Opera Scenes, November 4 & 5, 2016

Robert Blocker, Dean

yale opera presents

OPERA SCENES Doris Yarick Cross, Artistic Director November 4 & 5, 2016 • 7:30 pm Morse Recital Hall

Yale Opera

OPERA SCENES friday, november 4 • 7:30 pm Rodelinda, Thaïs, Faust, L’elisir d’amore saturday, november 5 • 7:30 pm Così fan tutte, The Maid of Orleans, The Bartered Bride, Eugene Onegin morse recital hall in sprague memorial hall

douglas dickson · timothy shaindlin music preparation & direction christopher murrah stage director john carver sullivan costume designer doug harry lighting designer wendall k. harrington projection design supervisor Projections designed by students of the Yale School of Drama Projection Design program

Friday, November 4

Rodelinda Excerpt from Act III Music by G.F. Handel

Performed in Italian with projected English translation Musical direction by Douglas Dickson Projection design by Ao Li

cast (in order of vocal appearance) Eduige Unulfo Bertarido Rodelinda Grimoaldo Garibaldo

anne marie maguire, mezzo-soprano alexandra urquiola, mezzo-soprano sarah saturnino, mezzo-soprano natalia rubis, soprano lucas van lierop, tenor zachary johnson, baritone

Bertarido, King of Lombardy and Milan, has been attacked and overthrown leaving his wife, Rodelinda, in the power of his usurper, Grimoaldo. As a reward for defeating Bertarido, Grimoaldo has been promised the hand of Bertarido’s sister, Eduige, which would grant him a legitimate claim to the throne at Milan. Eduige and Grimoaldo fall in love, but she will not marry Grimoaldo while mourning the loss of her brother — presumed to be dead.

Grimoaldo, intent on gaining the throne, ponders what course of action to take, counseled by two advisers: Garibaldo, his closest aide, and Unulfo, a member of Bertarido’s cabinet who maintains intimate ties with the royal family and is the only person who knows that Bertarido still lives.

Under the guise of a soldier, Bertarido returns to the court to reclaim his throne and wife but is soon discovered by Grimoaldo and thrown into prison and where he awaits execution. **Please note, there will be two gunshots during this scene**

Friday, November 4

Thaïs Excerpt Music by Jules Massenet

Performed in French with projected English translation Musical direction by Timothy Shaindlin Violin solo by Diomedes B. Saraza, Jr. Projection design by Wlad Woyno

cast (in order of vocal appearance) Thaïs Athanaël

anush avetisyan, soprano bryan murray, baritone

Athanaël, a Cenobite monk, has been haunted by visions of a courtesan and devotee of Venus, Thaïs, whom he had met years before in Alexandria. He commits himself to return to Alexandria and convert Thaïs to Christianity and persuade her to enter a convent. Upon his arrival she rebukes his proposal of a chaste life with a seductive song that enrages Athanaël, who vows to return to her at a later time. Thaïs, exhausted by the evening, retreats to a private room to confront her own dissatisfaction with her current state.

intermission

Friday, November 4

Faust Act III Music by Charles Gounod

Performed in French with projected English translation Musical direction by Timothy Shaindlin Projection design by Choul Lee

cast (in order of vocal appearance) Siébel Faust Méphistophélès Marguerite Marthe

alexandra urquiola, mezzo-soprano andrés moreno garciá, tenor stephen clark, bass-baritone jessica pray, soprano anne marie maguire, mezzo-soprano

Faust, an aging old scholar, realizes he has achieved nothing and misses his youth and chances at love. Desperate, he seeks guidance from the devil Méphistophélès, whom he tells of his desires for youth and love. The devil tells Faust that he can have it, but only if he forfeits his soul. Faust struggles with the decision, but the devil tempts him further by showing him a vision of a beautiful young maiden, Marguerite. Faust gives his soul to the devil in exchange for the chance to meet the young maiden. At a local fair in a nearby town, Faust sees the beautiful Marguerite and her protector, the would-be suitor, Siébel. When he initially shares with her his admiration and desire, she politely declines. Méphistophélès, however, leads the young Faust to her home in the country.

