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Hot Date: Semele at the Canadian Opera Company

photo by Karl Forster

MAY 9 TO 26 The Canadian Opera Company brings its 2011-12 season to a dramatic close with Handel’s Semele, the story of a mortal woman who falls in love with the god Jupiter, but in doing so enrages his cunning and powerful wife, Juno. Director Zhang Huan weaves Greco-Roman and Eastern mythology in this visually stunning production featuring ornate and vibrant costumes and grandiose set design, the centrepiece of which is a real, 450-year-old Ming Dynasty temple. Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, $12 to $318; call 416-363-8231 or visit here for showtimes and tickets.

Weekend Roundup: May 4-6

Friday: Kurt Browning and friends skate into the Air Canada Centre

Friday, May 3
Prepare for a night of great music, stunning choreography and superstar skaters as Stars on Ice comes to the Air Canada Centre. Directed by four-time world champion Kurt Browning, this year’s extravaganza of fancy footwork shines the spotlight on such big names as Olympic medalists Joannie Rochette and ice-dance duo Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir.

Loosen up your laughing muscles for one of the most acclaimed comedians of the 20th century, as Jerry Seinfeld takes the stage at the Sony Centre as part of his Just for Laughs tour. The tour has proven so popular that the sitcom star and observational humorist is playing four shows over a two-night stint.

Experience works by Spanish artist Pablo Picasso—from his enormous personal collection—at the Art Gallery of Ontario. The multi-disciplined master sold hundreds of paintings in his lifetime, but kept thousands more for himself; nearly 150 of these drawings, paintings and sculptures are on display now. (more…)

Hot Date: The COC’s Hoffman Regales

photo by Kurt van der Elst

APRIL 10 TO MAY 15 “A poet walks into a bar”—it’s a line that might open a hackneyed joke, but serves far better as the premise of Jacques Offenbach’s The Tales of Hoffman, a virtuosic ode to Gothic-Romantic writer E.T.A. Hoffman. Offenbachs’s final, incomplete work is considered one of his most famous, a rumination on lost loves, times past, and the stranglehold of an artist’s creative muse. The Canadian Opera Company production of this brooding, passionate work is not to be missed. Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, $45 to $318; call 416-363-8231 or visit here for showtimes and tickets.

Weekend Roundup: February 17 to 19

Friday: Only a few shows remain for Cruel and Tender (photo by Bruce Zinger)

Friday, February 17
Don’t miss one of your final opportunities to see Atom Egoyan’s return to his theatre roots as he directs his wife, Arsinee Khanjian, in Martin Crimp’s tour-de-force Cruel and Tender. This drama, which contrasts private battles and public wars, is on stage at the Bluma Appel Theatre until February 18.

Independent music showcase Wavelength celebrates its 12th anniversary with a four-night extravaganza of the newest and brightest in pop, rock and electronic music. Tonight’s lineup features Toronto’s own critically lauded hardcore band F*cked Up.

Virtuosic pianist Leon Fleisher commands the attention of the audience at Koerner Hall, as he and the Royal Conservatory Orchestra perform a bold selection of works by such masters as Ravel, Beethoven and Prokofiev.

Bonus Pick! Make your way to Indigo‘s Manulife Centre location tonight to hear newly minted Giller Prize winner Esi Edugyan discuss her acclaimed novel, Half-Blood Blues, with the Globe and Mail‘s Sandra Martin. (more…)

Hot Date: Admire the COC’s Love From Afar

FEBRUARY 2 TO 22 A 12th-century love story gets a 21st-century makeover when director Daniele Finzi Pasca brings his striking visual style to Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho’s opera, Love from Afar. The Canadian Opera Company presents this story of a world-weary medieval troubadour from France who sets sail to find the Countess of Tripoli, his vision of ideal love. Baritone Russell Braun plays the troubadour Jaufré, while Erin Wall makes her COC debut as the object of his desire, Clémence. Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, $12 to $318; for showtimes and tickets, call 416-363-8231 or click here.

Weekend Roundup: January 20 to 22

Friday: Clarinetist James Campbell performs with Sinfonia Toronto (photo by Tim Leyes)

Friday, January 20
Start your weekend with a touch of class at Sinfonia Toronto’s Black and White performance at the Glenn Gould Studio. Featuring the talents of Canadian clarinetist James Campbell and Russian pianist Dmitry Gordin, the recital—of chamber works by Shostakovich and Mozart—promises to weave these two exquisite soloists together in a musical dialogue you won’t soon forget.

You won’t be able to sit still as Harbourfront Centre reprises its Dance Ontario Weekend, a three-day extravaganza with dozens of local dancers, choreographers and musicians. Enjoy a heart-pounding spectrum of musical styles—from ballet, to flamenco, to Middle Eastern—both live and on film.

Our beloved Sesame Street muppets are all grown up, and foul-mouthed to boot. Tony Award-winning Avenue Q, the riotous coming-of-age musical comes to the Lower Ossington Theatre, and explores coming-of-age anxieties through such tongue-in-cheek numbers as “What Do You Do With a B.A. in English?” and “Everyone’s a Little Bit Racist.”

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Save the Date: the Canadian Opera Company’s 2012/13 Season

The Four Seasons Centre is sure to fill up for the COC's seven 2012/13 productions

The title of this post is a little misleading. In actual fact, we encourage you to save multiple dates—the Canadian Opera Company this morning announced its 2012/13 season lineup of seven classic and modern works. With so many big-name Canadian singers and directors headlining the program, we can no doubt look forward to an amazing few months of drama and music.

