Opera For Everyone

Ep. 141 Attila by Verdi

12 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Known to history as “The Scourge of God,” Attila was a rampaging conqueror who famously turned aside from the city of Rome after a meeting with th...

Ep. 140 Moby Dick by Heggie

09 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

All hands on deck! This episode of Opera for Everyone dives headlong into a leviathan of 21st-century opera: Jake Heggie’s Moby-Dick (2010). Adapted...

Ep. 139 Le Prophète by Meyerbeer

10 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

When an entrenched oligarchy and a cynical revolution go to war with one another, what happens to all the people in the middle?  Some may be victimiz...

Ep. 138 Rienzi, The Last of the Tribunes, by Wagner

12 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Richard Wagner’s first truly successful opera, set in medieval Rome, sees a young nobleman in love with a young plebeian woman.  While this might s...

Ep. 137 The Threepenny Opera by Weill and Brecht

14 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Mac the Knife, terror of the London criminal underworld, is a character paradoxically best known to many as the subject of the upbeat, bubbly eponymou...

Ep. 136 Ravel's L'Enfant et les sortilèges

16 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Can an opera, that most complex of art forms, take you back to childhood?  Unlikely though it might seem, L’Enfant et les Sortilèges (“The Child...

Ep. 135 The Rake's Progress

05 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Which is stronger: the temptations of a shadowy wish-granter, or the love of a virtuous woman?  In The Rake’s Progress, Tom’s true love Anne seek...

Ep. 134 King Arthur by Henry Purcell

08 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

King Arthur stands astride the intersection of history, myth, legend, and politics.  In every age of the history of Britain, he is reinterpreted for ...

Ep. 133 Semele by Handel

10 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It might at first sound like it would be nice to be the lover of the king of the Olympian gods, attended by divine spirits, and living in a luxurious ...

Ep. 132 Verdi's Aida

13 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The young Aida loves the dashing military commander Radamès, and he adores her with a burning passion.Their mutual love is, however, somewhat complic...

Ep. 131 Wagner's Tannhäuser

15 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

If you’re going to have a love triangle, why not have a singing knight, a literal saint, and the Goddess of Love herself?  Come and enjoy the kind ...

Ep. 130 Orlando Furioso by Vivaldi

18 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Once upon a time, there was a heroic knight, the greatest of Charlamagne’s famed paladins, and his name was Orlando (or Roland, depending on whom yo...

Ep. 129 Roméo et Juliette by Berlioz

27 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

You’ve never heard the story of Romeo and Juliet told like this! Not even if you have listened to the three previous episodes in which Pat and Kathl...

Ep. 128 Médée (Medea) by Charpentier

23 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What can one woman do, when set against the entire world? Quite a lot, if she happens to be the sorceress Medea.  This French Baroque opera written b...

Ep. 127 Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg

24 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Can a young man win a wife through a singing competition?  He just might, if he’s in Richard Wagner’s romantic comedy (yes, you read that right, ...

Ep. 126 Bellini's I Capuleti e i Montecchi

21 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Ill-fated lovers caught up in a world incapable of supporting love not sanctioned by officialdom… it’s a story for the ages.  Join Pat and Kathle...

Ep. 125 Puccini's Il Tabarro & Erica Miner's Overture to Murder

11 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

“Seems an opera house is the perfect place for mischief and mayhem,” says the hard-boiled Inspector Cristina as she seeks to unravel the mystery a...

Ep. 124 Giulietta e Romeo by Nicola Vaccai

14 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A great story is one that we are never done with, and there are few stories in human history with as many retellings and reimaginings as the epic tale...

Ep. 123 Mozart's Idomeneo

06 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Trying desperately to return home alive from the Trojan War, King Idomeneo makes a terrible promise to the sea god from the deck of his storm-ravaged ...

Ep. 122 Zoroastre by Jean-Philippe Rameau

20 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

It’s a battle for the fate of the universe as the Dark Side plots, schemes, and fights to gain dominance over the Light Side.  Though this opera pr...

