Calgary Opera program - Filumena

By John Estacio & John Murrell

February 4, 8 & 10, 2017 calgaryopera.com

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2016-17 SEASON Box Office, Administration & Rehearsal Hall MamDani OPERA CENTRE 1315 - 7 Street SW, Calgary AB T2R 1A5 Phone: 403-262-7286 | Fax: 403-263-5428 www.calgaryopera.com | info@calgaryopera.com Calgary Opera gratefully acknowledges the support of:

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Michael Brown

board of directors

Chair

Lachlin McKinnon

Jacqueline Pyke

secretary

Chair, Revenue Committee

Don Swystun Treasurer, chair, finance committee

Craig Golinowski

Jay MacGillivray Director

Jerilyn Wright

Director

co-Chair, Special Events committee

David Dunlop

Monica Sloan

Director

Chair, Capital Campaign Committee

Donald C. Edie director

Christel Johansson

Ruth Ramsden-Wood Chair, Nomination and Governance Committee

Sharie Hunter

director

co-Chair, Special Events committee

Greta Raymond

Tina Antony

director

Director

message from the

chair | michael brown

On behalf of the Calgary Opera Board of Directors, I am thrilled to welcome you to Filumena.

I have been very fortunate to be a part of growing and promoting our community throughout my career, which is why I am especially delighted to be a part of the remount of this original production that was composed and written about the tumultuous history of our majestic province. Sharing this history through the medium of opera provides an amazing way to deliver on Calgary Opera’s vision:

Canada’s 150th birthday.

This story is a huge part of, not only Alberta’s history, but Canada’s.

The outcome of Filumena Losandro’s trial changed the history of Canada forever.

I’m proud to hold the position of Chairman of the Board for an organization that is so closely aligned with the vision of a corporation that I am fortunate to work for, the Calgary Municipal Land Corporation (CMLC). We too want to strengthen the connections between people, places and experiences, and opera is the perfect conduit for a community to do so. An important role for arts organizations like Calgary Opera is to contribute to the health and vitality of communities. Their work creates a reason for people to gather, connect and reflect.

Telling the story of Filumena through opera also made another notable mark in Canada’s history, as it is now the most-produced Canadian grand opera ever. Since its world premiere in February 2003, the production has been produced a record 6 times, with more planned in the future.

Calgary Opera’s original work (co-commissioned with the Banff Centre in 2003) is the perfect way for patrons to gather and celebrate

So, without further ado, I invite you to sit back and enjoy a history-making opera brought to you by your own Calgary Opera.

To be the best at connecting people, through the magic of opera, to themselves, to each other, and to the community.

message from the

general director & ceo | W.R. (Bob) McPhee

, C.M., LL.D. (Hon)

Before I took on the role of General Director and CEO, Calgary Opera had never produced an original work. We had also only produced three contemporary works from the 20th century, so the creation of Filumena was a bold change from our history of traditional repertoire. It became the start of Calgary Opera’s legacy of developing new works, building new productions, and developing the next generation of Canadian artists. Since Filumena, Calgary Opera has presented five world premieres, six Canadian premieres, and many company premieres – something I’m very proud of.

This story, in all its depth, could not have been told without the genius of composer, John Estacio, and librettist, John Murrell. We’ve been grateful to have both of these talents with us through the process of this remount. This time their words and music have been brought to life with some, but not all, new Canadian talents. We’re happy to have Filumena’s original Stage Director, Kelly Robinson, back with us, as well as Elizabeth Turnbull who reprises her role as Maria Picariello (for the fifth time), Graham Paynter (a longstanding member of Calgary Opera’s Chorus) reprises his role as Papa Costanzo and Gregory Dahl (our original Charlie Losandro) returns as Emilio Picariello.

I brought back Filumena, as Calgary Opera’s way to celebrate Canada’s sesquicentennial. Our country’s 150-year history is full of colourful, intense and passionate stories, like that of our heroine, Filumena Losandro, an Italian immigrant in a loveless marriage. She finds passion in a forbidden affair, but mistakes this passion for love, and as a result faces a very tragic consequence, one that changed Canada’s history forever. Since its world premiere, February 1, 2003, Filumena has since went on to become the most-produced Canadian grand opera in history.

We are happy to introduce Lida Szkwarek in the tile role of Filumena, and Andrew Love as Charlie Losandro. Both of these talented Canadian artists are alumni members of our Emerging Artist Development Program.

So as our gift to you, and our amazing country on this very celebratory occasion, we present a true story from Canada’s history, that changed Calgary Opera’s future.

Happy Birthday Canada!

SHOP the

Neighbourhood

Sponsorship is truly the lifeblood of

charitable not-for-profit organizations, and Calgary Opera is no exception. Without public and private sponsorship, we could not do what we do in bringing world-class grand productions to Calgary audiences and the magic of opera to the community at large. Without sponsors and funding partners, Calgary Opera could not take opera off the mainstage and into schools across Alberta or produce Opera in the Village, Canada’s only outdoor summer opera festival, for the enjoyment of a more broad-based audience. And without sponsorship to offset the substantial costs of production, grand opera would not be accessible to many who would like to experience this spectacular art form.

But also very important to Calgary Opera’s success in bringing opera experiences to its audiences, are our Official Sponsors and Supporting Partners – most of them smaller, entrepreneurial enterprises – who support Calgary Opera because they believe in the importance of a strong, creative, and enlightened society.

Official Sponsors Peaseblossoms Flowers, Kensington Wine Market, Heaven’s Fitness, Structured Abstraction, and Supporting Partners, including the Chocolate Lab, Peasant Cheese, Expedia Cruiseship Centres (MR), Devour Catering and many others, do what they can, in whatever way they can to support bringing the magic of opera to you.

You have heard the phrase, ‘shop the neighbourhood’, well, Calgary Opera encourages you, our faithful patrons, to ‘shop our suppliers’ and support those who support us. If you want a beautiful bouquet of flowers for a special someone or are looking for a creative wedding florist, head to Peaseblossoms. Looking for a healthy start to the New Year, visit Heaven’s Fitness; want a custom designed trip-of-a-lifetime, talk to Expedia Cruiseship Centre (Mount Royal); website expertise, Structured Abstraction; the most beautiful box of chocolates in Calgary, the Chocolate Lab; the ultimate selection in wine and spirits, or cheese and charcuterie from around the world, check out Kensington Wine Market and Peasant Cheese (conveniently located next to one another); all your catering needs, our friends at Devour Catering. Calgary Opera relies on these allimportant relationships and we recommend you give them a try. You won’t be disappointed.

Official Suppliers

6 CALGARY OPERA 2016-17 SEASON

Production & Program Sponsors

Filumena

Turandot

Christmas at the Opera

Let’s Create an Opera

Allegro Group

Opera Titles Sponsor

Emerging Artist Development Program Supporters

Community Outreach

Pre-show Chats

Mamdani Opera Centre

Sunday Opera Brunch Series

Resident Conductor Sponsor

Supporters

Artist Sponsor

Filumena Supporter

Infrastructure Supporter

Accommodation Supporter

Key Media Partners

filumena 7

Supporting the arts, locally

BMO is proud to sponsor the Calgary Opera and this production of John Estacio and John Murrell’s Filumena.

Guy Weadick

Elementary CREATES Oceanville Let’s Create an Opera has been successfully teaching children about the process of opera creation for over 10 years. It’s a program of which Calgary Opera is very proud of, as we’ve seen the amazing results that can happen to young minds when they’re challenged with producing art.

Each year, Calgary Opera works closely with four elementary schools to help them create, produce and perform an original opera.

