BARDSUMMERSCAPE
July 6 – August 19, 2012
OPERA • THEATER • DANCE • MUSIC • FILM • SPIEGELTENT and THE 23RD BARD MUSIC FESTIVAL Saint-Saëns and His World
“SummerScape at Bard College . . . ever a hotbed of intellectual and aesthetic adventure.” —new york times
above From Richard Strauss’s Die Liebe der Danae, SummerScape 2011. Photo by Cory Weaver. cover Sarah Bernhardt, Georges Clairin, 1876. Musee de la ville de Paris, Musee du Petit-Palais, France/Giraudon/The Bridgeman Art Library
French Connection Bard SummerScape and the Bard Music Festival present “Saint-Saëns and His World”
Not many composers have experienced, during their lifetimes, such a wide range of reaction to their music as Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921), the subject of this year’s Bard Music Festival. His early works were greeted with plaudits and awards; his operas, however, were largely rejected. During the 1870s he had attained an international prominence greater than any French composer of his generation, but his final years were marked by a musical conservatism that did not sit well with critics and younger composers. Nevertheless, throughout his career he wrote beautiful and refined music in an astonishing range of genres—including for film, making him the first major composer to do so. His creative spirit infuses the concerts and events of SummerScape 2012. SummerScape has earned its reputation as “the preeminent arts festival in the Northeast.” This year’s highlights include The King in Spite of Himself, a comic opera by Emmanuel Chabrier with an orchestral score that, according to Maurice Ravel, forever changed the course of French harmony; a fast-paced production of Molière’s classic comedy The Imaginary Invalid; and the surpassingly elegant choreography of Compagnie fêtes galantes, a troupe led by Béatrice Massin that brings a contemporary edge to Baroque dance. “France and the Colonial Imagination,” this season’s film festival, examines the legacy of French colonialism in Africa and Southeast Asia from multiple viewpoints, including those of the colonizers (Pépé le Moko; Casablanca) and the colonized (Xala; Camp de Thiaroye). And the always rollicking Spiegeltent will showcase the liveliest nightlife in the Northeast, as well as daytime shows for children and affordable gourmet dining. With Camille Saint-Saëns as its honoree, the 23rd annual Bard Music Festival will turn its lens on the multifaceted life and career of the French composer, who wrote symphonies, choral and chamber music, operas, concertos, songs, and more, and also found time to write poetry and an influential philosophical treatise, pursue astronomy and other sciences, and travel the globe. Through the music of Saint-Saëns and his contemporaries, the Bard Music Festival will explore both the fin-de-siècle world of Stéphane Mallarmé, Claude Debussy, Marcel Proust and their milieu and the nascent era of modernism. Concerts take place in the acoustically superb Richard B. Fisher Center for the Arts, designed by Frank Gehry, and other venues on Bard’s beautiful Hudson River campus.
The 2012 SummerScape season is made possible in part through the generous support of the Board of The Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College, the Board of the Bard Music Festival, and the Friends of the Fisher Center, as well as grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York State Council on the Arts. Tickets and latest program updates at fishercenter.bard.edu
BARDSUMMERSCAPE 3
Compagnie fĂŞtes galantes. Photo by Jean-Pierre Maurin.
“Light, sparkling, full of soft bubbles that are about to burst at any time.” —le monde
Compagnie fêtes galantes Let My Joy Remain (Que ma joie demeure) Choreographed by Béatrice Massin
Founded in 1993 by Béatrice Massin, Compagnie fêtes galantes draws its inspiration from Baroque dance, but suffuses it with a thoroughly modern sensibility. Far from simply presenting historical reconstructions of 17th- and 18th-century dance, the company works to create links between Baroque gesture and contemporary choreography. Massin was drawn to Baroque dance by the music of the period, which she describes as being full of “movement, energy, and vitality.” Let My Joy Remain—the work that she and her dancers have recently toured the world with and are presenting at SummerScape—is built from phrases that come together in canons and fugues, subjects and counter-subjects, and is danced to selections from J. S. Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos. According to Le Figaro, “The performers act with nobility and discipline, without showing themselves too formal or too staid. Bach’s musics are lively and the various silent sequences have the exact same qualities. A show where joy dominates but dignity remains.” sosnoff theater July 6* and 7+ at 8 pm July 8* at 3 pm Tickets: $25, 40, 45, 55 transportation from Manhattan to Bard is available for this performance. Reservations are required. *+ Round-trip Round-trip shuttle between the Metro-North station in Poughkeepsie and Bard is available for this performance. Reservations are required.
Tickets and latest program updates at fishercenter.bard.edu
DANCE 5
Le malade imaginaire (detail), Honore Daumier, c. 1850. Samuel Courtauld Trust, The Courtauld Gallery, London/The Bridgeman Art Library
“Hypocrisy is a fashionable vice, and all fashionable vices pass for virtue.” —molie`re
The Imaginary Invalid (Le malade imaginaire) By Molie`re
Directed by Erica Schmidt Laura Jellinek, set designer Andrea Lauer, costume designer David Weiner, lighting designer Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, who wrote and achieved immortality as Molière, made his dramatic debut in a converted tennis court and went on to direct and perform in his own comedies under the patronage of King Louis XIV. In such satirical romps as The Misanthrope, Tartuffe, and The Miser, his nimble way of skewering the rich, powerful, and pretentious, as well as hypocrites of every stripe and persuasion, both delighted and outraged the audiences of his day, and the plays have lost none of their freshness and bite more than three centuries later. The Imaginary Invalid—Molière’s final play—elicits comedy from the phantom agonies of Argan, a housebound hypochondriac who schemes to marry his daughter to a doctor. (In more than a touch of irony, the playwright, while acting in the title role, suffered a hemorrhage and died a few hours later.) Erica Schmidt, who directed three previous SummerScape offerings—The Tender Land, The Sorcerer, and Uncle Vanya—leads a spirited cast in this production. theater two July 13*, 14+ •, 19, 20, and 21+ at 8 pm July 14, 15*, 18, 21, and 22* at 3 pm Tickets: $45 transportation from Manhattan to Bard is available for this performance. Reservations are required. *+ Round-trip Round-trip shuttle between the Metro-North station in Poughkeepsie and Bard is available for this performance. Reservations are required. • SummerScape Gala Benefit dinner and post-performance party. See page 22 for details.
This performance has been underwritten by the Martin and Toni Sosnoff Foundation. Tickets and latest program updates at fishercenter.bard.edu
THEATER 7
Le roi malgré lui, Jules Chéret, 1887. Musée des Arts décoratifs, Paris. Photo: Laurent Sully Jaulmes.
The King in Spite of Himself (Le roi malgré lui) By Emmanuel Chabrier Libretto by Emile de Najac and Paul Burani
American Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leon Botstein, music director Directed by Thaddeus Strassberger Kevin Knight, set designer Mattie Ullrich, costume designer Simon Corder, lighting designer A coproduction with Wexford Festival Opera It’s always been lonely at the top, but has any monarch been lonelier than Henri de Valois? In Emmanuel Chabrier’s witty comic opera, this hapless 16th-century French noble has been chosen by the Poles to be their king, although various factions are already plotting against him. Moreover, poor Henri is repelled by the weather, the food, and the fashion, and pines for his milieu in Anjou. Farce ensues when he tries to eschew the crown, but fate is sometimes easier to accept, however reluctantly, than to escape. A contemporary of Camille Saint-Saëns, the subject of this year’s Bard Music Festival, Chabrier composed two highly regarded orchestral works, España and Joyeuse marche, as well as operas, songs, and piano music. Of The King in Spite of Himself, Maurice Ravel declared that its opening bars forever changed the course of French harmony; indeed, Ravel confessed to having been influenced more by Chabrier than any other composer. This production of The King in Spite of Himself, the first staged revival of Chabrier’s 1887 version, is directed by Thaddeus Strassberger, who also guided Bard SummerScape’s acclaimed productions of Les Huguenots (2009) and The Distant Sound (2010). sosnoff theater
opera talk with leon botstein
July 27*+ and August 3+ at 7 pm
Sosnoff Theater, July 29 at 1 pm
July 29*+ and August 1+ and 5*+ at 3 pm
Free and open to the public
Tickets: $30, 60, 70, 90
Opera Talks are presented in memory of Sylvia Redlick Green.
