Opéra de Montréal Founded on January 30, 1980, by the Ministère des affaires culturelles du Québec, L'Opéra de Montréal has become one of the 15 most prestigious opera companies in North America.   In 1984, under the aegis of its first artistic director, Jean-Paul Jeannotte, L'Opéra de Montréal set up the Atelier lyrique to foster new talent nationwide. When Bernard Uzan took over the reins in 1989, he introduced bilingual supertitles-an important innovation that, by allowing spectators to follow French and English translations of the performed text, attracted more patrons to the company.   In 25 seasons, L'Opéra de Montréal has staged over 758 performances, including 81 operas, 45 new productions, and numerous collaborations with companies such as the Florentine Opera Company of Milwaukee, the San Diego Opera, the Florida Grand Opera, the Opera de Bellas Artes in Mexico City, the Vancouver Opera, the Seattle Opera, the Dallas Opera and the Houston Grand Opera. L'Opéra de Montréal has expanded its initial three productions per season to five, along with an annual production by the Atelier lyrique, and the occasional opera in concert version.   A number of leading lights have graced the stage of L'Opéra de Montréal. Canadians of national and international renown include Colette Boky, Victor Braun, Leïla Chalfoun, Tracy Dahl, Maureen Forrester, Judith Forst, Lyne Fortin, Don Garrard, Gordon Gietz, Suzie LeBlanc, Richard Margison, Ermanno Mauro, Allan Monk, Mariana Paunova, Brett Polegato, Annamaria Popescu, Gino Quilico, Louis Quilico, Joseph Rouleau, Daniel Taylor and André Turp. Some of the big foreign names to have honoured the company with their presence are Rockwell Blake, Norma Burrowes, Renato Capecchi, Vinson Cole, Raúl Gimenez, Julia Hamari, Sergei Leiferkus, Luis Lima, Johanna Meier, Paul Plishka, Susan Quittmeyer, Luciana Serra, Diana Soviero, Olivia Stapp and Benita Valente.   Not to mention the participation of conductors Christian Badea, Mario Bernardi, Franz-Paul Decker, Anton Guadagno, Bernard Labadie, Jacques Lacombe, Edoardo Müller, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Alfredo Silipigni and Michelangelo Veltri, who have variously directed the Chœur de L'Opéra de Montréal, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal (OSM) and the Orchestre métropolitain du Grand-Montréal.   Over 20 million television viewers and radio listeners have enjoyed L'Opéra de Montréal on Radio-Canada broadcasts. In 1989, L'Opéra de Montréal won a Félix award for the most popular production of the season - Nelligan - a romantic opera by André Gagnon, based on the libretto by Michel Tremblay. During the 1997-1998 season, the production of Leos Janácek's Jenufa garnered two Opus awards from the Conseil québécois de la musique-one for concert of the year in Montreal and the other for large ensemble concert of the year in Quebec.   Since its inception, L'Opéra de Montréal has had three artistic directors : Jean-Paul Jeannotte (1980-1989), Bernard Uzan (1989-2001) and Bernard Labadie (since April 2002).   The 2004-2005 season of L'Opéra de Montréal marks its 25th anniversary.   Source : http://www.operademontreal.com/

Yannick Nézet-Séguin Yannick Nézet-Séguin has been Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Orchestre métropolitain du Grand-Montréal since April 2000. That same year, the Canada Council for the Arts awarded him the prestigious Virginia-Parker Prize. He is Co-founder and Artistic Director of the baroque ensemble La Chapelle de Montréal, and has also been guest conductor for the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal Orchestra, Les Violons du Roy, the Vancouver CBC Orchestra, the Vancouver Symphony, the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra and the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony. As principal conductor, he has directed La bohème, The Italian in Algiers, Lakmé, L'incoronazione di Poppea ("The Coronation of Poppea"), Così fan tutte, Pelléas et Mélisande, L'Elisir d'amore ("The Elixir of Love") and numerous editions of the Opéra de Montréal gala.

