Opera Canada – Summer 2026

Summary

Joyce El-Khoury, photographed at the Royal Opera House in The Sicilian Vespers, covers Opera Canada Summer 2026, and Vol. LXVII No. 1 (Edition 268) pairs her Defining Home interview at 32 with Ben Heppner at 26 and Marie-Nicole Lemieux at 50.

Opera Canada Summer 2026 (Vol. LXVII, No. 1, Edition 268) leads with Joyce El-Khoury speaking to Nolan Kehler at 32 about her international career and her many homes. Ben Heppner reflects on a great career at 26 in Joseph So's piece, Dawn Martens marks twenty years of Highlands Opera Studio at 38, and Asitha Tennekoon reports on three artists seeking permanent residency in Canada at 44.

Departments carry Editor's Notebook at 3, Take Note at 6, Review Highlights at 8, New on the Scene with Camila Montefusco at 12, From the Archives at 14, Stage Business Thoughts at 16, Production Meeting with Vancouver Opera's Tom Wright at 20, Masterclass with Sarah Langford at 24, Letter from Washington, DC at 56, Opera at Home at 60 and Up Next with tenor Josh Lovell at 62. The immigration piece at 44 is the one that gives the issue a position beyond profiles.

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Content Guide

▸ Cover Story
p.32 · JOYCE EL-KHOURY: DEFINING HOME
Joyce El-Khoury speaks with Nolan Kehler at 32 about her international career and the many homes it has given her, with the cover photograph taken at the Royal Opera House in The Sicilian Vespers. The piece covers the roles and the cities rather than only the singing. See her next performance in whatever city she names here.

▸ Features
p.26 · BEN HEPPNER: REFLECTIONS ON A GREAT CAREER
Joseph So interviews Ben Heppner at 26 on a great career, with the tenor looking back across the roles and the houses. The piece names the operas and the recordings. Play one of his recordings after reading, then check whether the company named here is staging the role.

p.50 · GIVING SOMETHING TO OTHERS
Contralto Marie-Nicole Lemieux reflects on her career at 50 in an interview with Denise Wendel-Poray. She covers the work and what she wants to pass on. Look up her next recital, since the piece points at teaching and mentoring.

p.44 · BELONGING: HAVING YOUR WORK AND YOUR PRESENCE RECOGNIZED
Asitha Tennekoon reports at 44 on three artists seeking permanent residency in Canada's immigration system, and what recognition means in practice. The piece names the artists and the stages of the process. Read it if you are navigating the same system, since it names the steps.

p.38 · TWENTY YEARS OF MUSIC IN COTTAGE COUNTRY
Dawn Martens looks at twenty years of Highlands Opera Studio at 38, with alumni contributing their accounts. The piece covers the studio's history and its graduates. Check the studio's summer dates if you are in cottage country.

▸ Departments
p.20 · PRODUCTION MEETING
Production Meeting at 20 has Vancouver Opera's general director Tom Wright talking about his route from stage management to general director. The piece names the company and the path he took. Note the stage-management start if you are considering the same move.

p.56 · LETTER FROM WASHINGTON, DC
Michael Jones writes from Washington, DC at 56 on how Washington National Opera, in its 70th season, is beginning a new chapter. The piece covers the company and its plans. Follow the season named here if you track North American companies.

p.60 · OPERA AT HOME
Opera at Home at 60 covers Mozart's Don Giovanni and Halévy's La Juive for home listening or viewing. The column names the recordings and the performers. Queue one of the two operas named here this week.

p.12 · NEW ON THE SCENE
New on the Scene at 12 introduces Camila Montefusco, covering her work and what she is doing now. The piece names the roles and the companies. Watch for her name in casting over the next season.

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Editor's Take

Opera Canada Summer 2026 is the strongest of the opera issues here, because it has something to say: Asitha Tennekoon's Belonging at 44, on three artists seeking permanent residency in Canada, is real reporting on a problem the field rarely prints, and it lifts the issue above a run of profiles. Joyce El-Khoury at 32 is a good cover subject, photographed at the Royal Opera House in The Sicilian Vespers, and Ben Heppner at 26 is worth the pages. The weakness is the departments, which are short — Take Note at 6, Review Highlights at 8, From the Archives at 14 — and the issue feels thin past page 50. The cover is handsome and the naming of Heppner, Lemieux and Montefusco on it shows the range inside. Buy this for the immigration piece and El-Khoury; it is the most substantial opera issue of this batch.

Strengths
• Belonging reports on a real immigration problem
• El-Khoury cover interview covers career and place
• Heppner reflection is substantial

Weaknesses
• Departments are short and thin past page 50
• Several sections run only a page or two

Verdict: Recommended — Belonging and El-Khoury make it the strongest opera issue here.