News & Reviews

The word "genius" gets tossed around a lot in the music world, but most agree that Wolfgang A. Mozart deserves the accolade. Conductor Steven Smith and stage director Lillian Groag, who are collaborating on Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro," have no trouble citing...

“I think ‘Streetcar’ is an opera already, except that it doesn’t have music,” composer André Previn once said in sizing up Tennessee Williams’ play “A Streetcar Named Desire.” Virginia Opera’s powerhouse production of Previn’s three-hour 1998 opera, “A Streetcar Named...

"Hey Stelllaaa! Hey Stelllaaa!"  Marlon Brando's bellow in the film of "A Streetcar Named Desire" is one of the most memorable moments in cinema history. Drunk and soaked, Brando's Stanley Kowalski is a brutish animal calling for his mate, and Stella doesn't...

Virginia Opera’s third installment in their 2013 American series, A Streetcar Named Desire, an opera in three acts premiered at George Mason University’s Center for the Arts on Friday, March 1, 2013 at 8:00 pm. Originally written in 1947 by American playwright Thomas...

"This is one of those rare productions in which the cast, director, conductor, and designers are all deeply committed to the story and were pretty much on the same page from day one." Virginia Opera’s production of André Previn’s A Streetcar Named Desire, based on the...

The Virginia Opera once again takes a daring move, bringing its company and Fairfax County premiere production of André Previn’s “A Streetcar Named Desire” to George Mason University’s Center for the Arts tomorrow, March 1, 2013 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, March 3, 2013 at...

Virginia Opera's production of Andre Previn's "A Streetcar Named Desire" arrives at George Mason University's Center for the Arts this week. This third installment in the company's American opera cycle is based on Tennessee Williams' Pulitzer Prize-winning play set in...

The Virginia Opera production of A Streetcar Named Desire gave a new perspective on a classic American play, then movie and now an opera (1998). Director Sam Helfrich has said “I discovered that the music had the ability to cleverly reveal aspects of each character...

“Who wants real? I know I don’t want it. I want magic!” are lines of dialogue many know. In the past, these lines from Tennessee Williams’ legendary 1948 Pulitzer Prize winning “A Streetcar Named Desire” have been spoken, and not associated with music or singing. That...

Does it conjure up images of long dead classical composers like Mozart and Verdi; centuries old tales filled with plot twists involving Valkyries and sprites; divas belting out songs in German or Italian? The Virginia Opera is boldly trying to change those perceptions...