Friday, November 4

L’elisir d’amore Excerpt from Act II Music by Gaetano Donizetti

Performed in Italian with projected English translation Musical direction by Douglas Dickson Projection design by Erin Fleming

cast (in order of vocal appearance) Dr. Dulcamara Nemorino Belcore Giannetta Her friends Adina

paweł konik, bass-baritone luis aguilar regalado, tenor dean murphy, baritone sylvia d’eramo, soprano anush avetisyan, soprano alexandra urquiola, mezzo-soprano natalia rubis, soprano

Nemorino, a peasant, is in love with the wealthy landowner Adina, but she has eyes only for the dashing Sergeant Belcore. Dr. Dulcamara, a quack doctor, sells Nemorino a “love potion” that will cause Adina to fall in love with him within a day. When Adina announces that she is to marry Belcore in six days, Nemorino is confident the elixir will work in time. But Belcore’s regiment is called away and the wedding brought forward to that very afternoon. At the wedding party, Nemorino’s desperation grows to the point that he is willing to do anything to get more of Dr. Dulcamara’s magic elixir.

Saturday, November 5

Così fan tutte Excerpt from Act I Music by W.A. Mozart

Performed in Italian with projected English translation Musical direction by Douglas Dickson Projection design by Ryan Emens

cast (in order of vocal appearance) Fiordiligi Dorabella Don Alfonso Guglielmo Ferrando Despina

sylvia d’eramo, soprano sarah saturnino, mezzo-soprano stephen clark, bass-baritone zachary johnson, baritone luis aguilar regalado, tenor jessica pray, soprano

Don Alfonso and his young military friends, Ferrando and Guglielmo, discuss the fidelity of women. Don Alfonso claims that all women are fickle. Ferrando and Guglielmo object to this assertion; on the contrary, they believe that two sisters — Fiordiligi and Dorabella, with whom they are in love, will never be unfaithful. Don Alfonso wagers that by the end of the day he will have proved his point. He proposes that Ferrando and Guglielmo pretend that they have received orders to leave Naples and then return in disguise to try to court the other’s lover.

Saturday, November 5

The Maid of Orleans Excerpt from Act I Music by P.I. Tchaikovsky

Performed in Russian with projected English translation Musical direction by Timothy Shaindlin Projection design by Krista Smith

cast (in order of vocal appearance) Thibaut d’Arc Raymond Joan of Arc Bertrand Soldier Ensemble

dean murphy, baritone andrés moreno garciá, tenor anne marie maguire, mezzo-soprano zachary johnson, baritone paweł konik, bass-baritone anush avetisyan, sylvia d’eramo, jessica pray, natalia rubis, sarah saturnino, alexandra urquiola, luis aguilar regalado, lucas van lierop, bryan murray, stephen clark

In the square in front of the church, village girls decorate an oak tree with garlands. Thibaut d’Arc is annoyed by their levity at such a terrible time for France, which is under siege by the English during the latter part of the Hundred Years’ War. He is concerned about the fate of his daughter, Joan, whom he wants to marry Raymond to protect her from danger in these trying times. But Joan feels another calling, one that her father fears more than the encroaching armies.

intermission

Saturday, November 5

The Bartered Bride Excerpt from Act II Music by Bedřich Smetana

Performed in Czech with projected English translation Musical direction by Timothy Shaindlin Projection design by Emona Stoykova

cast (in order of vocal appearance) Vašek Mařenka Kecal Jeník

lucas van lierop, tenor natalia rubis, soprano paweł konik, bass-baritone andrés moreno garcía, tenor

Peasant girl Mařenka is unhappy because her parents want her to marry Vašek, whom she has never met but is promised to through the marriage broker, Kecal. Her heart, however, belongs to Jeník.

Kecal is convinced that in order to solve the conundrum, he must convince Jeník to give up his desires for Mařenka by convincing him to seek out a girl from another village. Mařenka, in her own attempt to solve the problem, sets out to turn Vašek against the idea of marrying her by convincing him that the girl he is sworn to marry is actually a treacherous woman.

Saturday, November 5

Eugene Onegin Excerpt from Act III Music by P.I. Tchaikovsky

Performed in Russian with projected English translation Musical direction by Timothy Shaindlin Projection design by Johnny Moreno

cast (in order of vocal appearance) Tatyana Eugene Onegin

anush avetisyan, soprano bryan murray, baritone

Tatyana meets Eugene Onegin — a social man who prefers the life of parties and frivolity over serious work — through her sister Olga’s fiancé, Lensky, a young poet. That very day, Tatyana confesses her love for Onegin in a letter.