Ep. 121 Mozart's Die Zauberflöte

11 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Die Zauberflöte (“The Magic Flute”) is, by any measure, one of the most popular, successful, and well-known operas ever written, delighting adult...

Ep. 120 Gounod's Roméo et Juliette

21 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Of all the love stories ever told, none quite compare to the enduring power of Romeo and Juliet. Over four centuries ago, English playwright William S...

Ep. 119 Zoraida di Granata by Donizetti

17 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

An unscrupulous king pressures a woman to marry him.  She resists, knowing her heart belongs to the man who truly loves her, the chief general in the...

OFE Presents a Brief Conversation with KHOL's Executive Director

16 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

KHOL in Jackson WY is Opera for Everyone’s home radio station, and Wyoming’s only community radio station.  If you have ever wanted to support Op...

Ep. 118 A Midsummer Night's Dream by Benjamin Britten

19 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

“The course of true love never did run smooth.”  Shakespeare’s iconic "A Midsummer Night’s Dream" gives us some of the Bard’s most memorabl...

Ep. 117 The Fairy Queen by Henry Purcell

15 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Was it only a dream? Baroque composer Henry Purcell was on his way to establishing a national operatic tradition based on the dramatic and musical tra...

Ep. 116 Verdi's La Forza del Destino & Lisa Reagan's What We Need Is Here

26 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Where passion joins with music and poetry we find opera. In this sweet spot, we also find What We Need Is Here, the most recent project by accomplishe...

Ep. 115 Berg's Lulu & Erica Miner's Prelude to Murder

22 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Two things never go out of fashion: opera and mystery.  In this episode, mystery writer and former opera violinist Erica Miner talks with us about he...

Ep. 114 Amahl and the Night Visitors

31 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In Amahl and the Night Visitors, a young boy and his mother unexpectedly play host to the Magi on their way to meet the infant Jesus.  Originally wri...

Ep. 113 L’Italiana in Algeri by Rossini

19 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

By turns funny, serious, and seriously funny, L’Italiana in Algeri is a fascinating assembly of romantic tropes: a spurned wife, a shipwrecked lover...

Ep. 112 The Egyptian Helen by Richard Strauss

02 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

“The face that launched a thousand ships.” Helen of Troy, the most beautiful woman in the world, has a problem.  Her husband plans to kill her, b...

Ep. 111 Tosca by Giacomo Puccini

26 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

One of the top ten most-performed operas in the world, Puccini’s Tosca is considered by some the greatest of operas.  A painter provides refuge for...

Ep. 110 Das Liebesverbot by Wagner

01 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Richard Wagner’s style is one of the most distinctive and recognizable in all of opera.  But Wagner wasn’t always the Wagner we’ve come to know...

Ep. 109 Die Frau Ohne Schatten by Richard Strauss

26 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

At once a sweeping story about humanity and a deeply personal look at a married couple with unfulfilled aspirations, Die Frau Ohne Schatten is often c...

Ep. 108 Lucrezia Borgia by Donizetti

21 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

One of history’s most infamous women, Lucrezia Borgia has inspired artists, dramatists, and TV show writers for centuries.  Donizetti’s opera fol...

Ep. 107 Macbeth by Verdi

22 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

“Double, double toil and trouble.”  Composer Giuseppi Verdi enthusiastically declared that Shakespeare’s Macbeth “is one of the greatest crea...

Ep. 106 Giulio Cesare in Egitto by Handel

26 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

One of the world’s most formidable generals and one of history’s most beguiling politicians are joined by two frustrated young men and an irresist...

Ep. 105 The Marriage of Figaro and Elly Uncomposed with Valerie Niemerg

25 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

One of the world’s most beloved operas, Mozart’s  Le Nozze di Figaro, is not only the focus of this episode, but also the inspiration for Elly Un...

Ep. 104 Nabucco by Verdi

13 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A people yearns for freedom.  The power of their prayers, set to Verdi’s incomparable music, have stirred audiences ever since the première of Nab...

Ep. 46 Remastered: Handel’s Messiah OFE Holiday Special

20 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Handel’s beloved Messiah, known for its thrilling Hallelujah Chorus, is a long-standing favorite during the Christmas season.  Neither an opera, no...

