Death of a leading US opera director
mainTito Capobianco has died in Florida of lung cancer, aged 87.
After staging his first operas in his native Argentina, Tito made his US debut directing Carmen in Philadelphia.
He was director of the Cincinnati Opera and the Cincinnati Opera Festival in the 1960s, moving on to a ten-year residency at New York City Opera and seven at San Diego.
He staged with Thaïs and Simon Boccanegra at the Met before serving 17 years as general director of Pittsburgh Opera.
I remember him fondly from the Music Academy of the West in the early 1980s. We did Il Barbiero, Don Giovanni and Don Pasquale with him.
Rest in peace!
Barbiere
I fondly remember Tito from early auditions and my years with NYCO.
A true icon, one of the best. RIP Tito.
I was one of many young artists Tito nurtured and gave opportunities, first at San Diego Opera, then in Pittsburgh. I will miss him.
The Producer who became a close collaborator in many of Beverly Sills’ greatest successes. Tito Capobianco was highly skilled and will be greatly missed.
I was in the New Orleans Opera Chorus in 1968-69 when Tito and his wife Gigi came to stage a Tales of Hoffmann with Sills doing all the soprano parts. They had the chorus choreographed for practically every measure, something we were not at all used to. It was the hardest staging we had ever done but we loved every minute of it. New Orleans native Norman Treigle was also in that production.