He returns to her and tells her politely that he is not one who is suited for marriage, but that he can offer her a brotherly affection. He warns her to be more careful with her feelings.

Years pass and Onegin meets Tatyana once again at a ball thrown by her husband, Prince Gremin. Overcome after years of solitude, Onegin is at once filled with love for Tatyana. He writes her to arrange a meeting to tell her his feelings and win back her heart and affection.

Biographies

Christopher Murrah stage director Christopher Murrah is a New York City-based director. In 2016 he joined the faculty of Yale Opera where he directs and teaches acting and movement. He is also on adjunct faculty at New York University. In 2014 he was the recipient of the honored Princess Grace Theater Award and previously was honored by the Shubert Foundation through Columbia University.

His work in theatre and opera has been seen around the world, including the renowned Mariinsky Opera House in St. Petersburg, Russia where he was the movement director for their wild new mounting of La Traviata.

He also served as the choreographer for Yale Opera’s 2016 production of Benjamin Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Other works include Man of La Mancha (Wasserman/Darion/ Leigh), The Crucible (Miller), Pericles and Hamlet (Shakespeare), Into the Woods (Sondheim/ Lapine), Children of Eden (Schwartz/Caird), and The Three Sisters (Chekhov). New plays and collaborations have included Peter Pan or the Boy Who Hated Mothers (Michael Lluberes), Alphabetical (Tingying Ma), The Sounds of My People (Tabia Lau) and development of works

by Matthew Minnicino, Daaimah Mubashshir, and David Kimple. He is a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC) and Actor’s Equity Association.

John Carver Sullivan costume designer John Carver Sullivan returns to Yale Opera, where he has designed costumes for La Bohème, I Capuleti e i Montecchi, the 2010, 2011, 2013, and 2014 opera scenes productions, La tragédie de

Carmen, and Le Rossignol. His long association with Colin Graham and Opera Theatre of St. Louis has included designs for world-premiere productions of The Woodlanders, The Village Singer, and The Postman Always Rings Twice, among many others. He has also designed the Broadway production of Moose Murders, offBroadway productions at the York Theatre of The Musical of Musicals – The Musical, Little

By Little, and The Jello is Always Red, and multiple productions for the Juilliard School and Manhattan School of Music. His theatrical work includes productions for Goodspeed Opera, the Alley Theatre, Berkeley Rep, and the Folger Library Theatre. Mr. Sullivan is on the faculty of the theater department at Southern Connecticut State University.

Doug Harry lighting designer Doug hails from the United Kindgom and trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama way back in the crazy 1980s! He has travelled the world as a lighting designer for theater, opera, and corporate events. Currently he splits his time between production management and design and is currently the production manager for the International Festival of Arts & Ideas. He is very happy to be designing for the Yale Opera program.

Douglas Dickson musical direction & accompaniment Douglas Dickson received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Princeton University and his Master of Musical Arts from the Yale School of Music. On various occasions The Washington Post has called him an “intelligent, sensitive”

Biographies

pianist with “super technique” and a “skillful pianist” and has praised him for the “finely integrated oneness” he achieves as an accompanist.

Mr. Dickson has performed in the United States, Europe, Asia, and South America in venues ranging from Japan’s Expo Hall to the Cincinnati Coliseum.

classes and coachings for such artists as Joan Sutherland, Birgit Nilsson, Beverly Sills, Marilyn Horne, Natalie Dessay, Ben Heppner, Luciano Pavarotti, Eleanor Steber, Samuel Ramey, Régine Crespin, Thomas Hampson, Frederica von Stade, Renée Fleming, Carlo Bergonzi, Renata Scotto, and Sherrill Milnes.

While still in college, he was the accompanist for the American Boychoir. As part of Duodecaphonia, a prize-winning piano duo, he performed at the Kennedy Center and elsewhere.

Mr. Dickson has been music director for productions at Quinnipiac University, the Yale School of Drama, Opera Theater of Connecticut, and Connecticut Experimental Theater. He was music director and conductor for Yale Opera’s production of Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia, and he conducted a concert featuring Yale Opera with the Orchestra Verdi in Milan. He has taught at Quinnipiac University since 1993 and joined the Yale faculty in 1998. He made his Carnegie Hall debut in an all-Ives concert presented by Yale at Weill Recital Hall. For Naxos, he recorded more than eighty Charles Ives songs.

