30,500 and still counting, but not for very much longer. If you haven’t acted before now, get your free tickets to the April 28th Cowboys Stadium simulcast before it’s too late.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Contact: Suzanne Calvin (214.443.1014/suzanne.calvin@dallasopera.org)
Or Megan Meister (214.443.1071/megan.meister@dallasopera.org)
ONLY TEN DAYS TO GO!
REQUESTS FOR TICKETS TO THE DALLAS OPERA COWBOYS STADIUM
ONE-NIGHT-ONLY SIMULCAST TOP
30,500!
LAST CHANCE! ONLY 1500 SEATS REMAIN!
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PRESENTED BY THE DALLAS FOUNDATION
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MOZART’S THE MAGIC FLUTE LIVE!
SATURDAY, APRIL 28, 2012 at 7:30 PM
STADIUM DOORS OPEN AT 6:00 PM
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WRR TO HOST OFFICIAL “TAILGATE” PARTY
BEGINNING AT 5:00 PM (LOT 5)
DALLAS, TX, APRIL 18, 2012 – The Dallas Opera, in partnership with Cowboys Stadium, has entered world record territory: more than 30,500 tickets to the Dallas Opera’s one-night-only April 28th Dallas Opera Cowboys Stadium Simulcast, presented by The Dallas Foundation, have been requested by opera lovers from throughout Texas and 26 additional states. Ticket requests have also come in from the District of Columbia and Canada since the joint announcement was made on January 26th at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
These numbers indicate that the groundbreaking North Texas simulcast may become one of the best attended opera performances in U.S. history. The reported attendance record for an opera in a sports venue appears to be 32,000 who gathered at AT&T Park in San Francisco in September 2010 for a simulcast of Aida from the War Memorial Opera House.
Additional data collected from those making ticket requests indicate that, as of today (April 18, 2012), 81% of participating households have no previous purchasing history with the Dallas Opera. For many, the Cowboys Stadium Simulcast will mark their first, live experience of the art form in any venue.
FREE reserved seating—although quickly running out—is still available (up to 10 seats per person) through the Dallas Opera website at www.dallasopera.org/cowboys. Parking in the Cowboys Stadium lots that evening will be provided free, as well.
Gene Jones (the wife of Dallas Cowboys Owner, President and General Manager Jerry Jones), whose vision led to the Stadium’s museum-quality collection of contemporary art, explains, “Sports and art are not typically thought of as belonging together. Yet sporting events and great art do something similar—they get people talking.”
Now, people are talking about family outings to the Dallas Opera at Cowboys Stadium, many of them to experience a live classical performance or opera for the very first time.
Mozart’s THE MAGIC FLUTE will be simulcast live on Saturday, April 28, 2012 at 7:30 PM (doors open at 6:00 PM) at the high-tech home of the Dallas Cowboys at One Legends Way in Arlington, Texas. Patrons will be able to enjoy a complete, unabridged live performance from the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House in the Dallas Arts District, co-hosted by WFAA’s Ron Corning (News 8 Daybreak/Midday News) and acclaimed tenor James Valenti (currently appearing in La traviata, Rigoletto, La bohème), on the world’s largest high-definition video board structure, comprised of four massive viewing screens (the largest, 72 feet tall and 160 feet wide) suspended directly above the playing field.
“We are excited to partner with the Dallas Opera on such a distinctive event,” said Dallas Cowboys Executive Vice President of Brand Management Charlotte Anderson. “Our organization admires and respects The Dallas Opera’s original thinking and stewardship in making a ground-breaking event like this a reality. We truly value the importance of the arts in our community, and we hope that this first-of-its-kind opera broadcast gives us a way of sharing our love of the arts with a new audience at Cowboys Stadium.”
Love of the arts will certainly be the predominant theme for the WRR, Classical 101.1 FM “Magic Flute” Tailgate Party planned for the parking lot of Cowboys Stadium from
5:00 pm that afternoon (Lot 5, near Miller Lite Plaza) until curtain time at 7:30 pm. Make the steaks, dogs and burgers of your choice undergo a “trial by fire” that would put Sarastro to shame, and be sure to throw a quart of “Rocky Road” in the ice chest to celebrate the lovers’ action-packed journey to their happy ending!
Magic Flute footlongs, anyone? Seize the moment to let your imagination—as well as your menu—run wild.
Media partner WRR will provide appropriate background music, as well as a chance to compare notes with some of your favorite classical music announcers. The radio station will also host an opera karaoke contest for those who will not be performing in the main event later that evening. Visit wrr101.com to sign-up for the tailgate party and to make your karaoke song request.
“It’s going to be an unforgettable and historic night,” predicts Dallas Opera General Director and CEO Keith Cerny. “We are so grateful to the Jones Family, the Dallas Foundation, our union partners and staff, our patrons, and many others across North Texas whose contributions have supported this extraordinary community event.
