James O'Neal

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James O'Neal (born January 25, 1949 in Shawnee ( Oklahoma ), † August 12, 1998 in Berlin ) was an American opera singer ( tenor ).

life and career

James O'Neal studied at California State University and Cameron State University in Lawton (Oklahoma) . He appeared at major opera houses in Europe and the USA. In 1979 he debuted at the Santa Fe Opera as one of the Jews in Salome by Richard Strauss . He then moved to Europe, where he took up an engagement at the St. Gallen Theater in the 1979/80 season. From 1980 to 1982 he moved to the Stadttheater Bern . Then O'Neal worked at the Bielefeld City Theater (Artistic Director: Heiner Bruns, Senior Director: John Dew ).

In 1985 he signed a guest contract with the Berlin State Opera , where he was heard as Arrigo in Verdi's Die Sicilianische Vespers , as Turiddu in Cavalleria rusticana and as Des Grieux in Manon Lescaut by Puccini. In 1990 he achieved particular success at this house in the title role of Lohengrin . Having already in 1982 at the Monte Carlo Opera as Bacchus in Ariadne auf Naxos by Richard Strauss had a guest, he sang in 1991 at the Rome Opera to Leucippus in Daphne from the same composer in 1992 at the Spoleto Festival Walther von Stolzing in Die Meistersinger , the he then also gave a lecture at the Teatro Verdi in Trieste (in 1994, Max im Freischütz ).

In 1991 he sang Paul in the Dead City at the Oldenburg State Theater and Horace in the opera Venus by Othmar Schoeck in Lucerne . In 1992 he was the title hero in Parsifal in the opening performance of the renovated Chemnitz Opera House .

In 1994 he appeared at the Helsinki Opera as Lohengrin, at the Oslo Opera as Siegmund, in 1995 as Siegfried in the Ring of the Nibelung , in 1996 as Loge, Siegmund and Siegfried in complete performances of the Ring cycle.

In 1993 he sang the Emperor in Richard's Lady Without a Shadow in Los Angeles . Strauss, in 1995 in Washington the Pedro in Tiefland by Eugen d'Albert, in 1996 at the Theater Chatelet Paris the title role in Oedipus Rex by Stravinsky . In 1996 he sang the title role in the world premiere of the posthumous opera König Kandaules by Alexander von Zemlinsky at the Hamburg State Opera . Further guest appearances took place in theaters in Belgium and Holland. His repertoire on other stages also included roles such as Belmonte in The Abduction from the Seraglio , Pollione in Norma , the title role in Roberto Devereux (Donizetti) and Luigi in Il tabarro by Puccini .

At the Deutsche Oper Berlin he sang Stolzing in the Meistersinger, Siegmund in Die Walküre at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden and Parsifal at the Staatsoper Dresden. He has also made guest appearances in Oslo, at the Washington Opera and in Los Angeles.

In Bielefeld he interpreted roles in the following operas, some of which were rarely performed:

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ American tenor James O'Neal, died on klassik.com, accessed on March 27, 2017.
personal data
SURNAME O'Neal, James
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American opera singer (tenor)
DATE OF BIRTH January 25, 1949
PLACE OF BIRTH Shawnee , Oklahoma
DATE OF DEATH August 12, 1998
Place of death Berlin