We begin the process with an opera education assembly for the whole school, complete with opera voice demonstrations by one of Calgary Opera’s Emerging Artists. We then partner each school with a playwright to collaborate, in-class, with the students on ideas for their original libretto. During this part of the process, the students learn about creative thinking, and how to structure their ideas into a clear story. Our playwright takes the student generated ideas, turns them into a libretto and presents the complete libretto (with the help of faculty) at a big “Libretto Reveal Assembly” weeks later.

Next, Calgary Opera provides the school with a composer to work with the students and teachers on adding music to the libretto.

During this time, the students learn about the structure of a score, the power of their voice and how to put words to music. The composer challenges the students to try different rhythms and pitches, records their ideas and notates them, creating a complete score based on the libretto.

Now that the students have an original opera, they begin working with a stage director to bring it to life. The students turn their ideas into sets and costumes. Then they work with lighting and sound to get the production to performance quality.

The program finishes with live performances of their original opera for the whole community to enjoy.

This program not only teaches students about the practical skills of creating an opera, but (more importantly) teamwork, self esteem, structure, hard work and discipline. It’s an experience they’ll remember long after the performance is over.

This year, one of our four Let's Create an Opera schools is Guy Weadick Elementary. Over the last 6 months Calgary Opera has been working with the students to create their original opera Oceanville, about a town that comes together to clean up its polluted shores.

They worked with Aaron Coates to create the libretto and just finished working with composer, Verónica Tapia, on creating the score. The students will present their finished work in May. We thank Repsol for their continued support of this program, and the support of our patrons. Without donation dollars, we wouldn’t be able to reach (and teach) the young minds of Alberta. filumena 9

Notes

from Librettist John MurRell

created for the Calgary Opera world premiere in 2003

Why write an opera?

Why write a tragic opera?

In my life so far I have written more than 30 texts to be spoken out loud in the theatre – and I feel sure that one of the most difficult things in the world is to make the spoken word sing and soar. It tends to waddle, or, at best, to strut. The stride and the syncopations of spoken English are wonderfully various, but they can frequently be clunky in any hands but those of a genius. Even the immortal Shakespeare occasionally trips over his own feet. What spoken language does manage to convey superbly is the “contest of life” – that bumptious struggle waged by each and all of us, as we attempt to surpass in thought and spirit the limitations of our earthly realities.

Just as tropical climates favour different crops than temperate climates do, so, in story-telling, grief and desperation produce a different harvest than joy and tranquility.

This frustration with the material world is perfectly conveyed in the way that we try to get spoken language, all those verbs and nouns and prepositions, out of our way, even as we are speaking it, so that pure meaning can emerge, so that we can convey to one another what is beyond words.

For example, it is very difficult to get the English word “light,” or any of its various synonyms spoken out loud, to convey the feeling of warmth and radiance which we have when we think of light. Glorious words have also been written about the dark, words which convey the idea of its mystery and its danger – but most of these words stop with the idea of “darkness”; they don’t succeed in making us actually feel “darkened”. But music can do this. Those aching, sobbing double basses which accompany Otello’s final entrance in Verdi’s great opera make us a part of the darkness within the Venetian hero’s soul, beyond even the power of Shakespeare’s mighty lines; and we feel so powerfully that the final chorus in The Marriage of Figaro can only take place at night, in a garden, in Spain – Mozart’s musical genius makes the action and the words simultaneously more intimate and more universal than they ever are when Beaumarchais’ play Le Mariage de Figaro is performed in the spoken theatre.

Along comes eloquent music, speaking so much more than can be spoken, and its updraft, however gentle, makes all things buoyant. The words fly with the music when they need to, they swoop, or they alight and grow still for a breath-taking pause, or they plunge from a great height, only to soar again. It is virtually impossible to get words alone to do this – I know, because I have tried to, for 30 years. I suppose this is one of the principal reasons that I have always wanted to write the words for an opera – long before I wanted to write plays – because I dreamed that somebody like John Estacio would come along and speak in harmony and dissonance, in rhythm, in notes, and in that all-important silence between notes, everything that my words alone could never convey.

John’s Filumena Costanzo has all of the tenderness and strength which I tried to put into her words, but she has more than that: she has a musical reality, both physical and metaphysical, a reality of breath and tone and phrase and harmony, which takes her up where my words leave off and elevates her into the pure oxygen of music, making her both symbolically larger-than-life, and also as close and understandable to us as our dearest companions, or as ourselves.

10 CALGARY OPERA 2016-17 SEASON

In the performing arts, I think it is true to say that tragedy produces longer-lasting nutrients for the spirit than comedy does, although both are necessary for our good health. This is why the greatest artists of opera and theatre have relentlessly been drawn to the tragic: not because they like to make us suffer (although perhaps they do that too), but because they know that suffering releases a chemical into our systems which has the power to heal – not just to heal us of our pain at the fates of these fictional characters, but to heal us of the pain of our own fates. When King Lear rages and prays not to go mad with sorrow, we feel both the agony and the majesty of his character, but it is the majesty which stays in our systems as we leave the theatre. When Cio-Cio-San, the broken butterfly, says farewell to her child while pleading with him to remember some small facet of his mother’s face, we are lacerated by her sorrow.

But, at the conclusion of the opera, we are left with a more profound understanding of the link between parent and child than we have ever possessed before, and we carry that understanding out into the world, into our own lives, and all the lives we touch. This is the grace – or, if you like, the gimmick – of tragedy: it takes us up to the heights where we can plainly see the depths of human experience, and living with the knowledge of those dark depths, while still moving forward courageously through our lives, is surely the most human thing, the most admirable human thing, about us. In our opera, John Estacio and I seek to offer you a Filumena Costanzo and an Emilio Picariello (and others) who experience the pain and disappointment of life at least as deeply as its sweetness and sentiment. All of this is a part of what they are, and of what we are. Impelled by her own tragic mistakes, and the mistakes of others, Filumena soars beyond blame and self-pity, up to a height where she can begin to perceive and to embrace a truth which is both bright and dark, both deep and high.

Why write an opera based on history?

“L’altro Giovanni,” as I call him (it means “the other John”), and I had a lot of good examples in basing our opera on historical fact: from Monteverdi’s 17th century masterpiece L’Incoronazione di Poppea (about nasty and delectable goings-on at Nero’s court) to John Adam’s 20th century “epic” Nixon In China (about exactly what it says). There was something irresistibly attractive to us about taking something that had really happened, to real people, and then adding our poetic and musical imaginations to that already rich mix – attempting to “lift” Filumena and Charlie and the Picariellos from a collection of recorded facts into characters who have an archetypal,

even mythical, power to touch us – and, we hope, without losing their ineffably touching human truth. Doctor Faust was a real, living and breathing human being, a doctor of dark and bright arts in medieval Germany (when science and witchcraft were very thinly separated).

He led a short but eventful life, and would be less than a footnote in the history books today, except, through the imaginations of Goethe and Gounod and a lot of others, Faust has also become a meaningful symbol of the wonders and woes of juggling with one’s immortal soul in order to find immortal truth. “L’altro Giovanni” and I have tried to leave Filumena’s worldly truth relatively intact, while endowing her with a myth, a magic, which are both of her time and place, and beyond them.

Why write an opera based on our own history?

From the start, this was one of the challenges that intrigued us most: could we create an opera – a “grand opera” – about the lives of Italian immigrants in a majestic but relatively unsung part of the Canadian West,

in the rough-and-ready days of the early 20th century – an opera which would possess a sense of grandeur and of elevation, of human destiny played out on a scale that is wide and deep, of human beings playing for stakes which feel as high and dangerous as those for which Otello or Cio-Cio-San or Nero or Nixon play, because, however humble their earthly realities, our characters are ultimately playing for life and death?

