May 11, 2013
Edgerton Performing Arts Center Funded in part by the William & Joyce Wartmann Endowment for the Performing Arts The Magic Flute
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Chicago’s Candid Concert Opera presents The Magic Flute by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in concert. Candid Concert Opera is dedicated to the development of emerging opera and instrumental talent. The company is focused on increasing the understanding, appreciation, accessibility, and availability of classical opera to the community. The Candid Concert Opera setting is the perfect way to enjoy the beautiful stories opera has to offer. Musical Director, Codrut Birsan, Emmy Award winning composer, pianist, and opera singer, brings a world of experience and passion to Candid Concert Opera. The WEpac (Wartmann Endowment for the Performing Arts Center) Board was established in 2003 by former Edgerton School District Superintendent Dr. Norman L. Fjelstad to work in accordance with the Wartmann Endowment to help the arts program in the Edgerton Community grow in perpetuity. Board members are: Jennifer Dail Diane Everson Ellen Knutson Dr. Dennis Pauli Connie Tronnes
Nancy Dickinson Erin Gonzalez Tom Livick Gary Smith Paul M. Tropp
Cathe Engler Amy Horn-Delzer Joan Montgomery Lisa Teubert
Striving to provide a diverse selection of quality, affordable entertainment to the Edgerton Community. EPAC Production Personnel WEpac Board Members EPAC Coordinator, Marketing & Publicity, Lighting, Master Electrician, Concert Program, Artist Relations: Paul M. Tropp Technician: Josiah B. Tropp
Ticket Manager: Donna Skau Box Office Clerk: Sharon Wright
Proud members of these organizations 2
Edgerton Performing Arts Center
The Magic Flute continued Codrut Birsan, Artistic Director of
Candid Concert Opera. Born in Brasov, Romania, Codrut Birsan began piano lessons at age 6. By age 17, he was one of the accompanists for Opera Brasov. Birsan began voice lessons at Brasov Conservatory as a teenager, then transferred to Bucharest University of Music where he studied with distinguished professor Georgeta Stoleriu.
While a voice student at the Academy of Music in Bucharest, Birsan was also a piano accompanist for the Academy’s opera class. He obtained a Master of Music degree in Voice at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Birsan has worked as a piano accompanist/opera coach with the San Francisco Lyric Opera, the Livermoore Opera, BASOTI, and for the Opera Academy of California. Birsan moved to Madison while his wife, soprano Emily Birsan, pursued her master’s degree in voice. In Madison, Birsan played for voice students at the University of Wisconsin and founded Candid Concert Opera (CCO). For the past few years, Birsan has focused on composition as well as performance. He was honored in 2010 with an International Emmy Award for his role in composing the score for The World According to Ion B., a documentary that originally aired on Romanian HBO. Birsan is a regular collaborator with the Chicago Lyric Opera.
Chelsea Morris, Pamina, Praised for her “crystal clear, lyric soprano voice,” Chelsea Morris recently charmed audiences as Feodora in The Circus Princess (Chicago Folks Operetta) and Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro (Candid Concert Opera). The Michigan native's operatic repertoire also includes Emily Webb in Ned Rorem’s Our Town and the title role of L’incoronazione di Poppea (Rice University), Giannetta in L’esilir d’amore (DuPage Opera Theatre), Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi, Anne Sexton in Conrad Susa’s Transformations, and the title role of The Fairy Queen (DePaul University). Ms. Morris has also appeared as soloist with The Chicago Bach Ensemble, the Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra and on tour with internationally acclaimed composer/pianist Eric Genuis. A winner of numerous competition prizes, Ms. Morris has been championed by the National Opera Association, the Bel Canto Foundation of Chicago and the Classical Singer Vocal Competition among others. Ms. Morris holds a Bachelor of Music, summa cum laude, from DePaul University and a Master of Music from Rice University. In 2013, the rising soprano will bring two more Mozart heroines to the stage: Despina in Cosi fan tutte (DuPage Opera Theatre) and Pamina in Die Zauberflöte (Candid Concert Opera). The Magic Flute
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Javier Bernardo - TAMINO is a 2012 winner of The Career Bridges Grant
from The Schuyler Foundation and The Dennis Lo Bue Memorial Award from theBel Canto Foundation. Described as “the lead with powerhouse singing” by Chicago Now, Javier Bernardo is a lyric tenor with growing demand. The Peruvian tenor has been a soloist at Symphony Center, as well as main stage roles with the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Javier has been a fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center, a member of The Marc and Eva Stern Fellowship Program at Songfest, and part of the Chicago Opera Theatre Young Artist Program. Javier Bernardo has also been professionally affiliated with Chicago Symphony, Chicago Folks Operetta, Janiec Opera Theatre, Juilliard Opera Theatre, and the Palm Beach Opera. Javier also excels in oratorio and other concert repertoire. He has been a soloist for the St. John Passion, Rossini's Stabat Mater, Handel'sMessiah, Haydn's Creation, and has performed songs by composers from Peru, Cuba, Argentina, Mexico, Spain, Italy, France, Germany, and the United States. Mr. Bernardo holds a Master of Music degree from the Juilliard School.
