COVID-19 CONCERNS FORCE POSTPONEMENT OF
THE DALLAS OPERA’S 2020/2021 SEASON UNTIL SPRING 2021
PLEASE READ THE ATTACHED RELEASE
COVID-19 CONCERNS FORCE POSTPONEMENT OF
THE DALLAS OPERA’S 2020/2021 SEASON UNTIL SPRING 2021
PLEASE READ THE ATTACHED RELEASE
Click on the link below for a pdf version of the media release:
To download a print friendly version of our announcement click the button below.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Friday, January 3, 2020
Contact: Suzanne Calvin 214.443.1014
suzanne.calvin@dallasopera.org
The Dallas Opera is Proud to Present
Soprano Angel Blue
The 2020 Robert E. and Jean Ann Titus
Art Song Recitalist
Accompanied by Pianist James Baillieu
~~~~
One Performance Only:
Sunday, Jan. 26, 2020 at 2:00 p.m.
Moody Performance Hall
AT&T Performing Arts Center
Dallas, TX
~~~~
Art Songs by Rachmaninoff, Mozart,
Richard Strauss, Jake Heggie and Ruperto Chapí
DALLAS, JANUARY 3, 2020 – The Dallas Opera is thrilled to present the internationally-acclaimed American soprano Angel Blue, accompanied by renowned South African pianist James Baillieu, in this season’s Robert E. and Jean Ann Titus Art Song Recital on January 26, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. in Moody Performance Hall at the AT&T Performing Arts Center, Dallas, Texas.
The dazzling Ms. Blue, who triumphed in her season-opening star turn at New York’s Metropolitan Opera this fall, will perform a recital program consisting of songs, arias and romanzas by Mozart, Rachmaninoff, Jake Heggie, Ruperto Chapí, and Richard Strauss—as well a favorite spiritual or two.
This one-time-only performance is generously underwritten by the Titus Family to honor and support their parents’ love of art songs through live, public performances featuring many of the finest interpreters on stage today.
“We are proud to present these remarkable artists in such an intimate setting,” explains Ian Derrer, The Kern Wildenthal General Director and CEO of The Dallas Opera, “enabling music lovers to experience their artistry on such an engaging level. Angel’s warmth and excitement—as well as her flair with crossover repertoire—will surely capture the heart of the Dallas community.”
The opera world is buzzing about Angel Blue’s critically-acclaimed portrayal in the title role of Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, the only opera to have its schedule extended during its Metropolitan Opera run, in modern times. The New York Times wrote: “as Bess, the sumptuously voiced soprano Angel Blue is radiant, capturing both the pride and fragility of the character.”
Ms. Blue’s performance, opposite Eric Owens as Porgy, will be experienced, worldwide, on February 1, 2020, as part of the award-winning “Live in HD” series from the Met. Additional mainstage performances of this new production have been added on February 4, 12 and 15, 2020.
Press for Angel Blue
Tickets for the Sunday afternoon Titus Art Song Recital on January 26, 2020 are $15 to $25 and can be purchased online at dallasopera.org, or, by calling the friendly professionals in The Dallas Opera Ticket Office at 214.443.1000.
~~~~
Ms. Blue made an acclaimed role debut as Floria Tosca at the Aix-en-Provence Festival last July. Earlier last season, Ms. Blue made her debut at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden as Violetta Valery in La traviata, after which she returned to the Teatro alla Scala in Milan in the same role. She has also been praised for performances at the Vienna State Opera, Semperoper Dresden, San Francisco Opera, Seattle Opera, Theater an der Wien, Oper Frankfurt, and San Diego Opera, to name a few. Engagements for the 2019-2020 Season include her appearance in last summer’s Ravinia Festival, her November debut at the Hamburg State Opera as Mimi, and a return to the Seattle Opera this spring in the same role.
Ms. Blue appears twice this season with the Philadelphia Orchestra: in performances of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 under Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and in concert performances of Porgy and Bess under the baton of Marin Alsop. Next March, she will appear in concert opposite Thomas Hampson at the Royal Opera House, Muscat; as well as in recital with James Baillieu in Lebanon’s Al Bustan Festival in Beirut.
Important orchestral engagements have included Porgy and Bess at the Berlin Philharmonic with Sir Simon Rattle, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with the Munich Philharmonic under the baton of Zubin Mehta, and Verdi’s Requiem in Sydney, Australia with Oleg Caetani. She has also sung Strauss’s Vier Letzte Lieder (“Four Last Songs”) and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Cincinnati Symphony under Music Director Louis Langree.
