ARIA SERIOUS?

Happy Monday. The Aria Serious crew will be taking today off. It was a long weekend but a very good one. In case you've been on Mars, in a cave, with your fingers in your ears we opened up our season on Saturday with Turandot . So this morning we will bask in the glory of reviews. - Don't come to Turando t for Nessun Dorma - come for the sets and the great cast says the San Diego Union Tribune . We also suggest you don't watch Star Wars just for the Trench Run. - Out West Arts says this Turandot will be hard to beat (two more are planned in California this year). - Concertonet praises the cast and the production in their review . And on the news front: - KPBS / Culture Lust has a wonderful piece on bringing our David Hockney sets together for Turandot - Turandot is a very chorus heavy opera - a look at our tiniest chorus members, the children - A look at tenor Carlo Ventre ( Calaf ) in En Lace (in Spanish) .

Some things we loved while watching Turandot these past few nights: - The unsteady steps of Reinhard Hagen's blind Timur as he navigates the stage. He's built like an ox, but inhabits his role so convincingly it looks like he could topple any moment. - Ermonela Jaho's face. One could watch the whole opera on her face without looking at the supertitles and know what is going on each moment - she telegraphs her character's emotions so well. - The xylophone in the first and second act and its distinct Chinese melody. - The light on Altoum's face during In questa reggia. - Perhaps the most memorable moment however is a moment that is so subtle at first we were not sure it was even happening - in the second act, as the children's chorus sings, the adult chorus hums at a level so low they blend in and out with the orchestra. It's a seductive moment, one that coaxes you to listen with new ears and is a perfect example of Puccini's mastery of music and stage...

Friday! And the Friday before our season opens, so you know what we'll be listening to this weekend... Turandot ! How about you? If you come to Turandot , be sure to let us know what you think. Saturday and Sunday are sold-out. Tuesday and Friday still have seats. Have a great weekend everyone. We'll have a full report come Monday.

What do you get when you cross Turandot with comics? A whole bunch of awesome. Earlier this week the Aria Serious crew invited some comic book artists to sketch a rehearsal of Turandot . While many did not show (we've since been told working with comic book artists is like herding cats) what we did receive was 28 individually wrapped presents that delighted us to no end. While this isn't the first time we've touched on comics and opera , what we're about to share excites us to no end. The sketches below are by Eric Shanower . Eric is a two time Eisner award winner and a New York Times bestselling author who's ongoing epic work, The Age of Bronze , is a detailed retelling of The Trojan War. Eric is also known for his Oz novels and comics. We've included links to his home page above and if you love comics, good storytelling and incredible art you owe yourself a visit. We also did a little Q&A session with Eric which you can find below. But you came here for ...

Although there are those that will argue that arts coverage is dead or dying, we say otherwise. Case in point: these two great articles that humanize the wacky world of opera and illustrate that the people we surround ourselves with are like family - from the stars to the chorus to the patrons that fill our seat. Take first, Valerie Scher's article on Rita Cartwright - a chorister with 71 operas under her belt . And then, from the other side of the curtain, a profile in City Beat by Kinsee Morlan on Alice Hartsuyker - a longtime subscriber who has brought multiple generations to the opera . It's compelling stuff, and a reminder as to why we do what we do. We hope you find them as enjoyable as we did.

Life in the fast lane, art as an illness, ancient Chinese folk tunes and love are the topics we cover in Stars in the Salon Turandot .

Over the weekend: - Who's afraid of the big bad opera? - XXX Opera. Trading in the high C's for the Double D's.... - The Birch North Park Theatre (home of Lyric Opera of San Diego) is up for sale .

3 podcasts in one week!? Why not. we have them. They're good. And Turandot opens in 8 days. Today's podcast features the lovely soprano Ermonela Jaho who sings Liu. In this one she talks about the role and about returning to San Diego. You can download the podcast here . Enjoy!

Friday - so it's time to ask: what are you listening to this weekend? The Aria Serious crew is taking a quick break from opera since it will be taking up our entire coming week which is fondly known as "tech week" (sometimes "heck week") here at the tower. We'll be heading up to Lou's Records to do some damage and pick up some holes in our record collection including some new EPs by The Naked and the Famous and Foster the People . Totally not opera, but catchy tunes nonetheless. Then it's Turandot , Turandot , Turandot . Life is good. Share your plans in the comment section below. And, please, make it a good one.

No, your calendars are correct - it is Thursday. We're just dropping two podcasts this week. Why? Because we love you of course, but also because we recorded a really good one this week with soprano Lise Lindstrom and don't want to wait . In it, she talks Turandot , the vocal demands of the role and her 11 th hour Met debut which is the stuff of opera legend. The podcasts are free, as always, and can be downloaded here . Enjoy!

We've added our brand new Flickr photostream to the right of this page. We hope you enjoy it. Just a word of caution - we're really bad photographers . But what we do well is make great opera. So in the end, let's just call it a wash.

This week, tenor Carlo Ventre talks the role of Calaf in Turandot . Like this podcast? We'll be interviewing other cast members throughout the season to get their take on their characters. Watch this space for more...

Over the weekend: - He led the passengers in a rousing rendition of " Nessun Dorma ." Not really, but fitting as our conductor and his wife spent the night of the floor of the (snowed in) Atlanta Airport. - German film director Wim Wenders in talks to direct the Ring at Bayreuth . - Our Stars in the Salon (formerly known as the Artist Roundtable ) is this Thursday at 5:30 PM . Remember, you can post your questions here and we'll ask them at the event.