Amanda Kingston - Queen of the Night A native of Madison, Wisconsin, Amanda completed her Master's Degree at the University of Houston. Recently, she appeared in the Alley Theatre's production of Amadeus as the Opera Diva Cavalieri. Other operatic highlights include Violetta in La traviata, Josephine in HMS Pinafore, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, Corinna in Rossini's Viaggio a Reims, Rosalba in Catan's Florencia en el Amazonas, Despina in Cosi fan Tutte, and Mabel in the Pirates of Penzance. Next spring, she will sing Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor with Opera in the Heights. Amanda has been the Soprano Soloist in Handel's Messiah with Houston Ars Lirica and the Countess in excerpts of the Marriage of Figaro with Ann Arbor Symphony. She has also performed roles with The Nevada Opera, The Ohio Light Opera, The Brevard Music Center, and Opera Workshop with Michigan Opera Theater. Voice teachers include Ruth Golden, Cynthia Clayton, and Melody Racine. Amanda holds an Undergraduate degree in Vocal Performance and Music Education from The University of Michigan. Dan Richardson- Papageno Iowa-native Dan Richardson is pleased to join the Florentine Opera as a member of the 2011-2012 Florentine Opera Studio. This past spring, he made his main stage debut with Opera Omaha as Prince Yamadori and the Imperial Commissioner in Puccini's Madama Butterfly. Other recent roles include Méphistophélès in Faust with Opera Lousiane, Antonio and Figaro (cover) in Le nozze di Figaro with the Des Moines Metro Opera, and Angelotti in Tosca with the Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre. He has also performed with the Sarasota Opera, Chamber Opera Chicago, the Lyric Opera of Chicago, where he performed the role of Don Bartolo for their “Opera in the Neighborhoods” production of Rossini's The Barber of Seville. He has also performed scene work as John Claggart (Billy Budd), Giorgio (I Puritani) Tom (Un ballo in maschera) Leporello (Don Giovanni), Colline (La bohème), Talbot (Maria Stuarda) Hans Sachs (Die Meistersinger), Nick Shadow (The Rake's Progress), Don Alfonso (Così fan tutte), Collatinus (The Rape of Lucretia) and Antony (Antony and Cleopatra), among others. Mr. Richardson is an alumnus of Simpson College, where he studied with Dr. Maria DiPalma and Dr. Robert Larsen. 4
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Neil Edwards, Sarastro is thrilled to return to Candid Concert Opera. Neil
last performed with CCO as Bartolo in Le nozze di Figaro. Some of Neil’s previous principal roles include Don Giovanni in Don Giovanni for American Chamber Opera, Crespel in La Bohème for American Chamber Opera, Crespel in Les Contes D’Hoffmann with Chicago College of Performing Arts, Sparafucile in Rigoletto, and Pistola in Falstaff for La Musica Lirica in Italy. Next year Neil will be performing the role of Sarastro in CCO’s Die Zauberflöte.