Call 845-758-7948 or see page 27 for information about premium seating with special benefits. transportation from Manhattan to Bard is available for this performance. Reservations are required. *+ Round-trip Round-trip shuttle between the Metro-North station in Poughkeepsie and Bard is available for this performance. Reservations are required.
Special support for this program is provided by Emily H. Fisher and John Alexander. Tickets and latest program updates at fishercenter.bard.edu
OPERA 9
“And in that lies the whole principle of art: basing yourself on nature to turn it into something else that responds to a special and inexplicable need of the human spirit.” —camille saint-saëns
Camille Saint-Saëns, c. 1875. Adoc-photos/Art Resource, NY
twenty-third season
The Bard Music Festival
Saint-Saëns and His World Few composers were as celebrated and influential—and for so long—during their lifetimes, and throughout Europe and North America, as Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921). In his extraordinary life and career, he crossed paths with all major musicians from Berlioz to Stravinsky. How is it, then, that a musician of such fame, prominence, and popularity, a prolific composer (who wrote for every genre, from piano music for children to the opera stage), an acerbic critic, and a brilliant virtuoso, has come to be looked upon by posterity with reserve if not skepticism? Revisiting the range and beauty of Saint-Saëns’s remarkable accomplishment as a composer requires taking a new look at the conceits of modernism and the avant-garde. The refinement and elegance of his allegiance to tradition and taste, the craftsmanship and avowed eclecticism, all suggest a neglected highpoint in European culture. Indeed, Saint-Saëns’s career spanned the course of French music from Gounod to Ravel, and his aesthetic and music provide a mirror of French culture and society and the special place that music occupied. Saint-Saëns influenced the way the history of music was transmitted and communicated to the widening public for culture. He was both a traditionalist and an innovator, deeply involved in the development of modern science and technology and the possibilities and consequences of French colonialism. He brought the East into the West, defied national and sectarian stereotypes, stood apart from all factions, including the Wagnerian, and was the first major composer to write for film. In this year’s Bard Music Festival, the worlds of Balzac and Proust come alive through the music of Saint-Saëns and his contemporaries. Listeners will discover how Saint-Saëns shaped our sense of the history of music—from the age of Lully and Rameau to Mozart, Beethoven, and Chopin—and resisted the allure of a xenophobic concept of the French spirit. Saint-Saëns’s music brings the entire 19th century into focus, particularly the significance of musical life. Through his enormous range and his focus on style, our appreciation of the classical, the romantic, and the modern in music is inevitably deepened.
This season is made possible in part through the generous support of the Board of the Bard Music Festival and the Friends of the Fisher Center, as well as grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York State Council on the Arts. Additional underwriting has been provided by Jeanne Donovan Fisher, James H. Ottaway Jr., Felicitas S. Thorne, Helen and Roger Alcaly, Bettina Baruch Foundation, Mrs. Mortimer Levitt, Michelle R. Clayman, Joanna M. Migdal, Margo and Anthony Viscusi, and the Furthermore Foundation. Special support has also been provided by the Mrs. Mortimer Levitt Endowment Fund for the Performing Arts. All programs and performers are subject to change.
Tickets and latest program updates at fishercenter.bard.edu
THE BARD MUSIC FESTIVAL 11
Place du Theatre Francais, Afternoon Sun in Winter, Camille Pissarro, 1898. Private Collection/The Bridgeman Art Library
weekend one
paris and the culture of cosmopolitanism Including a radical reconsideration of Saint-Saëns’s most famous piece, The Carnival of the Animals, this weekend’s concerts explore the composer’s debt to musical traditions, to Mozart, Beethoven, Rossini, Chopin, Mendelssohn, Berlioz, Liszt, and Wagner. Saint-Saëns was a child prodigy and polymath; he toured the world and brought into his music influences from other countries and traditions. His Third Symphony and an extensive selection of chamber music will be featured. Music’s connection to religion will be explored in a concert of organ music by Saint-Saëns and his contemporaries. Saint-Saëns’s participation in the Société nationale offers an opportunity to present music by Chabrier, Franck, Magnard, Fauré, and Augusta Holmès.
2012 Bard Music Festival Opening Night Dinner | Friday, August 10 at 5 pm Tickets include a pre-performance dinner in the Spiegeltent and a premium seat for the evening's concert. To purchase opening night dinner tickets, contact the Box Office at 845-758-7900 or fishercenter@bard.edu. Please note: the Spiegeltent will be closed for regular dining on the evening of the dinner. 12
FRIDAY, AUGUST 10 program one
Saint-Saëns and the Cultivation of Taste*+ sosnoff theater 7:30 pm preconcert talk: Leon Botstein 8 pm performance: John Hancock, baritone; Horszowski Trio; Anna Polonsky, piano; Gilles Vonsattel, piano; Orion Weiss, piano; Bard Festival Chamber Players Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) Trio No. 1 in F Major, Op. 18 (1864); from Mélodies persanes, Op. 26 (1870); Danse macabre, for baritone and piano (1872); Variations on a Theme of Beethoven, Op. 35 (1874); Wedding Cake Waltz, Op. 76 (1885); Quartet, for piano and strings, Op. 41 (1875); Africa, Op. 89 (1891; arr.) Tickets: $25, 35, 45, 55
SATURDAY, AUGUST 11 panel one
Prodigy, Polymath, Globetrotter, and Reactionary olin hall 10 am – noon Free and open to the public
program two
Performing, Composing, and Arranging for Concert Life olin hall 1 pm preconcert talk: Geoffrey Burleson 1:30 pm performance: Rieko Aizawa, piano; Edward Arron, cello; Geoffrey Burleson, piano; Lori Guilbeau, soprano; Jesse Mills, violin; Giora Schmidt, violin; Jamie Van Eyck, mezzo-soprano; Gilles Vonsattel, piano Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) Sonata No. 1 for Cello and Piano in C Minor, Op. 32 (1872); arrangements and transcriptions of works by Christoph Willibald Gluck (1714–87), Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–91), Fryderyk Chopin (1810–49), and Georges Bizet (1838–75) Pablo de Sarasate (1844–1908) Concert Fantasies on Carmen, for violin and piano, Op. 25 (?1883) Franz Liszt (1811–86) From Two Legends, for piano, S175 (1862–63) Louis-Moreau Gottschalk (1829–69) Bamboula, Op. 2 (1844–45) Songs and arias by Charles Gounod (1818–93), Anton Rubinstein (1829–94), Leo Delibes (1836–91), Jules Massenet (1842–1912), and Ernest Reyer (1823–1909) Tickets: $35
program three
Saint-Saëns, a French Beethoven?+ sosnoff theater 7 pm preconcert talk: Christopher H. Gibbs 8 pm performance: Miranda Cuckson, violin; Sophie Shao, cello; American Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leon Botstein, music director; and others Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) Symphony in A Major (c. 1850); Le rouet d’Omphale, Op. 31 (1872); Symphony No. 3 in C Minor, “Organ,” Op. 78 (1886); Piano Concerto No. 5 in F Major, “Egyptian,” Op. 103 (1896); La muse et le poète, for violin, cello, and orchestra, Op. 132 (1910) Tickets: $30, 50, 60, 75
Tickets and latest program updates at fishercenter.bard.edu
THE BARD MUSIC FESTIVAL 13
SUNDAY, AUGUST 12 program four
The Organ, King of Instruments sosnoff theater 10 am performance: Kent Tritle, organ; Yulia Van Doren, soprano; and others Works for organ by Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921), Adolphe Adam (1803–56), Louis Lefébure-Wély (1817–69), Charles Gounod (1818–93), César Franck (1822–90), Charles-Marie Widor (1844–1937), and Leon Boëllmann (1862–97) Tickets: $35
program five
