Latest news with #Racette
San Francisco Chronicle
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
Soprano Patricia Racette to become artistic director of the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis
Soprano Patricia Racette will become artistic director of the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, filling a key management position of a company she has been associated with since her debut there in 1993. General Director Andrew Jorgensen said Tuesday that she will take over on Oct. 1 from James Robinson, who had been artistic director since 2009 and announced in June that he was becoming general and artistic director of the Seattle Opera. Racette has headed the St. Louis company's young artist programs since 2019. 'I already have such a rich relationship with the company and with Andrew, so it's sort of taking it to the next level,' she said. 'It is my job to sort of be a leader in terms of programming, casting, creatives.' The company's 2025 season has 25 staged performances of four works, including the world premiere on May 31 of Ricky Ian Gordon's 'This House,' with a libretto by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage and her daughter, Ruby Aiyo Gerber. The company projects its operating budget at $12.5 million to $13 million. Racette, who turns 60 next month, made her directing debut in St. Louis with Verdi's 'La Traviata' in 2018 and went on to direct in Poulenc's 'La Voix Humaine' in 2021 and Carlisle Floyd's 'Susannah' in 2023. 'Having lived my life on stage and now as a director, I've been on both sides of the curtain,' she said. 'I think that puts me in a unique position to understand what goes into putting on an opera.' Racette is to sing in Polenc's 'Dialogues des Carmélites' at The Dallas Opera in November and to direct her 'Susannah' at Opera Omaha in January. She will work in St. Louis with an administration that includes principal conductor Daniela Candillari and already has been involved in future programming. 'As she's added master teacher, as she's added mentor, as she has become a stage director, as she has taken a greater role in casting here,' Jorgensen said, 'she has proven just time and again that all of those skills that made her such a spectacular performer, she now understands how to how to bring all of that, harness it and leverage it for the broader benefit of the organization.'
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Soprano Patricia Racette to become artistic director of the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis
Soprano Patricia Racette will become artistic director of the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, filling a key management position of a company she has been associated with since her debut there in 1993. General Director Andrew Jorgensen said Tuesday that she will take over on Oct. 1 from James Robinson, who had been artistic director since 2009 and announced in June that he was becoming general and artistic director of the Seattle Opera. Racette has headed the St. Louis company's young artist programs since 2019. 'I already have such a rich relationship with the company and with Andrew, so it's sort of taking it to the next level,' she said. 'It is my job to sort of be a leader in terms of programming, casting, creatives.' The company's 2025 season has 25 staged performances of four works, including the world premiere on May 31 of Ricky Ian Gordon's 'This House,' with a libretto by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage and her daughter, Ruby Aiyo Gerber. The company projects its operating budget at $12.5 million to $13 million. ADVERTISEMENT Racette, who turns 60 next month, made her directing debut in St. Louis with Verdi's 'La Traviata' in 2018 and went on to direct in Poulenc's 'La Voix Humaine' in 2021 and Carlisle Floyd's 'Susannah' in 2023. 'Having lived my life on stage and now as a director, I've been on both sides of the curtain,' she said. 'I think that puts me in a unique position to understand what goes into putting on an opera.' Racette is to sing in Polenc's 'Dialogues des Carmélites' at The Dallas Opera in November and to direct her 'Susannah' at Opera Omaha in January. She will work in St. Louis with an administration that includes principal conductor Daniela Candillari and already has been involved in future programming. 'As she's added master teacher, as she's added mentor, as she has become a stage director, as she has taken a greater role in casting here,' Jorgensen said, 'she has proven just time and again that all of those skills that made her such a spectacular performer, she now understands how to how to bring all of that, harness it and leverage it for the broader benefit of the organization.' Ronald Blum, The Associated Press
Winnipeg Free Press
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Winnipeg Free Press
Soprano Patricia Racette to become artistic director of the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis
Soprano Patricia Racette will become artistic director of the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, filling a key management position of a company she has been associated with since her debut there in 1993. General Director Andrew Jorgensen said Tuesday that she will take over on Oct. 1 from James Robinson, who had been artistic director since 2009 and announced in June that he was becoming general and artistic director of the Seattle Opera. Racette has headed the St. Louis company's young artist programs since 2019. 'I already have such a rich relationship with the company and with Andrew, so it's sort of taking it to the next level,' she said. 'It is my job to sort of be a leader in terms of programming, casting, creatives.' FILE - Patricia Racette, appears at the San Francisco Opera House in San Francisco on June 7, 2006. (AP Photo/Ben Margot, File) The company's 2025 season has 25 staged performances of four works, including the world premiere on May 31 of Ricky Ian Gordon's 'This House,' with a libretto by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage and her daughter, Ruby Aiyo Gerber. The company projects its operating budget at $12.5 million to $13 million. Racette, who turns 60 next month, made her directing debut in St. Louis with Verdi's 'La Traviata' in 2018 and went on to direct in Poulenc's 'La Voix Humaine' in 2021 and Carlisle Floyd's 'Susannah' in 2023. 'Having lived my life on stage and now as a director, I've been on both sides of the curtain,' she said. 'I think that puts me in a unique position to understand what goes into putting on an opera.' Racette is to sing in Polenc's 'Dialogues des Carmélites' at The Dallas Opera in November and to direct her 'Susannah' at Opera Omaha in January. She will work in St. Louis with an administration that includes principal conductor Daniela Candillari and already has been involved in future programming. 'As she's added master teacher, as she's added mentor, as she has become a stage director, as she has taken a greater role in casting here,' Jorgensen said, 'she has proven just time and again that all of those skills that made her such a spectacular performer, she now understands how to how to bring all of that, harness it and leverage it for the broader benefit of the organization.'