“The Dallas Opera today is commissioning a variety of new works, creating thrilling new productions, and continuing to launch careers and bring the finest singers in the world to perform in one of the world’s foremost opera venues,” he adds. “However, it all begins with the audience; we have to put TDO on the radar screens of the most media-saturated generations in history and discover ways to entertain and engage them as never before. I am convinced that events like the Dallas Opera Cowboys Stadium Simulcast will show that we are definitely up to the task.”
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THE MAGIC FLUTE will star soprano Ava Pine, the Dallas Opera’s very first Resident Young Artist, in the role of Pamina—one of her personal favorites. Ms. Pine, a Baroque specialist with a tremendous local fan base, made her Dallas Opera debut as Anna in our 2006 production of Nabucco, and has appeared on our stage in numerous roles including Adele in Die Fledermaus, Zozo in The Merry Widow, Elvira in L’italiana in Algeri, the Slave in Salome and, most recently, as one of three featured artists in the Dallas Opera’s Family Concert, performed in the Winspear last November.
Wherever she goes, Ms. Pine makes the critics struggle for superlatives. Of her 2008 role debut as Adele, Dallas Morning News Classical Music Critic Scott Cantrell wrote: “She can sparkle through coloratura, but also radiate lower-register warmth. And she’s no less dazzling an actress, dancing, flirting and pretty much tying everyone around her little finger.”
Earlier this season, Ms. Pine appeared with the DSO in Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 2 conducted by Jaap van Zweden, Bach cantatas with the New Jersey Symphony, and Handel’s Messiah with Boston Baroque and Duke University. She also made her role debut as Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro at Opera Colorado and sang the title role in Handel’s Theodora at the University of North Texas with Dallas Opera Music Director Graeme Jenkins conducting.
Ava Pine’s performance is made possible with support from The Charron and Peter Denker Rising Stars Endowment Fund.
Alongside Ms. Pine, the Dallas Opera has cast celebrated tenor Shawn Mathey as Tamino. “He is simply one of the finest Mozartean tenors in the world,” explains Artistic Director Jonathan Pell “and we have spent years trying to lure him to Dallas for his long-awaited debut on our stage. I think audiences will find him absolutely thrilling, from his first note to his last.”
Mr. Mathey’s 2011-12 Season engagements have included debuts with San Francisco Opera as Don Ottavio and with Rome’s Teatro dell’Opera as Lysander in Benjamin Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. He is also slated to record Bruckner’s Mass No. 3 in F minor with Marek Janowski conducting the Orchestre de la Suisse Romand. Praised by Lawrence A. Johnson of Chicago Classical Review for “displaying a honeyed tenor and proving both ardent and amusing,” Mr. Mathey is in tremendous demand overseas (Germany, Switzerland, France, Austria, Italy, and Sweden) as well as at opera companies across the U.S.
Bass-baritone Patrick Carfizzi, a comic genius who nearly galloped away with the Dallas Opera’s final production in the Music Hall, The Italian Girl in Algiers, returns in the role of the original Birdman, Papageno, Tamino’s love-sick companion. The multifaceted Mr. Carfizzi’s recent engagements include Paolo in Simon Boccanegra with San Francisco Opera, Brander in Le damnation de Faust (Berlioz) at New York’s Metropolitan Opera, Nourabad in Les pêcheurs de perles for Seattle Opera, Dr. Bartolo in Il barbiere di Siviglia for the Canadian Opera Company, and additional roles at the Met including Schaunard in La bohème, the Mandarin in Turandot, Masetto in Don Giovanni, Haly in L’italiana in Algeri and Peter Quince in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Slovakian soprano L’ubica Vargicová, praised by the international media for her remarkable technique, her glittering high notes, and her commanding stage presence has made the Queen of the Night a signature role since her operatic debut while still a student in Bratislava, and she has left audiences gasping around the world. The New York Times wrote of her Metropolitan Opera debut in this role, that Ms. Vargicová “dispatched the Queen of the Night’s devilish coloratura with fearless attack, bright tone, and impressive accuracy.” That she is breathtakingly beautiful is merely the icing on the cake; it is her artistry in the coloratura repertoire that has enabled her to earn rave reviews as Lucia di Lammermoor, Ophelia, Amina in Bellini’s La sonnambula, and Marie in La Fille du régiment opposite Juan Diego Flórez. She has appeared in prestigious venues from Carnegie Hall to Japan’s finest concert halls, in the wake of her dazzling 2003 Salzburg Festival debut as Olympia in Les Contes d’Hoffmann (a landmark production staged by David McVicar and conducted by Kent Nagano).
