David Charles Abell
Renowned for his widely varied repertoire, David Charles Abell’s projects in opera include Barrie Kosky’s production of Die Zauberflöte at Opera Philadelphia, Eugene Onegin at Hawaii Opera Theatre, La gazza ladra at Opera North (UK), Die Fledermaus at Cincinnati Opera, La bohème, Rigoletto and Carmen at Lyric Opera of Kansas City, and Kevin Puts’ acclaimed World War I opera Silent Night in Kansas City, Cincinnati and Detroit. He is particularly associated with two American masterpieces: Porgy and Bess (Cape Town, Cincinnati and Atlanta) and West Side Story (Glimmerglass, Kansas City, Opera Pacific, Opéra du Rhin, Bregenz Festival).
At London’s Royal Albert Hall, Abell conducted three productions for Raymond Gubbay, Ltd: Madama Butterfly, Carmen and Show Boat. In 2007, he led Menotti’s opera Maria Golovin and an all-Menotti concert at the Spoleto Festival, winning the Pegasus Prize for artistic excellence. He conducted his own critical edition of Kiss Me, Kate for different productions at Opera North and the Théâtre du Châtelet. In 2015, Abell made his debut with English National Opera conducting Sweeney Todd starring Emma Thompson and Bryn Terfel. He returned to ENO in 2017 for an equally-acclaimed Carousel. He made his Opernhaus Zürich debut in 2018 with Sweeney Todd starring Angelika Kirchschlager and, again, Bryn Terfel.
Musically, it may indeed leave you giddy: the orchestra’s handling of the score, under conductor David Charles Abell, is glorious — delicate, sweeping, witty.
Financial Times, May 2017
Under the direction of David Charles Abell, the CSO offered a breathtaking ride into and through George Gershwin’s score and never allowed you to forget how very good they are. From the clangorous, percussive overture through gospel and folk-infused numbers all the way to the ringing finale, “Oh Lawd, I’m on my way,” they proved their intimate understanding of the form and flaunted the jazz opera idiom created by Gershwin. This is challenging music that requires a certain amount of swagger to pull off. And the CSO delivered on all counts.
Out and About Nashville, William Shutes, 28 July 2019
| Argento | Postcard from Morocco |
|---|---|
| Beethoven | Fidelio |
| Bernstein | Candide
Mass On the Town A Quiet Place Trouble in Tahiti West Side Story |
| Bizet | Carmen |
| Bock | Fiddler on the Roof |
| Britten | Albert Herring
The Turn of the Screw |
| Copland | The Second Hurricane |
| Donizetti | Lucia di Lamermoor |
| Dove | Tobias and the Angel |
| Floyd | Susannah |
| Gay (Goberman) | The Beggar’s Opera |
| Gershwin | Porgy and Bess |
| Humperdinck | Hansel and Gretel |
| Kern | Show Boat |
| Lehar | Die Lustige Wittwe |
| Leigh | Man of La Mancha |
| Lloyd Webber | Love Never Dies |
| Massenet | Le jongleur de Notre Dame
Manon |
| Menotti | Amahl and the Night Visitors
Maria Golovin |
| Mozart | Don Giovanni
Le nozze di Figaro Der Schauspieldirektor Die Zauberflöte |
| Offenbach | La vie Parisienne |
| Porter | Anything Goes
Kiss Me, Kate |
| Portman | The Little Prince
The Water Diviner’s Tale |
| Puccini | La bohème
Gianni Schicchi Madama Butterfly Manon Lescaut La rondine Suor Angelica Il tabarro Tosca |
| Puts | Silent Night |
| Rodgers | Carousel
Oklahoma! |
| Rossini | Il barbiere di Siviglia
La Cenerentola La gazza ladra |
| Shire | Take Flight |
| Sondheim | Follies
A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum Into the Woods Pacific Overtures Sunday in the Park with George Sweeney Todd |
| Stiles | Peter Pan
The Three Musketeers |
| Strauss, Johann, Jr. | Die Fledermaus |
| Strauss, Richard | Ariadne auf Naxos |
| Stravinsky | The Rake’s Progress |
| Sullivan | H. M. S. Pinafore
The Mikado The Pirates of Penzance |
| Tchaikovsky | Eugene Onegin |
| Verdi | Rigoletto
La traviata |
| Wagner | Götterdämmerung: Act III |
| Weill | Die Dreigroschenoper |
| Williams | Napoleon |
| Composer | Work | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Bizet | Carmen | Zuniga |
| Blanchard | Champion | Young Emile Griffith |
| Britten | A Midsummer’s Night Dream | Quince |
| Donizetti | Anna Bolenna | Lord Rochefort |
| Gershwin | Porgy and Bess | Crown |
| Gounod | Faust | Mephistopheles |
| Handel | Hercules | title |
| Handel | Ariodante | Rè di Scozia |
| Heggie | Moby Dick | Queequeg |
| Menotti | Amahl and the Night’s Visitors | Balthazar |
| Monteverdi | L’incoronazione di Poppea | Seneca |
| Mozart | Don Giovanni | Il Commendatore, Leporello |
| Mozart | Cosi fan tutte | Don Alfonso |
| Mozart | Die Zauberflöte | Sarastro, Sprecher |
| Mozart | Die Entführung aus dem Serail | Osmin |
| Massenet | Werther | Johann |
| Offenbach | Les contes d’Hoffmann | Crespel |
| Puccini | La Bohème | Colline |
| Puccini | Tosca | Angelotti |
| Puts | Silent Night | Father Palmer |
| Schreker | Die Gezeichneten | Citizen 3, Giant citizen |
| Saint-Saens | Samson et Dalila | Abimelech |
| Sondheim | Sweeney Todd | Judge Turpin |
| Sonnenberg | The Summer King | Sam Bankhead |
| Tchaikovsky | Eugene Onegin | Prince Gremin |
| Verdi | Un Ballo in Maschera | Sam |
| Verdi | Aida | Ramfis |
| Verdi | La Traviata | Dr. Grenvil |
| Verdi | Il Trovatore | Ferrando |
| Verdi | Macbeth | Banquo |
| Verdi | Simone Boccanegra | Pietro |
| Verdi | Rigoletto | Count Monterone, Sparafucile |
| Wolf-Ferrar | Le donne curiose | Ottavio |
| Composer | Work |
|---|---|
| Bach | St. Matthew Passion (Jesus) |
| Beethoven | Symphony No.9 |
| Handel | Messiah |
| Haydn | Creation |
| Verdi | Requiem |
Contact
Deborah Sanders
Founder and Director
deborah@arbourartists.com