FPO
LA BOHÈME Saturday, September 14, 2019 6:00 p.m. pre-show | 7:00 p.m. broadcast Independence National Historical Park
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OPERAONTHEMALL.ORG #ONTHEMALL
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Major support received by the Mazzotti/Kelly Fund-BBH of The Philadelphia Foundation. Additional support provided by Ms. Robin Angly and Mr. Miles Smith.
Welcome Welcome to the ninth annual Opera on the Mall! Since 2011, our generous partners have helped Opera Philadelphia bring this great art form beyond the opera house, to be enjoyed by more than 30,000 people. Tonight’s broadcast of Puccini’s La bohème is special not just because it is one of the most popular and beloved operas of all time, but because this production has its roots in Philadelphia. This production of La bohème debuted in our great city in 2012, with sets and costumes inspired by works of art in the collections of the Barnes Foundation and Philadelphia Museum of Art. Following an international tour, we were thrilled to bring it back to the Academy of Music last spring, and to now share it with you. I am exceptionally proud of the cast, many of whom studied at the Academy of Vocal Arts or the Curtis Institute of Music, cementing the deep connection this production has with the city of Philadelphia. I’m also excited to share that we are only days away from the third annual Festival O, a celebration of opera – both classic and new – in venues around the city. I hope tonight’s broadcast will inspire you to check out those performances over the next two weeks and keep coming to the opera, whether in the theaters or here on Independence Mall.
David B. Devan General Director & President @ddevan
Photo by Steven Pisano
L A BOH È M E
Independence Visitor Center
5th Street
6th Street
YOUR GUIDE TO OPERA ON THE MALL
P E R F O R M E D I N I TA L I A N W I T H E N G L I S H S U B T I T L E S Market Street
SC H E D U L E 5:30 6:00 7:00 7:55 9:20
p.m.: p.m.: p.m.: p.m.: p.m.:
President’s House Site
Gates open Pre-show video with cast & creative team interviews Performance begins Intermission (20 minutes) Performance ends
PRE-SHOW ACTIVITIES
ENJOYING THE BROADCAST
•S hare your Instagram photos #onthemall with @operaphila and @independencenps
•B ring your blankets and beach chairs Low-slung preferred
•P ose for photos in the FREE photobooth •E njoy opera-themed activities at the Family Fun Zone • L iberty Bell Center open until 5 p.m. Last admittance 4:50 p.m.
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Liberty Bell Center
Chestnut Street
Independence Hall
• Picnic dinners encouraged • Dogs must be kept on leashes at all times • F ood trucks, portable restrooms, and Festival Guest Services on 5th Street, between Market and Chestnut • I ndependence Visitor Center open until 6:00 p.m. Restrooms open until 10:00 p.m.
ENTRANCE LOCATIONS
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INFORMATION
RESTROOMS VIDEO SCREENS
PHOTOBOOTH FAMILY FUN ZONE
GUEST SERVICES
FOOD TRUCKS
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I N D E P E N D E N C E N AT I O N A L H I S T O R I C A L PA R K A visit to Independence National Historical
Heritage Site because of the world-changing
Park is an opportunity to celebrate and
events that occurred inside this building.
explore our nation’s past. Stand in the
This is a great opportunity to #FindYourPark. Every visit should start at the Independence
shadow of Independence Hall or read the
There is so much more history to explore,
Visitor Center. Learn more about
famous inscription on the Liberty Bell. Stop
from the Georgian architecture, to the
Independence National Historical Park and
for a moment in the President’s House Site
Portrait Gallery of the Second Bank, to an
the founding of our nation on the free mobile
and consider the promises and paradoxes
18th century print office. The park’s museum
app, NPSIndependence, and by following
of the liberty our founders envisioned. The
collection contains 2.2 million historic
#FindYourPark.
ideas of liberty and self-government tested
artifacts associated with events, people and
here still echo through our lives today.
places relevant to the park’s mission. The Benjamin Franklin Museum showcases the
This national park preserves and interprets
creativity, ambition, and genius of one of
many of the most important resources
our greatest founding fathers. Exhibits at the
associated with the founding of our country.
National Constitution Center trace the impact
Independence Hall has been recognized
of our Constitution over the years.
internationally as a UNESCO World
The story of
La bohème Giacomo Puccini’s opera La
The activities of the bohemians are
bohème tells the story of a
simple: they paint and compose
group of young, impoverished
poetry; they revel in the joyful
artists – the Bohemians – living
streets and cafés of Paris. They stiff
in 1890s Paris. The poet Rodolfo,
the landlord, joke around, and
the seamstress Mimì, the painter
fight. The story is special because
Marcello, the singer Musetta, the
those activities are so relatable –
philosopher Colline, and the
not to mention backed by Puccini’s
musician Schaunard struggle with
emotional, memorable score.
their art, with poverty, and with their relationships.
Although La bohème was considered controversial for the
The tragic love story at the center
time and opened to mixed reviews
of the opera begins when Mimì
in 1896, it went on to become
and Rodolfo meet on a cold
one of the most popular operas of
Christmas Eve. Their relationship
all time. The story of La bohème
blossoms even as Mimì’s health
inspired the musical Rent, the
begins to fail and her friends are
movie Moulin Rouge, and has
forced to make tough choices to
been referenced in movies like
help her.
