Bass-baritone Luca Pisaroni has a dramatic 2012 in store – but first, a little of his history. Having made his debut aged 26 at the Salzburg Festival, Pisaroni went on to become seemingly everybody’s Figaro of choice for the 2010-2011 season, taking the role for the San Francisco Opera, Opéra de Paris and the Vienna State Opera. In 2011, he reprised his much-praised Glyndebourne 2010 performance as Leporello in Mozart’s Don Giovanni for the Baden-Baden Opera Gala alongside an all-star cast including Joyce DiDonato and Rolando Villazón, as well as for the Metropolitan Opera. He also treated Glyndebourne 2011 to a majestic portrayal of Argante, the King of Jerusalem, in Handel’s Rinaldo.

This December and January see him tackling Caliban – flanking DiDonato and Plácido Domingo – in The Enchanted Island, the Met’s own tableau of music by various baroque composers, before he once again embraces Argante for the Chicago Lyric Opera in February. Spring heralds a return to Figaro in Munich and Vienna, while summer brings a new challenge – the title role in Rossini’s Maometto II at Santa Fe Opera, in a world premiere of the score’s new critical edition. His Caliban, in particular, should be a delight: ‘I love to play the crazy, evil and broken characters,’ he says, ‘and Caliban is a monster.’

Somehow, the Venezuela-born singer – who was brought up in Busseto, Italy – still finds time to kick back and relax at home in Vienna with his wife and their two dogs, golden retriever Lenny and miniature dachshund Tristan, who have become mini celebrities in their own right via Pisaroni’s dog blog. (Aw.)

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