Hindustan Times
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Soprano Patricia Racette to become artistic director of the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis
Soprano Patricia Racette will become artistic director of the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, filling a key management position of a company she has been associated with since her debut there in 1993. Soprano Patricia Racette to become artistic director of the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis General Director Andrew Jorgensen said Tuesday that she will take over on Oct. 1 from James Robinson, who had been artistic director since 2009 and announced in June that he was becoming general and artistic director of the Seattle Opera. Racette has headed the St. Louis company's young artist programs since 2019. 'I already have such a rich relationship with the company and with Andrew, so it's sort of taking it to the next level,' she said. 'It is my job to sort of be a leader in terms of programming, casting, creatives.' The company's 2025 season has 25 staged performances of four works, including the world premiere on May 31 of Ricky Ian Gordon's 'This House,' with a libretto by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage and her daughter, Ruby Aiyo Gerber. The company projects its operating budget at $12.5 million to $13 million. Racette, who turns 60 next month, made her directing debut in St. Louis with Verdi's 'La Traviata' in 2018 and went on to direct in Poulenc's 'La Voix Humaine' in 2021 and Carlisle Floyd's 'Susannah' in 2023. 'Having lived my life on stage and now as a director, I've been on both sides of the curtain,' she said. 'I think that puts me in a unique position to understand what goes into putting on an opera.' Racette is to sing in Polenc's 'Dialogues des Carmélites' at The Dallas Opera in November and to direct her 'Susannah' at Opera Omaha in January. She will work in St. Louis with an administration that includes principal conductor Daniela Candillari and already has been involved in future programming. 'As she's added master teacher, as she's added mentor, as she has become a stage director, as she has taken a greater role in casting here,' Jorgensen said, 'she has proven just time and again that all of those skills that made her such a spectacular performer, she now understands how to how to bring all of that, harness it and leverage it for the broader benefit of the organization.' This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
New York Times
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Soprano Patricia Racette to Lead Opera Theater of St. Louis
Racette said she would build on Opera Theater's reputation for experimentation. The company, founded in 1976, has given the premiere of works like Terence Blanchard's 'Fire Shut Up in My Bones,' which later became the first work by a Black composer to be presented by the Metropolitan Opera. She said that she hoped to work with a variety of contemporary composers, including Kevin Puts, Jonathan Dove and Missy Mazzoli. 'I have a perspective and passion for new works, and I'm going to enjoy applying that perspective and passion again on the other side of the curtain,' she said. Racette, who made her debut at the Met in 1995, is known for her portrayals of Puccini heroines. She has also ventured into other genres, including cabaret, which she said she hoped to bring to St. Louis. She said opera companies should not fear crossover repertoire. 'These are our stories and traditions,' she said. 'It's an opportunity for accessibility, relevance and impact.' Many opera companies, including Opera Theater of St. Louis, are grappling with rising costs and the lingering effects of the pandemic. The company has benefited from a robust endowment, which is currently valued at about $100 million, and is exploring building a new home at the former headquarters of a shoe company in Clayton, a suburb of St. Louis. (Its theater is in another suburb, Webster Groves.)