Ars Gallica and French National Sentiment olin hall 1 pm preconcert talk 1:30 pm performance: Paul Appleby, tenor; Zuill Bailey, cello; Teresa Buchholz, mezzo-soprano; Giora Schmidt, violin; Orion Weiss, piano; Bard Festival Chamber Players; and others Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) Piano Quintet, Op. 14 (1855) Edouard Lalo (1823–92) Two Aubades (1872) Marie Jaëll (1846–1925) Valses mélancoliques and Valses mignonnes (1888) Ernest Chausson (1855–99) Chanson perpétuelle, Op. 37, for soprano and piano quintet (1898) Albéric Magnard (1865–1914) Cello Sonata in A Major, Op. 20 (1908–10) Songs by Augusta Holmès (1847–1903) and Henri Duparc (1848–1933) Tickets: $35
program six
Zoological Fantasies: Carnival of the Animals Revisited *+ sosnoff theater 5 pm preconcert talk: Mitchell Morris 5:30 pm performance: Edward Arron, cello; Lucille Chung, piano; Lori Guilbeau, soprano; John Hancock, baritone; Anna Polonsky, piano; Bard Festival Chamber Players; and others Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) Le carnaval des animaux (1886) Gabriel Fauré (1845–1924) Dolly Suite, Op. 56 (1894–96) Maurice Ravel (1875–1937) Histoires naturelles, for baritone and piano (1907) Songs by Emmanuel Chabrier (1841–94), Erik Satie (1866–1925), Jacques Ibert (1890–1962), and Francis Poulenc (1899–1963) Works by Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683–1764), Gioachino Rossini (1792–1868), Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–91), Felix Mendelssohn (1809–47), Jacques Offenbach (1819–80), and others Tickets: $25, 35, 45, 55
transportation from Manhattan to Bard is available for this performance. Reservations are required. *+ Round-trip Round-trip shuttle between the Metro-North station in Poughkeepsie and Bard is available for this performance. Reservations are required.
14
Around the Piano, Henri Fantin-Latour, 1885. Musee d’Orsay, Paris/The Bridgeman Art Library
weekend two
confronting modernism The second weekend of the festival begins with music as seen through the eyes of Marcel Proust. The concerts will place Saint-Saëns alongside such contemporaries as Dukas, Fauré, Ravel, d’Indy, Chaminade, Berlioz, and Gounod and explore the influence of composers such as Rameau on French contemporary composition. In 1908, Saint-Saëns became the first prominent composer to write an original film score. L’assassinat du Duc de Guise will be screened with a live performance of the instrumental accompaniment and paired with Berlioz’s melodrama Lélio, ou le retour à la vie (his sequel to the Symphonie fantastique) in an arrangement by Saint-Saëns for reciter, vocal soloists, chorus, and piano. A final program of chamber music juxtaposes works by Saint-Saëns written at the end of his life with the music of Debussy and Stravinsky. The weekend includes performances of one of Saint-Saëns’s finest choral works, Le déluge (The Flood), alongside Psalm 130 by Lili Boulanger and Psalm 47 by Florent Schmitt. Opera held a central place in 19th-century French music, and Saint-Saëns made several attempts to conquer the operatic stage. The festival will close with a concert performance of Henry VIII, a brilliant setting of the story of Anne Boleyn.
Tickets and latest program updates at fishercenter.bard.edu
THE BARD MUSIC FESTIVAL 15
FRIDAY, AUGUST 17 program seven
Proust and Music*+ sosnoff theater 7 pm preconcert panel: Larry Bensky, moderator; André Aciman; Mary Davis; and others 8:30 pm performance: Daniel del Pino, piano; Danny Driver, piano; Eugene Drucker, violin; Min-Young Kim, violin; Priscilla Lee, cello; Daniel Panner, viola; Anna Polonsky, piano; Jamie Van Eyck, mezzosoprano; Bard Festival Chamber Players Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) Violin Sonata No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 75 (1885) César Franck (1822–90) Prelude, chorale et fugue, M21 (1884) Gabriel Fauré (1845–1924) Piano Quartet No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 15 (1876–79; rev. 1883) Claude Debussy (1862–1918) Chansons de Bilitis (1897–98) Reynaldo Hahn (1874–1947) Le bal de Beatrice d’Este, suite (1909) Tickets: $25, 35, 45, 55
SATURDAY, AUGUST 18 panel two
Exporting Western Music Past and Present olin hall 10 am – noon Free and open to the public
program eight
La musique ancienne et moderne olin hall 1 pm preconcert talk 1:30 pm performance: Carl Albach, trumpet; Alessio Bax, piano; Paolo Bordignon, harpsichord; Marka Gustavsson, viola; Katie Lansdale, violin; Robert Martin, cello; and others Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) Septet, for trumpet, piano, and string quintet, Op. 65 (1880); Songs Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683–1764) From Piéces de clavecin en concerts, Quatriéme Concert (1741) Pauline Viardot (1821–1910) From Six chansons du XVe siècle (1886) Vincent d’Indy (1851–1931) Suite dans le style ancien, Op. 24 (1886) Cécile Chaminade (1857–1944) Gavotte, Op. 162 (c. 1921) Paul Dukas (1865–1935) Variations, Interlude, and Finale on a Theme by Rameau (1899–1902) Tickets: $35
transportation from Manhattan to Bard is available for this performance. Reservations are required. *+ Round-trip Round-trip shuttle between the Metro-North station in Poughkeepsie and Bard is available for this performance. Reservations are required. 16
program nine
The Spiritual Sensibility+ sosnoff theater 7 pm preconcert talk: Byron Adams 8 pm performance: Paul Appleby, tenor; Andrew Garland, baritone; Lori Guilbeau, soprano; Rebecca Ringle, mezzo-soprano; Bard Festival Chorale, James Bagwell, choral director; American Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leon Botstein, music director Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) Le déluge, poème biblique, Op. 45 (1875) Charles Gounod (1818–93) Stabat mater (1867) Gabriel Fauré (1845–1924) Les djinns, Op. 12 (c. 1875) Florent Schmitt (1870–1958) Psalm 47, “Gloire du Seigneur,” Op. 38 (1904) Lili Boulanger (1893–1918) Psalm 130, “Du fond de l’abîme” (1910–17) Tickets: $30, 50, 60, 75
SUNDAY, AUGUST 19 program ten
From Melodrama to Film olin hall 10 am performance with commentary by Daniel Goldmark; with Bard Festival Chamber Players and Bard Festival Chorale, conducted by James Bagwell Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) L’assassinat du Duc de Guise, Op. 128 (1908) Hector Berlioz (1803–69) Lélio, ou le retour à la vie, Op. 14b (1831–32; arr. Saint- Saëns 1855) Tickets: $30
program eleven
Unexpected Correspondences: Saint-Saëns and the New Generation olin hall 1 pm preconcert talk: Richard Wilson 1:30 pm performance: Daniel del Pino, piano; Danny Driver, piano; Min-Young Kim, violin; Alexandra Knoll, oboe; and others Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) Sonatas for Oboe and Piano, Op. 166 (1921) and Bassoon and Piano, Op. 168 (1921) Claude Debussy (1862–1918) Sonata for Violin and Piano (1916–17) Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971) Suite Italienne, for cello and piano (1932) Tickets: $30
program twelve
Out of the Shadow of Samson et Dalila: Saint-Saëns’s Other Grand Opera*+ sosnoff theater 3:30 pm preconcert talk: Hugh Macdonald 4:30 pm performance: Ellie Dehn, soprano; Jennifer Holloway, mezz0-soprano; John Tessier, tenor; Bard Festival Chorale, James Bagwell, choral director; American Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leon Botstein, music director; and others Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) Henry VIII (1881–82) Tickets: $30, 50, 60, 75
Tickets and latest program updates at fishercenter.bard.edu
THE BARD MUSIC FESTIVAL 17
The Battle of Algiers, 1966. ŠRialto Pictures/Photofest
film festival
