OPERA

Opera Ithaca is back and Takes note of new voices

By Lyndsey Honor

Opera Ithaca will launch its 2022 season with the Opera Ithaca Festival, running Oct. 22 through Nov.6 — this will be the rst season since the onset of the pandemic that features completely live presentations. e festival will include a popup concert series and recital featuring Opera Ithaca’s Apprentice Artists, a Double Bill performance of Missy Mazzoli’s “Proving Up” and William Grant Still’s “Highway 1, USA,” and a production of Giuseppe Verdi’s “Nabucco.”

“We’ve been planning the logistics, repertoire, and line-up of this event for over a year and a half,” said Ben Robinson, who has served as the artistic director of Opera Ithaca since 2019. “ e last two years have been hard on us all, but we’ve taken strides at Opera Ithaca to assert ourselves by seizing the moment. We’ve put in the work to make this festival the most complex operation we’ve ever done, and it’s surreal to watch it come to fruition. It has involved preparing two operas at the same time, while also rehearsing a recital.”

Since 2014, when Opera Ithaca was cofounded by Zachary James and Lynn Craver, a huge part of the company’s mission has been to prioritize underrepresented voices. e founding team began by setting a goal to produce work written by female composers and have since produced three operas written by women. Robinson says this mission has expanded over time to include voices that have not been given their fair share of opportunities in the traditional opera canon.

Showcasing underrepresented voices is only one way Opera Ithaca ghts for equity within the arts. “It’s our responsibility as artists to recognize that opera has been historically written, produced, and performed by elitist white men,” Robinson said. “We need to take an active role in nding where the con uences are between social issues and the arts and provide equitable opportunities for all, helping opera remain essential and critical within this larger conversation.” is mission will be very clear throughout the Opera Ithaca Festival. In choosing operas to produce for the event, Robinson said the executive creative team actively sought out work that dealt with signi cant social issues. “Proving Up” and “Highway 1, USA” both question the validity of the American Dream, with “Highway 1, USA” speaking directly to Black experience in America. “Nabucco” extends the conversation, containing major themes of anti-Semitism and authoritarianism.

Forty- ve minutes before each mainstage performance, a panel of scholars, activists, and artists with globally represented perspectives will congregate on stage. ey’ll engage in conversation about how social justice issues and the arts intersect with one another, discussing how they’d like to see change, especially moving forward from the pandemic. Pop-Up Concert Series and Recital

e festival will begin with a series of popup concerts and a one night only recital. ese events will all be hosted outside artist studios, providing a natural visual backdrop. e rst pop-up concert is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 22. from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ( e time is currently wrong on their website). is event is free and will be performed at Artist Alley, located in the South Hill Business Campus (950 Danby Road). e second is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 29. from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Treman Center, located at 95 Hines Road in New eld, New York. is event is also free and will be followed by a Halloween party (Come in costume!). is series will conclude with the Young Artist Recital titled “Voices Represented” on Saturday, Nov. 5, at 4 p.m. at the CRS Barn, located at Triphammer Arts (2622 N. Triphammer Road). Ticket prices vary. The Double Bill

e Double Bill, featuring Mazzoli’s “Proving Up” and Still’s “Highway 1, USA,” presents a unique experience, as it’s the rst time these operas have been performed together. Composed almost a half-century apart, they both investigate the question of what’s holding people back from accomplishing their dreams.

Still was writing during the mid-twentieth century and was known as the dean of African American composers. He’s well-regarded for blending poignant sound and harmony to re ect the positionality of African Americans in U.S. society, of which he had much concern. “Highway 1, USA” premiered in 1963.

Mazzoli’s a lot more modern, having just composed “Proving Up” in 2018. She’s one of the most prominent composers in opera today, having become one of the rst two women to receive a commission from the Metropolitan Opera House in 2018. e Double Bill is directed by Cynthia Henderson, a local professional actor and director who’s also a professor of Acting at Ithaca College. is production marks her opera directorial debut.

Performances will occur on ursday, Nov. 3, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 6, at 2 p.m. at the Hangar eatre.

FINGER LAKES COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS / OCTOBER 19, 2022 11 Arts & EntertainmentNabucco “Nabucco,” Verdi’s rst real big hit, explores the power dynamics and other struggles of ancient Babylon. Although the plot seems complicated, with the inclusion of many subplots, it primarily follows the plight of the Jews as Nabucco, the Babylonian king, assaults, conquers, and exiles them from Jerusalem. Understanding the relationships between characters can be a huge help when following along with the opera’s events. Many scholars have connected Verdi’s operas, written between the 1840s and 1850s, to Italian nationalism. One of “Nabucco’s” choruses, “Va, pensiero,” has been interpreted to be a call for unity, especially given the context of when it was written (1841). Opera Ithaca’s “Nabucco” is directed by Robinson. “When stepping into this role, I asked myself, ‘What in our modern psyche is really interesting about Nabucco?’” he said. “Verdi was commended for being a composer who threaded his political beliefs into his operas. In my directorial work, I never focus on the traditional. Instead, I create modern productions that insert pivotal themes from the original material. I hope audiences can see how I’ve intertwined political issues of today into this age-old piece, giving it life in a new and inspired way.” ere will be one performance on Friday, Nov. 4, at 7:30 p.m. at the Hangar eatre. e Double Bill and “Nabucco” star wellknown performers of opera from all over the world. Be sure to read more about them on Opera Ithaca returns with a full in-person schedule for the first time in two years Continued on Page 15