Seattle Opera’s Next Season Will Be VERY Gay Friendly…And, Shorter

It slipped into my “to do” box (where I forgot about it) but it’s time to talk about last month’s announcement from Seattle Opera about their 2025/26 Season…there’s a lot to discuss.

One, there’s a lot of programming that will excite the LGBTQ+ community including the local premiere of Fellow Travelers, a new opera that “explores forbidden gay love” during the 1950’s McCarthy Witchhunts era. It’s based on the novel by Thomas Mallon which was also adapted into a very successful Showtime TV miniseries a couple years back. Not to mention the return of local tenor  John Marzano hosting as his drag persona, Anita Spritzer for a holiday show called Gay Apparel. So, tres gay!!!

Secondly, there’s also the revelation that Seattle Opera has a much cut down season from previous years…for 25/26 there will only be THREE fully staged works: the already mentioned Fellow Travelers; Bizet’s Carmen and shockingly, Gilbert and Sullivan’s operetta, The Pirates of Penzance. It was tradition for decades for Seattle Opera to do six full operas a year; money deficits and declining live performance attendance has taken its toll. And, the news that they’re staging a Gilbert and Sullivan comic light opera will delight fans of the Victorian musical team but probably horrify a few opera purists. E-SCANDALO!!!!

Richard Strauss’s Daphne will also be performed but not in a fully staged performance but as a concert. That’s a lot of changes to unpack for one press announcement! I’m sure there are some opera divas across the greater Metroplex having major conniptions over all these changes! Cue the pearl clutching! But all that said, we’re delighted to see those LGBTQ+ programming choices. Fellow Travelers is directed by director Kevin Newbury who did The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, another new opera that was fantastically well received here.

All the poo below!

Seattle Opera Announces Bold 2025/26 Season featuring McCaw Hall Premieres and LGBTQ+ Representation

General and Artistic Director James Robinson’s first full season at Seattle Opera
blends beloved classics, a hidden gem, and a groundbreaking new work

Seattle Opera’s General and Artistic Director James Robinson announced the 2025/26 mainstage season, his first full season at the helm. The company’s 62nd season offers three McCaw Hall premieres: a swashbuckling comedy, a rarely performed Strauss gem, and a moving piece of LGBTQ+ history coming to the mainstage, before concluding with one of the most popular operas of all time.

Swashbuckling Comedy: The Pirates of Penzance
October 18, 19, 24, 26, 28, 29; November 1, 2025

The season opens with Seattle Opera’s first-ever Gilbert and Sullivan: the rambunctious seafaring adventure, The Pirates of Penzance. Cheered by the Wall Street Journal for its “witty directing and choreography that kept the stage pictures fizzing,” the Seán Curran production has delighted audiences and critics at The Atlanta Opera, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, and The Glimmerglass Festival. An excellent cast of international opera talent features several company debuts, including Reginald Smith, Jr. as the Pirate King, Thomas Glass as Major-General Stanley, David Portillo as Frederic, Vanessa Becerra as Mabel, and Katharine Goeldner as Ruth. David Charles Abell will conduct.

Rare Gem: Daphne in Concert
January 16, 18, 2026

Seattle Opera continues its string of celebrated concert stagings–including Les Troyens in 2025 and Samson and Delilah in 2023–with a rarely performed one-act masterpiece by Richard Strauss. Daphne features some of the composer’s most lush writing for orchestra. Heidi Stober, hailed by Opera News as a “distinctly American lyric soprano that makes the rest of the world listen,” makes her Seattle Opera debut in the title role following recent successes in Berlin, Dresden, Zurich, and London. The cast also features David Butt Philip as Apollo and Melody Wilson (Fricka, Das Rheingold ’23) as Gaea with the German-born conductor of the Spanish National Orchestra and Chorus David Afkham on the podium.

LGBTQ+ History: Fellow Travelers
February 21, 22, 25, 27, 28; March 1, 2026

One of the most frequently performed new operas of the past decade, Fellow Travelers explores forbidden love during McCarthyism. The “gorgeous music” highlights its recognition in The New York Times’ Best of Classical Music 2016 list. The story is a riveting piece of historical fiction, adapted by composer Gregory Spears and librettist Greg Pierce from the Thomas Mallon novel–recently released as a Showtime mini-series. Set during the Lavendar Scare, a time of gay persecution in the federal government, the opera follows the forbidden love affair of Timothy Laughlin, a recent college graduate eager to join the fight against Communism, and Hawkins Fuller, a seductive State Department official. Tenors Andres Acosta (Nemorino, The Elixir of Love ’22) and Colin Aikins share the role of Timothy, while baritones Joseph Lattanzi (Steward, Flight ’21) and Jarrett Ott share the role of Hawkins.