France and the Colonial Imagination Camille Saint-Saëns, the subject of this year’s Bard Music Fesitval, traveled widely in his later years, visiting many of the far-flung countries that encompassed the French empire during its widest reach. That fact provides the impetus for the SummerScape 2012 film festival, comprising 10 films that offer marvelously diverse perspectives on how French colonialism and its aftermath have been cinematically depicted by major artists. The three films from the classic sound era of the 1930s and ’40s—Morocco, Pépé le Moko, and Casablanca —present unabashedly romantic visions of North Africa under the height of French domination, when Europeans (especially males) thought of the region as an exotic place to go into hiding. All three works have indelibly stamped themselves into the popular imagination, perhaps most memorably by way of their charismatic stars. In stark contrast, the works of Resnais and Pontecorvo—Muriel and The Battle of Algiers, respectively—represent the politically charged and aesthetically innovative period of the 1960s that was much troubled by the violent means of holding on to empire. In the same decade, the Senegalese novelist Ousmane Sembène returned to his native country and realized that his Frenchlanguage stories could only be read by the elite. Turning to filmmaking to reach a wider audience, he became perhaps the most important figure in the founding of an African cinema. His films Xala and Camp de Thiaroye portray both colonial and postcolonial West Africa from an indigenous point of view. The series also contains three films by distinguished directors who are still very active on the contemporary scene. Michael Haneke, of Austria, has made a number of films designed to get under the skin of the audience in a rather infamously irritating manner and to leave no easy answers to complex sociopolitical issues. Among other possible readings, Caché can be interpreted as an allegorical study of a contemporary society repressing the memory of its imperialist past. Claire Denis, who was raised in colonial Africa, takes a similarly probing approach to social issues in a way that often rethinks the borderlines between European and non-European identity. Though the films that she has set in Africa derive from the actual landscape and a lived experience, the radical aestheticism of a work like Beau Travail gives it a dreamlike, erotic power, evoking a kind of neoromanticism. Finally, when it comes to the French empire, it would have been a mistake to leave out Indochina. Rithy Panh is a native Cambodian whose family suffered horribly under the Khmer Rouge. He escaped to Thailand and then made his way to Paris, where he eventually studied filmmaking. He returned to Cambodia in the 1990s to make a series of acclaimed films. Though highly regarded, The Sea Wall was never distributed in the United States. Significantly enough, as if to underscore the complexity of perspectives in this film series, it is based on a novel by Marguerite Duras, the widely read French author, who herself had been born and raised in Indochina until the age of 17. Films are screened at 7 pm in the Jim Ottaway Jr. Film Center in the Milton and Sally Avery Arts Center. All film tickets: $8
Tickets and latest program updates at fishercenter.bard.edu
FILM FESTIVAL 19
Morocco, 1930. ©Photofest
Morocco
The Battle of Algiers
1930; directed by Josef von Sternberg; screenplay by Jules Furthman, from the play by Benno Vigny A Hollywood classic from the early sound era noted especially for von Sternberg’s Baroque pictorialism. Although The Blue Angel was made earlier, this film marks the true beginning of Marlene Dietrich’s Hollywood legend. She plays a cabaret singer torn between the wealthy Adolphe Menjou and poor legionnaire Gary Cooper. 92 minutes. July 12
1966; directed by Gillo Pontecorvo; screenplay by Pontecorvo and Franco Solinas The Algerian rebellion is unforgettably dramatized in one of the most celebrated political films ever made, heavily influenced by the objective, documentary-like style of the Italian neorealists. Nominated for three Oscars and winner of The Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival. French and Arabic (subtitled). 121 minutes. July 19
Muriel 1963; directed by Alain Resnais; screenplay by Jean Cayrol; with Delphine Seyrig In this intimate, fragmented narrative set in the coastal town of Boulogne, the characters are haunted by memories of the Algerian war, including the torture and death of the title character. Often considered Resnais’s masterpiece, it has a haunting original score and outstanding cinematography by the celebrated Sacha Vierny. French (subtitled). 115 minutes. July 15
Xala 1975; written and directed by Ousmane Sembène; based on his novel A comic satire of the early days of Senegal’s independence from France, in which we learn what has changed and what unfortunately hasn’t. A corrupt official goes to great lengths to find the cause of a “xala,” a curse of impotence, that he has experienced on his wedding night. French and Wolof (subtitled). 123 minutes. July 22
Films are screened at 7 pm in the Jim Ottaway Jr. Film Center in the Milton and Sally Avery Arts Center. 20
Pépé le Moko 1937; directed by Julien Duvivier; screenplay by Henri La Barthe, based on his novel One of the most enduring of all classic French films. Jean Gabin plays a gangster hiding out in the Casbah of Algiers. Hollywood unsuccessfully tried to destroy all prints of the film because it produced a tepid but famous remake the following year, with Charles Boyer and Hedy Lamarr. French (subtitled). 94 minutes. July 26
The Sea Wall 2008; directed by Rithy Panh; screenplay by Panh and Michel Fessler, based on a novel by Marguerite Duras Duras’s celebrated narrative was previously filmed as This Angry Age in 1958 by Rene Clement. In French Indonesia in the 1930s, a widow (Isabelle Huppert) and her two children must strive to protect their rice fields from the encroaching ocean. Along the way, they struggle with the corrupt colonial authorities. French (subtitled). 115 minutes. July 29
Camp de Thiaroye 1988; directed by Ousmane Sembène; screenplay by Sembène and Thierno Faty Sow A searing, politically charged film based on a true incident: Senegalese soldiers who had fought in the regular army to defend France in the early days of World War II are kept in a prison camp before being repatriated. Winner of the Jury’s Special Grand Prize at the Venice Film Festival. French and Wolof (subtitled). 147 minutes. August 2
Pépé le Moko, 1937. ©Rialto Pictures LLC/Photofest
Beau Travail 1999; directed by Claire Denis; screenplay by Denis and Jean-Pol Fargeau In what is considered its director’s most powerful film to date, Herman Melville’s Billy Budd has been imaginatively transposed to a French Foreign Legion outfit in Djibouti. Denis’s collaboration with choreographer Bernardo Montet and cinematographer Agnès Godard creates a dreamlike atmosphere, with haunting excerpts from Benjamin Britten’s opera, Billy Budd. French (subtitled). 92 minutes. August 5
Casablanca 1942; directed by Michael Curtiz; screenplay by Howard Koch, Philip and Julius Epstein With an impossibly perfect cast featuring Ingrid Bergman, Humphrey Bogart, Paul Henreid, Peter Lorre, Claude Rains, Sydney Greenstreet, Conrad Veidt, and Dooley Wilson, Casablanca is one of Hollywood’s most celebrated films. Bogart is stoically content as an isolationist café owner in wartime Casablanca until lost love Bergman shows up with her husband (Henreid), a Resistance leader. Screenwriter Koch was a Bard College graduate. 102 minutes. August 9
Caché
Casablanca, 1942. ©Warner Bros./Photofest
Tickets and latest program updates at fishercenter.bard.edu
2005; written and directed by Michael Haneke; with Daniel Auteuil and Juliette Binoche In this characteristically enigmatic tale by the celebrated Austrian director, a successful Parisian couple suddenly starts receiving mysterious videotapes and drawings. They appear to point to the husband’s hidden past, and eventually lead to a meditation on French-Arab relations. French (subtitled). 117 minutes. August 12 FILM FESTIVAL 21
spiegeltent Spiegeltent Fun for Everyone Cabaret and more! Back by popular demand, the glittering “Mirror Tent” is the stage for a variety of performers, from daring acrobats to saucy cabaret acts to internationally known musicians. Before and after performances, enjoy light fare, meals, and drinks selected from the Hudson Valley’s farms, dairies, wineries, and breweries. Meet a date, bring the kids, get together with friends—the Spiegeltent is sure to please all palates!
