Above the ten thousand mark, and counting. Today we reported reaching our first official milestone in connection with the upcoming April 13th Cowboys Stadium Simulcast of Puccini’s TURANDOT. Sponsored by The Dallas Foundation, everything is free from the parking to your seat – unless you decide to hit the concession stands (in which case, you’re on your own). There’s a tasty new addition to the evening’s entertainment – more details in the release below. (Photo courtesy of Karen Almond, Dallas Opera)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Friday, March 8, 2013
Contact: Suzanne Calvin 214.443.1014 Or Megan Meister 214.443.1071
suzanne.calvin@dallasopera.org megan.meister@dallasopera.org
THE DALLAS OPERA IS PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE
THE FIRST MILESTONE ACHIEVED!
MORE THAN 10,000 RSVPs FOR
FREE APRIL 13TH COWBOYS STADIUM SIMULCAST!
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PUCCINI’S “TURANDOT” LIVE!
Sign Up Now at dallasopera.org/cowboys
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A Hot New Addition to the Program:
Lee Hoiby’s Appetizing Short Opera
“BON APPETIT!”
STARRING SUSAN NICELY AS JULIA CHILD
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With the World’s Largest Cartoon Screening of the 1957 Chuck Jones Masterpiece, “WHAT’S OPERA, DOC?”
SATURDAY, APRIL 13, 2013
Stadium Doors Open at 6:00 PM
WB Classics Cartoon at 6:45 PM
“Bon Appétit!”at 7:00 PM
Live Opera Simulcast at 7:30 PM
FREE SEATS, FREE PARKING, PAID CONCESSIONS
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WITH SUPPORT FROM THE DALLAS FOUNDATION
DALLAS, TX, MARCH 8, 2013 – The Dallas Opera, in partnership with Cowboys Stadium and with support from The Dallas Foundation, is delighted to report that the first milestone has been achieved: more than 10,000 tickets have been requested for the free April 13th Dallas Opera Cowboys Stadium Simulcast at One Legends Way in Arlington, TX. Of that number, over 40% of the households have no previous purchase history or simulcast history with the Dallas Opera; while more than half of the tickets were requested by households that either attended or requested tickets for the initial simulcast last April.
Our second Cowboys Stadium Simulcast will center on that evening’s live performance of Giacomo Puccini’s TURANDOT, as it happens on the Shannon and Ted Skokos Stage in the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House at the AT&T Performing Arts Center. The curtain will go up at 7:30 p.m. Patrons will be able to enjoy a complete, unabridged performance on the world’s largest high-definition video board structure, consisting of four massive viewing screens (the largest, 72 feet tall and 160 feet wide) suspended directly above the playing field.
At 6:45 p.m., prior to the live performance, the Dallas Opera will present the world’s largest cartoon screening (based on screen size): Warner Brothers Classics 1957 masterpiece, “What’s Opera, Doc?” starring Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd and voted the #1 cartoon ever produced (in 1994, by a thousand members of the animation field). Directed by animation legend Chuck Jones, the cartoon pokes fun at opera’s most persistent stereotypes, Wagnerian heft, and Elmer Fudd’s never-ending pursuit of that “wascally wabbit!”
An exciting new element has been added to the program: At 7:00 p.m., the Dallas Opera will present a recording of the Dallas Opera’s recent live presentation of composer Lee Hoiby’s “Bon Appétit!” created for actress Jean Stapleton in 1989 and starring acclaimed mezzo-soprano Susan Nicely as Julia Child, the chef-who-became-an-international icon (with a little help from SNL comedian Dan Aykroyd).
Based on segments of Julia Child’s popular cooking show, The French Chef (winner of the first Emmy Award given to an educational program), and incorporating Child’s actual dialogue as shaped by librettist Mark Shulgasser, this laugh-out-loud modern opera was performed in English at the Dallas Farmer’s Market Demonstration Kitchen to enthusiastic audiences and unanimous rave reviews.