Bass Raymond Aceto, the chilling Sparafucile in the Dallas Opera’s acclaimed 2011 production of Rigoletto, has appeared in more than a dozen productions with TDO since his 1995 debut as Monterone, portraying a host of unforgettable characters from Leporello in Don Giovanni (2003), Colline in La bohème (1999), and Fafner in Siegfried (2000) to Lodovico in the Dallas Opera’s 2009 inaugural production in the Winspear Opera House: Verdi’s Otello.
Opera News reported in November 2008 “The American bass has a magnificently warm, round and full voice coupled to a compelling stage presence.” He was also identified as one of the “world class” artists in the Dallas Opera’s cast of Rigoletto (Opera Warhorses) and his performance was termed “a rare treat.”
Engagements this season have included the roles of Banquo in Macbeth at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, and Timur in Turandot for San Francisco Opera. This summer, after appearing as Sarastro in our production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute, Mr. Aceto will portray the cruel Baron Scarpia in the Santa Fe Opera Festival production of Tosca.
Bass Kevin J. Langan, who has sung numerous roles with the Dallas Opera, will appear in the role of The Speaker. He was recently described as “the complete package: vibrant, ringing tone, polished phrasing, incisive diction and convincing, unfussy acting” (MusicalCriticism.com).
Mr. Langan has nearly 1300 performances to his credit and a vast repertoire (more than 80 roles from the early Baroque through the 20th century) that has made him a leading bass for San Francisco Opera for three decades. Recently, he became the first artist in SFO history to sing 300 performances in leading roles. Mr. Langan has also been a leading bass for Lyric Opera of Chicago for the past eleven years, in addition to fourteen seasons—and 165 performances—at Santa Fe. It was at Sante Fe Opera that he created the role of Henry Mosher in the 1996 world premiere of Tobias Picker’s Emmeline, broadcast on PBS.
A native of New York City, Mr. Langan’s talents can be enjoyed on numerous opera DVD releases. His orchestral appearances have ranged from the Cincinnati May Festival as Rocco in Fidelio under Music Director James Conlon, The Caramoor Festival as Rocco in Leonore under John Nelson, The Pittsburgh Symphony in Mahler’s Das Klagende Lied, and the Chicago Symphony in Janacek’s Glagolitic Mass (both under Michael Tilson Thomas). Other appearances include Trulove in The Rake’s Progress with The St. Paul Chamber Orchestra under Edo de Waart, and Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex with The National Symphony in Washington.
Tenor David Cangelosi, one of the most consistently insightful opera artist bloggers in cyberspace, will sing the role of Monostatos. Heaped with critical plaudits for his contributions to the success of the recent San Francisco Ring Cycle, Heard and Seen International declared him: “…possibly the greatest Mime ever. Nobody has ever been more effective or as amusing as David Cangelosi…he made every minute of this often annoying role a total pleasure.” He most recently appeared with the Dallas Opera in our monumental, widely acclaimed 2011 production of Boris Godunov. Prior to the role of Shuisky, Mr. Cangelosi made a memorable marriage broker in TDO’s revival of the Francesca Zambello production of Madama Butterfly that closed the 2010 Season.
David Cangelosi has firmly established himself as an artist who combines both excellent singing and winning characterizations with opera companies and symphony orchestras, worldwide. In 2004, Mr. Cangelosi made his Metropolitan Opera debut as Mime in Das Rheingold, conducted by James Levine, and returned in recent seasons for performances of Incredibile in Andrea Chenier, Tinca in Il tabarro, and the dual role of Nathanael/Spalanzani in Les Contes d’Hoffmann. Other roles at the Metropolitan Opera have included Basilio (The Marriage of Figaro), Goro (Madama Butterfly), and Spoletta (Tosca).
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Mozart’s 1791 masterpiece is one of the greatest comic operas of all time, made all the more interesting by the poignant—even disturbing—moments endured by the lead characters, as they attempt to earn their “happy ending.”
The Magic Flute comes by its zany plot honestly, having been inspired not only by 18th century Masonic practices, but by literature reflecting several different traditions.
The music, on the other hand, couldn’t be more polished or more focused. Reflecting the highest ideals of the Age of Enlightenment and filled with wit, warmth, and genuine humanity, The Magic Flute continues to bewitch audiences with its variety of perfectly expressed musical moods—from utterly comic to soaring and sublime.
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Single tickets for the final mainstage productions of the Dallas Opera’s “Tragic Obsessions” Season are on sale now, starting at just $25, 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.
Secure your seats today for the remaining spring mainstage productions: La traviata (through April 29th) and The Magic Flute (April 20th through May 6th).
About WFAA’s Ron Corning:
Ron Corning has enjoyed a long and successful career as a television journalist. His first foray into a major market was at Fox affiliate KTVI in St. Louis, where he won a 1997 Emmy Award for Live Spot News Coverage. Later, Corning entered the national arena as a news anchor on the CW syndicated morning talk show, “The Daily Buzz,” from 2002 to 2004. Corning went on to co-anchor “ABC World News Now” and “ABC World News This Morning,” while also serving as a correspondent for “Good Morning America” on the same network. Corning, who was born and raised in Eastern Maine, was drawn to WFAA by its reputation in the Dallas-Fort Worth market, and nationwide as a “gold standard” in television journalism. Today, he anchors “News 8 Daybreak” and “Midday News.”
