Page 8 - 2020 Classical Singer Magazine January Summer Program Issue

BulletinBoard NEWS, TIDBITS, MUSINGS, AND MORE — BY MARIA NOCKIN
San Francisco Opera Announces New
Music Director
According to the Opera News, General Director Matthew Shilvock has announced that Eun Sun Kim will be San Francisco Opera’s next music director as of August 1, 2021. The fourth person to hold that position in the company’s history, she is the first woman ever to rise to that level. Expected to be a creative leader, she will participate in shaping the artistic policies
of the opera’s second century and she will help to bring opera to larger Bay Area audiences. Even now, as music director designate, Kim will participate
in holding orchestral auditions and take part in the planning of future seasons. During the opening weekend of the 2020–21 season, she will conduct the
Star Tenor Vittorio Grigolo Fired for Problematic Behavior
The United Kingdom publication the S un alleged that during the Royal Opera’s tour of Japan in September 2019, Vittorio Grigolo groped a chorus woman during
a curtain call in front of fellow performers and the audience. It is also alleged that when asked to stop, he argued with other cast members.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the Royal Opera House concluded that the tenor’s behavior was inappropriate and aggressive at a curtain call saying, “We have, therefore, concluded that he will not return to perform in Lucia di Lammermoor at the Royal Opera House in 2020. We will announce new casting for this in due course.” Shortly after he was dismissed from the Royal Opera, the tenor was also removed from the roster at the Metropolitan Opera.
n.pr/2EbtipZ
company’s new production of Beethoven’s Fidelio.
Shilvock says, “She leads
with great vision on the podium
but also welcomes each and
every person into the creative
process, inviting them to
do their very best work. The
resulting art is spectacular.
This community can look forward to a future of extraordinary music-making that connects deeply to the core of what it means to be human.”
bit.ly/35aKDv3
New Executive and Development Director Joins Paci c Opera Project
According to Broadway World, on November 1, 2019, Pacific Opera Project announced the appointment
of Matt Cook as its new executive and development director. Of his new
position, Cook says,
“I’m thrilled to join
Josh Shaw’s vision of
creating affordable
and entertaining opera.
Serving the entire Los
Angeles community has
been a dream of mine
for many years, and
Pacific Opera Project is
light years ahead of their
peers in the effort to
cultivate new audiences
in the Facebook age. I
couldn’t be more excited to join the team and meet so many new opera fans.”
Recently, Cook held positions in development and production with the Wild Up new music ensemble where he oversaw all events and fundraising activities. He has also produced performances for the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Fluxus Festival and New York City’s Ecstatic Music Festival.
Eun Sun Kim
Matt Cook
bit.ly/2PdZRK1
8 Classical Singer / Jan/Feb 2020
Vittorio Grigolo
photo by Alessandro Dobici