The 2013-2014 season features the return of two of Opera Atelier’s most-loved productions: Mozart’s Abduction from the Seraglio and Lully’s Persée. We are thrilled to announce that Persée will also travel to the Royal Opera House at the Palace of Versailles for three performances in May 2014!
Note: At this time, tickets can only be purchased as part of a subscription to our two-opera season. Tickets to the individual productions will go on sale August 6, 2013 via Ticketmaster.
“This production is so accessible, so attractive, so well-acted and so well-sung it would make a splendid introduction to opera in general and to Opera Atelier in particular.”
- Christopher Hoile, Eye Weekly review of Abduction from the Seraglio
The season kicks off with Abduction from the Seraglio, a colourful comedy that tells of the charming antics of Belmonte and Pedrillo, a master and servant who must rescue their beloveds from the harem of the Pasha Selim. A revival of our highly successful production, this opera– featuring some of Mozart’s most demanding arias – is the perfect showcase for our artists’ vocal prowess and comedic acting chops, promising “a zesty pace and lots of laughs” (Classical 96.3 FM).
“A new vision of the baroque that enchants and seduces a contemporary audience. Persée is a gorgeous piece of music theatre, commanding and confident.”
– Globe and Mail review of Persée
When we first produced it in 2000, Opera Atelier “rescued Persée from two centuries of slumber, to the astonishment and delight of audiences and critics alike” (The Toronto Star). We are thrilled to be returning to one of the company’s cornerstone productions this season, and to be bringing it to Versailles, where it has not been on stage since it inaugurated the Royal Opera House in 1770. Called “an exquisite piece” (The Globe and Mail) and “a masterful ‘run-don’t-walk’ production” (Classical 96.3 FM), and “a resounding triumph” (The WholeNote), Persée is a lavish retelling of the classic Perseus myth.
The 2013-2014 season features the return of many of Opera Atelier’s favourite performers, including Ambur Braid, Lawrence Wiliford, and Carla Huhtanen in Abduction from the Seraglio, and Peggy Kriha Dye, Olivier Laquerre and Mireille Asselin in Persée. Both productions feature the Artists of Atelier Ballet, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and Chamber Choir under the baton of David Fallis, and Gerard Gauci’s stunning set designs.
As an Opera Atelier subscriber, you get priority access to the best seats in the house at a reduced rate. You also make an invaluable contribution to the vitality and stability of an internationally recognized, Toronto-based opera company.