Season Announcement: Leonardo Capalbo to Star as Don Carlos at Opera Vlaanderen

The new production will be presented in the 5-Act French version.

Leonardo Capalbo begins the 2019-2020 season with a new production of Verdi’s Don Carlos at Opera Vlaanderen. The production by Johan Simons marks Capalbo's debut in the monumental 5-act French version. Alejo Pérez, the incoming music director, will conduct. Opera Vlaanderen recently made headlines by being named best opera company at the 2019 International Opera Awards presented in London last month.

Leonardo Capalbo in a scene from Le Cid

Capalbo is highly acclaimed in French grand opera. Last season he was universally praised as the title character in Massenet’s rarely heard Le Cid. Rupert Christiansen of The Telegraph wrote: “What makes the evening worthwhile, however, is the terrific bravado of the young American tenor Leonardo Capalbo in the title-role...[He] sings with unstinting heroic grandeur and does full justice to the lovely aria ‘O souverain, o juge’: his clean, bright, firm timbre is very well suited to this school of music, and he should sing more of it.”

Currently, Capalbo is preparing his debut as Don Carlo in the 4-act Italian version at Grange Park Opera.

Performances at Opera Vlaanderen run September 19, 22, 25, 28, October 2, 6 & 9, 2019 in Antwerp and October 16, 19, 22, 25, 27 & 29, 2019 in Ghent.