RADIO ACTIVE WITH JESSICA NG, MIN DHARIWAL
LISTEN TO THE SEGMENT HERE: Opera Wager | RADIO ACTIVE WITH JESSICA NG, MIN DHARIWAL
Performers: Robert Clark (tenor and anthem singer) and Helen Hassinger (soprano)
Lyrics: Joel Ivany (artistic director, Edmonton Opera)
“Full of smart twists, raw emotion and bold partnerships, Edmonton Opera has just announced its 2024/25 season — No. 61 — with plenty of time to catch this year’s remaining productions.” - Fish Griwkowsky, Edmonton Journal
Bill Rankin Review - Opera Canada
Radio Active with Jessica Ng, Min Dhariwal
If you’re under 21 and haven’t yet grabbed a free opera ticket being gifted for the 2023/24 season as Edmonton Opera celebrates its 60th year, there are a few productions left, including Richard Wagner’s Das Rheingold (The Ring). The production shocked the world when first performed in 1869, and despite the parallels of Gods, giants, dwarves and a magic golden ring, J. R. R. Tolkien insists any comparison with his work beyond the ring is mere conjecture.
After undertaking a multi-stage selection process including candidate evaluation via the Work Personality Index, our search committee is excited to announce Holly Kroeker will be joining Edmonton Opera as Head of Artistic Operations.
Raised in Grande Prairie and a proud Albertan, Holly is excited to be returning to her roots to join Edmonton Opera as Head of Artistic Operations.
Holly brings strong experience in arts administration coupled with a deep knowledge of the opera industry. Most recently, she served for three seasons as the Artistic and Administrative Associate for the Atelier Lyrique at Opera de Montréal where she worked with the emerging professional artists as a member of the leadership team, helping to coordinate, facilitate, and develop one of Canada’s most dynamic young artist training programs.
Holly has an undergraduate degree in Piano Performance (University of Alberta) and a master's degree in collaborative piano (University of Toronto). She is a graduate of the Yulanda M. Faris Program (Vancouver Opera), the Atelier Lyrique (Opera de Montreal) and the Opera in the 21st Century program (Banff Centre) - where she is currently a resident faculty member.
In addition to artistic administration, Holly is an accomplished opera coach and repetiteur. She has worked on the music staffs of several opera companies across Canada including Vancouver Opera, Opera de Montreal, Against the Grain Theatre, Opera Kelowna, and our very own Edmonton Opera!
We are thrilled to welcome Holly to the team!
Edmonton Journal preview of Don Giovanni
“In opera, staging exists on a spectrum. At one end, there is “grand” opera, that barely movable feast, with its complex sets and glamorous costumes. At the other end is “concert” opera, where singers typically dress in formal attire and stand in front of an orchestra, distilling the art form to only its musical elements.” - David Patrick Stearns, Opera America
“Considering the students they teach; the artists they mentor; the audiences they generate, perform for, and move; and all the experiences they accumulate along the way, 13 years in, Ivany and Khalil are really just getting started.” - Eva Stone-Barney, La Scena Musicale
“: This was a better than solid, perfectly clear rendition of the kind of canonic work Edmonton audiences have always appreciated.”
Radio Active with Jassica Ng, Min Dhariwal
Rehearsals are in full swing as our Artistic Director Joel Ivany sits down with Edmonton Journal to discuss Carmen and the 60th season. Find out what’s in store for this year:
Francis Price
We are absolutely thrilled to share the news that our beloved board member, Francis Price, has been honoured with the prestigious National Opera Trustee Recognition Award!
This award, bestowed by the Opera America and Association for Opera in Canada, acknowledges exemplary leadership and service, and we couldn’t be prouder that Francis has been recognized among the visionary leaders of the opera world. This award is a testament not only to Francis’ tireless efforts within our organization, but also to the broader influence and impact of opera nationally.
Francis has been an Edmonton Opera board member for over 20 years, and has made significant contributions to our success, notably leading an annual endowment campaign that raised millions of dollars over the past decade. He supports us as a donor, hosts visiting artists, and provides valuable insight to the Board and management team. Francis has been instrumental in supporting young artists and promoting diverse storytelling through partnerships with other arts organizations such as Fringe Festival and Pop Goes the Opera.