Gregory Sullivan Isaacs of Theater Jones wrote: “Bon Appétit! and Nicely’s excellent performance of it was overwhelmingly received by the audience. A number of patrons asked “Who is Lee Hoiby and why have we never heard of him?
“Well, here is the answer. Hoiby was one of the great opera composers of modern times and it is absolutely shameful that his marvelous theatrical works do not grace the stage of every opera company in the world. The composer was unfairly maligned for writing in a tonal style during the era of wild experimentation and dissonance…Now that the pendulum has swung back the other way…it is time to say a big mea culpa to Hoiby and get his stuff on the stage.”
Miss Nicely was accompanied by pianist Mary Dibbern, Music Director for Education and Family Programs at the Dallas Opera in performances supported by The Perot Foundation Education and Community Outreach Programs.
Free general admission tickets for the entire evening can be obtained through the Dallas Opera website at www.dallasopera.org/cowboys.
“In 2012, The Dallas Foundation helped the Dallas Opera bridge the distance between two very different cultures: the world of professional opera and the world of professional football,” explained Mary Jalonick, President of The Dallas Foundation. “The Dallas Foundation is proud to again be the presenting sponsor of the Dallas Opera’s 2013 simulcast of Turandot on April 13th.
“If you didn’t have a chance to attend last year, don’t miss this opportunity to experience a world-class performance at the world-class Cowboys Stadium.”
“We are excited to partner with the Dallas Opera for a second Cowboys Stadium Simulcast,” said Dallas Cowboys Executive Vice President of Brand Management Charlotte Anderson. “Our organization greatly admires and respects The Dallas Opera’s original thinking and stewardship in making ground-breaking events like these a reality because we truly value the importance of the arts in our community.”
“It’s been a personal goal of mine to bring tremendous artists and unforgettable entertainment to the widest possible audience here in North Texas,” commented Dallas Opera General Director and CEO Keith Cerny, “and nothing does that better than opera, as shown by the many thousands who attended last spring’s Cowboys Stadium Simulcast of Mozart’s The Magic Flute.”
“The Dallas Opera is extremely honored that The Dallas Foundation is supporting this event for a second consecutive year and we are equally grateful for the generosity of the Jones Family, who encouraged this extraordinary collaboration with the Cowboys organization from the moment we made our dream known to them.”
“I hope that the centralized location of Cowboys Stadium will—once again—attract music and theater lovers from here to the Red River, to this free simulcast of Puccini’s final and most glorious masterpiece,” Mr. Cerny adds, “especially those who, for a variety of reasons, have perceived opera as an intimidating or challenging art form, rather than an incredibly exciting way to spend an evening with those you love.
“We want to set a fun and relaxed tone, right from the start, with our special screening of a phenomenally popular cartoon that’s a subversive work of genius: Warner Brothers Classics’ ‘What’s Opera, Doc?’ made in 1957, the year the Dallas Opera was launched. That famously huge white horse Bugs rides will never be any bigger than on the screens at Cowboys Stadium; and I, for one, can’t wait!”
“Now,” adds Dallas Opera Artistic Director Jonathan Pell, “by being able to include Lee Hoiby’s charming Bon Appétit! in an already stellar line-up, we’re going to give simulcast patrons one unrepeatable, unforgettable night at the opera! We’ll begin with an out-and-out spoof, proceed to a clever comic tribute, and end with one of the grandest of grand operas in the entire repertoire.
“And each of them, in its own way, is a thoroughly enjoyable masterpiece.”
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Single tickets for the remaining mainstage productions of the Dallas Opera’s “Pursuits of Passion” Season are on sale now, starting at just $19, through the Dallas Opera Ticket Services Office at 214.443.1000 or online at www.dallasopera.org. Student Rush best-available tickets can be purchased at the lobby box office for $25 (one per valid Student I.D.) ninety minutes prior to each performance.
