Five Operas, Three Concerts on San Diego Schedule

For its 2000-01 season, San Diego Opera will present five productions and three concert presentations. The season opens with Mozart’s “The Magic Flute,” sung in German, with English supertitles, conducted by John Fiore in his San Diego Opera debut. It will be staged by Michael Hampe, who also created the new production, and sung by Rosemary Joshua, Guanyang Cui, Annelies Chapman, John Osborn, Johannes Mannov and Kevin Langan. The five performances conclude, Jan. 31.

Richard Bonynge returns to conduct Gounod’s “Faust,” Feb. 17-28, with Izabela Labuda, Octavio Arevalo and Ferruccio Furlanetto in the leading roles. The West Coast premiere of Carlisle Floyd’s new “Cold Sassy Tree” follows, March 24 through April 2, conducted by Karen Keltner and staged by Bruce Beresford. Among the singers are Patricia Racette, Cynthia Clayton, Dean Peterson and John McVeigh.

Mozart’s “Idomeneo,” conducted by Edoardo Muller, will be performed in Civic Theatre, site of all the productions, April 24-22. Principal singers include Carol Vaness, Ute Selbig, Jerry Hadley and Ruxandra Donose. Lotfi Mansouri will be stage director.

Closing the season, May 5-15, is Verdi’s “Aida,” with a cast including Elena Zelenskaya, Marianne Cornetti, Richard Margison and Haijing Fu. Muller conducts, with Andrew Sinclair the stage director.

In addition, the company will offer tenor Luciano Pavarotti in concert at the San Diego Sports Arena on April 21; a duo concert with Jerry Hadley and Ruxandra Donose in Sherwood Auditorium in La Jolla on April 8; and the Verdi Requiem in Civic Theatre on May 19, when Muller conducts the San Diego Opera Orchestra and Chorus and San Diego Master Chorale, and the soloists are Zelenskaya, Cornetti, Langan and Richard Leech.

Information: (619) 232-7636).