Friday! And what a beautiful Friday it is (yes, allow us to gloat - we pay for this sunshine). It's time to ask, what are you listening to this weekend? We'll be retiring to the hammock this weekend to listen to Auber's Fra Diavolo - mostly because we've never listened to it before and found a copy used up at Amoeba records some time back. And because we like symmetry in our lives we'll have some homemade pasta from Assenti's and we'll cook up a fra diavolo sauce to go with it. We're just like that. Please have a great weekend and share your listening plans in the comment section below.

Our first Stars in the Salon (formerly known as The Artist Roundtable ) of the season is taking place next week on Thursday, January 20, 2011 at 5:30 PM in the Beverly Sills Salon. Lise Lindstrom , Carlo Ventre and others will talk about Puccini's masterpiece and answer questions from the audience. The event runs one-hour and is free to the public. You can find more information here. For those of you who live out of town, we'll be recording this event and should have it online a few days later. If you want to ask a question you can leave it in the comment section below or tweet your question to us @_ SanDiegoOpera and we'll ask it for you. We would like to add that's is sunny without a cloud in the sky today, so really, those of you snowed in might want to think about a vacation in sunny San Diego. You know you deserve it.

Last week, we announced a cast change for our cast of Der Rosenkavalier . Our dear friend Ferruccio Furlanetto decided not to add the role of Baron Ochs to his repertoire at this time. Luckily, the celebrated British bass-baritone Andrew Greenan was available and has joined our cast. Those of you who attend our performances regularly will remember Andrew for his 2008 house debut as Biterolf in Tannhauser . Later that season, he sang an incredibly powerful Lord Cecil opposite Kate Aldrich in Mary, Queen of Scots ( Maria Stuarda ). Andrew will come to San Diego immediately from singing Titurel in Parsifal with English National Opera. It should be interesting to note, that Andrew was originally scheduled to make his Company debut with us in 2005's Simon Boccanegra but asked to be released so he could sing his first Baron Ochs in Nancy, France. The wheel, it seems, has come full circle. For those of you wondering when you'll get to see Ferruccio next, you'll need t...

Since our season starts in just a few weeks, we thought it would be nice to feature some of the "Golden Moments" we're looking forward to in our 2011 season in this week's podcast. You can download the podcast here . Enjoy!

Over the weekend: - "Producing opera in today's economic climate is like pirouetting on the edge of a razor." A look at the economic of our 2011 season. - Of course, it helps when your season is ripe with tradition and passion. - A wonderful profile on our very own Dr. Nic Reveles who sat down with the Voice of San Diego to talk opera, country westerns and riding a century. - On the national scene, two opera companies are now competing in Virginia, where the drama offstage just might overshadow the drama onstage.

Friday! The first one of the new year and one of the last Fridays with any real meaning for the Aria Serious crew as opera season is here and we work most weekends. So, what are you going to listen to this weekend? We're doing some prep work and will listen to Turandot . Our singers arrive early next week to start rehearsal on Tuesday! We'll also catch Dr. Nic's lecture at MCASD on the designs of David Hockney on Sunday. If you want to attend as well you should RSVP as we're getting close to capacity. After that we're going to catch up some other music such as the new Iron & Wine LP which they performed live this week on NPR and delve into the Australian psychedelic scene with Tame Impala . Share your listening plans in the comment section below, and please, make it a good one! (Dog art up above by David Hockney )

The Aria Serious crew has received reports that last night's Supernumerary Open House was a solid success (we had personal plans that prevented us from being there first hand) and that cookies were indeed consumed and opera bingo was played. Had we known opera bingo was on the agenda we would've canceled our plans; there is nothing like singing out "Bingo" in a High C. We've put some photos below from the event last night so you can feel like you were part of the action, but remember - there is still time to become a Supernumerary. All you need to do is call (619) 533-7073 x333 and leave a message. We'll call you back. Promise.

We've mentioned them here a few times already, but the wonderful La Jolla Light has written a nice article about our upcoming series of Community Conversations that cover everything from David Hockney, to the Devil and concepts of evil, ancient Chinese melodies, not to mention relationships and putting the "fun" back into dysfunctional. The lectures are free and we have few exciting ones coming up. You can read the article at the clicky above and you can RSVP for the conversations by clicking here . We do require an RSVP as these events always reach capacity. We hope to see you at one. Or all of them.

Opera has lots of moving parts. Singers, musicians, choristers, dancers, stagehands - you name it - if it moves it is probably in opera. The unsung heroes of opera (hey, we made an unintentional pun!) are the supernumeraries (or supers) - those with no speaking parts but whose presence helps populate the stage to create a living breathing world. San Diego Opera is holding an open house for people interested in joining us for the 2011 season (and beyond) as supers. The open house is this Thursday, January 6, 2011 in the evening. Interested individuals are encouraged to call ( 619) 533-7073 x333 for more information. (If you can't make the open house but are still interested in being a super that's OK and that's still the number to call).Being a super does require lots of time commitment on weekends and evenings. But you get the best seat in the house, but you can't sing along. Don't even think of singing along. Did we mention there will be cookies?

Are you like us and still working your way through your email backlog from the holiday? Don't know what to listen to? Why not the orchestral interludes of Carmen . Incidentally, our topic for this week's podcast . Well, technically last week's podcast, but who's keeping track of these things.