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EVENTS AND GUEST ARTISTS SUBJECT TO CHANGE
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE “PURSUITS OF PASSION” SEASON
IS CONVENIENTLY AVAILABLE ONLINE, 24/7
VISIT WWW.DALLASOPERA.ORG
For high-resolution, digital photographs suitable for print
To arrange an interview
Or for additional information
Please contact Suzanne Calvin, Manager/Director Media & PR
214.443.1014 or suzanne.calvin@dallasopera.org
The Dallas Opera’s 2012-2013 “Pursuits of Passion Season”
Is Presented by Texas Instruments Foundation
THE DALLAS OPERA WISHES TO EXPRESS ITS GRATITUDE TO OUR EXCLUSIVE PARTNERS:
AMERICAN AIRLINES – OFFICIAL AIRLINE OF THE DALLAS OPERA
LEXUS – OFFICIAL VEHICLE OF THE DALLAS OPERA
Ticket Information for the 2012-2013 Dallas Opera Season
All performances are in the new Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House at the AT&T Performing Arts Center. Single Tickets for TURANDOT, THE ASPERN PAPERS and family performances are on sale now. Tickets for the mainstage productions start for a new low price of $19! For more information, contact The Dallas Opera Ticket Services Office at 214.443.1000 or visit us online at www.dallasopera.org.
THE DALLAS OPERA 2012-2013 SPRING SEASON INFORMATION
The Dallas Opera celebrates its Fifty-Sixth International Season in the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House at the AT&T Performing Arts Center in downtown Dallas. Evening performances will begin at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday matinees will begin at 2:00 p.m. English translations will be projected above the stage at every performance. Assistance is available for the hearing impaired.
TURANDOT by Giacomo Puccini
April 5, 7(m), 10, 13, 19 & 21(m), 2013
Puccini’s Last Masterpiece—Riddled with Passionate Romance and Unforgettable Music!
An opera in three acts first performed in Milan at La Scala, April 25, 1926
Text by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni, based on Carlo Gozzi’s fable, Turandot.
Time: Legendary times
Place: Peking, China
Conductor: Marco Zambelli
Stage Director: Garnett Bruce
Production Design: Allen Charles Klein
Wig & make-up Design: David Zimmerman
Chorus Master: Alexander Rom
Starring: Lise Lindstrom* (Princess Turandot), Antonello Palombi (Calaf), Hei-Kyung Hong (Liu), Christian Van Horn* (Timur), Jonathan Beyer (Ping), Joseph Hu (Pang), Daniel Montenegrio* (Pong), Ryan Kuster* (A Mandarin), Steven Haal (Emperor Altoum).
THE ASPERN PAPERS by Dominick Argento
April 12, 14(m), 17, 20, 28(m), 2013
The Games People Play—Both Young and Old—To Achieve Their Twisted Desires!
An opera in two acts first performed in Dallas, November 19, 1988.
Text by Dominick Argento, based on a Henry James novella.
Time: Legendary
Place: Lake Como, Italy
Conductor: Graeme Jenkins
Stage Director: Tim Albery
Scenic Design: Andrew Lieberman*
Costume Design: Constance Hoffman*
Lighting Design: Thomas Hase
Wig & make-up Design: David Zimmerman
Assistant Director: Michael Mori
Chorus Master: Alexander Rom
Starring: Susan Graham* (Tina), Alexandra Deshorties (Julianna Bordereau), Nathan Gunn (The Lodger), Joseph Kaiser* (Aspern), Dean Peterson (Barelli), Sasha Cooke* (Sonia), Eric Jordan* (A painter), Jennifer Youngs* (Olimpia).
* Dallas Opera Debut
** American Debut
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The Dallas Opera is supported, in part, by funds from: City of Dallas, Office of Cultural Affairs; TACA; the Texas Commission on the Arts and The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). American Airlines is the official airline of The Dallas Opera. Lexus is the official vehicle of The Dallas Opera. Advertising support from The Dallas Morning News. A special thanks to Mrs. William W. Winspear and the Elsa von Seggern Foundation for their continuing support.
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