St. Louis native Amanda Compton- Papagena is a graduate of Illinois Wesleyan University (B.M. Vocal Performance) and the University of WisconsinMadison (M.M. Voice). She currently performs and teaches in the Chicago area, performing with the Chicago Symphony Chorus ("Otello," "Camina Burana"), Light Opera Works ("Brigadoon," "The Student Prince"), Red Tape Theatre, Theatre at the Center ("42nd Street"), VOX3 Collective, and American Chamber Opera Company (Zerlina). In the Madison, WI area she has performed as Yum-Yum in "The Mikado" (Madison Savoyards), and Mélisande in "Pelleas et Mélisande" (UW-Madison). She maintains an active teaching career as a private voice and piano teacher, a teaching artist for Chicago Opera Theater’s “Opera for All” program, and an associate teaching artist for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s program at IYC Warrenville for incarcerated and at risk youth. She has been a soloist with the American Institute of Music in Graz, Austria, as well as with the Belleville Diocesan Schola, and she is thrilled to be making her debut with Candid Concert Opera as Papagena! A huge thanks to her family for their patience, love, and all of those endless dance and music lessons!
Leila Bowie, 1st Lady is the recipient of the 2011 Lynne Harvey Music Scholarship from the Musicians Club of Women. Most recently she made her Orchestra Hall debut as a soloist in “Beyond the Score: Strauss’ Ein Heldenleben” with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and appeared as First Lady in Mozart’s The Magic Flute with Chicago Opera Theater. Also in 2011, Ms. Bowie was a finalist the Neue Stimmen International Singing Competition in Germany. A recent graduate of Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University, she performed as a Young Artist with Chicago Opera Theater for the past two seasons. Her recent operatic performances have included the role of Nérine in Charpentier’s Médée and the cover of Schumann’s Frauenliebe und Leben for Chicago Opera Theater, Fiordiligi in Mozart’s Così fan tutte for the Green Mountain Opera Festival in Vermont, and Beth in Adamo’s Little Women for Sugar Creek Symphony and Song. Other recent projects include the World Premiere of George Flynn’s Songs of Destruction with New Music DePaul in Chicago and as a soloist in Mozart’s Requiem with the Marion Philharmonic Orchestra. She is an advocate for contemporary composers and has appeared in recital in wide-ranging repertoire. All performances are funded in part by the William & Joyce Wartmann Endowment for the Performing Arts The Magic Flute
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Marci Wagnon Jackson - 2nd Lady Marci possesses a fluid timbre with a combination of artistic musicality and entrancing stage presence. The Muncie Star Press praised her portrayal of Donna Anna in Don Giovanni as "brilliant…let it be know, this woman can sing." In the 2012-2013 season she made her role and company debut with Center Stage Opera in California as the title role in Puccini's Suor Angelica. Later this spring she will be singing with New Rochelle Opera as Santuzza in Cavalerria Rusticana. Other past engagements include performances with Sugar Creek Symphony and Song in Watseka, IL as the Countess in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro, covering title roles of Tosca with Opera Las Vegas and Susannah with Des Moines Metro Opera. Marci gave the world premiere of the cantata Madres, words and music written by Brazilian born composer Luciana Mendes-Schulle. Robin Bradley - 3rd Lady Praised for her “very colorful, interesting and
beautiful instrument,” Mezzo Soprano Robin Bradley made her Carnegie Hall debut at the age of eighteen under the direction of renowned conductor Jonathan Griffith. She has performed in venues across the nation ranging from Michigan's cherished Hill Auditorium to the historic Sanders Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts. A graduate of the University of Michigan and the University of Chicago, Robin has also participated in the Opera Training Institute of Chicago’s Young Artist Program and serves as a company apprentice of Flamenco Chicago, the professional company of acclaimed dancer and choreographer Rosetta Magdalen. Ms. Bradley was recently seen as the Alto Soloist in Elijah, as Marcellina in Le Nozze di Figaro with Candid Concert Opera and Madame de la Haltière in Massenet’s Cendrillon.
Eric Mason - Monostatos Eric Mason has been described as an “athletic
singing actor” who possesses a “warm timbre.” He received his masters degree from DePaul University in 2009. Since then, he has honed his skills as a character singer. In 2010 Eric played the role of Pooh-Bah with the Gilbert and Sullivan Opera Company in their production of the Mikado. In 2011 he played the Notary in Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Sorcerer as well as the role of MacGregor in Music by the Lake’s production of Brigadoon. In 2012 he sang the role of Antonio in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro.