Seattle Opera presents Fellow Travelers in collaboration with New York-based artistic collective Up Until Now, in a national project that brings this important story to stages across the country. This special initiative, which is launching in Seattle, is one of the largest consortium projects within the US opera industry and is headed by director Kevin Newbury (The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs ’19) and producer Jecca Barry.

Sizzling Classic: Carmen
May 2, 3, 8, 9, 10, 13, 16, 17, 2026

A cast of opera’s brightest stars brings Bizet’s Carmen to life in a fiery season finale, supported by the Seattle Opera Chorus under the baton of Ludovic Morlot (Les Troyens ’25). The fierce heroine will be sung by Sasha Cooke in her role debut (Hansel, Hansel and Gretel ’16) and Tacoma native J’Nai Bridges (Dido, Les Troyens ’25), with Matthew Cairns and Ryan Capozza as the dangerously jealous Don José. Company debuts will be made by Kathleen O’Mara as Micaëla, and Christian Pursell and Benjamin Taylor as Escamillo.

“Carmen has been a dream role of mine as long as I can remember,” said Cooke. “Debuting the role at Seattle Opera, where 18 years prior I sang in the Young Artists Program, will have special meaning.”

Additional Programming:
Student performances, classes, Edith Piaf showcase, and Holiday Cheer

More performances, classes, and holiday programming will provide a wide variety of opportunities for audiences of all ages to deepen their love and appreciation for the opera art form throughout the 2025/26 season. Following on the success of the Jubilee school day matinee, which more than 1500 students attended, The Pirates of Penzance performances include a Tuesday, October 28 matinee. In November, Grammy Award-winning soprano Patricia Racette performs songs of famous French cabaret singer Édith Piaf in an “unforgettable evening concert” (The Daily Californian). A major highlight to ring in the holiday season is Gay Apparel, hosted by tenor John Marzano (Beppe, Pagliacci ’24) hosting as his drag persona, Anita Spritzer.

Season tickets and more information available at seattleopera.org.

Performance Information (see full cast lists at seattleopera.org)

The Pirates of Penzance

·        Music by Arthur Sullivan

·        Libretto by W.S. Gilbert

·        Conducted by David Charles Abell

·        Directed and Choreographed by Seán Curran

·        October 18, 19, 24, 26, 28, 29, November 1, 2025

·        McCaw Hall (321 Mercer St, Seattle, WA 98109)

·        seattleopera.org/pirates

Gay Apparel: A Holiday Show

·        December 12 & 13, 2025

·        The Opera Center (363 Mercer St, Seattle, WA 98109)

·        seattleopera.org/gayapparel

Daphne in Concert

·        Music by Richard Strauss

·        Libretto by Joseph Gregor

·        January 16 & 18, 2026

·        McCaw Hall (321 Mercer St, Seattle, WA 98109)

·        seattleopera.org/daphne

Fellow Travelers

·        Music by Gregory Spears

·        Libretto by Greg Pierce

·        Conducted by Patrick Summers

·        Directed by Kevin Newbury

·        February 21, 22, 25, 27, 28, & March 1, 2026

·       seattleopera.org/fellowtravelers

Carmen

·        Music by George Bizet

·        Libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy

·        Conducted by Ludovic Morlot

·        Directed and Choreographed by Paul Curran

·        May 2, 3, 8, 9, 10, 13, 16, & 17, 2026

·        McCaw Hall (321 Mercer St, Seattle, WA 98109)

·        seattleopera.org/carmen

About Seattle Opera

Established in 1963, Seattle Opera is committed to serving the people of the Pacific Northwest through music, storytelling, and programs for people of all ages. Each year, more than 50,000 people attend the company’s performances, and more than 100,000 people are served through school performances, radio broadcasts, and more. The organization brings opera to life in a number of different ways, offering artistic excellence through national and international collaborations. Seattle Opera strives to create an environment where artists, staff, behind-the-scenes workers, and members of the community feel a strong connection to the company, and to the art of opera. Follow Seattle Opera on Facebook, Twitter, SoundCloud, and on Classical KING.