Orchestre Métropolitain du Grand Montréal Founded in 1981 by graduates of Quebec conservatories and faculties of music, the Orchestre métropolitain du Grand-Montréal has more than fulfilled its mission to promote classical music and Canadian performers to a wide audience. Its unique artistic and educational approach has put the OM in Montreal's cultural spotlight.   Following Agnès Grossmann's tenure as Artistic Director from 1986 to 1995, the orchestra was led for five years by American conductor Joseph Rescigno until young Montreal conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin filled his shoes in April 2000.   From September to May, the Orchestre métropolitain presents its regular season at the prestigious Place des Arts and also tours different neighbourhoods on the Island of Montreal and in neighbouring municipalities. During the summer, the orchestra puts on an average of 10 free concerts in different city parks. In addition, it regularly plays in L'Opéra de Montréal productions, at the Festival international de Lanaudière, for CBC/Radio-Canada competitions, and at a variety of other festivals.   After making a number of recordings of contemporary Quebecois music, the Orchestre métropolitain, under Agnès Grossmann, recorded a Prokofiev album (Peter and the Wolf), and a recording dedicated to Mendelssohn (Symphony No. 4 and A Midsummer Night's Dream). Joseph Rescigno conducted a recording of Mendelssohn violin concertos with Angèle Dubeau, as well as a critically acclaimed CD dedicated to Beethoven, featuring the Sinfonia Eroica, opus 55, coupled with sung excerpts from Egmont, opus 84.   In February 2003, Nézet-Séguin released Nino Rota : La Strada under the Atma classical label-his first CD with the Orchestre métropolitain du Grand-Montréal, which, in January 2004, won the Opus best recording of the year award. In February 2004, a recording of Mahler's Symphony No. 4 was released, which has met with rave reviews, such as that of La Presse critic Claude Gingras : "With his incredible imagination, Nézet-Séguin succeeds in creating something new and personal, even surprising, when you thought you'd heard it all."

Anna Shafajinskaia Anna Shafajinskaia will therefore be performing the title role of Turandot, a role she has performed at the New York City Opera, Royal Opera House-Covent Garden, Welsh National Opera, De Nederlandse Opera, Opéra Royal de Wallonie, and the Opera Festival of New Jersey.   Ms Shafajinskaia gained international recognition when she was invited to sing the title role in Tosca opposite Luciano Pavarotti as a result of her winning the Pavarotti International Competition. She has also performed the title roles of Aida at Opera Ontario and of Tosca at the New York City Opera and the New Orleans Opera, in addition to Madeleine de Coigny in Andrea Chénier at Den Norske Opera, among others. She performed the Turandot’s aria “In questa reggia” at the Opéra de Montréal’s Gala, 7th edition in December 2002.

Renzo Zulian Italian tenor Renzo Zulian has sung Calaf (Turandot) in many major European productions, including that of Teatro Massimo Bellini of Catania. He has also played Dick Johnson (The Girl of the Golden West), Henry (The Sicilian Vespers), Rodolfo (La bohème), Pollione (Norma) and the title role of André Chénier. In North America, he has recently sung in Il Trovatore (Milwaukee), A Masked Ball and Turandot (Vancouver Opera). Renzo Zulian is a newcomer to L'Opéra de Montréal.

Marie-Josée Lord The young Haitian-born soprano Marie-Josée Lord has already had some major roles with L'Opéra de Montréal: Mimi (La bohème), Annina (La traviata) and Venere (L'incoronazione di Poppea / "The Coronation of Poppea"). With other Canadian companies, she recently sang the roles of Liù (Turandot), the High Priestess (Aïda) and Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte). An apprentice at the OM's Atelier lyrique from 1999 to 2002, she received the Raoul-Jobin award from the Fondation de l'Opéra de Québec in 1998, and was a finalist at the International Voice Competition of Verviers in 2001.

Denis Sedov Russian bass Denis Sedov participated in the Metropolitan Opera Young Artist Development Program, which allowed him to get some major roles under his belt at the start of his career. Among others, he has played Mustafà (The Italian in Algiers), Colline (La bohème), Sobakine (The Tsar's Bride), the Tutor (Le comte Ory), Seneca (L'incoronazione di Poppea / "The Coronation of Poppea") and the lead roles of Don Giovanni, Le Nozze di Figaro ("The Marriage of Figaro") and Semele. He has sung in some of the world's most prestigious houses, such as the Met, Covent Garden, l'Opéra-Comique, l'Opéra de Paris, le Châtelet and La Scala.

Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, Place des Arts Located in downtown Montreal, the "Grande Salle" of Place des Arts was inaugurated on September 21, 1963. In 1966, it was renamed Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier after the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal's first music director and Quebec's great music pioneer.   With its 2,982 seats and large stage (47 m x 17 m), Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier is still the largest multi-purpose performance venue in Canada, lending itself to shows ranging from opera to rock, dance and musicals to symphony concerts. In addition to the countless international stars who perform there each year, the Salle houses three resident companies: the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal, and L'Opéra de Montréal.   A magnet for Montreal music lovers, Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier is the most prestigious hall of the Place des Arts cultural complex, dedicated to the performing arts.