DiDonato, Leonard, Feola Lead Christmas Night Opera Gala Return

Joyce DiDonato, Isabel Leonard, Rosa Feola, Michael Fabiano and Iurii Samoilov will headline the second Christmas Night Opera Gala at Carnegie Hall's Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage on Dec. 22, 2026.

Wintour Performing Arts Incorporated presents the evening, which follows the inaugural concert in December 2025. The five singers will perform celebrated arias and scenes from some of opera's most popular works.

Italian conductor Francesco Lanzillotta returns to the podium, as he did last year. He will continue as conductor and music director for the next two Christmas Night Opera Gala concerts, anchoring the series through future editions.

The gala also extends the producing career of Eugene Wintour-Irverstag, the gala's producer and founder of Wintour Performing Arts Incorporated. At 22, he became the youngest general producer of a state theatre in Russia, taking a leadership role at Moscow's Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Music Theatre. Across his career, he has collaborated with leading artists and organizations in opera, classical music, theatre and dance.

After Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Wintour-Irverstag publicly opposed the war. He was arrested and subsequently left Russia permanently, rebuilding his life and career in Europe. He now brings artists and companies to major venues across Northern Europe and the United States. The inaugural Christmas Night Opera Gala at Carnegie Hall in December 2025 marked his U.S. producing debut.

"When we presented the first Christmas Night Opera Gala last year, my hope was not simply to create one beautiful evening, but to begin something that could return to New York year after year," Wintour-Irverstag said in a statement. "To return to Carnegie Hall with another extraordinary group of artists feels very meaningful. I have spent my life bringing artists and audiences together, and after having to rebuild so much of my own life and work, I do not take for granted the opportunity to continue doing that here."

With Lanzillotta contracted for two further editions, the gala positions itself as a recurring fixture on New York's holiday calendar rather than a one-off event.