SummerScape Closing Night: Free Dance Party! | Sunday, August 19 at 8:30 pm Free admission for all! Celebrate the end of the season with us—dance to live music under the tent, or under the stars, in the lovely SpiegelGarden. Drinks and food will be available for purchase.
2012 SummerScape Gala Benefit | Saturday, July 14 at 5:30 pm A festive dinner in the Spiegeltent precedes the performance by Molière’s The Imaginary Invalid in Theater Two. After the show, the celebration moves back to the Spiegeltent for a post-performance party with the cast and company and special guests. Benefit tickets include dinner, premium seats for The Imaginary Invalid, the post-performance party in the Spiegeltent, and the reward of supporting the Fisher Center. For further information or to reserve your tickets, contact the Box Office at 845-758-7900 or fishercenter@bard.edu. Please note: the Spiegeltent will be closed for regular dining on the evening of the Gala.
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Photo by Karl Rabe
Bindlestiff Family Cirkus | August 10 and 11 SummerScape’s favorite circus troupe—a singular hybrid of traditional circus arts and vaudeville—sells out the Spiegeltent every year, so book early! Two Man Gentlemen Band | August 17 The only band in the known universe whose original repertoire includes a jazzy, upbeat tune about the death of President Franklin Pierce. These gents with the spot-on vocal harmonies have become an underground sensation. Le Chat Lunatique | August 18 These “lunatic cats” purvey a genre they call “filthy, mangy jazz,” blending Western swing, classical, reggae, and doo-wop into strikingly original compositions and audaciously reworded standards.
Afternoon Family Fare Saturday and Sunday at 3:30 pm (except where noted) Tickets: $5 children 3 and older, $15 adults Entertainment for audiences of all ages. Bindlestiff Family Cirkus | July 14 at 11 am and July 15 at 3:30 pm Fantastic feats, amazing acrobatics, and eye-popping fun for the whole family. Carnival of the Animals and Peter and the Wolf | July 28 and 29 These two classical music masterpieces are reinvented for young audiences through Frederic Chiu’s billiant piano transcription and David Gonzalez’s original, funky poetry. Ages 7 and up. The Little Farm Show | August 4 and 5 An original musical theater performance for all ages, the Little Farm Show reviews the history of agriculture and explores sustainability, local food systems, and organic farming. Aesop Bops! | August 11 and 12 A zoo comes alive in this fast-paced, funny, and packedwith-audience-participation production. Ages 4 and up.
Thursday Night Live
*
Evening Cabaret Hosted by Spiegelmaestro Nik Quaife Friday and Saturday at 8:30 pm | Tickets: $25 (21 + only) Fishtank Ensemble | July 6 Tackling everything from wild Serbian anthems to French hot jazz, this band is “one of the most thrilling young acts on the planet” (LA Weekly). Martha Wainwright | July 7 This French Canadian–American singer-songwriter—a member of the famous Wainwright-McGarrigle family— performs a special tribute to Edith Piaf. Les Chauds Lapins | July 13 Led by Kurt Hoffman and Meg Reichardt, Les Chauds Lapins (“the hot rabbits”) will set the tent hopping with their repertoire of vintage French swing. The Kid from Paris—Jean Brassard Sings Yves Montand | July 14 The career of Yves Montand, from Italian boy to French icon, is celebrated by French Canadian singer/actor Jean Brassard. The perfect show to commemorate Bastille Day! Wau Wau Sisters | July 20 and 21 The bawdy sisters return to SummerScape with their “irreverent, sacrilegious, lascivious” (New York Times) vaudeville act. Possible nudity. Weimar New York | July 27 and 28 Hosted by London cabaret star Dusty Limits, this “subversive, sexed-up, slashingly political” extravaganza features burlesque, comedy, drag, and performance art. Possible nudity. Mandingo Ambassadors: The Real Sound of Guinea in America | August 3 Headed by lead guitarist Mamady Kouyaté, the sound of Mandingo Ambassadors is rife with “mellifluous, Latin-tinged rhythms and vocal melodies, and stinging electric guitar lines.” Jackie Hoffman | August 4 The comedienne returns to the Spiegeltent in Jackie Five-Oh: A Celebration of Jackie Hoffman’s First 50th Birthday.
Tickets and latest program updates at fishercenter.bard.edu
*
*
*
Thursdays, 8:30 pm – midnight | $20 Dance instruction starts at 7:45 pm. Music from everywhere, for everyone—tango, salsa, swing, and more. Roger Davidson and the Frank London Klezmer Orchestra | July 12 Pianist/composer Davidson and Grammy Award–winner London present a deli platter of Eastern European–influenced music. Ameranouche | July 19 Featuring two French acoustic Gypsy jazz guitars and an upright bass, Ameranouche tours nationally and has released two albums inspired by the legendary Gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt. Starlight Swing Night | July 26 Join professional swing dancers Linda and Chester Freeman of Got2Lindy Dance Studios for a night of swing dancing to the fabulous sounds of Eight to the Bar. Noche Porteña: Argentine Tango Night | August 2 Authentic Argentine tango, with live and recorded music for dancing. Buckwheat Zydeco | August 9 Stanley “Buckwheat” Dural Jr. is the preeminent ambassador of Louisiana zydeco music—down-home, high-powered, and positively incendiary. Summer Salsa Night | August 16 Learn how to dance salsa, merengue, and cha-cha with Diane and Johnny Martinez and the salsa band Sensemaya.
SpiegelClub Friday and Saturday, 10:30 pm – 1 am (21 + only) $7 cover (pay at the door; waived for SummerScape ticket holders) A late-night bar and dance floor with resident DJ Jordan Matthews and guest DJs spinning a variety of tunes on a state-of-the-art sound and lighting system.
Dine at the Spiegeltent Before and after SummerScape performances, enjoy classic summer fare from the Hudson Valley. Drinks and snacks are available throughout the evening. For more information, visit fishercenter.bard.edu/dining. Dinner reservations: 845-758-7900. SPIEGELTENT 23
JULY
wednesday
thursday
12 5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 7 pm Morocco (Ottaway) 8:30 pm Roger Davidson and the Frank London Klezmer Orchestra (Spiegeltent)
18
19
3 pm The Imaginary Invalid (Theater Two)
5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 7 pm The Battle of Algiers (Ottaway) 8 pm The Imaginary Invalid (Theater Two) 8:30 pm Ameranouche (Spiegeltent)
26 5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 7 pm Pépé le Moko (Ottaway) 7:45 pm Swing dance instruction (Spiegeltent) 8:30 pm Starlight Swing Night (Spiegeltent)
AUGUST
1 + 3 pm The King in Spite of Himself (Sosnoff)
2 5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 7 pm Camp de Thiaroye (Ottaway) 7:45 pm Tango instruction (Spiegeltent) ~a (Spiegeltent) 8:30 pm Tango Night: Noche Porten
9 5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 7 pm Casablanca (Ottaway) 8:30 pm Buckwheat Zydeco (Spiegeltent)
16 5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 7:45 pm Salsa dance instruction (Spiegeltent) 8:30 pm Summer Salsa Night (Spiegeltent) Tickets and latest program updates at fishercenter.bard.edu transportation from Manhattan to Bard is available for this performance. * Round-trip Reservations are required.
