all-expense trip to sunny Italy! You probably know that French composer Georges Bizet wrote Carmen, but did you know that he was also a musical prodigy who started composing at the age of nine? Or that composers such as Liszt, Rossini, and Gounod immediately recognized his musical brilliance? Dig into the life of Bizet and meet his musical family.  Beautifully brought to life by actor Felix LeBlanc as the voice of Bizet, this seven part audio series reveals the hidden story behind one of opera’s greatest composers.  This exciting podcast is produced in celebration of Vancouver Opera’s production of The Pearl Fishers onstage from October 22-30, 2022. CREDITS Written and edited by Kris Epps Additional editing by Ashley Daniel Foot Music Supervisor and Clearances: Kris Epps and Ashley Daniel Foot Sound design by Kris Epps Associate Producer: Vincent Huynh Voice cast: Bizet:  Felix LeBlanc Narrator: Jane Potter Additional Voices:  Ashley Daniel Foot, Travis Baugh Allen, Vincent Huynh 

Parisian, prodigious, precocious, the composer George Bizet was born at the dawn of the Victorian Era. A, B, C—easy as Do, Re, Mi. The opera world will soon be changed forever. You probably know that French composer Georges Bizet wrote Carmen, but did you know that he was also a musical prodigy who started composing at the age of nine? Or that composers such as Liszt, Rossini, and Gounod immediately recognized his musical brilliance? Dig into the life of Bizet and meet his musical family.  Beautifully brought to life by actor Felix LeBlanc as the voice of Bizet, this seven part audio series reveals the hidden story behind one of opera’s greatest composers.  This exciting podcast is produced in celebration of Vancouver Opera’s production of The Pearl Fishers onstage from October 22-30, 2022. CREDITS Written and edited by Kris Epps Additional editing by Ashley Daniel Foot Music Supervisor and Clearances: Kris Epps and Ashley Daniel Foot Sound design by Kris Epps Associate Producer: Vincent Huynh Voice cast: Bizet:  Felix LeBlanc Narrator: Jane Potter Additional Voices:   Ashley Daniel Foot, Travis Baugh Allen, Vincent Huynh

You probably know that French composer Georges Bizet wrote Carmen, but did you know that he was also a musical prodigy who started composing at the age of nine? Or that composers such as Liszt, Rossini, and Gounod immediately recognized his musical brilliance?  Dig into the life of Bizet and meet his musical family.  Beautifully brought to life by actor Felix LeBlanc as the voice of Bizet, this seven part audio series reveals the hidden story behind one of opera’s greatest composers.   This exciting podcast is produced in celebration of Vancouver Opera’s production of The Pearl Fishers onstage from October 22-30, 2022. Written and edited by Kris Epps Additional editing by Ashley Daniel Foot Music Supervisor and Clearances: Kris Epps and Ashley Daniel Foot Sound design by Kris Epps Associate Producer: Vincent Huynh Bizet:  Felix LeBlanc Narrator: Jane Potter Additional Voices:  Ashley Daniel Foot, Travis Baugh Allen

We're proud to honour National Indigenous Peoples Day with an in-depth conversation with Métis composer Ian Cusson and Vancouver Opera's Ashley Daniel Foot. In a wide ranging conversation, Ian talks about the ways his Metis and French Canadian descent intersect with his music, the meanings of story, and the power of music to bring about societal change.  We also play an excerpt from his opera, Fantasma (more details here) and a selection from his Where there's a Wall song cycle.  Ian Cusson is a composer of art song, opera and orchestral work. Of Métis (Georgian Bay Métis Community) and French Canadian descent, his work explores Canadian Indigenous experience including the history of the Métis people, the hybridity of mixed-racial identity, and the intersection of Western and Indigenous cultures. You can find out more about Ian here. Read the full article here. podcast produced, hosted, and edited by Ashley Daniel Foot  MUSIC CREDITS  Music from Fantasma courtesy of the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity  "Where there's a wall" Song-cycle for voice and piano Text by Joy Kogawa Krisztina Szabó, voice Rachael Kerr, piano Recorded at the Canadian Music Centre, Toronto on November 14, 2019 by John Gray.