Ep. 103 OFE Presents Opera Mysteries with Erica Miner

27 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Have you ever asked what might be going on backstage at an opera house?  Or wondered about what secrets hide behind those glittering stages?  Drawin...

Ep. 102 Die Fledermaus by Johann Strauss II

28 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Glittering and gloriously tuneful, Die Fledermaus (“The Bat”) is the most enduring operetta of Vienna’s famous “Waltz King,” Johann Strauss ...

Ep. 101 Un Ballo in Maschera by Verdi

13 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Masks, both literal and figurative, abound in Verdi’s Un Ballo in Maschera, “A Masked Ball.”  Conspirators feign support of a leader they despi...

Ep. 100 Oedipus Rex and Persephone by Stravinsky

09 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A beloved king becomes reviled by his family and his people as previously hidden dark deeds come to light.  A young woman loses her innocence and fre...

Ep. 99 Il Ritorno d’Ulisse in Patria by Monteverdi

27 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

There is no secular story nearly so important to the Western tradition as the Odyssey, a timeless tale of heroism, achievement, and loss.  The subjec...

Ep. 98 La Donna del Lago by Rossini

23 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

We all know that feeling when we want to marry one rebel leader, but our father wants us to marry the chief rebel leader, but then one day a wandering...

Ep. 97 OFE Meets Maestro Joseph Rescigno, ft Ariadne auf Naxos by Strauss

05 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Meet Maestro Joseph Rescigno–gentleman, author, and opera conductor extraordinaire.  The Maestro joins OFE for this wide-ranging discussion of the ...

Ep. 96 The Cunning Little Vixen by Leoš Janáček

25 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Leos Janacek’s opera about a clever little fox living in the worlds of both animals and humans has many of the charming and amusing elements expecte...

Ep. 95 Béatrice et Bénédict by Berlioz

12 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Beatrice and Benedick often steal the show in Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing with their sharp-tongued banter, and a romance that is as unlikel...

Ep. 94 Opera For Everyone Meets United Arts Studies

08 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

What does Salvador Dali have in common with opera?  Listen to this episode to find out! This episode features special guests soprano Elizaveta Ulakho...

Ep. 93 Der Rosenkavalier by Strauss

23 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

All things must come to an end, but few approach endings with such grace as Marschallin Marie-Therese, the iconic character of Der Rosenkavalier.  At...

Ep. 92 Cox and Box & Pirates of Penzance by Sullivan and Gilbert

30 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Riding high on the tide of their smash success, H.M.S. Pinafore, W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan enjoyed celebrity on both sides of the Atlantic.  W...

Ep. 91 Guillaume Tell by Rossini [EXTENDED VERSION]

18 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

This extended version of our William Tell show includes everything from the regular length show, plus more history, more music, more explication, and ...

Ep. 91 Guillaume Tell by Rossini

18 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Imperial soldiers, determined rebels, a martyred elder, a plucky youth, a noble princess, a cruel oppressor… it’s not Star Wars; it’s Rossini’...

Ep. 90 Benvenuto Cellini by Berlioz

18 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

An adventurous Renaissance artist’s action-packed autobiography provided compelling inspiration for Hector Berlioz’s first completed opera, Benven...

Ep. 89 Trial by Jury and H.M.S. Pinafore by Gilbert and Sullivan

25 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

How do you get from The Opera to The Musical?  Any answer to that question would have to include the powerhouse Victorian English duo of Gilbert and ...

Ep. 88 Susannah by Carlisle Floyd

05 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Although only included in some versions of the biblical book of Daniel, the story of “Susanna and the Elders” has long been a favorite artistic su...

Ep. 87 Pelléas et Mélisande by Debussy

17 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A beautiful young woman with long golden hair; a charming young prince who lives in a castle in the fantastic land of Allemonde… While these may be ...

Ep. 86 Orpheus In The Underworld By Offenbach

13 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

It’s not just modern interpreters who poke fun at distinguished personages of the mythic past. In the mid-nineteenth century, Jacques Offenbach tur...