+ Round-trip shuttle between the Metro-North station in Poughkeepsie and Bard is available for this performance. Reservations are required. 24
*
friday
saturday
sunday
6
7
8
5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 8 pm Compagnie fêtes galantes (Sosnoff) 8:30 pm Fishtank Ensemble (Spiegeltent) 10:30 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
13 *
5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 8 pm The Imaginary Invalid (Theater Two) 8:30 pm Les Chauds Lapins (Spiegeltent) 10:30 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
20 5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 8 pm The Imaginary Invalid (Theater Two) 8:30 pm Wau Wau Sisters (Spiegeltent) 10:30 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
27 *
5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) + 7 pm The King in Spite of Himself (Sosnoff) 8:30 pm Weimar New York (Spiegeltent) 10:30 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
3 5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) + 7 pm The King in Spite of Himself (Sosnoff) 8:30 pm Mandingo Ambassadors (Spiegeltent) 10:30 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
10
*
5 pm BMF Opening Night Dinner (Spiegeltent) 7:30 pm Preconcert Talk (Sosnoff) + 8 pm BMF Program One (Sosnoff) 8:30 pm Bindlestiff Family Cirkus (Spiegeltent) 11 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
17 *
5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 7 pm Preconcert Panel (Sosnoff) + 8:30 pm BMF Program Seven (Sosnoff) 8:30 pm Two Man Gentlemen Band (Spiegeltent) 10:30 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
1–3 pm Lunch (Spiegeltent) 5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) + 8 pm Compagnie fêtes galantes (Sosnoff) 8:30 pm Martha Wainwright (Spiegeltent) 10:30 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
1–3 pm Lunch (Spiegeltent)
* 3 pm Compagnie fêtes galantes (Sosnoff)
14
15
11 am Bindlestiff Family Cirkus (Spiegeltent) 1–3 pm Lunch (Spiegeltent—outdoor dining only) 3 pm The Imaginary Invalid (Theater Two) 5:30 pm Gala Dinner (Spiegeltent) + 8 pm The Imaginary Invalid (Theater Two) 8:30 pm Jean Brassard (Spiegeltent) 11 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
*
21 1–3 pm Lunch (Spiegeltent) 3 pm The Imaginary Invalid (Theater Two) 5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) + 8 pm The Imaginary Invalid (Theater Two) 8:30 pm Wau Wau Sisters (Spiegeltent) 10:30 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
22 1–3 pm Lunch (Spiegeltent) The Imaginary Invalid (Theater * 3 pmTwo) 7 pm Xala (Ottaway)
28 1–3 pm Lunch (Spiegeltent) 3:30 pm Carnival of the Animals (Spiegeltent) 5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 8:30 pm Weimar New York (Spiegeltent) 10:30 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
29 *
4 1–3 pm Lunch (Spiegeltent) 3:30 pm The Little Farm Show (Spiegeltent) 5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 8:30 pm Jackie Hoffman (Spiegeltent) 10:30 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
1–3 pm Lunch (Spiegeltent) 3 pm The Imaginary Invalid (Theater Two) 3:30 pm Bindlestiff Family Cirkus (Spiegeltent) 7 pm Muriel (Ottaway)
1–3 pm Lunch (Spiegeltent) 1 pm Opera Talk (Sosnoff) + 3 pm The King in Spite of Himself (Sosnoff) 3:30 pm Carnival of the Animals (Spiegeltent) 7 pm The Sea Wall (Ottaway)
5 *
11
1–3 pm Lunch (Spiegeltent) + 3 pm The King in Spite of Himself (Sosnoff) 3:30 pm The Little Farm Show (Spiegeltent) 7 pm Beau Travail (Ottaway)
12
10 am BMF Panel One (Olin) 10 am BMF Program Four (Sosnoff) 1–3 pm Lunch (Spiegeltent) 1–5 pm Lunch and Dinner (Spiegeltent) 1 pm Preconcert Talk (Olin) 1 pm Preconcert Talk (Olin) 1:30 pm BMF Program Two (Olin) 1:30 pm BMF Program Five (Olin) 3:30 pm Aesop Bops! (Spiegeltent) 3:30 pm Aesop Bops! (Spiegeltent) 5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 5 pm Preconcert Talk (Sosnoff) + 5:30 pm BMF Program Six (Sosnoff) 7 pm Preconcert Talk (Sosnoff) + 8 pm BMF Program Three (Sosnoff) 7 pm Caché (Ottaway) 8:30 pm Bindlestiff Family Cirkus (Spiegeltent) 10:30 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
*
18 10 am BMF Panel Two (Olin) 1–3 pm Lunch (Spiegeltent) 1 pm Preconcert Talk (Olin) 1:30 pm BMF Program Eight (Olin) 5:30–8 pm Dinner (Spiegeltent) 7 pm Preconcert Talk (Sosnoff) + 8 pm BMF Program Nine (Sosnoff) 8:30 pm Le Chat Lunatique (Spiegeltent) 10:30 pm SpiegelClub (Spiegeltent)
19
*
10 am BMF Program Ten (Olin) 1–5 pm Lunch and Dinner (Spiegeltent) 1 pm Preconcert Talk (Olin) 1:30 pm BMF Program Eleven (Olin) 3:30 pm Preconcert Talk (Sosnoff) + 4:30 pm BMF Program Twelve (Sosnoff) 8:30 pm SummerScape Closing Night: Dance Party! (Spiegeltent)
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Support The Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College friends of the fisher center Since its opening in 2003, the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts has transformed cultural life in the Hudson Valley with world-class programming. Our continued success depends on individuals such as you. Become a Friend of the Fisher Center today.
Individual Giving Friends of the Fisher Center membership is designed to give individual donors the opportunity to support their favorite programs through the Fisher Center Council or Bard Music Festival Council. As a Friend of the Fisher Center, you will enjoy a behind-the-scenes look at Center presentations as well as exclusive special events and services throughout the year.