We wanted to create an opera which looks, sounds, feels, smells and tastes like the place we live in – this remarkable place which has maintained its own supernatural reality through the successive waves of human immigrants and their destinies, from the earliest arrivals in this corner of the earth down to the most recent. We wanted for our audience to see and understand Filumena and her world as thoroughly as if she were a neighbour, or a member of the family, even if they have no particular ties to her place or her time. This is part of the essence of art, when it works: it appeals to us because it feels so surprising, so new to us, and, at the very same time, because it feels like we might have written it ourselves, or, better yet, it feels like we have lived it ourselves, have laughed, and suffered, and learned from it.

filumena 11

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Conductor | Robert Dean Stage Director | Kelly Robinson Assistant Stage Director | Gérard Théorêt Set & Costume Design | Sue LePage Lighting Designer | Harry Frehner Fight Director | John Knight CAST In order of vocal appearance

Papa Costanzo | Graham Paynter Mama Costanzo | Morgan Traynor* Filumena Losandro | Lida Szkwarek McAlpine | Thomas Glenn Charlie Losandro | Andrew Love Emilio Picariello | Gregory Dahl Maria Picariello | Elizabeth Turnbull Stefano Picariello | Ernesto Ramírez Constable Lawson | Johnathon Kirby* Covers Papa Costanzo | Simon Chalifoux* McAlpine | Matt Chittick* Stefano Picariello | Jason Ragan* Cast subject to change

Calgary Opera Chorus Chorus Director | Sandra Atkinson Accompanied by the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra Repetiteur & Asst. Conductor | Christopher Mokrzewski Chorus Repetiteur | Rachel Baljeu Opera Titles Operator | John Bouz Opera Titles | Calgary Opera Stage Manager | Amy Lippold Assistant Stage Manager | Nicole Bergen Assistant Stage Manager | Betty Hushlak Apprentice Stage Manager | Kennedy Greene Head of Wardrobe | Heather Moore Head Make-Up Artist | Rose Gurevitch Head Wig & Hair Artist | Laura de Moissac Head of Props | Laura Anderson Director of Production | Bonni Baynton Technical Director | Eugenio Sáenz Flores Associate Technical Director | Jesse Carroll Production Assistant | Chloe Mohan

production sponsor

Calgary Opera is proud to work with the professional stage hands and artisans provided by IATSE Local 212 *Members of the 2016-2017 Emerging Artist Development Program

filumena 13

By John Estacio & John Murrell February 4, 8 & 10, 2017 Act One, Scene One

Autumn, 1915.

In the park of a small town in the Crowsnest Pass, family and friends celebrate the wedding of Filumena Costanzo to Charlie Losandro. As the festivities proceed, Filumena seems withdrawn and uncomfortable in her marriage: Charlie has given her a new “Canadian name,” Florence, which she clearly rejects. Emilio Picariello, Charlie’s boss and a kingpin of several legal and illegal enterprises, has organized a band to play for the couple’s first dance. After the dance, Picariello introduces Filumena to his son Steve, and the two young people are immediately drawn to each other. Steve’s special “wedding song” is interrupted by the appearance of Constable Lawson of the Alberta Provincial Police, Picariello’s nemesis.

Later, Filumena, seeing a storm in the distance, reflects on the life she has, and the life she desires to have.

Act One, Scene Two

Winter, several years later.

Picariello, Charlie, McAlpine (Picariello’s head mechanic), and a group of cronies have gathered at the Alberta Hotel in Blairmore, the location from which they transport illegal liquor to Alberta, British Columbia, and the United States, now that Prohibition has been declared. Picariello notices Filumena’s unhappiness and tries to console her. Suddenly several noisy “Whiskey Sixes,” laden with booze, arrive in the secret tunnel beneath the hotel, and the cronies hasten to unload the contraband. Picariello talks with Filumena and promises her that, in time, they will live a good clean life, once they have enough money to fulfill their dreams. He asks her to help out by acting as a decoy for the bootleg trade, along with his son Steve.

Constable Lawson appears and warns Picariello that he should get out of “the business.” He inspects the premises, but the bootleggers have had sufficient time to conceal the evidence, and the Constable finds nothing incriminating.

Act One, Scene Three

Early Summer, the next year.

In an alpine meadow outside Sparwood, British Columbia, Filumena and Steve are waiting to play their part in the bootlegging business. They have just finished a picnic lunch and are playing a translation game. Filumena wins and, as her prize, Steve sings her the rest of the song which he began on her wedding day.

14 CALGARY OPERA 2016-17 SEASON

They are passionately attracted to one another, but are interrupted by Picariello and Charlie (his father, her husband) who transfer the bootleg haul from their own vehicle into that of the younger folk, who will now drive it back into Alberta, “disguised as a young couple in love.”

Act One, Scene Four

Later, the same summer.

McAlpine and other Picariello cronies are campaigning for “the Emperor Pic” in his bid for election to the Blairmore Town Council. Meanwhile, in the hotel kitchen, tension builds between Filumena, Steve, and Charlie. The latter is obviously aware of the true nature of the relationship between Picariello’s son and his wife. Picariello arrives outside the hotel and addresses a crowd of supporters. Charlie angrily interrupts the speech: he’s had enough of all the pretending and posturing. There is a confrontation between him and Picariello, and, later, between Picariello and his wife Maria, who has just realized what is going on between their son and “this married woman.” As Picariello and Maria rejoin the election crowd, Lawson appears in the hotel lobby—for a secret meeting with Charlie.

Act Two, Scene One

September 21, 1922.

A storm brews in the distance, as Filumena sits alone in the hotel kitchen, waiting for Steve to appear. Charlie enters and tells Filumena that Steve decided to go along with McAlpine, on what they hope will be the bootleggers’ last run. But they should have returned long before now; something must have gone badly wrong. Maria Picariello appears too, looking for her son, and they summon Picariello from a meeting with the Town Council, of which he is now a member. Suddenly McAlpine arrives, his clothes torn and muddy. He tells them that Constable Lawson chased him and Steve across the border into B.C., shots were fired, and Steve “was hit real bad.” Picariello, in a fit of rage, swears to make Lawson pay if he has killed his boy, then grabs Filumena and storms off to the Provincial Police residence in nearby Coleman.

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Act Two, Scene two

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Picariello and Filumena arrive at Lawson’s home. Picariello calls the Constable out into the yard. Lawson appears, with his young family clustered behind him. Picariello, who is armed and who has also thrust a pistol upon Filumena, accuses Lawson of killing his son. A struggle breaks out among the three of them. A shot is fired and Lawson falls to the ground.

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Act Two, Scene Three

Fort Macleod, Alberta.

A coffin, borne by a company of Provincial Police, is followed

by Lawson’s widow and children. The people of the Crowsnest Pass, of Alberta, and of Canada react to the sensational news of the murder, speculating on what really happened that night, and on how the perpetrators should be punished.

Act Two, Scene Four November, 1922.

Maria and Steve Picariello visit Filumena in her jail cell in Calgary. They implore Filumena to take full responsibility for the policeman’s death, and thus to save Emilio Picariello’s life. He is a man with a wife and children. Filumena realizes that her love for Steve was not matched by his for her.

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Act Two, Scene Five May 1, 1923.

Both Filumena and Picariello have been convicted of Constable Lawson’s murder, and are awaiting execution at the penitentiary in Fort Saskatchewan. Filumena thinks of all that she will miss when she is no longer in this world. Picariello is haunted by the series of “innocent mistakes” which led him to this dreadful end; he cannot bear to leave his family and his dreams behind. Prison guards arrive to take him to the gallows.

