SANTA FE

Rusalka (Ailyn Pérez), Pelléas et Mélisande (Rendall, Hankey, Kim, Anger, Graham), The Flying Dutchman (Brownlee, van den Heever), Orfeo(Villazón, Snouffer), Tosca (Hawkins, de Tommaso) plus the Apprentice Scenes concert and three performances at the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival. Private lectures, superb meals, Inn of the Anasazi.

Santa Fe is one of our favourite destinations, and the Santa Fe Opera Festival is one of our favourite (and most popular) tours—proof that you needn’t travel across the globe for a very special opera getaway. What makes Santa Fe different is how wonderful it feels just being there – something about the magical combination of perfect weather, breathtaking landscape, charming Southwest architecture and friendly locals, as well as the scores of shops and galleries that make it impossible to walk the historic streets of this city without a smile on your face. And of course the quality of the performances that take place each night and the quality of the venue itself, the glorious mesa-top Crosby Theatre, is often a surprise to attendees.

Our 2023 tour includes five operas and an Apprentice Scenes performance at the stunning Santa Fe Opera, with the strongest selection of singers we’ve ever seen at the festival. In addition the Santa Fe Opera programming, we will enjoy three noontime concerts at the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, and embark on tours that explore and celebrate the regional indigenous culture.

Our hotel will be the Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi, located just steps from the Historic Plaza. As always, we will include private performance lectures with Oliver Prezant, and we will enjoy superb cuisine and wine at Santa Fe’s finest restaurants.

PERFORMANCE INFO

RUSALKA by Antonín Dvořák

Will she become part of his world? Rusalka, a young water nymph, falls in love with a prince. The witch gives her a potion that will render her human but take away her voice. Rusalka risks everything for love and ends up paying dearly.

Lidiya Yankovskaya CONDUCTOR

Sir David Pountney DIRECTOR

Leslie Travers SCENIC DESIGNER

Ailyn Pérez RUSALKA Robert Watson THE PRINCE James Creswell VODNÍK

Michaela Martens JEŽIBABA Mary Elizabeth Williams FOREIGN PRINCESS

PELLÉAS ET MÉLISANDE by Claude Debussey

Forbidden love leads to desire. Golaud, grandson of King Arkel, falls in love and marries the mysterious Mélisande. His half-brother Pelléas falls for Mélisande as well. It’s a love triangle of royal proportions.

Harry Bicket CONDUCTOR

Netia Jones DIRECTOR, SCENIC, COSTUME & PROJECTION DESIGNER

Huw Montague Rendall PELLÉAS Samantha Hankey MÉLISANDE

Gihoon Kim GOLAUD Ain Anger ARKEL Susan Graham GENEVIÈVE

THE FLYING DUTCHMAN by Richard Wagner

Condemned and sailing the stormy seas. Every seven years, a cursed and ghostly sea captain gets a chance at redemption. He needs a bride to break the curse. Can he find a woman pure of heart, or will he roam the seas eternally?

Thomas Guggeis CONDUCTOR

David Alden DIRECTOR

Paul Steinberg SCENIC DESIGNER

Nicholas Brownlee DUTCHMAN Elza van den Heever SENTA

Richard Trey Smagur ERIK Morris Robinson DALAND Bille Bruley STEERSMAN

ORFEO by Claudio Monteverdi

WORLD PREMIERE ORCHESTRATION BY Nico Muhly

Don’t Look Back! Legendary lovers, Orfeo and Euridice, face death and separation. They undertake a perilous journey from the underworld back to the world of the living. One rule must be followed: Orfeo cannot look at Euridice. His conviction falters, he turns...