Corporate Giving Many opportunities exist for corporate sponsorship and patronage of the Fisher Center and its programs. By joining the Corporate Council, your company and its employees not only show their support for the Hudson Valley cultural community, but also receive a wide range of marketing opportunities and membership benefits. The Fisher Center will work closely with Council members to create the benefits package best suited to their needs. As a Friend of the Fisher Center or Corporate Council member, you will gain access to a number of exclusive special events and services created for supporters. Membership levels vary, and based on your gift amount, benefits may include: • Advance notice of programming • Free tours of the Fisher Center • Invitations for you and a guest to a season preview event • Invitations for you and a guest to a backstage technical demonstration • A copy of the Bard Music Festival book • Access to an exclusive telephone line for Patron Priority handling of ticket orders • Invitations for you and a guest to a reception with the artists For more information on how to become a Friend of the Fisher Center, contact the Box Office Manager at 845-758-7948 or fishercenter@bard.edu. You can also make a gift or schedule monthly gifts to be automatically transferred from your checking account or credit card by visiting fishercenter.bard.edu/support. Major support for the Fisher Center’s programs has been provided by: Arthur F. and Alice E. Adams Foundation Helen and Roger Alcaly American-Scandinavian Foundation The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Fiona Angelini and Jamie Welch The Ann & Gordon Getty Foundation Anonymous Artek The Barbro Osher Pro Suecia Foundation Barclays Bank Leonie F. Batkin Bettina Baruch Foundation Bioseutica USA, Inc. Carolyn Marks Blackwood and Gregory Quinn Chartwells School and University Dining Services Michelle R. Clayman Consulate General of Finland in New York Joan K. Davidson Mr. and Mrs. Gonzalo de las Heras John A. Dierdorff Elizabeth W. Ely ’65 and Jonathan K. Greenburg Barbara Ettinger and Sven Huseby The Ettinger Foundation, Inc. 26
Stefano Ferrari and Lilo Zinglersen Finlandia Foundation Alexander D. Fisher MFA ’96 Catherine C. Fisher and Gregory A. Murphy Emily H. Fisher and John Alexander Jeanne Donovan Fisher R. Britton and Melina Fisher FMH Foundation Eliot D. and Paula K. Hawkins Linda Hirshman and David Forkosh* HSBC Philanthropic Programs Anne E. Impellizzeri Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation Jane’s Ice Cream Jane W. Nuhn Charitable Trust The J. M. Kaplan Fund, Inc. Belinda and Stephen Kaye Susan and Roger Kennedy Barbara Kenner Mimi Levitt Chris Lipscomb and Monique Segarra Amy and Thomas O. Maggs Mansakenning LLC The Marks Family Foundation Marstrand Foundation Martin and Toni Sosnoff Foundation The Maurer Family Foundation, Inc. Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation Joanna M. Migdal The Millbrook Tribute Garden Millbrook Vineyards & Winery Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Finland The Mortimer Levitt Foundation Inc. Mrs. Mortimer Levitt Endowment Fund for the Performing Arts National Dance Project of the New England Foundation for the Arts National Endowment for the Arts American Masterpieces: Dance National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA) New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) Ralph E. Ogden Foundation, Inc. Mr. and Mrs. James H. Ottaway Jr. Dimitri B. and Rania Papadimitriou Peter Kenner Family Fund of the Jewish Communal Fund Dr. Gabrielle H. Reem* and Dr. Herbert J. Kayden Dr. Siri von Reis Richard B. Fisher Endowment Fund Drs. M. Susan and Irwin Richman Ingrid Rockefeller David E. Schwab II ’52 and Ruth Schwartz Schwab ’52 The Schwab Charitable Fund Denise S. Simon and Paulo Vieira da Cunha Martin T. and Toni Sosnoff H. Peter Stern and Helen Drutt English Dr. Sanford Sternlieb Allan and Ronnie Streichler Thendara Foundation Felicitas S. Thorne True Love Productions Margo and Anthony Viscusi Bethany B. Winham Millie and Robert Wise The Wise Family Charitable Foundation Wolfensohn Family Foundation
*deceased List current as of March 9, 2012
NYSCA
New York State Council on the Arts
2012 Season Premium Seating Program Every year, Bard’s SummerScape festival expands the boundaries of opera by producing an unjustly neglected masterpiece, such as Les Huguenots in 2009, The Distant Sound in 2010, Die Liebe der Danae in 2011, and The King in Spite of Himself this coming summer. These ambitious productions are a cornerstone of the Fisher Center’s mission, giving audiences the opportunity to experience operas that are rarely performed by most major American companies. They are also expensive to produce—they require large casts, choruses, and orchestras, and have complex scenery and costumes. We invite you to become our partner in making possible this adventurous exploration of the operatic repertory through our new Premium Seating program, which offers a limited number of the very best seats for each performance, with special benefits available to purchasers at each price level. Ticket Price
Premium Benefit
$1,000
Reserved VIP parking for all your SummerScape and Bard Music Festival performances in the Sosnoff Theater and Theater Two, plus everything below
$500
An invitation to attend a staging rehearsal for the opera, plus everything below
$375
VIP seating for The King in Spite of Himself, plus a production poster, signed by the cast
$200
VIP seating for The King in Spite of Himself, plus a production poster
For more information and to order your Premium Seats, call the Fisher Center Box Office Manager at 845-758-7948.
Ticket Information box office The main Box Office, located in the lobby of the Sosnoff Theater in the Fisher Center, is open Monday through Friday from 10 am – 5 pm and from 11 am – 5 pm on weekends during SummerScape. The Box Office opens one hour prior to all performances; other Box Office locations are open one hour prior to the performance. Please pick up your Will Call tickets in the venue of the performance that you will be attending.
By Telephone Call the Box Office from 10 am to 5 pm Monday through Friday at 845-758-7900 to speak with a ticket services representative. Please be sure to have your completed order form and credit card ready. All orders received at least 14 days prior to the date of your first event will be mailed; all other orders will be held at the Box Office.
discounts contact information
Only one discount is applicable per ticket.
Box Office The Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts Bard College PO Box 5000 Annandale-on-Hudson, NY 12504-5000
Subscription Discount Purchase tickets to four or more SummerScape events to receive a discount of 25 percent off full price for your entire order. This discount cannot be applied retroactively.
845-758-7900 Box Office 845-758-7910 Box Office fax fishercenter@bard.edu fishercenter.bard.edu Online Visit fishercenter.bard.edu to order online and select your own seats. In Person Go to the Box Office to place your order in person. By Mail Send your completed order form with payment to the Box Office at the address noted above. By Fax Fax your completed order form with credit card details to 845-758-7910.
Senior Discounts Senior citizens aged 62 and over may purchase single tickets discounted at 20 percent off full price. Student Discounts Day of: Students with a valid full-time student ID, or under the age of 25, may purchase up to two $5 rush tickets starting one hour before the event, subject to availability. Seat locations will be assigned by the Box Office. Advance Sales: Students with a valid ID, or under the age of 25, may purchase single tickets discounted at 20 percent off full price. Group Discounts Groups of 10 or more are eligible for special discounts. Please call the Box Office: Group Sales at 845-758-7928.
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house policies
by train
All sales are final. Tickets are nonrefundable. Programs, dates, times, and venues are subject to change without notice.
Amtrak provides service from Penn Station (New York City) and from Albany to Rhinecliff, about 9 miles south of Bard. Visit amtrak.com for schedule and ticket information. Metro-North (mta.info/mnr) provides service from Grand Central Terminal (New York City) to Poughkeepsie, about 20 miles south of Bard. For taxi service from Rhinecliff, call Red Hook/Rhinebeck Cabs at 845-876-2010; for taxi service from Poughkeepsie, call A-1 Taxi at 845-473-7600.
Latecomers are not admitted after the performance has started. Closed-circuit TVs in the Fisher Center lobbies are provided for latecomers to view the event. Latecomers may be seated at the discretion of the management at an appropriate interval during the performance. Late seating is not guaranteed; please allow sufficient time for travel and parking.
by coach Children under 5 are not admitted unless explicitly noted. Children are welcome at Family Fare performances. The use of recording equipment or photography is strictly prohibited during performances. Mobile telephones, beepers, and watch alarms must be turned off during performances. Access and Facilities for the Disabled Seating in the Sosnoff Theater is available in all price categories for patrons in wheelchairs and their companions. See the seating chart for locations. There is an elevator to all levels of the Sosnoff Theater and a special wheelchair lift used to access front-row wheelchair seating. Wheelchair seating in Theater Two varies for each production. Wheelchair seating is in the front of the Ottaway Film Center. Please be sure to let the Box Office know at the time you purchase your tickets that you need wheelchair seating so an appropriate location can be reserved for you. Restrooms in all locations are wheelchair accessible. For the additional convenience of Sosnoff Theater patrons, there is a private restroom on the lower lobby for use by patrons in wheelchairs. Sennheiser infrared assistive listening devices are available in the Sosnoff Theater and Theater Two. Receivers may be borrowed on request at the Box Office. Reserved parking is available for drivers with disabilities. Please call 845-758-7900 in advance to ensure that a space is reserved for you. Drivers accompanying the disabled are asked to leave their passengers at the drop-off point in front of the Fisher Center. If you would like additional information or have any special requirements not covered here, please call 845-758-7900 for assistance.