As Filumena prepares for her own death, the sky outside suddenly shimmers with lightning. She remembers how much she always loved a storm. She lets go of this and all other regrets, preparing to depart for a world without storms.

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Thank You for ‘Stepping Up!’ Our Step Up campaign is complete, and thanks to the generosity of patrons like you, was a huge success.

This campaign was made possible by the late Mario Stella, who along with his late wife Rosetta, were long-time supporters of the arts, both in Calgary and Banff. In 2015, he bequeathed to Calgary Opera a substantial contribution of which we named, The Stella Fund. To honour his generous sprit of philanthropy, the Calgary Opera Board of Directors allocated $100,000 from The Stella Fund to the Step Up campaign, a matching gift program aimed at inspiring donors to ‘step up’ to the next level of giving.

As a result, Calgary Opera raised $110K from 300 donors in 2016, an outstanding increase of $80K from the year before.

To show you how much your donations help, $110K equals: • 12 Let’s Create an Opera Schools • 139 Emerging Artist School Tour Performances • 2.5 Years of Emerging Artist professional instruction • 5.45% of the cost of a mainstage production (including the auditorium, scores, sets, cast & creatives, stage crew, wardrobe, makeup, hair, props and design) So THANK YOU to all those who ‘stepped up.’ Your support allows us to continue enhancing our community and spurring civic pride through a variety of opera experiences.

This funding is invaluable to Calgary Opera. Ticket revenue only accounts for 28% of the total operating costs of Calgary Opera, so we rely on individual giving to support our community outreach initiatives and productions.

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18 CALGARY OPERA 2016-17 SEASON

biographies

Investing in our communities Repsol is a proud educational sponsor of the Calgary Opera

JOHN ESTACIO Composer JUNO nominated composer John Estacio has composed music for several musicians and ensembles and his works are frequently recorded, performed and broadcast on international radio and television. In addition to Filumena, he has composed three other operas, most recently Ours which received its premiere in St. John’s, Newfoundland. He has also written a full-length orchestral score for the ballet King Arthur’s Camelot which is being remounted by the Cincinnati Ballet in February 2017. His music has been performed at Carnegie Hall by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Edmonton Symphony. He is the recipient of the NAC Award for Composers and his music was performed by Pinchas Zukerman and the National Arts Centre Orchestra during their tours of China and the UK. In 2017, the NACO will tour across Canada with his orchestral work I Lost My Talk, inspired by Rita Joe’s poem and commissioned for the Right Honourable Joe Clark on the occasion of his 75th birthday. His latest composition, Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra, will be performed by twenty orchestras across Canada in 2017/18.

JOHN MURRELL Librettist John Murrell is among Canada’s most frequently produced playwrights, whose plays – including Waiting For The Parade, Memoir, Farther West, and Taking Shakespeare – have been performed in more than 30 countries around the world. He is also a translator, an arts activist and mentor, and the author of four opera libretti, of which Filumena was the first. Murrell is an Officer of the Order of Canada, a member of the Alberta Order of Excellence, and a recipient of the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement. His most recent play, Fat Jack Falstaff’s Last Hour, was premiered by One Yellow Rabbit Theatre of Calgary last year.

Robert Dean Conductor Robert Dean made his Canadian debut in 1993 with The Pearl Fishers for Edmonton Opera. This was followed by a highly acclaimed La Cenerentola (recorded by CBC), Die Fledermaus, Abduction from the Seraglio, Lakmé and John Estacio’s Filumena (also filmed for Canadian TV). Most recent performances include La Fille du Regiment, La Bohème, Don Giovanni, Il Barbiere di Siviglia and Maria Stuarda. He has also had a long association with Calgary Opera where he has conducted Lucia di Lammermoor, Cenerentola, Falstaff and Der Fliegende Holländer.

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20 CALGARY OPERA 2016-17 SEASON

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biographies Kelly Robinson

Harry Frehner

Stage Director

Lighting Designer

Kelly Robinson’s work has been seen at the the Opera Companies of Dallas, Minnesota, Portland, and Montreal, among others. Also The National Arts Centre, The Stratford, and Shaw Festivals, Vineyard Theater (New York) and London’s West End. World premieres include the operas Filumena, Frobisher and Lillian Alling by John Estacio and John Murrell and The Inventor by Bramwell Tovey and John Murrell.

Recent projects include Mavra and Iolanta for Guildhall SMD in London, Evita for Vancouver Opera, Bittergirl for The Charlottetown Festival, The Merry Widow for Michigan Opera Theater, and Don Giovanni for Opera Santa Barbara. His last production for Calgary Opera was Die tote Stadt.

Gérard Théorêt Assistant Stage Director Gérard Théorêt is a former soloist with Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet and has worked with such dance and theatre luminaries as Agnes DeMille, Gillian Lynne, Hal Prince, and Anne Reinking. Trained in Britain as an actor, he has performed roles from Shakespeare to Lloyd Webber including two seasons at the Stratford Festival. From 1991 to 1997 he toured as Associate Director with Phantom of the Opera.

He was a professor of Drama at the University of Alberta and Full Professor in Dance at Cornish College of the arts. For five years he toured with Cirque du Soleil as Artistic Director of Corteo (2007-10) and performing the role of The Baron in Saltimbanco (2010-12). He is a founding member of Men In Dance in Seattle where he currently resides. He works internationally as a master teacher, choreographer, and director. This marks his eighth collaboration with Kelly Robinson.

Always a pleasure.

Sue LePage Set & Costume Designer Sue will always be proud to have been part of the original creative team for Filumena, as well as Estacio and Murrell’s Frobisher and Lillian Alling. She has designed over 200 theatre and opera productions across Canada, from the Neptune, Charlottetown Festival, NAC, Canadian Stage, Tarragon, Soulpepper and Stratford, to RMTC, Banff, Citadel, and Edmonton and Vancouver Opera. Recent credits include Disgraced (Citadel, Hope and Hell, Mirvish), The Lion in Winter (Grand Theatre London) and Uncle Vanya at the Shaw Festival, where highlights include Saint Joan, Ragtime, Born Yesterday and Arcadia.

Sue has won several Doras and a Sterling, and calls Toronto home.

Harry Frehner has designed more than 50 productions for Calgary Opera dating back to 1992.

Several of these productions have been nominated for Betty Mitchell Awards, of which two have won.

He has lit productions for opera companies in Canada and internationally, such as Vancouver Opera, Edmonton Opera, Pacific Opera Victoria, Manitoba Opera, San Diego Opera, Fort Worth Opera, Opera Colorado, Arizona Opera, Utah Opera and Wide Open Opera in Dublin. As well, his work has been seen across Canada at such companies as The Banff Centre, Theatre Calgary, Alberta Theatre Projects, Decidedly Jazz Danceworks, Stratford and Shaw Festivals and Ballet BC.

Christopher Mokrzewski Repetiteur & Asst Conductor Conductor, pianist and vocal coach Christopher “Topher” Mokrzewski is a steadily rising figure in the worlds of Canadian opera and chamber music. He is in his fourth season as Calgary Opera’s Resident Conductor, and is a founding member and Music Director of Toronto’s Against the Grain Theatre and music director of the Open Space Opera Program at The Banff Centre. A graduate of the Canadian Opera Company Ensemble Studio, the Eastman School of Music and the Music Academy of the West, Mokrzewski has been described by music critic John Terauds as “one of those bright, eager, whip-smart young artists who could give even the most hardened cynic a jolt of optimism about the future of classical music and opera.” He was also named one of CBC Music’s “Hot 30 Classical Musicians under 30” in 2013. Mokrzewski last conducted The Mikado for Calgary Opera (2015).

biographies Graham Paynter

Thomas Glenn

Baritone

tenor

Papa Costanzo

McAlpine

Graham has been a regular on the Calgary Opera stage, singing with the chorus and performing small roles, including the debut of Papa Costanzo in the world premiere of Estacio’s Filumena in 2003. Other solo highlights include: Haydn’s Messe de St. Nicolai with EnChor Chamber Choir; Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass with the Symphony of the Kootenays; and Count Monterone in Calgary Concert Opera Company’s production of Rigoletto. Graham’s many diverse choral experiences have taken him to New York to perform at Lincoln Centre and Carnegie Hall with composers Eric Whitacre, Stephen Schwartz, and Dan Forrest.

