On 18th June, when news of the sad demise of “India’s only opera diva”, Celia Lobo, began to flood social media, it inevitably triggered memories of my own brief association with her.

Kathak exponent Aditi Mangaldas describes the process of creation and inspiration behind a production born during the pandemic that grapples with reality and illusion, and reflects on its journey from an online festival to its stage premiere at the NCPA.

The Metropolitan Opera’s 2024-25 Live in HD season kicks off this month with Jacques Offenbach’s fantastical swansong and brings in the new year with screenings of the most loved operas from the canon along with the premiere of the first opera by a female composer commissioned by the opera house.

A series on houses of culture from around the world. In focus this month: The Brooklyn Paramount Theater

Every month, we introduce a must-read book from the NCPA Reference Library, which has an extensive collection on theoretical and practical aspects of the performing and visual arts, ranging from ethnomusicology to architecture to folk traditions. Here, Aditya Shiledar analyses the comedic and insurgent aspects of two plays by French polymath Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais which would find immeasurable fame in operas by Gioachino Rossini and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

How does one honour, celebrate and remember a man who managed to straddle the worlds of folk and contemporary theatre with aplomb? Habib Tanvir and His Legacy in Theatre, a powerful work of collective memory created by those who knew him, loved him, understood him, takes on the onus with the characteristic warmth of the stage. The excerpt below, from an essay by Sameera Iyengar, examines Tanvir’s sojourn at Prithvi Theatre and elements of Charandas Chor, his most famous work.

The Bells by 5AngryMen, a theatrical extravaganza combining aerial arts, is all set for its maiden performance in India at the Serendipity Arts Festival in Goa.

ON Stage brings you edited excerpts from the NCPA Quarterly Journal, an unsurpassed literary archive that ran from 1972 to 1988 and featured authoritative and wide-ranging articles. In the first of a two-part series, musician and composer Bhaskar Chandavarkar describes the transcendent, and sometimes truly experimental, performances presented at the East-West Music Encounter held in 1983, the first in a series of symposiums organised across disciplines to re-identify the bonds between eastern and western cultures.

Every month, Jimmy Bilimoria takes us through the musical treasures of the NCPA’s Stuart-Liff Collection. Here, he writes about the great verismo soprano, Magda Olivero.

Whether through direct discipleship, an inherited legacy or learning by osmosis when sharing the stage with a senior musician, the guru-shishya tradition, so elemental to Indian classical music, has been the central focus of the Citi NCPA Aadi Anant festival, which also continues to be a thriving platform for innovation within tradition.

A column exploring diverse aspects of the performing arts. This month, choreographer, dancer and artistic director of Attakkalari Centre for Movement Arts, Jayachandran Palazhy shares his thoughts on the interplay of dance and education, and the transformative power of the arts.

With international cultural collaborations, educational programmes and community outreach events, the SOI Chamber Orchestra is redefining Western classical music for audiences beyond the NCPA.

Classical pianist Olga Kern is an unstoppable force with hundreds of memorable recitals, concerts and recordings to her name. The Russia-born American pianist talks to ON Stage about her rich musical lineage, the joy of performing and the exciting programme dedicated to Rachmaninoff she will soon present at the NCPA.

Four plays which have been winners of the Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards, held annually in New Delhi, are coming to the NCPA as part of the first edition of The NCPA META Festival.

This year’s edition of the NCPA Pravaha Dance Festival will witness new choreographies by acclaimed exponents of a variety of dance forms. We spoke to Sadanam Balakrishnan, Rama Vaidyanathan and Sreelakshmy Govardhanan about what they are planning to present at the festival.

In its third year, Connections India goes beyond performance to train the theatre-makers of tomorrow in stage management and other technical aspects of bringing a production to life.

They welcome you in, show you to your seat and ensure you have a memorable experience at the theatre, while keeping disruption at bay with a smile. Meet the ushers of the NCPA.