Tom Kastle, Narrator has one foot in the singer/songwriter world and the other in the maritime realm as a tall ship sailor and interpreter of traditional maritime music. Serving as Candid Concert Opera's Narrator (with the occasional singing role) Tom's heart is ever moving into the opera world with his 5th appearance with the company. As a performer, he has toured throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, and New Zealand. Radio listeners might recognize his voice from WFMT's "Midnight Special" or Wisconsin Public Radio's "Simply Folk" among dozens of live and recorded appearances. Tom is also the co-director of the Chicago Maritime Festival and is on the faculty of the Old Town School of Folk Music. When home, ashore, Tom lives on the banks of Lake Mendota in Madison. *Please turn off cell phones and pagers. No food, gum or beverages in the theatre, and no unauthorized video or photography. Thank You! 6
Edgerton Performing Arts Center
The Magic Flute by Candid Concert Opera Prince Tamino, pursued by a monster, is saved by the Three Ladies in the service of the Queen of the Night. When they leave to report the news to the Queen, the bird catcher Papageno appears. He boasts to Tamino that it was he who killed the creature. The Ladies return to give Tamino a portrait of Pamina, the Queen's daughter, kidnapped by the evil Sarastro. They also padlock Papageno's mouth for lying. The magic of the portrait makes Tamino fall in love with Pamina. The Queen appears grieving over the loss of her daughter; she charges Tamino with Pamina's rescue. The Ladies give a magic flute to Tamino and silver bells to Papageno to ensure their safety, appointing Three Boys to guide them. Hearing that Pamina is alive, Tamino plays his magic flute and rushes to follow the sound of Papageno's pipes. Monostatos is about to capture Papageno and Pamina on the run but is left helpless by Papageno's magic bells. Sarastro arrives to promise Pamina eventual freedom and to punish Monostatos. Pamina is enchanted by a glimpse of Tamino, who is led to face his trials inside the temple. Monostatos tries to rape the sleeping Pamina again. He is discovered by the raging Queen of the Night. She gives her daughter a dagger with an ultimatum to murder Sarastro for stealing the magic legacy left over by Pamina's deceased father. The weeping Pamina, who refuses to perceive Sarastro as a thief and a monster, is consoled by Sarastro who advises her to renounce all feelings of vengeance and aggression. Tamino and Papageno's first trial is to remain silent and refrain from eating, a vow that Papageno immediately breaks when he takes a glass of water from a flirtatious Old Lady. The Old Lady vanishes when he asks her name. The Three Boys appear to guide Tamino through the rest of his journey. Tamino remains silent even when Pamina appears; inadvertently he breaks her heart since she cannot understand his silent rejection. The priests inform Tamino that he has only two more trials to complete his initiation. Papageno longs for a young wife but, out of general exhaustion and frustration, settles for the Old Lady. When he promises to be faithful she turns into a young Papagena but soon disappears. Pamina contemplates suicide in despair but is given new hope by the Three Boys. She and Tamino are reunited and face the ordeals of water and fire protected by the magic flute. Next the Three Boys save Papageno from an attempted suicide and remind him that the use of his magic bells will help him find true happiness. When he does so, young Papagena appears and the two reunite. The Queen of the Night, her Three Ladies, and Monostatos attack the temple but are defeated and perish. Sarastro joins Pamina and Tamino to hail the triumph of courage, virtue, and wisdom.
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Concert & Series Sponsors: PRODUCER
William and Joyce Wartmann Endowment for the Performing Arts Center William J. Wartmann Lawrence & Julie Midtbo
BENEFACTOR Thomas & Joyce Eastman Warren & Judith Kukla
DIRECTOR
Edgerton Gear Edgerton Pharmacy Steponkus Tax Service In Honor of Paul, Karen & Josiah Tropp
ASSOCIATE John & Shelby Fahlgren PATRON Donald & Barbara Brown Helen Rae Clawson
Mimmi Fulmer Judith Hubbell David & Jane Nelson Jean & Ronald Theis VFW Ladies Auxiliary Post 2708 James Cullen, Prairie Craftsmen, Inc.
Special Thanks To: William & Joyce Wartmann Dr. Dennis Pauli WEpac Board Members Edgerton Pharmacy Knapton Musik Knotes Voigt Music Centers, Inc. Piggly Wiggly C&M Printing The Edgerton Reporter Edgerton School District Board of Education and Staff
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Edgerton Performing Arts Center