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THE DALLAS OPERA GRATEFULLY ACKNOWLEDGES
THE TEXAS INSTRUMENTS FOUNDATION,
PRESENTER OF THE 2011-2012 SEASON
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE “TRAGIC OBSESSIONS” 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 WISHES TO EXPRESS ITS GRATITUDE TO OUR EXCLUSIVE PARTNERS:
AMERICAN AIRLINES – OFFICIAL AIRLINE OF THE DALLAS OPERA
LEXUS – OFFICIAL VEHICLE OF THE DALLAS OPERA
CARTIER – OFFICIAL JEWELER & WATCHMAKER OF THE DALLAS OPERA
ROSEWOOD CRESCENT HOTEL – OFFICIAL HOTEL OF THE DALLAS OPERA
THE DALLAS OPERA 2011-2012 SPRING SEASON INFORMATION
The Dallas Opera celebrates its Fifty-Fifth 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. Performances of The Lighthouse (new chamber opera series) will take place in the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre located directly across Flora street from the Winspear in the AT&T Performing Arts Center. English translations will be projected above the stage at every performance. Assistance is available for the hearing impaired. All ticket sales are final and no late seating is permitted prior to intermission. Events and guest artists subject to change.
THE LIGHTHOUSE by Peter Maxwell Davies
Inaugural production of the Dallas Opera Chamber Series
Presented in collaboration with the Dallas Theater Center
In the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre at the AT&T Performing Arts Center
March 16, 17 & 18(m), 2012
A chilling supernatural and psychological thriller!
Time: December 1900
Place: Edinburgh Court of Enquiry, Fladda Isle Lighthouse off the Scottish coast
Conductor: Nicole Paiement*
Stage Director: Kevin Moriarty* (opera directorial debut)
Scenic Design: Beowulf Boritt*
Costume Design: Claudia Stephens*
Starring: (in order of vocal appearance:) Andrew Bidlack* (Officer 1/Sandy), Robert Orth (Officer 2/Blazes), and Daniel Sumegi (Officer 3/Arthur/Voice of the Cards).
LA TRAVIATA by Giuseppe Verdi
April 13, 15(m), 18, 21, 27 & 29(m), 2012
Let’s Party Like It’s 1849!
An opera in three acts first performed in Venice at Teatro La Fenice, March 6, 1853
Text by Francesco Maria Piave, based on Alexandre Dumas’ play, La dame aux camélias
Time: 19th century
Place: Paris
Conductor: Marco Guidarini
Stage Director: Bliss Hebert
Production Design: Allen Charles Klein
Lighting Design: Thomas Hase
Choreographer: Rosa Mercedes*
Wig & make-up Design: David Zimmerman
Chorus Master: Alexander Rom
Starring: Myrtò Papatanasiu** (Violetta Valéry), James Valenti (Alfredo Germont), Laurent Naouri* (Giorgio Germont), Amanda Crider* (Flora Bervoix), Timothy Mix* (Baron Douphol), Mark McCrory (Marchese D’Obigny), Ethan Herschenfeld* (Doctor Grenvil), and Susan Nicely (Annina).
THE MAGIC FLUTE by W.A. Mozart
April 20, 22(m), 25, 28, May 4 & 6(m), 2012
Hearts Tested, Tried and True!
An opera in two acts first performed in Vienna, September 30, 1791.
Text by Emanuel Schikaneder.
Time: Legendary
Place: Mythological Egypt
Conductor: Graeme Jenkins
Production: August Everding
Stage Director: Matthew Lata
Scenic Design: Jörg Zimmermann*
Costume Design: Renate Kalanke*
Lighting Design: Duane Schuler
Wig & make-up Design: David Zimmerman
Chorus Master: Alexander Rom
Children’s Chorus Master: Melinda Cotten
Starring: Ava Pine (Pamina), Shawn Mathey* (Tamina), Patrick Carfizzi (Papageno), L’ubica Vargicová* (The Queen of the Night), Raymond Aceto (Sarastro), Kevin Langan (The Speaker), David Cangelosi (Monostatos), Angela Mannino* (Papagena), Caitlin Lynch* (First Lady), Lauren McNeese* (Second Lady), Maya Lahyani* (Third Lady), Aaron Blake (First Man in Armour) and Darren K. Stokes* (Second Man in Armour).
* Dallas Opera Debut
** American Operatic 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. Cartier is the official jeweler and watchmaker of The Dallas Opera. Rosewood Crescent Hotel is the official hotel 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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