Opera star Placido Domingo will return to Miami for the first time in a decade
Spanish opera superstar Placido Domingo is thrilled to be entertaining his many fans Thursday night at AmericanAirlines Arena. During a Tuesday press conference at the JW Marriott Marquis Hotel, Domingo — whose 75th birthday was Jan. 21 — said he feels great and has no reason to slow down.
The Miami concert is part of a wide-ranging tour. What inspired you to partake in such a full travel schedule?
No doubt this year is a special one. I thank God for allowing me to continue doing what I love, satisfying the public and myself. I’m not the kind of artist who prepares and goes on tour to promote an album. Within my still busy operatic schedule, I attend numerous beautiful invitations coming from everywhere. This tour is taking me from Chicago to Moscow and Dublin, even making a stopover in my hometown of Madrid.
The tour began at the Lyric Opera of Chicago with soprano Ana Maria Martinez. Who is accompanying you here?
Ana Maria indeed has been with me for countless concerts around the world — she is someone who I greatly appreciate as a person and as an artist. In Miami, Argentinian soprano Virginia Tola will accompany me. She is having a wonderful international career with some of the genre’s most demanding roles. Also American soprano Micaëla Oeste, who has continued to grow dramatically. As always, I’ll be happy to work with conductor Eugene Kohn, who will lead the Miami Symphony Orchestra led by Maestro Eduardo Marturet. Finally, I have the great great privilege of being able to confirm that our dear friend Juanes will sing with me on a couple of pieces. It fills me with joy.
How do you like performing in Miami?
This city has always been very special to me. It’s the epicenter of our beloved cultures, our rich flavors and our Latin music — with a wonderful, diverse, knowledgeable and enthusiastic audience. Miami is the city where I have performed many concerts over the years, some very memorable ones with my colleagues [aka The Three Tenors] Luciano Pavarotti and Jose Carreras.
Can you reveal your repertoire?
I usually include a couple of arias and duets because the public knows me as an opera singer before anything else. I would definitely like to [incorporate] Spanish Zarzuela, the exciting music my parents played when I was growing up. Sometimes I like to include Viennese operetta, some gems from the Broadway musicals as well as popular songs. Surely there will be surprises.
After completing the tour, what are your plans?
In 2016, I will not conduct as much. I will participate in a couple of classic galas in Vienna and Budapest before settling in Milan where I’ll prepare and sing several performances of Giuseppe Verdi’s opera I due Foscari. Soon after I return to the Metropolitan Opera in New York and the Teatro del Liceo in Barcelona. I return to Los Angeles to open the season in September with Macbeth, also composed by Verdi, one of my favorites.
Tickets for Thursday’s 8 p.m. show at Ticketmaster.
This story was originally published January 27, 2016 at 4:06 PM with the headline "Opera star Placido Domingo will return to Miami for the first time in a decade."