Travel to Bard by automobile From New York City, New Jersey, and points south, take the New York State Thruway to Exit 19 (Kingston), take Route 209 (changes to Route 199 at the Hudson River) over the Rhinecliff Bridge to the second light, turn left onto Route 9G, and drive north 3.8 miles. Follow sign for Center for Performing Arts. From Albany, take the New York State Thruway to Exit 19 and proceed as from New York City. From Connecticut, Massachusetts, and northern New England, see directions at fishercenter.bard.edu/visitor.
gps device users Enter the intersection of Route 9G and Annandale Road in the town of Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, 12504.
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For information or to make a reservation on the round-trip coach being provided for specific performances (noted with an asterisk in this brochure), call the Box Office at 845-758-7900. The fare is $25 round-trip. Reservations are required. Offered only to ticket holders.
poughkeepsie/bard shuttle Shuttles to and from Bard and the Poughkeepsie Metro-North train station are now available for all Saturday evening performances, all opera performances, and all Bard Music Festival Sosnoff Theater evening performances. This service is for ticket holders only. Reservations are required. Visit fishercenter.bard.edu/transportation for information.
accommodations For a list of hotels, motels, inns, and bed-and-breakfasts, please visit fishercenter.bard.edu/visitor.
About Bard College Bard College is in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, on the east bank of the Hudson River, about 90 miles north of New York City and 220 miles southwest of Boston. Founded in 1860, Bard is an independent, nonsectarian, residential, coeducational college offering a four-year B.A. program in the liberal arts and sciences and a five-year B.A./B.S. degree in economics and finance. The Bard College Conservatory of Music offers a five-year program in which students pursue a dual degree—a B.Music and a B.A. in a field other than music—and offers an M.Music in vocal arts and in conducting. Bard and its affiliated institutions also grant the following degrees: A.A. at Bard High School Early College, a public school with campuses in New York City (Manhattan and Queens) and Newark, New Jersey; A.A. and B.A. at Bard College at Simon’s Rock: The Early College, in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, and through the Bard Prison Initiative at five correctional institutions in New York State; M.A. in curatorial studies, and M.S. in environmental policy and in climate science and policy at the Annandale campus; M.F.A. and M.A.T. at multiple campuses; M.B.A. in sustainability in New York City; and M.A., M.Phil., and Ph.D. in the decorative arts, design history, and material culture at the Bard Graduate Center in Manhattan. Internationally, Bard confers dual B.A. degrees at the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences, St. Petersburg State University, Russia (Smolny College), and American University of Central Asia in Kyrgyzstan; and dual B.A. and M.A.T. degrees at Al-Quds University in East Jerusalem. Bard offers nearly 50 academic programs in four divisions. Total enrollment for Bard College and its affiliates is approximately 3,900 students. The undergraduate college has an enrollment of more than 1,900 and a student-to-faculty ratio of 10:1. For more information about Bard College, visit www.bard.edu.
Sosnoff Theater Seating C
Seating for all events in the Sosnoff Theater and Olin Hall is reserved.
C
B
B A
A
Seating for all events in Theater Two, Spiegeltent, and Ottaway Film Center is general admission. Box 207
Box 208
second balcony
Box 206
Box 205
Box 204
Box 203
Box 201
Box 202 E
E D
D
C
C
B
B
A
A
Box 108
Box 106
Box 104
Box 102
Box 107
first balcony
Box 105
Box 103
Box 101
U
U
T
T
S
S
R
R
Q
Q
P
P
N
N M
M
L
L
orchestra and parterre
L
K
K
K
J
J
F
E
Price Level 1 Price Level 2 Price Level 3 Price Level 4 Wheelchair-accessible seating Seats not available for all performances
D C
K J
H
H
J
L
G
G
F
F
E
E
D
D
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B
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G F E D
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Ticket Prices Make your own subscription! Save 25 percent when you order four or more different events with each subscription. Our senior citizen discount is now 20 percent on single tickets! Take your discount on the order form.
event
price 4
price 3
price 2
price 1
sosnoff theater
full price / subscription price
Compagnie fĂŞtes galantes
$25/18.75
$40/30
$45/33.75
$55/41.25
The King in Spite of Himself
$30/22.50
$60/45
$70/52.50
$90/67.50
(For information about premium seating with special benefits for this event, call 845-758-7948 or see p. 27.) theater two
full price / subscription price
The Imaginary Invalid
$45/33.75
spiegeltent
full price / subscription price
Cabaret
$25/18.75
Family Fare performances Adult
$15/11.25
Child 3 and older
$5/3.75
Thursday Night Live
$20/15
ottaway film center
full price / subscription price
Film
$8/6
event
price 4
bard music festival
full price / subscription price
Program 1
$25/18.75
Program 2
$35/26.25
Program 3
$30/22.50
Program 4
$35/26.25
Program 5
$35/26.25
Program 6
price 3
price 2
price 1
$35/26.25
$45/33.75
$55/41.25
$50/37.50
$60/45
$75/56.25
$25/18.75
$35/26.25
$45/33.75
$55/41.25
Program 7
$25/18.75
$35/26.25
$45/33.75
$55/41.25
Program 8
$35/26.25
Program 9
$30/22.50
$50/37.50
$60/45
$75/56.25
Program 10
$30/22.50
Program 11
$30/22.50
Program 12
$30/22.50
$50/37.50
$60/45
$75/56.25
$341.25
$386.25
$442.50
Complete Bard Music Festival package: Tickets to all 12 programs
30
$273.75
Order Form
Buy tickets and get the latest program and schedule updates at fishercenter.bard.edu Please call the Box Office at 845-758-7900 with questions or for help in placing your order. Mail completed form to Fisher Center Box Office, PO Box 5000, Annandale-on-Hudson, NY 12504.
Name Street address City
State
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Phone (evening)
Please include your phone number so that we may reach you if there is a problem with your order. ❑ Check here if the above information is different from the mailing address label so that we may update our records. ❑ Check here if wheelchair seating is required, or call 845-758-7900 if you require special accommodation. Make your own subscription Save 25 percent when you order four or more different events with each subscription. Event
Date/Time
Subscription price
1.
$
2.
$
3.
$
4.
$
5.
$
6.
$
7. Complete Bard Music Festival package: Tickets to all 12 programs
$273.75/341.25/386.25/442.50 Subtotal
$
Number of subscriptions
x
Subscription Total
$
Single Tickets Event
Date/Time
Quantity x Price
Total
1.
$
2.
$
3.
$ Subtotal
$
Take your senior citizen (62 and over) discount on single tickets: subtract 20 percent
$
I would like to become a Friend of the Fisher Center with a tax-deductible contribution of: Total
$100/250/500/1000 $
Payment Information ❑ Check enclosed (payable to Bard College)
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✁
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31
Buy four or more events and save 25%. Tickets on sale now. 845-758-7900 | fishercenter.bard.edu
The Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College. Photo by Peter Aaron ’68/Esto
PO Box 5000 Annandale-0n-Hudson, NY 12504-5000
Bard College
Nonprofit Organization U.S. Postage Paid Bard College