Audiences will be offered a lesson in love when Mozart’s Così fan tutte returns to the COC stage in Academy Award-nominated director Atom Egoyan’s COC production. Mozart’s whimsical comedy follows two couples as their meddling mentor seeks to put their faithfulness to the test. As the game is played, sisters Fiordiligi and Dorabella must fend off temptation—in the form of their fiancés, who seek the truth at any cost. Così fan tutte will run for seven performances at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts on October 3, 6, 8, 10, 14, 16 and 18, 2026.

Renowned Canadian stage and film director Atom Egoyan (Seven Veils, The Sweet Hereafter, Exotica) takes inspiration from this opera’s subtitle, The School for Lovers, setting the story in a private school’s science lab, where young love is a subject that merits examination, dissection, and manipulation. Set and costume designer Debra Hanson vividly plays up themes of classroom experimentation and the masks that we wear with larger-than-life set pieces, including massive pinned butterflies, an imposing curio cabinet, and a replica of Las dos Fridas, Frida Kahlo’s self-portrait representing two interpretations of herself.

Two rising stars take on the roles of the sisters who have unknowingly been put to the test. Australian soprano Lauren Fagan sings her role debut of Fiordiligi, returning from her “absolutely possessed portrayal of Tatyana” (The Globe and Mail) from this past spring’s Eugene Onegin. Canadian mezzo-soprano Martina Myskohlid makes her company debut, bringing her “articulate and emotionally nuanced” (OperaWire) singing to the role of Fiordiligi’s sister, Dorabella. British tenor Laurence Kilsby and Canadian baritone and Ensemble Studio graduate Joel Allison take on the roles of the sister’s fiancés, Ferrando and Guglielmo. Kilsby, also making his company debut, has been lauded as an “ultra refined tenor” (The Guardian), while Allison has garnered praise for his “rich, ringing tone” (Ludwig Van Toronto). Daniel Okulitch, renowned as a “rich-voiced bass-baritone” (The New York Times) returns from 2025’s production of La Reine-garçon in the role of Don Alfonso, who sets this game of wits in motion. Canadian soprano Tracy Dahl reprises the role of Despina, a performance The Globe and Mail called “lively and funny” in the COC’s 2014 production.

COC Music Director Johannes Debus leads the COC Orchestra through what is often described as Mozart’s most perfect score, including the beloved pieces “Un aura amorosa,” “Soave sia il vento,” and “Come scoglio.” Price Family Chorus Master Sandra Horst leads the COC Chorus through the work’s stunning ensemble numbers.

Così fan tutte is sung in Italian and presented by the COC with English and French SURTITLES™.

Regularly priced tickets for Così fan tutte start at $45 for adults, with $28 and $35 tickets available for guests between the ages of 16 and 29 through the COC’s Opera Under 30 program. Tickets can be purchased online at www.coc.ca or by calling the Four Seasons Centre Box Office at 416-363-8231.

For more information on booking student groups, standing room, and rush tickets, please visit www.coc.ca.

Photo: Emily D’Angelo and Johannes Kammler. © 2019 Michael Cooper.