The world of musical theater lost a titan when Stephen Sondheim died at 91 on Nov. 19. “It is no exaggeration to say that Sondheim changed the nature of theatrical storytelling,” writes theater critic Charles McNulty in the Los … » Read

Peruvian tenor Juan Diego Flórez is to be the next artistic director of the Rossini Opera Festival, an annual summer event dedicated to its namesake. He was recommended by his predecessor in the position, Ernesto Palacio, also a Peruvian … » Read

NEW YORK — Yannick Nézet-Séguin, music director of the Metropolitan Opera, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Orchestre Métropolitain of Montreal, is taking a four-week sabbatical from all conducting starting Dec. 19 … » Read

CLEVELAND—Plenty of rising artists have gained attention by substituting for their more established colleagues at the last minute. Pianist Tom Borrow, however, is making a career out of it.   Still just 21 years old, Borrow has hit the … » Read

Reggie Van Lee, chairman of the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities, attributes his (and presumably others’) success to the four Cs: courage, confidence, competence, and community. All four have been on display since his appointment … » Read

PARIS (AP) — France is inducting Josephine Baker — Missouri-born cabaret dancer, French World War II spy and civil rights activist — into its Pantheon, the first Black woman honored in the final resting place of France’s … » Read

The Supervisory Board of the Salzburg Festival has appointed Kristina Hammer as the new president of the Salzburg Festival. She succeeds Helga Rabl-Stadler, who held the position for 27 years. Hammer’s selection from among six finalists, … » Read

Chester Lane, longtime senior editor of Symphony magazine, died suddenly on November 24 while visiting friends in West Virginia. He was 74. The cause was heart failure, according to his wife of 13 years, Marianne Sciolino. Lane worked at the … » Read

NEW YORK (AP) — He opened the season as kindly Uncle Paul in the Metropolitan Opera premiere of Terence Blanchard’s Fire Shut Up in My Bones . Next night he was the vagabond monk Varlaam, stopping the show in Mussorgsky’s … » Read

NEW YORK (AP) — Stephen Sondheim, the songwriter who reshaped the American musical theater in the second half of the 20th century with his intelligent, intricately rhymed lyrics, his use of evocative melodies and his willingness to tackle … » Read