Mr. Shaindlin’s work on the podium includes conducting engagements with the Wolf Trap Opera Festival, Hawaii Opera Theatre, Pittsburgh Opera, Chicago Opera Theater, Chicago Light Opera Works, and Eugene Opera.

He has assisted such renowned conductors as Christoph Eschenbach, Sir Andrew Davis, Daniel Barenboim, Valery Gergiev, Richard Bonynge, Bruno Bartoletti, Donato Renzetti, Louis Langrée, Edoardo Müller, Yves Abel, Daniele Gatti, Antonio Pappano, and Paul Gemignani.

Timothy Shaindlin musical direction & accompaniment A native of New York City, Timothy Shaindlin joined the Yale School of Music faculty in 2008.

After studies at the Juilliard School and Indiana University, he worked for the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Washington National Opera, San Diego Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, and Pittsburgh Opera. He has also coached for Glimmerglass Opera, Sarasota Opera, and Hawaii Opera Theatre. In Europe, he worked for Barcelona’s Gran Teatre del Liceu and played master classes for Tito Gobbi. He has also played for

Wendall K. Harrington projection design supervisor Wendall K. Harrington’s career has embraced diverse disciplines including projection design for theater, publishing, and video production.

Broadway designs include Driving Miss Daisy, Grey Gardens, They’re Playing Our Song, The Elephant Man, My One and Only, The Heidi Chronicles, The Will Rogers Follies, Having Our Say, Company, Racing Demon, Ragtime, John Leguizamo’s Freak, The Capeman, Putting it Together, and The Who’s Tommy. Off-Broadway work includes Angels in America, Hapgood, A Christmas Carol at the Paramount; Merrily We Roll Along (three times!), and the ill-fated Whistle Down the Wind. Opera designs include Julie Taymor’s The Magic Flute in Florence, Italy; A View from the Bridge at Chicago Lyric Opera and the Met; Die Gezeichneten at LA

Biographies

Opera; The Photographer at BAM; and Transatlantic, Grapes of Wrath, Rusalka, and Wuthering Heights for Minnesota Opera.

Ms. Harrington is the recipient of the Drama Desk Award, the Outer Critics Circle Award, the American Theatre Wing Award, the TCI Award for Technical Achievement, and the Obie Award for Sustained Excellence of Projections. Ms. Harrington has been lecturing on projection design for the Yale School of Drama since the early 1990s.

Student Profiles

Luis Aguilar Reynaldo tenor B.M. The Hartt School of Music; Young Artist Programs: Oberlin in Italy, Opera de Nuevo Leon Anush Avetisyan soprano B.A. University of California, Los Angeles; Young Artist Programs: Opera Theatre of Saint Louis; Wolf Trap Opera; Oberlin in Italy Stephen Clark bass-baritone B.A. Northeastern State University Oklahoma, M.M. Oklahoma City University; Young Artist Programs: Central City Opera; Chautauqua Opera, Fort Worth Opera Festival; Seagle Music Colony Sylvia D’Eramo soprano B.A. SUNY Purchase Zachary Johnson baritone B.M. New England Conservatory Paweł Konik bass-baritone B.A., Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music; M.A. Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music - Katowice/Poland Opera Academy; Professional Appearances: Teatr Wielki Polish National Opera (Warsaw, Poland) Anne Marie Maguire mezz0-soprano B.M. Boston Conservatory; Young Artist Programs: Napa Music Festival; Opera Academy of California; Glimmerglass Festival Andrés Moreno Garciá tenor B.M. The Hartt School of Music; Young Artist Programs: Festival Musica e Musica; San Pedro Arte Festival