Morgan Traynor* MEZZO SOPRANO

Mama Costanzo While having been born in Grand Forks, BC, Morgan Traynor also considers Whitehorse, Yukon, her hometown. The vibrant young mezzo-soprano, recently completed a Masters in Music Performance from the University of Western Ontario and received her Bachelor of Music from Mount Allison University in 2012. Traynor’s roles include Mrs. Quickly in UWOpera’s Falstaff, directed by Michael Cavanagh and conducted by Alain Trudel, the title roles of Isabella (L’Italiana in Algeri) with La Musica Lirica and The Child (L’enfant et les sortilèges) with UWOpera, and Mother (Hänsel und Gretel) with L’Atelier d’opéra de l’Université de Moncton.

Lida Szkwarek soprano

Grammy Award-winning tenor Thomas Glenn has performed with international and regional North American opera companies in repertoire ranging from Mozart to contemporary operas.

He created the role of physicist Robert Wilson in John Adams’ Doctor Atomic for its world premiere at San Francisco Opera and reprised the role at the Metropolitan Opera (HD broadcast now available on DVD), Lyric Opera of Chicago, Netherlands Opera (also available on DVD), and English National Opera. Mr. Glenn is an alumnus of San Francisco Opera’s prestigious Adler Fellowship, and his roles with the company include Vitek Makropulos Case, and the Steersman Der Fliegende Holländer. He recently performed with Calgary Opera in Die Fledermaus.

Andrew Love baritone

Charlie Losandro Calgary native Andrew Love is pleased to return to his hometown after performing in the Tony-nominated revival of Les Miserables on Broadway as the Bishop of Digne and Javert (understudy). Other recent credits include: Opera de Quebec (La Traviata), Pacific Opera Victoria (Carmen, Maria Stuarda), Calgary Opera (Rape of Lucretia, La Traviata), Saskatoon Opera (Marriage of Figaro), Tapestry New Works Opera (Shelter), and the Luminato Festival (Prima Donna). Mr. Love completed his training at the University of Toronto where he received the ARIAS Distinguished Graduate Award for his class. He is a proud alumnus of the inaugural year of the Calgary Opera Emerging Artist Development Program.

Filumena Losandro Originally from Winnipeg Manitoba, soprano Lida Szkwarek is quickly establishing herself as a prominent young artist on the Canadian opera scene. Ms. Szkwarek is a graduate of Calgary Opera’s Emerging Artist Program and thrilled to be returning in the title role of Filumena. Recent performances include Erste Dame in Calgary Opera’s production of Die Zauberflöte and a debut with Edmonton Opera singing Micaëla in their new production of Carmen. Ms. Szkwarek also had the honour of competing as a semifinalist with the Metropolitan Opera’s National Council Auditions in New York. Other recent performances include Pamina (Die Zauberflöte) and Micaëla (Carmen) with Saskatoon Opera, Susanna (Susanna’s Secret) with Calgary Opera’s Emerging Artist Program as well as her debut with The Greater Grand Forks Symphony Orchestra. Upcoming performances include a debut with Niagara Symphony as a soloist in Mahler’s Symphony No. 2.

Artist Sponsor

22 CALGARY OPERA 2016-17 SEASON

Gregory Dahl BARITONE

Emilio Picariello Gregory Dahl has attained a position of prominence among baritones of his generation with performances notable for richness of characterization and a remarkable vocal authority. Career highlights include Tomsky in Queen of Spades (English National Opera), Macbeth (Opéra de Québec and Kentucky Opera), Sharpless in Madama Butterfly (Canadian Opera Company and Vancouver Opera), Golaud in Pelléas et Mélisande (Opera Theater of St. Louis), Count di Luna in Il trovatore (L’Opéra de Montréal) and Ford in Falstaff (Manitoba Opera and L’Opéra de Montréal). In addition to Iago in Otello (Vancouver Opera), his upcoming schedule includes, Scarpia in Tosca (L’Opéra de Montréal) and Rigoletto (L’Opéra de Québec.)

Elizabeth Turnbull

Johnathon Kirby*

MEZZO SOPRANO

baritone

Maria Picariello

Constable Lawson

Hailed by the critics as ‘a revelation,’ Elizabeth Turnbull’s credits include Lyubija in the European and Canadian tours of Svadba, Zita in Gianni Schicchi (Calgary Opera), and Emilia in Otello (Dallas). She has also been heard in Verdi’s Requiem (Edmonton), Das Lied von der Erde (Toronto), Mozart’s Requiem (Vancouver), Messiah (National Arts Centre), and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 (Winnipeg). Most recently, she was Ruth in Calgary Opera’s Pirates of Penzance, and Anna in Maria Stuarda for the Edmonton Opera. She will perform the role of Klytemnestra with Edmonton Opera in spring 2017. The Alberta native is Instructor of Voice at the University of Alberta’s Department of Music and she has recorded for Toronto’s Bach Consort and the Ukrainian Art Song Project.

Ernesto Ramírez Tenor

Stefano Picariello Mexican-Canadian tenor Ernesto Ramírez is garnering rave reviews for his distinctive Italianate sound, youthful exuberance, and expressive musicality. He has performed to great acclaim in France, Germany, Switzerland, Canada, the United States and recently made his debut in Mexico at Teatro del Bicentenario and Palacio de Bellas Artes. He sang the title role in the Canadian Opera Company’s Roberto Devereux, Edgardo in Lucia Di Lammermoor for Pacific Opera Victoria and looks forward to Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 for the Kingston and Niagara symphonies and Los Gavilanes for Toronto Operetta Theatre. Additional credits include Opéra de AngersNantes, Sarasota Opera, Wildbad Belcanto Opera Festival in Germany, Winnipeg Symphony, Grand Rapids Symphony and Boston Lyric Opera.

Baritone Johnathon Kirby is from Newmarket Ontario. He made his professional opera debut with Opera Nova Scotia in their Canadian premiere of Mozart’s Zaide. Other roles he has performed include Ford in Falstaff (American Singer’s Opera Project), Belcore in L’Elisir d’Amore (Metro Youth Opera), and The Forrester in Janacek’s The Cunning Little Vixen (The Royal Conservatory). He attended Dalhousie University where he appeared in several productions including the title role in Gianni Schicchi and Jupiter in Offenbach’s Orpheus in the Underworld. Last summer he appeared in the world premiere of the Dean Burry and Lorna Macdonald original work The Bells of Baddeck.