This recognition is truly well deserved! Please join us in congratulating Francis on this extraordinary moment for him and for our entire Edmonton Opera family. Bravo!
Sue Fitzsimmons
For immediate release: June 20, 2022
EDMONTON OPERA ANNOUNCES SUE FITZSIMMONS AS NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Sue Fitzsimmons comes to the Edmonton Opera after serving as a Vice President at both the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology and Medicine Hat College. She is a long-time Edmontonian who believes in the power of creativity and the arts to build and sustain community. Sue has a track record with over 15 years of senior leadership experience helping professional, leadership, and executive teams accomplish outcomes critical to their missions. For Edmonton Opera, that mission is to bring the community together through meaningful artistic experiences that celebrate our shared humanity–a mission that resonates deeply with Sue, given the challenges the world is facing.
Sue will work closely with the Opera’s Artistic Director, Joel Ivany, who welcomes her arrival saying: “We are lucky to have Sue join the team at such an important time. We will all benefit from her leadership, generosity and experience. She is going to be a difference maker.”
Sue’s early career began as a music educator. She taught music methods within the Faculty of Education at the University of Alberta and University of Winnipeg. She is an experienced choral singer, and plays piano well and guitar “rather poorly.” Sue holds a PhD from the University of Alberta.
In the summer, you’ll find Sue wandering through off-leash parks with her big black dog, paddleboarding on the North Saskatchewan River with her husband and daughter, or exploring Edmonton’s food scene by bicycle. In the winter, you’ll find her playing defense on a women’s ice hockey team, cross-country skiing in the mountains with her family, or making music with friends.
Sue is thrilled to join the team at Edmonton Opera!
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Media Availability
Interviews with Edmonton Opera’s Executive Director Sue Fitzsimmons are available. For inquiries or to schedule an interview, please contact Madison Kerr, Director of Marketing & Patron Services at (780) 940-6803 or madison.kerr@edmontonopera.com.
For immediate release: May 30, 2022
Edmonton Opera is proud to announce Joel Ivany’s first season as Artistic Director of Edmonton Opera. “In Toronto, they have called Joel’s work ‘electric and exciting’ and that is exactly how we feel the new season will be for Edmonton”, said board chair, Tom Bradley. “We believe our company is shaping up to be a dynamic, new force in this city.”
Ivany himself said “the season will be the start of an adventure, with new experiences for many and, for others, some new ways of experiencing opera.”
“But this will also be the season where we bring grand opera back to Edmonton. We open with Puccini’s Tosca, one of the grandest of all operas, in a production from Seattle Opera. Our Tosca will be celebrated American soprano, Karen Slack.”
“Our second production on the main stage of the Jubilee Auditorium will be Gluck’s Orphée+, which goes back to the very beginning of opera. But this presentation will be a modern feast for the eyes and ears and a new opera experience for Edmonton audiences. I am truly excited about that.”
Ivany also announced that “because of the extraordinary generosity of Grace and Arnold Rumbold, this season Edmonton Opera will host the first annual Rumbold Vocal Prize, a new and prestigious event for emerging Canadian singers. The public will be invited to a masterclass for Rumbold competitors, held by internationally acclaimed Adrianne Pieczonka in the foyer of the Jubilee Auditorium. And before the final prizes are awarded, finalists for the Rumbold Vocal Prize will perform before the judges. That too will be open to the public and a first opportunity for Edmontonians to see some of Canada’s most promising vocal artists.”
In the 22/23 season, Edmonton Opera will also present a uniquely staged and choreographed performance of Pergolesi's Stabat Mater, a Home for the Holidays concert in December following the Opera’s first holiday concert last year, and a new partnership with the Citadel Theatre of My First Hundred Years, a cabaret featuring Edmonton’s own, extraordinarily talented Andrew MacDonald-Smith.
Ivany said “we are thrilled to be back with a full season.”
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Notes to media:
· Season details are provided in this notice to subscribers: http://edmontonopera.com/season/
· Visual assets attached
Media Availability
Interviews with Edmonton Opera’s Artistic Director Joel Ivany are available. For inquiries or to schedule an interview, please contact Madison Kerr, Director of Marketing & Patron Services at (780) 940-6803 or madison.kerr@edmontonopera.com.
