Year End Wrap-up

December 22, 2008 - Well as promised (or threatened depending on your perspective) here's my 'Highlights of 2008' post. There were so many wonderful things on stages this year that I'm not going to pick any complete shows to single out but rather more personal moments that brought a tear to my eye, tickled my funny bone, or in some other way inspired me to keep doing this crazy thing called opera. So here they are in no particular order.

1) David Walker processing down the aisle of Emmanuel Episcopal Church followed by 'angel dancers' from the Baltimore School for the Arts at the end of Opera Vivente's production of Dove's Tobias and the Angel.

2) Noune Karapetian stepping triumphantly at the last minute into the role of Violetta for Granite State Opera and reducing us all to sobbing wrecks in the final act of La traviata.

3) Ryan deRyke delivering a spot-on lounge lizard version of 'The Toreador Song' during Cabaret de Carmen for American Opera Theatre.

4) John Weber and Monica Reinagel singing the transcendently beautiful final bars of Britten's Abraham and Isaac at Pope Pius X Roman Catholic Church.

5) Tony Wilson of the Baltimore School for the Arts choreographing the madcap cast of Orpheus in the Underworld in a 'hip-hop CanCan'.

6) Meredith Ziegler's Dorabella 'toasting' with Ross Benoliel's 'mothy' Guglielmo in Granite State Opera's Così fan tutte.

7) John Dooley being the most perfect colleague and friend any director could ever wish for, no matter what the role.

8) Jennifer Blades revealing the 'dark underbelly' of the North Pole in 'Surabaya Santa'.

9) Erica Cochran channeling Tiffany 'New York' Pollard for Eurydice thereby giving me a professional excuse for my addiction to 'trash TV'.

10) Frédéric Rey getting in touch with his inner rapper and cabaret singer.

Okay, there are actually way many more than these, but I don't want to fatigue the blogosphere. So, let me just say to all the amazing people with whom I've had either the privilege of working or the pleasure of hearing - Bravissimi! Thank you for your artistry and passion.

Finally, I will be out of the country for the week between Christmas and New Year's in a remote, wild, and beautiful location on the west coast of Wales and I won't have access to any technology so this will be the last blog post until after New Year's Day. Don't read anything dire into the interruption.

Happy Holidays!

OV Makes Top 10 of 2008 for Ionarts

December 18, 2008 - Just a brief post to call attention to the fact that Ionarts has placed Opera Vivente's production of Tobias and the Angel in its "Top 10 of 2008" post. 'Tis the season for these sort of year-end round-ups (I'll probably end up posting one myself), but we're always interested in what our patrons are thinking, so if there's some top experiences of 2008 that you'd like to share with our friends in the blogosphere, put them in a comment to this post.

And speaking of "year-end" activities, Opera Vivente's "$25 Makes OV Thrive" Drive is still going on and there's still time to get your gift registered for this tax year. Click here to show your love for OV. Gifts of any size are useful and appreciated.

Happy Holidays!

Holly Jolly Cabaret

December 16, 2008 - So our 2nd annual Holiday Cabaret was an even bigger hit than the first one. An enthusiastic audience ate, drank, laughed, "got misty", and sang along as our "Fab Four" accompanied by Dana Scott performed songs about snow, Christmas trees, holiday shopping, and everyone's favorite fat guy. Below are some shots from the event. Mark you calendars for
December 11, 2009 when we bring you "All I Want for Christmas Is. . ."

Happy Holidays!

Hiatus for a Venerable Institution

December 10, 2008 - Well so many people have contacted me recently to get my 'opinion' on the current situation with Baltimore Opera, that I feel like I need to make a brief post in order to make a couple things clear.

The loss of any arts organization, especially one with such a venerable history as Baltimore Opera is a tragedy and a severe blow to the cultural community of any city. It is Opera Vivente's belief that a truly vibrant arts scene is one that is multi-faceted with many successful organizations exploring different facets of their respective artform whether it be opera, orchestral music, chamber music, theatre, the visual arts, or dance. Our heartfelt sympathy goes out to all of our colleagues who have been deprived of work opportunities and to all the Baltimore Opera subscribers who now hold tickets to shows that are not going to happen. We want to and will be there for you.

That said, I would like to take this opportunity to reinforce that while Baltimore Opera is restructuring, Opera Vivente is completely committed to offering the rest of our season with Monteverdi's luscious baroque masterpiece, The Coronation of Poppea in March and Britten's frothy comedy of manners, Albert Herring in May. I hope that those who are 'jonesing' for an operatic experience during the Spring will check out what we are offering.

Happy Holidays and best wishes to all for a more prosperous and vibrant 2009.

Holly Jolly Fund Drive!

December 5, 2008 - Just a short post to say that the initial response to our "$25 Makes OV Thrive Drive" has been great. So a big shout out of thanks to all of you who have made your contribution already. But remember, the only way that this will truly succeed is with 100% participation. So, come on all you lovers of OV! Send us a little holiday love! And speaking of holiday love, the cabaret is selling out quickly so if you're intending to come to this fun-filled celebration of the season, don't wait too long to make your reservation. Call 410.547.7997 today! See you at the cabaret!

'Tis the Season

- to have a lot of irons in the fire. So everyone who's been reading this blog knows that we have our holiday cabaret coming up on December 12th. Call 410.547.7997 to reserve tickets today 'cuz the seating is extremely limited and the event is very popular. Do not count on being able to just walk up to the door the night of and get a ticket.

Also on the burner for OV at the moment is our end of year appeal which dropped in the mail this past week. We're taking a can-do, we have the power to affect great change attitude and are encouraging everyone who has been a patron of OV, a performer with OV, a designer for OV, or just likes the letters OV to give us a gift of $25. Click here to "show your love". It's fun. It's easy. It's very much appreciated.





We're also working hard on design details for The Coronation of Poppea. Below is a pic of the set design. Click here to purchase tickets. This opera is one of the sexiest ever written. Hot, hot, hot!


Also, planning a number of mini-fundraisers hereafter referred to as "musicales". If you'd like to be on the guest list for these or would like to host one, send me an email at jbowen@operavivente.org.

Finally, we are also avidly involved in planning our kickass gala "When the Clock Strikes Twelve" on May 16, 2009. More of that later.

Okay, gotta dash. Some of the irons are quite hot and in need of striking. See you at the holiday cabaret! - John Bowen