Ep. 85 L'Orfeo By Monteverdi

18 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the palace of the Duke of Mantua in 1607, composer Claudio Monteverdi presented a ground-breaking “musical fable” to a select group. The music...

Ep. 84 L'Enfance Du Christ By Berlioz

23 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Join Opera for Everyone this holiday season as we explore Hector Berlioz’s unusual take on the Christmas story, L’Enfance du Christ. Instead of t...

Ep. 83 The Merry Widow By Franz Lehar

09 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In Franz Lehar's operetta The Merry Widow, the men cheerfully complain "the study of women is hard," and the women dance circles around them! Premier...

Ep. 82 Hamlet By Ambroise Thomas

14 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

To thine own self be true… with the source material, however, you can be more flexible. In the mid-19th century, Ambroise Thomas created a Grand Op...

Ep. 81 OFE Presents Starting Them Young With Rosie Brooks

17 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The young ones in your life may not be ready to sit through the entire Ring Cycle, but we can assure you that the world of opera has many delights ava...

Ep. 80 The Makropulos Case By Janáček

16 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A beautiful diva arrives just in time to shed new light on an inheritance case that is a century old. She doesn’t behave like other women, and some...

Ep. 79 Mefistofele By Arrigo Boito

24 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The Devil takes center stage in this opera based on the Faust story: a timeless tale of the seductive nature of evil and the redemptive promise of gra...

Ep. 78 Faust By Charles Gounod

01 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A deal with the Devil; a Faustian bargain. When an elderly scholar prays to the Devil in desperation, he learns that it might not be wise to let the ...

Ep. 77 Rusalka By Dvorak

20 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A beautiful woman encounters a handsome prince near her home. She cannot tell the prince that she loves him, but her passion is so powerful that she ...

Ep. 76 La Damnation De Faust By Berlioz

03 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Faust, an aging scholar, despairs that the world holds no further interest for him. But the crafty devil Mephistopheles appears and invites Faust to ...

Ep.75 I Capuleti e I Montecchi By Bellini

14 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

These are not Shakespeare’s Montagues and Capulets! Based on the original medieval Italian source material, Bellini’s take on the star-crossed lo...

Ep. 74 Werther By Massenet

15 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Young Werther is the embodiment of Romanticism. He swoons for nature, sighs for love, and marvels at the innocence of childhood. These impulses, how...

Ep. 73 Le Comte Ory By Rossini

03 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Rossini’s witty and urbane Le Comte Ory is a comic opera full of mirth and ridiculous disguises. Meet the randy Comte Ory and his merry band of sin...

Ep. 72 Salome By Strauss

17 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

When a young princess's depraved stepfather asks her to dance, she sees a way to satisfy her lust for the imprisoned John (the Baptist). Based on an O...

Ep. 71.5 OFE Presents Songs Of Triumph And Celebration

01 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In the last of a series of five special episodes, Keely and Pat play some of opera’s great works around a theme of triumph and celebration. Get rea...

Ep. 71.4 OFE Presents Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 4

31 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The fourth in a series of five special episodes takes a close look at Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony. This powerfully dramatic work was partly inspi...

Ep. 71.3 OFE Presents Symphonie Fantastique By Berlioz

30 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The third in a series of five special episodes explores Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique. Berlioz uses this symphony to illustrate episodes in “th...

Ep. 71.1 OFE Presents Rossini Overtures

27 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

This first in a series of five special OFE episodes explores overtures by Rossini. He was such a master of the form, that he set the standard and spa...

Ep. 70 Don Carlos By Verdi [Extended Version]

12 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

This extended version of our Don Carlos show includes everything from the regular length show, plus a little more music and a lot more history! Don C...

Ep. 70 Don Carlos By Verdi

12 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Don Carlos, son of King Philip II of Spain, is bethrothed to the daughter of the King of France. In this romantic portrayal of history, they fall in ...

Ep. 69 Agrippina By Handel

15 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

An ambitious mother, a pliable son, amorous courtiers, a headstrong emperor, a quick-witted lady, and an upstanding army commander. All historical fi...