Sandra Atkinson Chorus Director Sandra Atkinson holds degrees in piano from Toronto’s Royal Conservatory of Music and Trinity College of London England. She has been Coach and Repetiteur with the Canadian Opera Company where she toured with a number productions. For several years she was a Coach and Repetiteur with the Banff Centre’s Opera Division, Courtney Youth Music Centre with Irving Guttman and Victoria’s Opera Piccola with Leopold Simoneau and Pierrette Alarie. Sandy was the pianist at Queens University ballet summer programme, as well as taught piano at Toronto’s Royal Conservatory and Music Director of Toronto’s Young People’s Theatre. Since Calgary Opera’s inception, Sandy was involved with the organization as Repetiteur for many decades and now remains its Chorus Director. She is currently Music Director at Woodcliff United Church. *Members of the 2016-2017 Emerging Artist Development Program

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biographies Amy Lippold Stage Manager Currently the Project Manager at Kelly Brothers Productions, Amy is delighted to be back with her opera family. Favourite credits include: Marriage of Figaro, Silent Night, Italian Girl, Falstaff, Moby Dick (Calgary Opera). Stage Manager: You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown, Mary’s Wedding, The Wizard of Oz, Seussical™ the Musical, The Penelopiad, Shakespeare’s Dog (ATP), Heat of the Night, Panic, Double Indemnity, Sweeney Todd, Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (Vertigo Theatre), Evil Dead: The Musical (Ground Zero Theatre/Hit & Myth), Princess of the Stars (Patria Opera), Così Fan Tutte, La Tragedie de Carmen, Filumena (The Banff Centre). Ms. Lippold would like to thank her rock Brett and little one Sammy for all their endless love and support!

Nicole Bergen Assistant Stage Manager Nicole Bergen works as a stage manager and assistant stage manager in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Past shows include The Barber of Seville, Madama Butterfly, The Magic Flute, Carmen, and The Marriage of Figaro (SM, Saskatoon Opera), Die tote Stadt, Lakmé, Silent Night, Candide, The Flying Dutchman, The Pirates of Penzance, La Traviata, Otello, La bohème, Moby Dick, Aida, Lucia di Lammermoor, and Manon (ASM, Calgary Opera), and Ariodante and What Brought Us Here (SM, Calgary Opera, second stage). This season’s shows include Die Fledermaus (SM, Calgary Opera), Filumena, Turandot (ASM, Calgary Opera), Christmas at the Opera (SM, Calgary Opera, second stage) and Don Giovanni (SM, Saskatoon Opera).

Betty Hushlak Assistant Stage Manager Filumena marks Betty Hushlak’s debut with Calgary Opera. Previous opera credits include assistant stage management for Edmonton Opera’s Madama Butterfly, La Traviata, and Hansel and Gretel. Recently she stage managed Alberta Ballet’s Dynamic Directions, and Balletlujah! Betty was Site Coordinator for SVAITO 25; a festival celebrating the 25th anniversary of Ukrainian independence. She also was Volunteer Manager with Beakerhead 2016 in Calgary.

Other coordination roles include coordination for the 17 days arts festival that ran concurrently with the 2015 Canada Games in Prince George, and three years of production management for Anne & Gilbert, The Musical, in Charlottetown. Betty has been on the boards of TheatreYes and the Freewill Shakespeare Festival in Edmonton. She is honoured to be a part of this production.

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calgary opera chorus SOPRANOS

MEZZO-SOPRANOS

TENORS

BASS-baritones

Supernumeraries

Janel Snider Melissa Jackson Karen Shippey-Heilman Barbara Thorson Abbey Curzon Sarah Heckbert Sierra Campbell Catherine Brown Nicole Smithanik Shannon Maynes

Cathy Robinson Valerie Hudson Carolyn Dahl Rees Anne Lear Donna Romano Cheryl Hookey Meagan Schulz Eswina Ngai Gayle Morton Mary Pickering

Don Edie Stephen Delude Josh Paynter Carey Unger J. T. Steenkamp Troy Lewis Stuart Miller Christopher Gazzard Thomas MacDonald Herbert Mielczarek

Graham Paynter Richard Taylor-Kerr Paul Lloyd Aaron Bartholomew Tim Volhoffer Mark Hahle Payam Zandiyeh Brian Holiday Stuart Lloyd Adam Brousseau

Cameron Graham David Foy Chris Gieck James Tonkin Mateusz Sobczak David Ng Réjean Campbell Lawrence Eisler German Rodrigo-Pazo Nicola Gomez Bustamante

Children Supers

(from Cantaré Children’s Choir) Hannah Jerrom Alexander McAndrews Katherine Jerrom Avary Nielsen Bryce Jerrom Campbell Nielsen

Miriam Read Owen Read Payton Shaw

Members of the Emerging Artist Development Program Calgary Opera’s young artist training program performing in the Chorus: Simon Chalifoux, Matt Chittick, Anne-Marie MacIntosh, Jason Ragan, Lauren Woods

The Calgary Opera Chorus is generously supported by Averil Cook.

calgary philharmonic orchestra Sponsored by Mary Rozsa de Coquet, in memory of Ted and Lola Rozsa Music Director Designate Rune Bergmann | Music Director Laureate Roberto Minczuk FIRST VIOLINS

VIOLaS

OBOES

TUBA

Diana Cohen - Concertmaster Donovan Seidle - Associate Concertmaster Alice Bartsch Bonnie Louie Olga Kotova David Lakirovich Genevieve Micheletti Erica Hudson Eric Auerbach Laura Reid

Marcin Swoboda Michael Bursey Carl Boychuk Jeremy Bauman Daniel Stone Arthur Bachmann

Jean Landa David Sussman

Jennifer Stephen

CLARINETS

Alex Cohen

Jocelyn Colquhoun Stan Climie

PERCUSSION

Cellos

BASSOONS

Timothy Borton Malcolm Lim

Josue Valdepenas David Morrissey Arnold Choi Karen Youngquist Thomas Megee Joan Kent

Christopher Sales Michael Hope

HARP

SECOND VIOLINS Lorna Tsai Stephanie Soltice-Johnson Theresa Lane Min-Kyung Kwon Craig Hutchenreuther Steven Lubiarz Adriana Lebedovich Maria van der Sloot

BASSES Sam Loeck Sheila Garrett Matthew Heller Patricia Reid

FLUTES Gwen Klassen Sarah Gieck

26 CALGARY OPERA 2016-17 SEASON

HORNS

TIMPANI

Tisha Murvihill

Robert McCosh Jennifer Frank William Hopson Laurie Matiation Heather Wootton

KEYBOARD / EXTRA

TRUMPETS

LIBRARIAN

Miranda Canonico Richard Scholz

Rob Grewcock

TROMBONES

Michael Thomson

James Scott Michael Thomson David Reid

Penny Sanborn - accordion Brad Mahon - guitar Andrew Smith - bagpipes Christopher Mokrzewski - piano

PERSONNEL MANAGER

“The arts are like water.

They are essential to life, and flow into each part of it.

”

about her parents and the Rozsa Foundation. When asked the reason her family has such a strong appreciation for the arts, she responded with something we at Calgary Opera couldn’t agree with more, “The arts are like water. They are essential to life, and flow into each part of it.”

In attending live performance, Mary says, “There is some kind of connection with the artist that you don’t get when you see it on screen. Each performance is unique, and each performer demonstrates a real talent and expertise. Regardless of what’s going on in their world, or the world in general, the show will go on because arts and artists are held to a higher standard.”

The Rozsa Foundation has been an ardent supporter of the arts in Alberta since 1990, however, its founders, Ted and Lola Rozsa, have been supporters since they moved to Calgary in 1949. Since Lola always sang in a church choir with her family, she immediately joined the Chancel Choir in her new church home, Grace Presbyterian Church, becoming a faithful member for thirty-two years. She was active in Mac 14 Theatre (now known as Theatre Calgary) and also performed with the American Women’s Club. In 1955, Lola became one of the founding members, and later president, of the Calgary Philharmonic Society Women’s League, where she helped create the school children’s concerts and the Benny the Bookworm fund raiser.

Ted and Lola’s introduction to opera happened in the 1970s.

Their reason to support it came from one of the fundamental principals of the Rozsa Foundation and Awards – to support arts organizations with, or to achieve, sustainable management.

