Sara Neal
Utah Opera starts their 40th Anniversary Season with a traditional look back, not only at the opera that the company opened with in 1978, but also with a comfortable production of La bohème. From the opening moments you are immersed in the lives of the characters and their journey of love and friendship. On Christmas … Read more
Utah Opera’s 2016-2017 season closes with one of Mozart’s most popular operas, Don Giovanni. The 2016-17 season has been marked by serious operas with themes ranging from PTSD and the effects of war, to violence against women and political expression. Don Giovanni continues that trend with an updated production that shines a stark light on Giovanni’s … Read more
Utah Opera’s 2016-2017 season has played to the moodier and dramatic side of human nature this year, and Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor is no exception. This tale of a woman manipulated into turning her back on true love and marrying another has tragic consequences. Utah Opera added more drama to the production with a last-minute cast … Read more
Utah Opera kicks off its 2016-2017 season with one of the most beloved and often-performed productions–Carmen. Bizet’s opera Carmen is a spectacular work, brimming with fiery passion, ceaseless drama and memorable music. Utah Opera’s 2016 production is a solid and straightforward telling that is pleasing enough, but falls a bit short of greatness. Carmen follows … Read more
It doesn’t take much to have a good production of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro. The opera is so charming that as long as you have some good voices, you’re pretty much guaranteed a pleasant experience. Having a great production, however, takes an amazing amount of work. Not only do the voices need to be … Read more
It has been more than a decade since Utah Opera has staged the operatic blockbuster Aida by Giuseppi Verdi, and the energy at the Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre on opening night was palpable. The production, which runs through March 20, is strong, ambitious, and exciting, but not without a few missteps. Aida is the … Read more
Comedic opera is not my favorite – I enjoy more the pathos, murder, and misery of a tragedy. So although I was sure I would enjoy Utah Opera’s The Merry Widow, I didn’t expect to fall in love with it. I was so mistaken! This production harks back to old Hollywood. Not the high glamour of … Read more
Some consider Giacomo Puccini’s Tosca to be overly melodramatic, but like many opera lovers I never tire of the melodrama, because it’s paired with such moving and powerful music. Utah Opera’s current production of Tosca, playing at the Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre through October 18, is near-perfect, with music and performances that left me breathless. … Read more
Utah Opera’s production of Stravinsky’s The Rake’s Progress is new to Salt Lake City, but this 40-year-old production is one of the most iconic in the history of American opera. The Rake’s Progress follows the story of Tom Rakewell, a young man who decides to reject the life his future father-in-law has set up for … Read more