Moonstruck and Trading Places and TV shows, including The Simpsons. Photo by Steven Pisano
EVENT PARTNERS
MEET THE CAST OF LA BOHÈME
E VA N L E R O Y J O H N S O N RODOLFO Tenor
VA N E S S A VA S Q U E Z * MIMI Soprano
PEIXIN CHEN COLLINE Bass
WILL LIVERMAN SCHAUNARD Baritone
TOFFER MIHALKA PARPIGNOL Tenor
ASHLEY MARIE ROBILLARD MUSETTA Soprano
TROY COOK MARCELLO Baritone
JACKSON WILLIAMS CUSTOMS HOUSE OFFICER Bass
KEVIN BURDETTE BENOIT & ALCINDORO Bass
M AT T H E W F L E I S H E R SERGEANT Bass
GEORGE SOMERVILLE PRUNE MAN Tenor
PHILADELPHIA GIRLS & BOYS CHOIRS CHILDREN’S CHORUS
C R E AT I V E T E A M MUSIC / Giacomo Puccini
AUDIOVISUAL / D-Wok
LIBRETTO / Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa
CHORUS MASTER / Elizabeth Braden
CONDUCTOR / Corrado Rovaris
WIG & MAKE-UP DESIGN / David Zimmerman
DIRECTOR / Davide Livermore
STAGE MANAGER / Lisa Anderson
REVIVAL DIRECTOR / Alessandra Premoli*
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR / Gregory Boyle
SET & COSTUME DESIGN / Davide Livermore
ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER / Megan Coutts
LIGHTING DESIGN / Drew Billiau
ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER / Jennifer Shaw
ORIGINAL COSTUME DESIGN / Palau de les Arts *Opera Philadelphia debut
Production of the Palau de les Arts “Reina Sofia” in Valencia, Spain, in 2012. Opera at the Academy is underwritten, in part, by Judy and Peter Leone.
Photos by Steven Pisano “I’m looking at Paris, seeing the skies grey with smoke from a thousand
chimneys,” sings Rodolfo as Act I
opens. The set lights up with Pissaro’s “Avenue de l’Opéra: Morning Sunshine,” which lives at the
Philadelphia Museum of Art.
The Art of
La bohème
/
As Mimì sings of the flowers she
makes and her love of spring, Renoir’s “Anemones” appears behind her.
“Anemones” is in the collection of The Barnes Foundation. The sunflowers
Opera Philadelphia’s production of La bohème was inspired by Impressionist artworks selected by director and set designer Davide Livermore, then digitized and animated by D-WOK, an entertainment design group.
she holds, and then the painting that
Many of the artworks that inspired the production live at The Barnes Foundation and Philadelphia Museum of Art; a few are from collections around the world. And while some are easily recognizable, others may be more unfamiliar. Here’s a guide to the artwork of La bohème:
similar to the sculpture “Little Dancer,
appears behind Rodolfo and Mimì as they kiss, are inspired by Van Gogh’s
“Sunflowers,” in the collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
/
Famous artworks also inspired some of the costumes. The dancers in Act II are dressed as Degas’ dancers,
Age Fourteen” at the Philadelphia
Museum of Art. Mimì’s blue dress was modeled after Renoir’s “Girl in GreyBlue” and the bonnet Rodolfo buys her is designed after Renoir’s “Girl
with Pink Bonnet.” Both paintings are in the collection of The Barnes
Foundation. “Girl with Pink Bonnet”
also appears in Act IV as Rodolfo and Marcello sing of their loves.
/
As Act III opens, Marcello sits at
an easel painting a winter scene that is adapted from Monet’s “Morning
Haze,” which is in the collection of
the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The winter scene becomes the backdrop for most of Act III, until it melts
into spring at the end of the scene as Mimì and Rodolfo decide to remain together. Spring is represented by Renoir’s “Meadow,” part of The Barnes Foundation collection.
Photo by Michele Borzoni
WELCOME TO
FESTIVAL O
If this is your first time at Opera on the Mall, or first time at any opera, don’t worry if you’re feeling like a newbie. See, Festival O19, which is about to unleash two weeks of opera across Philadelphia, is all about “new.” With two world premieres and two company premieres on tap, Festival O19 brings a new kind of opera experience to even the most veteran of opera lovers. Whether you’re coming to see an Opera Philadelphia production for the first time, or you’re a longtime subscriber, you will be sharing in the experience of seeing productions few, if any, have ever seen before. The Love for Three Oranges may be a staple in European opera houses, but
since its 1921 Chicago premiere, this surreal, operatic fairy tale has rarely been performed in the United States, and never at Opera Philadelphia. With a huge cast, acrobats, and three princesses hidden inside Fabergé eggstyle oranges, this wacky comedy has something for everyone.
internet and transformed two teenagers into clickbait; and Let Me Die, a collage of original music, narrative, and a greatest-hits of assorted opera death scenes.
Festivalgoers can hear new voices in opera at Curtis in Concert, an afternoon recital series starring graduates of the Semele might seem old – a Baroque Curtis Institute of Music, and hear opera based on the myths of ancient opera singers as never before at Late Greece and Rome – but this reimagined Night Snacks, an after-hours cabaret production breathes new life into in partnership with the 2019 Fringe Handel’s music, weaving in dance, Festival. ethereal costumes, and fresh scenery. A new kind of comedy, of myth, of It doesn’t get newer than a world tragedy. Experience a new kind of opera. premiere, and O19 has two: Denis & Katya, a multimedia dramatization of a tragic story that went viral on the
EXPERIENCE A NEW KIND OF OPERA
FESTIVAL O19 SEPTEMBER 18–29 12 days of zesty comedy, rare works, world premieres, and more
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OR, VISIT THE FESTIVAL GUEST SERVICES TENT ON 5TH STREET FOR TICKETS AND SPECIAL OFFERS.