Having the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra (CPO) play live for Calgary Opera, not only enhanced the quality of the performance, but supported two arts organizations in achieving earned revenue.

We sat down with Rosza Foundation President and Board Chair, and daughter of Ted and Lola, Mary Rozsa de Coquet, to talk

Any arts organization wouldn’t be able to continually, and successfully, produce live performances without proper management. Providing the skills to do so, for students, administrators and management, is what The Rozsa Foundation is such a vital part of. “We provide innovative grants, by getting a sense of what the gaps are, and figuring out how it fits into the larger system. We provide funding for educational research in student engagement, pedagogical research, administrative capacity as well as programming,” says Mary, “we focus on system changes, and not just maintaining the status quo.”

In 2012, the Rozsa Foundation extended its commitment to professional development in the Arts with the launch of the Rozsa Arts Management Program in partnership with the University of Calgary’s Haskayne School of Business. As of 2015, this program is also offered in Edmonton at the University of Alberta School of Business. They also offer a full suite of programs ranging from entry level arts administration (the Rozsa Admin Fundamentals Training program, or RAFT) to executive arts management (the Rozsa Executive Arts Leadership program, or REAL).”

We’re thankful Ted and Lola moved to our Northern prairie town all those years ago and paved the way for our arts organizations to survive and thrive through their legacy of successful arts management. We also thank Mary Rozsa de Coquet for her work in continuing this legacy for Alberta’s future generations. “It’s a real blessing,” says Mary, “it’s fun to be around artists!”

Ted and Lola Rozsa

28 CALGARY OPERA 2016-17 SEASON

Congratulations to

Evan Hazell

Calgary Opera would like to congratulate former Board Chair, Evan Hazell, on being

selected as a recipient of the Opera.ca National Opera Directors Recognition Award.

This award program annually awards an opera company volunteer director for exemplary leadership and support on behalf of their respective opera companies within their communities across Canada. It celebrates and acknowledges the invaluable efforts of these volunteers across the country.

“I’m delighted and humbled to receive this honour from Opera.ca, a wonderful organization that ensures the best opera experiences for all Canadians,” says Evan. “I couldn’t have played my role without great management and board leadership, especially from W.R. (Bob) McPhee C.M. LLD. (Hon). His vision for Calgary Opera, in both programming and governance, makes it easy for members of its board to thrive. I look forward to many years of amazing work from Calgary Opera, both on and off the stage!”

From the board, staff and volunteers of Calgary Opera, congratulations once again for this amazing achievement.

I couldn’t have played my role “without great management and board leadership, especially from W.R. (Bob) McPhee C.M. LLD. (Hon).

”

music is what feelings sound like...

calgary.com A proud sponsor of the Calgary Opera

The great indoors. We didn’t check the forecast for cold weather. Or bring out the colouring books and crayons. But we did provide the heat so this family could enjoy the day together. When the energy you invest in life meets the energy we fuel it with, indoor fun happens.

ONE NATION UNDER THE ARTS We live in a country with a rich and deep appreciation for arts and culture, and we’re committed to fund programs that enable Canadians of all means and backgrounds to enjoy the very best.

Proud supporter of the Calgary Opera and proudly Canadian.

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individual and community support Individual Donors Naming Benefactor Mamdani Opera Centre Riaz Mamdani

Matching Gift Donors

Mary Rozsa de Coquet, in memory of Ted & Lola Rozsa The Pyke Family

Impresario Circle Platinum

Averil Cook Judith & Terence Dalgleish Stewart & Eileen Ford David & Beverley Foy Christel & Ben Johansson Dawn & Verne Johnson Pyke Family Fund at the Calgary Foundation Kathy & Richard Sendall Monica Sloan & John Evison Don Swystun & Kerrie Penney Sheila Wappel-McLean & Brent McLean Mrs. Marian Williams

Gold

Anonymous Tunde Agbi Andrea Brussa Lilien Dobish The Dunlop Family Fund at the Calgary Foundation Don & Joanne Edie Susan & Dan Ezinga Cos & Eleanor Gabriele David & Joyce Keith Juri & Helle Kraav Taras Kulish David Lyons Sian Matthews & Gerry Leudy Vickie & Russell McKinnon Jacqueline Pyke & Evan Hazell C.A. Siebens

Silver

Anonymous Sharon Bartley Jo Anne Britton Susanne & Michael Brown Meredith & Pat Cashion Alan D Castle Endowment for the Arts at the Calgary Foundation Walter & Gloria Chayka Carolyn Dahl Rees Maureen & Graham Davies David & Roxanne Dunlop Paul English & Marion Woodman Eldon & Carlie-Jean Godfrey Dick & Lois Haskayne

Diane Hobson Dr Evelyn Jain Dawn Jones & George McDonald Marilyn Kandt Kevin Konynenbelt JoAnn McCaig John & Susan McWilliams Patricia & J. Sherrold Moore Roger & Pam Prior Ruth & Garry Ramsden-Wood Maggie Rigaux Gordon W. Ross & Richard Cote Cynthia Sim Tamra Stretch Arlene Strom & Colin Jackson Kenneth & Faye Turnbull Henriette & Kees van Ittersum

Bronze

Anonymous (2) Marian Beer Dr. Ken Blair / Rev. James Farrell Dr. Miriam Carey The Carthy Foundation Peter Claghorn & Brenda Lang Helen & Mark Cluett Patricia Courtright Deborah Cullen David Daly Anne-Marie & Bill Duma Michael Fawcett Margaret & Robert Fraleigh Henry & Johanna Heuver Rebecca Hotchkiss Sharie & Patrick Hunter Kimberley & Paul Lloyd Brian P. Mahoney Alicia Maluta The McClary Family W.R. (Bob) McPhee Janis & Bruce Morrison Palmer Foundation Geoffrey Pradella Agnes & Edward Rewucki Gordon Ritchie Jackie Sheppard Joanne Stalinski Keith Steeves Sveinung Svarte & Muriel Bourra Andy & Krystyna Williamson Ken Wilson

Core

Anonymous (4) Tina Antony & Tom Stepperd Jennifer Arko & Laura Castle David Baker Irene M. Bakker Micheline Barbeau Carl Calantone & Susan Bennett Gregory Berko Ian & Gwen Burgess Peggy Churchward Judge (Ret) & Mrs. Mary Jane Cioni

Catrin Coe Marilyn Conley Kirsten Cook-Zaba & Dwayne Zaba Brent & Karen Cooper Marise & Mike Crichton Gizella Davis Jocelyne Daw & Bob Page Doug & Lisa Demetrick David & Diane Field Edette Gagne Patricia Glenn & John Holgate Patricia & Paul Godard Niki & Craig Golinowski Margaret Graw David Haigh & Dawn Riley Lynda Hay Heather Haydu Mark & Nancy Heule Rizwan Hirjee James Hughes Carrol Jaques & Bob Loov Dr. Zelma Kiss & Christopher McAviney Jay MacGillvray Leslie McCawley Dennis & Maureen McConaghy Lachlin & Julianne McKinnon Sharon McNaughton W.R. (Bob) McPhee Geri & Alan Moon Osten-Victor Fund at the Calgary Foundation Branca & Bruce Pachkowski John & Jean Partridge Marie & Wayne Patton Heather Peters Lorne & Beth Price Rabinovitz Family Community Fund at the Jewish Foundation Greta Raymond Iris Richards Marion Rogers Robert & Cindy Rossie Cam & Helga Schneider Pamela Smith Gordon Sombrowski & Kevin Allen Alan & Amber Stewart Richard & Shannon Tanner United Way of Calgary, Donor Choice Program Dale Voigt & Melanie Stapleton Dan & Molly Wares Penelope Weir Peter M. Wood Jerilyn Wright Caleb Young

