A Look Ahead: the 2025–26 Opera Season Across the U.S.

As opera companies across the United States unveil their programming for the 2025–26 season, HNS is compiling a comprehensive list of performances to help opera lovers stay informed and plan their experiences. See the updated list of U.S. Opera Companies and their 25-26 repertoire here. With each announcement, I'm gathering details on productions, including cast, conductor, and performance dates, directly from company websites.

Opera thrives on the support of its audiences. Attending performances, spreading the word, and engaging with your local company helps keep this vibrant art form alive. HNS encourages you to support your local opera company—every ticket purchased and every donation made helps sustain this incredible tradition for future generations.

As of this publishing, 17 opera companies are featured, with more to come as additional seasons are revealed. From grand classics to bold new works, next season promises something for everyone. Share your thoughts on next season in the comment section. Here are a few works we're most interested in this season:

• The Atlanta Opera: Philip Glass's 1994 La Belle et la Bête. If you love classic film and opera, this one is for you. Glass brilliantly sets the dialogue of Jean Cocteau's legendary and visually orgasmic 1943 film of Beauty and the Beast to music in perfect synchronicity with the actors in the film. It should be an extraordinary experience live!
  

• The Dallas Opera: Verdi's Don Carlo with a tremendous cast: our Philly native Stephen Costello in his first (?) outing as the infante, the real life husband and wife team of Nicole Car and Étienne Dupuis as Elisabetta and Roderigo, the great French falcon, mezzo Clémentine Margaine, go-to bass-baritone Christian Van Horn as Philip II, and the sepulchral Morris Robinson as the Grand Inquisitor. It doesn't get much better than that these days.

  
  

• LA Opera: Another Philip Glass masterpiece for the list, Akhnaten. This-well traveled and rightfully acclaimed production returns to LA, with two very exciting new cast members. Countertenor John Holiday's voice is so beautiful and musicianship so sincere that he let's us peer into his soul every time he sings, a perfect fit for the ethereal Egyptian King. Joining him is mezzo-soprano Sun-Ly Pierce, a rising star with a drop-dead gorgeous voice and compelling acting chops. She should be mesmerizing as Nefertiti. Also worth noting is the incandescent Janai Brugger as Mimì for LA (check out the "Depuis le jour" on her website. It's almost as good as Leontyne's.)

  
  

• Lyric Opera of Chicago: If you missed Sondra Radvanovsky's embodiment of Cherubini's Medea in New York, get on a plane and see it in Chicago. It's extraordinary. Here's a singer still at the peak of her powers and is thrilling musically, vocally, and dramatically. Some must-see items at LOC: Russell Thomas's Canio in Pagliacci, up-and-coming heldenbaritone Nicholas Brownlee as Jochanaan, and a powerhouse cast of Daniela Mack and Ana María Martinez in the acclaimed El ultimo sueño de Frida y Diego.

The most exciting event in the U.S. next season is Tristan und Isolde at the Met with Lise Davidsen and Michael Spyres.

• Metropolitan Opera: There are at least 10 things to see at the Met, but here are the highlights for HNS:

  • A new I Puritani with the current dream team, Lisette Oropesa and Lawrence Brownlee (plus an HNS trip in January!).

  • Piotr Beczała, who at 58 continues to defy expectations, starring in Andrea Chénier.

  • Kaija Saariaho’s Innocence—a gripping contemporary work with a stellar cast.

  • A tough choice for Violetta in La Traviata: Lisette Oropesa, Ermonela Jaho, or Rosa Feola. If you can see all three, do! If only one, Jaho remains the greatest Violetta of the past 25 years.

  • Asmik Grigorian as Tatyana in Eugene Onegin, continuing her reign as both a kunst- and stimmediva.

  • But the most anticipated event of the entire U.S. opera season for HNS? Tristan und Isolde at the Met.

    • Lise Davidsen, already a legend at 38, makes her role debut as Isolde—her first engagement after giving birth to twins.

    • Michael Spyres, a tenor who seems to do no wrong, sings his first Tristan. How will this chanve his voice and future repertoire choices? Who knows, but either way, it will be a thrilling experience.

• Portland Opera: African Queens. Philadelphia’s own Karen Slack—renowned soprano, curator, and collaborator—brings her powerful voice and groundbreaking project, African Queens, to Portland. This powerful recital celebrates the legacies of seven historic African rulers through new works by acclaimed composers, spoken narrative, and thematic artwork, weaving music and history into a vivid, immersive experience.

Karen Slack's African Queens project is a must see - in Portland or other cities on its tour.

• San Francisco Opera: The Monkey King and Rigoletto. Some may remember that the story of The Monkey King appears in a brief metaplay within Tan Dun's Tea: A Mirror of Soul, which is how HNS first became aware of it. Huang Ruo's music has been widely acclaimed, with OperaWire noting that he is "gifted with the ability to transcend the conventional lines between East and West through aesthetics and cultural symbolism." Award-winning playwright David Henry Hwang is equally at home in opera, having created several beautiful libretti for 1000 Airplanes on the Roof, The Voyage, Ainadamar, and The American Soldier, among others.
  

  The Monkey King follows the mighty Sun Wukong as he defies heaven and finds redemption on a sacred pilgrimage. We're also excited for the wonderful tenor Kang Wang, who stars as the Monkey King—one of several exciting roles for him in the 2025–26 season! And it's always a pleasure to hear the granite-voiced bass Peixin Chen as well.
  

  A quick mention of San Francisco Opera's Rigoletto, featuring a powerhouse cast, including the great Verdi baritone Amartuvshin Enkhbat in the title role, Adela Zaharia (Gilda), J'Nai Bridges (Maddalena), and Peixin Chen (Sparafucile). A special note about tenor Giovanni Sala—this sweet-voiced lyric tenor has impressed in the Verdi Requiem in Philadelphia under Maestro Muti and as Riccardo in Un ballo in maschera at Festival Verdi.

Some other observations and notes:

• Next season marks the 100th anniversary of Carlisle Floyd’s birth—a perfect time to revisit his cinematic and tuneful Susannah, which is always worth experiencing live.

• Speaking of operas that reflect on McCarthyism, Gregory Spears and Greg Pierce’s Fellow Travelers has several productions coming up next season. If you saw the Hulu miniseries, don’t miss this brilliant 2016 opera—it’s a modern masterpiece. Don't forget to check out the full list of next season's repertoire available here. And share your thoughts about 25-26 in the comments below!