A note from the director

What an honor it has been to travel to Baltimore and stage a production for Opera Vivente! Albert Herring is a wonderful musical gem and (especially if you enjoy Britten's music) this is a must-see event for any opera lover. If you are new to Britten, this is the perfect introduction.

I was lucky to be given a dream cast full of vibrant, witty people - all selected by John Bowen - who have done a beautiful job combining the "over-the-top" and subtle acting requirements with the demanding musical score.

If you have never seen an opera in the OV space, try it out. The intimate surrounds of the hall are perfect for a piece like Herring. One actually feels part of the play. At last night's final dress rehearsal one gentleman was sitting next to the orchestra enclosure, but not far from the stage. He was obviously in a state of musical paradise, and went on and on about how he enjoyed himself. I asked him if he had ever seen this particular opera. NO! he stated, and continued with nothing but praise for the production's singers and orchestra. Quite a review!

It has been a wonderful experience being in Balitmore for 3 weeks. John is working in Tulsa in June to stage a "certain Sondheim musical in 3/4 time" which I am sure you will want to check out in future blogs written by Mr. Bowen.

See you at the opera!

Eric Gibson
Guest Director, Albert Herring
Artistic Director, Light Opera Oklahoma, Tulsa

Backstage at the Final Dress

April 29, 2009 - So I'm taking a quick break from enjoying the final dress rehearsal of Albert Herring to post some tantalizing tidbits to whet your appetite to see the show. Here are some photos from last night's piano dress.

The village elders make an "interesting proposal" to Lady Billows.

Sid makes an "interesting proposal" to Albert and another to Nancy.

And Lady Billows takes Albert unto her bosom

with surprising results.

And here's a link to a little video taken just a half hour ago of Austin Nikirk, Veronica Page, and Collin Power, our amazingly talented young cast members. Click here to enjoy.

Performances are May 1, 7, and 9 at 8pm and May 3 at 3pm. Click here to get your ticket to the May King crowning.

See you at the opera!

Preparations for May King Crowning are Heating Up!

April 23, 2009 - So things are really starting to come together for OV's last production of the season: Britten's hysterical comedy of manners, Albert Herring. (click here for tickets). Our first ever guest director, Eric Gibson, finished staging the end of the opera last night, so now we start the act run-thrus, the tech rehearsals, the sitzprobe (singers sit and sing with the orchestra for the first time), and so forth which lead up to what promises to be a glorious opening night on May 1st. To give you a little taste of the look of the production, click here to see our set designer's sketches and models. And to give you a taste of the opera itself, click here to see a video potpourri of excerpts from it.

Also, tickets are going fast for our annual gala fundraiser on May 16th from 8-11pm at the Winans Mansion (1217 St. Paul Street). Great food and drink, wonderful music, and a silent auction featuring items such as hotel stays, golf foursomes, books, tickets, posters, and more. Call 410.547.7997 to get your ticket ($100/person) today.

Playing Catch-Up

April 13, 2009 - Whew! What a whirlwind of activity the past few months have been. Crazy times. Anyway, here's where OV and I are right now.

Rehearsals begin tomorrow for the final show of our 2008-2009 season. And we're closing the season with a madcap romp of a show: Benjamin Britten's Albert Herring. It's a hoot suitable for the whole family. This show also marks the first time in our history that OV welcomes a guest director: Eric Gibson from Light Opera of Oklahoma. Eric's a lively and talented director who will bring out every ounce of hilarity this show offers. Click here to get your ticket today! Tickets are going fast.

The other big thing occupying me right now is planning for the 2009-2010 season. After much deliberating, number-crunching, crystal ball gazing, praying, etc. the board and I arrived at a workable and fiscally responsible budget figure for the season (about a month later than we normally would have arrived at it but better late than never in the current environment) and so now it's "pedal to the metal" to try to get back on track from a scheduling standpoint. So here's our season:

Cinderella (La cenerentola for all the original language folks) by Rossini - September 25, 27, October 1, and October 3, 2009
Impressions of Pelléas by Debussy (in a brilliant evocative distillation by Marius Constant) - February 26, 28, March 5, and March 7, 2010
The Magic Flute (aka Die Zauberflöte for the above-mentioned group) by Mozart - May 14, 16, 20, and 22, 2010

Current subscribers will be contacted over the next few weeks to renew their subscriptions. Subscriptions will then go on sale to the general public on May 1st. Individual tickets will go on sale July 27th.

So things are "a-cooking" as they say. I'll be doing more posts about rehearsals for Albert Herring in the coming weeks.

See you at the opera!