Harry Bicket CONDUCTOR

Yuval Sharon DIRECTOR

Rolando Villazón ORFEO Lauren Snouffer LA MUSICA/SPERANZA

Paula Murrihy MESSAGGERA James Creswell CARONTE Blake Denson PLUTONE

TOSCA by Giacomo Puccini

Torture, murder and suicide...the clock ticks. Tenacious diva, Floria Tosca, is thrust into a no-win situation after her lover, the painter Mario, assists the escape of a political prisoner. They are cornered by the corrupt Scarpia. Each decision she makes brings fate, and disaster, one step closer.

John Fiore CONDUCTOR

Keith Warner DIRECTOR

Ashley Martin-Davis SCENIC & COSTUME DESIGNER

Leah Hawkins TOSCA Freddie De Tommaso CAVARADOSSI

Reginald Smith, Jr. SCARPIA Blake Denson ANGELOTTI

ITINERARY

Monday, August 7

Upon arrival in Albuquerque Sunport (or Santa Fe Airport) you are met and transferred to the elegant Rosewood , ideally located near the Plaza. This evening, we gather for introductions and a Welcome Dinner at the hotel.

Tuesday, August 8

Following breakfast (included each day), we meet our guide and depart on a private “hidden gems” tour of Santa Fe Plaza. At noon we enjoy our first concert at the Santa Fe Chamber Festival (TBA). Tonight we walk to dinner at Sazón and then depart by private coach to the Santa Fe Opera for Dvořák’s Rusalka.

Wednesday, August 9

Following a morning at leisure, we attend our second Chamber Festival concert (TBA). This evening we walk to dinner at Sassella prior to Debussey’s Pelléas et Mélisande at Santa Fe Opera. 

Thursday, August 10

Following a morning exploring the shops and galleries on Canyon Road, we move to the St. Francis Auditorium for our final midday concert at the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival (TBA). After a lunch at leisure, we gather in our private salon at the hotel for a casual and entertaining discussion led by Oliver Prezant, lecturer at Santa Fe Opera. Tonight we dine at Estevan prior to Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman, the first Wagnerian opera to be staged at Santa Fe back in 1988.

Friday, August 11

This morning we meet our guide once again and join him for an in-depth tour to Albuquerque. This evening we enjoy a Preview Buffet (and lecture) prior to Monteverdi’s Orfeo at Santa Fe Opera. 

Saturday, August 12

Following a morning at leisure,  we have our final talk with Oliver Prezant at the hotel. Tonight we dine at Osteria d’Assisi before returning to the opera house for Puccini’s Tosca. 

Sunday, August 13

This morning we offer a guided tour at the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum. Tonight we depart for our Farewell Dinner at Geronimo, one of the finest restaurants in the region. Following dinner, we take our seats at the opera house one last time for the Apprentice Scenes concert, where the “Stars of Tomorrow” in the Santa Fe Apprentice Programs perform fully-staged opera scenes. 

Monday, August 14

Transfers to Albuquerque or Santa Fe Airport are included and will be arranged on-site.

TOUR INCLUDES

• Top Category seats for 5 operas and 4 concerts

• 7 nights Deluxe accommodation at the Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi

• Full breakfast daily, plus 7 dinners 

• Private tours as listed

• Airport-hotel transfers 

• On-site Tour Direction

• Comprehensive Tour Guidebook

FLIGHTS

Flights are not included in tour pricing. Return flights should be booked to either Albuquerque (ABQ) or Santa Fe (SAF) for arrival on August 7, departure on August 14.

TRANSFERS

We provide airport/rail station—hotel transfers for arrivals and departures within within 3 days of the start/end of our tour. We also provide transfers for group meals and performances that are beyond a 10 minute walk.

MOBILITY

There is minimal walking with some stairs and eneven terrain during the guided tours. As for all of our tours, we are happy to accommodate you regardless of your mobility level. Please make clear your mobility concerns at the time of registration. We provide transfers for group meals and performances that are beyond a 10 minute walk.

INSURANCE

We strongly recommend that all tour members purchase cancellation insurance upon registration. We can assist you with this, though you are welcome to purchase a policy at your own discretion. For more information about our travel insurance, click here.