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Unfortunately, a lot of people think they don’t, and most of them have never seen one. In this audio story, opera fan Eleni and opera skeptic Samantha discuss how their experiences with opera as children influenced their opinions of the art form as adults.
A soprano is a soprano because they can sing high and a bass is a bass because they sing low, right? Not really...
A beginner’s guide to some of opera’s most challenging female roles and a unique look at how opera does girl power.
Opera has always been addicted to love, and its romances can range from the hilarious to the dramatic. But don’t expect a standard “Boy Meets Girl” story when you take your seat at the opera house.
A guide for all opera newbies, both young and old, with some hints as to how to calm the opera skeptic.
What does it really take to become a professional singer?
Featuring Eric Owens with Edith Bers, Anthony Freud, and Matthew Horner
In this video series, Renée Fleming and special guests demonstrate simple exercises for singers that develop and strengthen the muscles involved in healthy breathing.
A quick overview of Jeanine Tesori's 2019 opera that explores race, loss, and resilience
A quick overview of Philip Glass' 2015 opera set in both the end of the 1860s American Civil War and the 1960s American civil rights movement
A quick overview of Jeanine Tesori's 2013 opera about the animals of the first Christmas
A quick overview of Kevin Puts' 2011 opera about the 1914 World War I Christmas truce
A quick overview of Jake Heggie's 2010 opera based on the novel by Herman Melville
A quick overview of Rachel Portman's 2003 opera based on Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's timeless fairytale
A quick overview of Nicholas Maw's 2002 opera based on William Styron's 1979 novel
A quick overview of Jake Heggie's 2000 opera based on the book by Sister Helen Prejean
A quick overview of André Previn's 1998 opera based on the Tennessee Williams play
A quick overview of Daniel Catán's 1996 opera, inspired by the magical realism of author Gabriel García Márquez
A quick overview of Bernstein's 1956 operetta based on Voltaire's satirical novella
A quick overview of Stravinsky's 1951 homage to Mozart's operas
A quick overview of Britten's 1951 opera based on Herman Melville's novel
A quick overview of Weill's 1949 opera based on the novel Cry, the Beloved Country and set in the days before apartheid in South Africa
A quick overview of Britten's 1945 opera about a troubled fisherman
A quick overview of Gershwin's 1935 quintessential American masterpiece
A quick overview of Puccini's 1926 unfinished final opera
A quick overview of Berg's 1925 ground-breaking atonal opera
A quick overview of Puccini's 1918 comic opera inspired by Dante's Divine Comedy
A quick overview of Bartók's 1918 opera of the French folk tale
A quick overview of Strauss's 1916 mixing of commedia dell'arte with opera seria
A quick overview of Strauss's 1909 opera based on Sophocles' tragedy
A quick overview of Strauss's 1905 passionate drama
A quick overview of Puccini's 1904 tragic opera
A quick overview of Janáček's 1904 opera dedicated to the memory of his daughter
A quick overview of Puccini's 1900 tragic opera
A quick overview of Giordano's 1896 biographical opera set during the French Revolution
A quick overview of Puccini's 1895 passionate melodrama
A quick overview of Verdi's 1893 opera about Shakespeare's larger than life character
A quick overview of Puccini's 1893 historical opera
A quick overview of Humperdink's 1893 opera based on the Grimm brothers fairy tale
A quick overview of Verdi's 1887 opera of Shakespeare's tragedy
A quick overview of Verdi's 1886 Italian translation of his 1867 passionate political love story
A quick overview of Tchaikovsky's 1881 opera about Joan of Arc
A quick overview of Tchaikovsky's 1879 opera based on Alexander Pushkin's novel about regret
A quick overview of Camille Saint-Saëns's 1877 biblical epic opera
A quick overview of Richard Wagner's epic 15-hour four-opera cycle
A quick overview of Bizet's 1875 fiery tragic opera
A quick overview of Johann Strauss's 1874 comic operetta
A quick overview of Verdi's 1871 historical drama
A quick overview of Thomas's 1868 opera of Shakespeare's tragedy
A quick overview of Wagner's epic 1865 love story
A quick overview of Gounod's 1859 opera about a deal with the devil
A quick overview of Verdi's 1855 contribution to the French grand opera tradition
A quick overview of Verdi's 1853 sprawling melodrama
A quick overview of Verdi's 1853 sprawling melodrama
A quick overview of Verdi's 1853 tragic love story
A quick overview of Verdi's 1851 operatic masterpiece
A quick overview of Verdi's 1847 opera of Shakespeare's Scottish play
A quick overview of Wagner's 1843 maritime ghost story
A quick overview of Verdi's 1842 opera named for Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II
A quick overview of Donizetti's 1840 comic opera
A quick overview of Donizetti's 1838 tragic opera
A quick overview of Donizetti's 1833 melodramatic opera
A quick overview of Donizetti's 1832 operatic melodramma giocoso
A quick overview of Bellini's 1831 operatic tragedia lirica
A quick overview of Rossini's 1817 operatic dramma giocoso
A quick overview of Rossini's 1816 comic opera masterpiece
A quick overview of Beethoven's only opera
A quick overview of Rossini's 1813 operatic dramma giocoso
A quick overview of Mozart's 1791 magical comic opera
A quick overview of Mozart's 1791 opera seria set in the Roman Empire.
A quick overview of Mozart's 1789 tale of wit, deception, and seduction
A quick overview of Mozart's 1787 opera buffa about an arrogant nobleman who meets his match
A quick overview of Mozart's 1786 comic opera
A quick overview of Handel's 1735 epic tale of knights and sorcery
A quick overview of Handel's 1724 tragic opera set in the Ottoman Empire.
A quick overview of Purcell's 1689 opera about fate
A quick overview of Monteverdi's 1643 opera set in the Roman Empire
A quick overview of Monteverdi's 1607 tragic opera
A quick overview of the oldest surviving opera
![Angel Blue and Eric Owens in Porgy and Bess, photo by Ken Howard. [Metropolitan Opera]](/globalassets/education/resources-for-educators/classroom-resources/artsedge/media/understanding-opera/porgy-and-bess-2-169.jpg?format=webp&width=768&quality=70)
![1908 poster for Verdi's Aida, performed by the Hippodrome Opera Company of Cleveland, Ohio [Source]](/globalassets/education/resources-for-educators/classroom-resources/artsedge/media/understanding-opera/aida-2-169.jpg?format=webp&width=768&quality=70)
![Luigi Morgari (1857–1935), Il Trovatore poster, 19th century. Color lithograph. [Source]](/globalassets/education/resources-for-educators/classroom-resources/artsedge/media/understanding-opera/il-trovatore-169.jpg?format=webp&width=768&quality=70)
![Emile Finot, La fille du regiment poster, 1910 [Source]](/globalassets/education/resources-for-educators/classroom-resources/artsedge/media/understanding-opera/the-daughter-of-the-regiment-2-169.jpg?format=webp&width=768&quality=70)
![Stephen Costello, Ailyn Pérez, Simone Alberghini in The Elixir of Love [Scott Suchman for Washington National Opera]](/globalassets/education/resources-for-educators/classroom-resources/artsedge/media/understanding-opera/the-elixir-of-love-169.jpg?format=webp&width=768&quality=70)
![Adolph von Menzel (1815–1905), Théâtre du Gymnase in Paris, 1856. Oil on canvas. Alte Nationalgalerie [source]](/globalassets/education/resources-for-educators/classroom-resources/artsedge/media/understanding-opera/an-italian-in-algiers-169.jpg?format=webp&width=768&quality=70)