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individual and community support FRIENDS OF CALGARY OPERA Sustaining Friend

Anonymous (8) Lois Alger Laurie M. Anderson Teresa Anderson Bill & Carol Ann Armstrong John C. Armstrong Lisa Atkinson Alan & Isabelle Ayasse Corry Baum Rob Bede Louise Berlin Joan & Sean Booth Claude & Diane Boutin Dr. P.C. Bradley A.J. Brown & R.B. Beaty Thora Budda Anita Carey Edna M. Charchuk Bill Christensen Ted & Yanka Cochrane David Crutcher Tony & Gillean Daffern Alan Dornian C. Morag Dornian Janice Dowhaniuk Susan Duckett Dr. & Mrs. E. J. L. Fish John & Audrey Fry Dr. Gary & Mrs. Jamie Gelfand Michael Gerken & Gerlinde Metz Dr. William Ghali Lise Houle & Gary Molnar Sam & Roberta Kaketsis Roy Klassen Rick Kubik Cynthia Maier Brenda-Ann Marks Laurent Maurel M. Ann McCaig Mr. & Mrs. Mike Messing Jocelyn Michaud Brian Mills & Susan Tyrrell Dr. Brian Norford Jackie Palmer Barry Paxton Trudy Payne John & Beverley Peters Sir Francis Price Kirsten & David Pugh Donna Riback Vera A. Ross Rein & Patricia Saar Sidewalk Citizen Bakery Marianne & Al Siemens Geoffrey & Joan Simmins Robert Such Greg Szuch David Tavender H. ter Keurs Dr John & Naomi Tyberg Susan Veres Anna Wawrzynowski T.W. Wilson Kathryn & Robert Worthingham Jason Wrobleski

32 CALGARY OPERA 2016-17 SEASON

Contributing Friend

Anonymous (13) Deborah Alexander Ian Anderson Patricia Austin-Edy Ronke Babatunde Barbara Beaton Pieter Bessem & Heather Fraser Patricia A. Booker David & Sebina Butts Andrew Cook & Shannon Stevenson Michelle Copeland S. Corff Mr. James Cran Mr. & Mrs. John de Waal Leslie Dimion Ann Donald Tom & Dianne Ferguson Jean L. Fisher Terry Fridhandler Brian Gaas Linda Garvey Carlos Gascon The Haglund Family Jay Halls Christine Howitt Helen Isaac Jenny Jensen Hakim Kapasi Lucy & Emerson Keough Derek & Nancy Lee Robert & Linda Lesoway Gwen Loveless Derek Lylyk & Kimberly Wheelans Outi McEachern Ken McGuire Howard & Janet McLean Eswina Ngai Kirsten Olson Dina O’Meara Marla Orenstein Annemarie Pederson Carolyn S. Phillips Nona Phillips Barry & Gail Pollock Michael Robbins Karen Schweighardt Bruce Seifred & Sandra Sobko Colleen Shepstone Ronald Sigal Douglas Soeder Jeff Sparkes Twylla Starlight Kathie & Bill Stell Peg Taylor Carol Thompson Isabelle S. Wolcott Valerie Woodhead Robert E. Woodrow Daniel J. Zukiwsky

Supporting Friend Anonymous (25) Beth & Peter Adams Lori Adams Daria Alavidze Barbara Aldridge Tamarah Antares

Alireza Azmudeh Henok Baarez Larry Bailey Tom Banks Nicole Bartolay Donald W. Beers Jeanette & Rudy Berger Helen Borm Pat Boyko Katri Bruen Lloyd & Carolyn Byers Marie Cameron Marlene Cameron Heather Campbell Frances V. Cormack Greg Coupal Eleanor Craighead Dr. Bernadette Curry Harm Deckers Melanie Degenstein Angeline Donais Earl & Judy Dreeschen Neil Drummond Denis & Patricia Duke Mr. John Dyck LaVerne Erickson Thomas Farquharson Catherine Fraser Linda M. Fraser Riona Freeman Mrs Beverly Furlong L & M Gregoret Jan Grier Denise Guichon Brian J Hatton David Hobill Harold Hoffmann Carla Hos John Humphrey Lana Jackson Willem Jalink Victor & Lise Januszewski Joan Jenkins JoAnn Jones Steve Kennett & Christine Friedenreich Barbara & Kenneth King Madeleine King Gail Kingwell Bill & Elspeth Kirk Sheila Kirkland Katy Klein Edmond Ko Evelyn Ko P. Kornacki Alexander & Sharon Kozub Arthur & Janet Krolman Shirley L. Langan Al & Sandy Lucas Beverly MacLeod Patricia Maier Anitra Mamen Fiona Mattatall Evelyne Mauro Philip & Eleanor May Karen McCullough James & Donna McDonald Robert McInnis Karen D. McKay Andrea McLellan

Gaye McLennan Devon Miller Mrs. E. Milner Eugene F. Milone Dr. Darlene Montgomery Heather & Fred Morrissey Rasma Muiznieks Mr. Jon Ottewell Dianne Parkinson - McCabe A. Patterson Karen Patterson Nicola Peden Kelly Pitaoulis Erika Pochailo Arleigh S. Porte Milan Rabljenovic Marlene & Norm Raymond Fran Reid Chere Reilly Tom & Sylvia Royan Gordan Ruzdijic Milada Rysan Robert & Tamara Seiler Timothy Shantz & Katheleen Warke Mr. & Mrs. Gerard & Doris Sheilan Betty Ann Sherwood Shortgrass / Marj & Patrick Windle Ken & Barb Smith Penny Smith Donna Spronk Anne Stang

Anne Stone Johnson Laurie & Doug Strother Carmen Tellier & Les Smith Rosemarie Thiessen Mark & Wendy Thomas Monique Tobicoe Nancy Tousley Cameron Louise Vertes Mira Von Maldeghem Greg & Anna Wagland John A. Watson Louis Watson Caroline Weisgerber Alan White Tatiana Willumsen Gunella Winchester Valerie Wolfe Susan Woods Ed & Sharon Wozniak Margaret Yacyshen B & J Young Frederick G. Young Albert & Frieda Zagorsky Herrat Zahner Del & Marjorie Zingle Bonnie Zwack

Adopt an Artist Donors Anonymous Judith & Terence Dalgleish

David & Beverley Foy Cos & Eleanor Gabriele Brian Grasmuck Monica Sloan & John Evison Don Swystun & Kerrie Penney Marian Williams

Voce Eterna Future Fund

We acknowledge the generous support of Dr. R.G. (Bud) Williams, Emerging Artist Scholarship Fund Brian Grasmuck

Memorial

In Memory of Linda Nielsen In Memory of Bruce Cairns

Special Thanks

Shevchenko Foundation Ukrainian Canadian Professional & Business Association of Calgary

Consulting Professionals Dr. Phillip Van de Merwe – Company Physician Robert Moffatt – Company Piano Technician Dr. S. Joseph Warshawski – Company Otolaryngologist

Proud Sponsor of Calgary Opera

FILUMENA

Laura Whalen as Filumena and David Pomeroy as Picariello. Photo by Trudie Lee

filumena 33

is pleased to present

IN CONCERT International Superstar Soprano

Anna NETREBKO And Tenor

Yusif EYVAZOV Conducted by

Jader BIGNAMINI with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra

Tickets are

SELLING FAST Post-show Reception

SOLD OUT

ONE NIGHT ONLY Sunday, April 30, 2017 7:30 pm Jack Singer Concert Hall

For tickets visit www.calgaryopera.com

indulge for a day, two, three...

Reservation: 1-800-661-1586