Giuseppe Verdi’s Il Trovatore kicks off the season at the Four Seasons Centre on September 29. The story of a vengeful gypsy and her son’s romance with a noblewoman has captivated audiences for more than 150 years—the COC’s production is likely to continue that trend. In particular we’re counting on a fiery appearance by Mexican tenor Ramón Vargas in the lead role of Manrico.

Later, look for arguably Canada’s most famous opera singer, Ben Heppner, when he performs his signature role in Wagner’s grandiose saga Tristan und Isolde. The company’s first show for a shiny new 2013 (opening January 29), it’s conducted by celebrated Czech maestro Jiri Belohlavek and helmed by world-renowed director Peter Sellars, whose incorporation of imagery by video artist Bill Viola makes this staging truly contemporary.

Speaking of acclaimed directors, following on the heels of his theatrical work for the Canadian Stage Company’s Cruel and Tender (on now), Atom Egoyan takes another break from film with an adaptation of Salome (opening April 21, 2013) Richard Strauss’s one-act opera based on Oscar Wilde’s play of the same name.

The best is perhaps saved for last when the COC’s 63rd season wraps up in May 2013 with Francis Poulenc’s haunting Dialogues des Carmelites, said to contain one of opera’s most devastating yet memorable finales. Toronto-born, internationally celebrated director Robert Carsen returns to the Four Seasons Centre for a third consecutive year (his recent productions of Orfeo ed Euridice and Iphigenia in Tauris were hailed by critics and audiences alike). The bar is raised even higher thanks to a cast that includes a marquee pair of Canadian sopranos, Isabel Bayrakdarian and Adrianne Pieczonka.

Hot Date: Midday Music at the Four Seasons Centre

photo by Karen Reeves

ON NOW Add some culture to your lunch break courtesy of the Canadian Opera Company’s free concert series. Every Tuesday and Thursday from noon to 1 p.m., the institution hosts a slate of exceptional performances ranging from small dance productions, piano recitals, world music, vocal jazz and more, including notable upcoming shows like East Meets West (January 19), featuring artists of the COC Orchestra performing works by Debussy and Tan Dun, and a vocal recital by COC talents Russell Braun, Erin Wall and Krisztina Szabó (February 16). Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre; call 416-363-8231 or click here for more information.

Hot Date: The Sublime Tragedy of Rigoletto

Rigoletto character sketch by costume designer Michael Levine

SEPTEMBER 29 TO OCTOBER 22 One of Giuseppe Verdi’s most remarkable works returns to the stage in a new production by the Canadian Opera Company. The three-act Rigoletto presents the tragic tale of a court jester who seeks to avenge his daughter after she is seduced and deceived by a cold-hearted duke. Yet, despite his best efforts, the poor fool stands to lose all that matters to him. Featuring both established and rising opera stars, the COC’s staging is set to entertain and enthrall in equal measure, thanks to Verdi’s beloved arias and a heartrending libretto inspired by a Victor Hugo play. Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, $12 to $318; call 416-363-8231 or visit here for showtimes and tickets.

Weekend Roundup, September 23 to 25

Friday: See Bryan Baeumler and other design and renovation experts this weekend at the Fall Home Show

Friday, September 23
Pick up tips and tricks for your next home improvement venture at the Fall Home Show. The Better Living Centre at Exhibition Place hosts this year’s weekend-long event where vendors and design experts—including HGTV’s Bryan Baeumler—showcase the latest products in home design.

Let’s go Leafs! Celebrate the return of hockey season with exhibition games at the Air Canada Centre. The Toronto Maple Leafs take on the Buffalo Sabres tonight in exciting pre-season action.

Shop for vintage and independent designs at The Clothing Show held at the Queen Elizabeth Building, Exhibition Place. The three day event features over 300 booths from sample sales to local Canadian designers guaranteed to be a fun shopping experience.

Saturday: Chess the Musical brings '80s music and politics back to the stage

Saturday, September 24
See the critically acclaimed Chess the Musical today at the Princess of Wales Theatre. A world chess competition, a love triangle, and the Cold War are all plot elements in this lively musical, fresh from its sold-out tour of the U.K.

Listen to Emmy-nominated comedian and political commentator Bill Maher at Massey Hall. He is best known for his satirical opinions on current events and his HBO show Real Time.

Enjoy the opening of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra‘s 90th season with special guest Christopher Plummer. The Canadian actor narrates classic Shakespeare accompanied by the TSO at Roy Thompson Hall.

Sunday: Iphigenia in Tauris offers high drama

Sunday, September 25
Broaden your horizons with the Canadian Opera Company‘s rendition of Iphigenia in Tauris. This dramatic opera featuring Susan Graham—the world’s foremost Iphigenia—opens the company’s 61st season.

Laugh at the outrageous Kathy Griffin as she performs a stand-up routine that’s packed with appropriately catty commentary and celebrity gossip. Of course, the self-proclaimed D-List comedienne is an equal opportunity insulter—she readily draws on her own hilarious experiences, too, in her show at the Sony Centre for the Performing Arts.

What’s the The Word on The Street? It’s a free festival celebrating literacy by featuring authors, editors, publishers and other exhibitors. As one would expect from such a major book and magazine fair, there is also a wide range of Canadian literature and periodicals for purchase.