Ep. 68 Lucia Di Lammermoor By Donizetti

28 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A young woman falls in love with a handsome young man who saves her from a wild beast. This Bel Canto classic is not, however, a simple love story. B...

Ep. 67 Kâta Kabanová By Janáček

11 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The torment and passion of a young wife living in a small town on the Volga River inspire exquisitely lush music from the incomparable Czech composer ...

Ep. 66 Hänsel Und Gretel, Holiday Special 2019

24 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Join the world of fairy tales as two lost, hungry, playful, and resourceful children spring forth toward adventure and danger. Engelbert Humperdinck ...

Ep. 65 Ernani By Verdi

08 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Elvira has it all... youth, beauty, and three determined suitors. But her blessings turn into a curse as passion and power collide. It is good to be...

Ep. 64 Akhnaten By Glass

21 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Thirty-three centuries ago, a doomed visionary Pharaoh tried to remake the world in honor of his god. Thirty-five years ago, a brilliant composer cre...

Ep. 63 Orfeo Ed Euridice By Gluck

01 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

With Orfeo ed Euridice, Christoph Willibald Gluck turned to an ancient story to show that he could create a new kind of opera. Powerful music displays...

Ep. 62 Turandot By Giacomo Puccini

16 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In Puccini’s final opera, the icy princess Turandot inspires The Unknown Prince to risk his life in the hope of winning her hand. His quest does no...

Ep. 61 Manon Lescaut By Puccini

25 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In Giacomo Puccini's first major hit, Manon Lescaut, we meet the adventurous young Manon as she is headed to a convent to live out the rest of her day...

Ep. 60 Roméo Et Juliette By Charles Gounod

07 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Charles Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette is an operatic take on Shakespeare’s timeless and tragic tale of young love bursting through old hatreds. Gou...

Ep. 59 Les Troyens by Berlioz

21 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Hector Berlioz’s opera “Les Troyens” is an opera on a truly epic scale, with a story based on the oldest and most successful fan fiction ever wr...

Ep. 58 Carmen By Georges Bizet

28 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Even if you think you don’t know Opera, you know something of Georges Bizet’s opera Carmen. The tunes pervade our culture, and for good reason, p...

Ep. 57 Xerxes By Handel

13 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This episode we present, Handel’s Xerxes, an opera that initially failed at the box office for being too silly and unorthodox. Today’s audiences ...

Ep. 56 Il Barbiere Di Siviglia By Rossini

01 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Rossini’s exuberant Opera Buffa, The Barber of Seville, features the irrepressible jack-of-all-trades Figaro. This Bel Canto masterpiece is where y...

Ep. 55 Wagner's The Ring Of The Nibelung

15 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Have you ever wondered just who that woman with the blond braids, shining breastplate, and iconic opera helmet might be? Meet Brünhilde and her clan...

Ep. 54 Maria Stuarda By Donizetti

02 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

With unabashed romanticism, Gaetano Donizetti sweeps us into the passions of the final days of Mary Queen of Scots in his Bel Canto masterpiece, Maria...

Ep. 53 Anna Bolena By Donizetti

11 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Donizetti dazzles in the Bel Canto masterpieces that comprise his Tudor Queen “trilogy.” In Anna Bolena, the first of these, Henry VIII has turne...

Ep. 52 Arabella By Richard Strauss

26 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Arabella delights with its lyric comedy and fascinates with its depth of psychological insight. This sixth and final collaboration between composer R...

Ep. 51 Daughter Of The Regiment By Donizetti

06 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Join us for Gaetano Donizetti’s exquisite Bel Canto comic opera, La Fille du Régiment. Found as a baby on the battlefield, Marie was raised by the...

Ep. 50 La Cenerentola By Rossini

21 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Rossini’s La Cenerentola is subtitled “Goodness Triumphant,” and in this opera we see a joyful celebration of goodness. It is the familiar Cind...

Ep. 49 Adriana Lecouvreur By Francesco Cilea

09 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Adriana Lecouvreur, by composer Francesco Cilea and librettist Arturo Colautti, is an opera that exquisitely dramatizes the life of the great French a...