Inside: HMS PINAFORE  Join Vancouver Opera teaching artist Eve Daniell in conversation with director Brenna Corner about the ins and outs of creating a new vision of a classic operetta, the challenges of directing comedy, and the ongoing need for art in our culture.  Gilbert and Sullivan’s comedic tale is a delightful combination of forbidden love across class divides and the shenanigans that take place along the way. Poking fun at social hierarchies and packed with absurd characters, this wildly popular operetta delivers plenty of laughs and memorable music. This joyful production is directed by Brenna Corner and conducted by Rosemary Thomson and features the Vancouver Opera Orchestra and Chorus. Vancouver Opera presents HMS PINAFORE - April 30-May 8, 2022 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. For tickets and information visit VancouverOpera.ca AUDIO CREDITS Produced by Ashley Daniel Foot Interim Director of Marketing: Jennifer Lee

Inside Vancouver Opera honours Black History Month with an illuminating and candid conversation with two exemplary Black Canadian sopranos – Othalie Graham and Jonelle Sills, who recently were part of our performance of Cavalleria Rusticana In Concert.  The conversation delves into the question of race and representation in opera, and features the hard-won insights of both Othalie and Jonelle’s experience of being a Black singer in today’s world. We are also proud to amplify the following non-exhaustive list curated by Jonelle Sills of incredible Black Canadian singers working in our sector: Andrew Adrigde (https://www.instagram.com/drewadridge/) https://andrewadridge.com/andrew-adridge/Co founder of Opera Inreach (https://www.operainreach.com/home) Catherine Daniel (https://www.catherinedaniel.com/bio) Queen Hezumuryango https://www.instagram.com/queenhezumuryango/ Monika Mazanka (https://www.monikam.com) Khadija Mbowe (https://www.instagram.com/khadija.mbowe/) https://www.khadijambowe.com Katie McCullough (https://www.instagram.com/katiem.soprano/) https://lnk.bio/katiem.soprano Ineza Mugisha (https://www.instagram.com/ineza_m/) Chantale Nurse (http://www.chantalenurse.com) https://www.instagram.com/chantalenurse/ Charlotte Siegal (https://charliesiegelsings.wixsite.com/charlottesiegel) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/charliesiegelsop/ Suzanne Taffot (https://www.instagram.com/taffot_soprano/) http://www.suzytaffot.com Korin Thomas Smith (https://www.instagram.com/kthomassmith/)

Inside: CAVALLERIA RUSTICANA IN CONCERT Join Vancouver Opera’s Ashley Daniel Foot and discover the passionate opera that is Mascagni’s CAVALLERIA RUSTICANA  and explore the hot and glorious masterwork of everyday Sicilian life with Vancouver Opera Conductor Emeritus Jonathan Darlington and hear his thoughts on staging an opera in concert, his life during COVID, and his unique perspective on how opera needs to meet the moment and ask itself tough questions. Vancouver Opera presents CAVALLERIA RUSTICANA IN CONCERT  - Feb 12 and 13, 2022 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. For tickets and information visit VancouverOpera.ca AUDIO CREDITS Produced by Ashley Daniel Foot Director of Marketing and Communications: Sarah Hitner

Join Vancouver Opera’s Ashley Daniel Foot and discover the magical world of Gluck’s ORFEO ED EURIDICE and find out what makes the opera so unique as we talk with the stars and creative team of Vancouver Opera’s debut production of this dazzling work. Maestro Leslie Dala speaks with sopranos Krisztina Szabó and Mireille Asselin and mezzo soprano Mireille Lebel. We also check in with opera scholar Leah Giselle Field for a little history on the opera and hear briefly from director Idan Cohen about the unique way he has blended opera and dance into this new production. We also get details on the rest of Vancouver Opera’s 2021-2022 season with General Director Tom Wright. Vancouver Opera presents ORFEO ED EURIDICE - December 4 and 5, 2021 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. For tickets and information visit VancouverOpera.ca AUDIO CREDITS Produced by Ashley Daniel Foot Recorded and mixed by Randall Jason Fox FOR VANCOUVER OPERA Director of Marketing and Communications: Sarah Hitner

"Success is what music does to the human spirit. If audiences come out of a concert feeling better than when they went in, that's success." – Leila Getz.   In the season finale of Vancouver Opera Offstage, Les talks with Leila Getz, C.M., O.B.C., D.F.A., founder and Artistic Director of the Vancouver Recital Society. Leila has presented Canadian and Vancouver debut performances of some of the world’s most brilliant and respected young musicians over the past 40 years, building a diverse and loyal audience for the recital concert form that had once been labeled out-of-vogue. She is a member of the Order of Canada, the order of British Columbia, and a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal for her contributions to Canada's musical landscape. Check out our episode at www.vancouveropera.ca/offstage.