Dean Murphy baritone B.M. The Hartt School of Music; Young Artist Programs: Opera North; Prelude to Performance Bryan Murray baritone B.M. Stony Brook University, M.M. SUNY Purchase; Young Artists Programs: Si Parla, Si Canta, Brooklyn Opera Institute Jessica Pray soprano B.M. & B.A. University of Iowa; Young Artist Programs: Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre Natalia Rubis soprano B.A. in Music B.A. in Music, Wroclaw Music Academy, Poland M.M. Wroclaw Music Academy, Poland; Professional Appearances: Capella Cracoviensis; Znojmo Music Festival; Händel-Festspiele Sarah Saturnino mezzo-soprano B.A. University of California, Los Angeles Alexandra Urquiola mezzo-soprano B.M. Northwestern University; Young Artist Program: Aspen Music Festival Lucas van Lierop tenor B.M. & M.M. McGill University; Young Artist Program: Britten-Pears Young Artist Programme (Aldeburg, England)

Yale Opera Production Staff

christopher murrah Stage Director

erika niemi heltzel Manager

john carver sullivan Costume Designer

nikki blue Production Stage Manager

doug harry Lighting Designer & Master Electrician

rebekah heusel Assistant Stage Manager

johnny moreno wlad woyno Projection Programmers & Operators

cailey harwood-smith Properties Master richard harding Assistant Costume Designer

jill brunelle Surtitle Operator

carol koumbaros Wardrobe Assistant

zachary johnson paweł konik Student Assistants

Special Thanks

Dr. David Astrachan Ruppert Bohle Miguel Campinho Richard Cross Robert Heltzel Jen McClure Emily Olin Rick Sordelet Kyle Swann Yale School of Drama Long Wharf Theatre Southern Connecticut State University Wendall K. Harrington and her projection design students

Yale Opera 2016–2017 season

Russian Liederabend december 6 Morse Recital Hall | Thursday | 7:30 pm Yale Opera presents and evening of Russian song with pianist Emily Olin free admission Così fan tutte february 17–19 Shubert Theater Yale Opera presents a new production with stage direction by Chas Rader-Shieber and music direction by Giuseppe Grazioli Friday & Saturday, 8 pm | Sunday, 2 pm Tickets start at $19 Available at shubert.com or 203-562-5666 The Bear & Le pauvre matelot may 5–6 Morse Recital Hall | Friday & Saturday | 7:30 pm Yale Opera presents a new double bill of Walton’s The Bear and Milhaud’s Le pauvre matelot (The poor sailor) in Sprague Hall with music direction

by Doug Dickson & Timothy Shaindlin Tickets start at $10, Students $5

Yale Opera doris yarick cross · Artistic Director

Così fan tutte by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

February 17–19, 2017 Shubert Theater Fri & Sat, 8 pm | Sun, 2 pm Yale Opera presents a new production of Mozart's Così fan tutte Directed by Chas Rader-Shieber Conducted by Giuseppe Grazioli With the Yale Philharmonia Tickets start at $19, available at shubert.com or 203 562-5666

Robert Blocker, Dean

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BRENTANO STRING QUARTET

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Robert Blocker, Dean

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Upcoming Events

Lunchtime Chamber Music november 9

Warren Lee, piano november 15

Wendy Sharp, director Student chamber ensembles perform works by Beethoven, Dvořák, Saint-Saëns, and more Morse Recital Hall | Wednesday| 12:30 pm free admission

YSM Special Events Guest pianist and Yale School of Music alumnus Warren Lee returns to New Haven Morse Recital Hall | Tuesday | 7:30 pm free admission

John Taylor Ward, early music voice november 10

Hung-Kuan Chen, piano november 16

Doctor of Musical Arts Recital Vocalist John Taylor Ward, who specializes in early music, presents a DMA recital featuring performances of works by Monteverdi, Ives, Schumann, and more Morse Recital Hall | Thursday | 7:30 pm free admission

Horowitz Piano Series Pianist Hung-Kuan Chen performs works by Schumann, Scriabin, and Rachmaninoff Morse Recital Hall | Wednesday | 7:30 pm Tickets start at $13 • Students $7

Yale Percussion Group november 12

Doctor of Musical Arts Recital Compositions by Jordan Kuspa with Sandbox Percussion and Quartet Metadata Morse Recital Hall | Thursday | 7:30 pm free admission

Yale School of Music Ensembles Music by YSM faculty composers Martin Bresnick, Christopher Theofanidis, Hannah Lash, and David Lang, and more Robert van Sice, director Morse Recital Hall | Saturday | 4 pm Tickets start at $10 • Students $5

Jordan Kuspa, composition november 17

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