Today we are joined by the Vancouver Opera Orchestra's Principal Harpist, Janelle Nadeau. In this episode we explore the versatile and ancient art of the harp, Janelle's journey with the instrument, and the unique beauty of live performance.Full ArticleEpisode Credits:Janelle Nadeau - Principal Harpist, Vancouver Opera OrchestraAshley Daniel Foot - Host & Creator, Inside Vancouver OperaMack McGillivray - Producer, Inside Vancouver Opera

She walks onto the stage, acknowledges the audience, and gestures toward the piano. There is no one there.Soprano and pianist Rachel Fenlon has spent the last several years doing something almost unthinkable in classical music — accompanying herself. Singing and playing at once. Not as a gimmick, but as a complete artistic philosophy that has taken her from Vancouver to Berlin to the stages of Europe, and to a debut album — Winterreise — that became the first self-accompanied recording of Schubert's cycle.It was named Album of the Week by both CBC Canada and BBC Radio 3. Critics called it extraordinary. And it started with grief, isolation, and a very quiet voice she decided to follow.Now she's coming home — to the Kay Meek Arts Centre in West Vancouver on April 12 — and we sat down with her to talk about solitude, risk, what it costs to hold everything yourself, and what it feels like when it finally disappears.Rachel Fenlon performs at the Kay Meek Arts Centre, April 12. Tickets here

Nicole Lamb is Vancouver Opera’s Director of Artistic and Production. For the last few seasons, she’s been one of the key people deciding what you see on stage and how it all comes together, from season planning and artistic teams to the thousand invisible choices about budget, time, and people that make an opera actually happen. Full ArticleEpisode Credits:Nicole Lamb - Guest, Director of Artistic and Production at Vancouver OperaAshley Daniel Foot - Host, Inside Vancouver OperaMack McGillivray - Producer, Inside Vancouver Opera

Veteran Canadian journalist Paul Wells joins Inside Vancouver Opera for a wide-ranging conversation about journalism, politics, and the role the arts play in shaping public life.For decades, Wells has been one of the country’s most thoughtful political writers, known for his long-form analysis and deep historical perspective on Canadian politics. In this conversation, he reflects on his early days writing about jazz, his years covering Parliament Hill, and his move to independent journalism on Substack.Wells also discusses the origins of The Paul Wells Road Show, a live event that brings together politics, culture, and conversation. On March 20, the Road Show arrives in Vancouver in partnership with Vancouver Opera, featuring BC Premier David Eby, journalist Richard Zussman, former federal minister James Moore, CBC political podcaster Rachel Siegel, and renowned forest ecologist Suzanne Simard.Along the way, Wells shares why he believes the arts are essential to civic life and why culture often reveals more about society than politics alone.🎙 Hosted by Ashley Daniel Foot, Director of Engagement and Civic Practice at Vancouver Opera.

Brandon Thornhill joins Inside Vancouver Opera during Black History Month to discuss Ebony Roots, his concert celebrating 300 years of Black music. From spirituals to Soul, he reflects on identity, opera, representation, and what it means to sing Black history in Vancouver.

Today we’re joined by Canadian composer Dean Burry, whose operas for young audiences have been performed across Canada and beyond. His works include The Brothers Grimm, The Hobbit, and today’s focus, The Brementown Musicians, an immersive opera created especially for elementary students. Full ArticleEpisode Credits:Dean Burry - GuestAshley Daniel Foot - Host, Inside Vancouver OperaMack McGillivray - Producer, Inside Vancouver Opera

In this special episode we delve into the intricate dynamics of Così fan tutte and its portrayal of women. We explore the role of Despina as a voice of realism amidst the comedic facade and how the opera reflects societal attitudes towards women and relationships during the Enlightenment era.Full ArticleEpisode Credits:Jane Potter - Writer and NarratorMack McGillivray - Audio EditorAshley Daniel Foot - ProducerBarry Ekko - Cover Illustration

A behind-the-scenes conversation with costume designer Donnie Tejani, who brings the world of Così fan tutte to life for Vancouver Opera. We explore how costumes shape character, how disguise functions in Mozart’s comedy, what happens inside a modern costume shop, and how designers balance artistry, budgets, and practicality in today’s opera landscape.

Tracy Dahl discusses her illustrious career as coloratura soprano, her role as Despina in Così fan tutte, and evolution of vocal techniques.Full ArticleEpisode Credits:Tracy Dahl - GuestAshley Daniel Foot - Host, Inside Vancouver OperaMack McGillivray - Producer, Inside Vancouver Opera

In this episode we're joined by music journalist Kevin Ng and Vancouver Opera's Jane Potter to explore the complexities of Mozart's most dangerous comedy, Così fan tutte. Full ArticleEpisode Credits:Kevin Ng - GuestJane Potter - GuestBarry Ekko - ArtworkAshley Daniel Foot - Host, Inside Vancouver OperaMack McGillivray - Producer, Inside Vancouver Opera