The statuesque and approachable Ms. Blue is a former model and beauty queen (Miss Hollywood 2005 and 1st runner up for Miss California 2006). Growing up, she played guitar, piano and alto sax in her family’s church ensemble. Angel Blue’s father was a classically-trained gospel singer and opera buff who personally guided her musical education.
She was a 2009 finalist in Operalia and a winner of other major music awards early in her professional opera career.
Alongside her musical activities, Angel Blue is dedicated to the support of inner city youth. She is the founder of the non-profit organization Sylvia’s Kids Foundation, an organization that is dedicated to helping America’s teenagers continue their studies in either a trade school, community college, or four-year university once they have completed high school. The SKF scholarship award is given every year in the month of May. To learn more about Sylvia’s Kids Foundation visit www.sylviaskids.org.
~~~~
The “prodigiously gifted pianist” James Baillieu, described by Classical Source as “the leader of the new generation of accompanists,” is a prize winner of the Wigmore Hall Song Competition, Das Lied International Song Competition, and the Kathleen Ferrier and Richard Tauber Competitions.
Mr. Baillieu has presented his own series at the Wigmore Hall with Adam Walker, Jonathan McGovern, Ailish Tynan, Tara Erraught, Henk Neven, Iestyn Davies, Allan Clayton and Mark Padmore, among others. This series was shortlisted for the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Chamber Music and Song Award for an outstanding contribution to the performance of chamber music and song in the UK during 2016. Recent collaborations include appearances with Benjamin Appl, Kathryn Rudge, Jamie Barton, Markus Werbe, and Lise Davidsen.
James enjoys working with young musicians and is a Professor at the Royal Academy of Music, a coach for the Jette Parker Young Artist Programme at the Royal Opera House, a course leader for the Samling Foundation, and is head of the Song Programme at the Atelier Lyrique of the Verbier Festival Academy. He is also International Tutor in Piano Accompaniment at the Royal Northern College of Music.
It’s small wonder that The Daily Telegraph (UK) proclaimed Baillieu a musician “in a class of his own.”
Past Titus Recital artists have included Nadine Sierra, Ian Bostridge, Simon O’Neill, Frederica Von Stade & Jake Heggie, Michael Fabiano, and Matthew Polenzani, accompanied by a host of phenomenal classical musicians: Julius Drake, Wenwen Du, Bryan Wagorn and Terence Dennis.
~~~~
ABOUT THE DALLAS OPERA:
One of the leading opera companies in the country, The Dallas Opera has an extraordinary legacy of world-class productions and thrilling premieres featuring the greatest operatic artists of our time. Inaugurated in 1957 with a concert featuring the incomparable Maria Callas, TDO is known for the notable U.S. debuts of a host of legendary artists including Plácido Domingo, Dame Joan Sutherland, Jon Vickers, Franco Zeffirelli, and Sir David McVicar. The company has long been an industry leader and innovator through groundbreaking initiatives like the Hart Institute for Women Conductors, free public simulcasts, acclaimed art song recitals, the national vocal competition, special concerts, and outstanding family and award-winning education programs. TDO’s home is the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House, a jewel in the Dallas Arts District. As one of the largest performing arts employers in North Texas, TDO is proudly committed to diversity, onstage and off, and is a major contributor to the economic vitality and international cultural reputation of this region.
2019-2020 SEASON SPONSOR
The Nancy A. Nasher and David J. Haemisegger Family
~~~~
EVENTS, GUESTS, ARTISTS and PROGRAMMING ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE
The Dallas Opera is supported, in part, by funds from: Elsa von Seggern Foundation;
Texas Instruments; the City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture;
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.
NorthPark Center, the official shopping center of The Dallas Opera.
All performances in The Dallas Opera’s 63rd International Season will take place in the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House at the AT&T Performing Arts Center, unless otherwise indicated. Evening performances will begin at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday matinees begin at 2:00 p.m. unless otherwise stated. English translations will be projected above the stage at every performance and assistance is available for the hearing impaired.
The Joy and Ronald Mankoff Pre-Opera Talk will begin one hour prior to curtain at most performances. Full and Flex subscriptions are designed to meet the needs of every budget. Prices range from just $57 (for three performances of your choice) to a top orchestra floor price of $777 for all five mainstage productions. Single tickets are priced from $19 to $289 (a few box seats may be higher). For additional information or to make your purchase, call 214.443.1000 or visit dallasopera.org.
_____________________________________________________________________________
###
Kevin Burdette, Bass
General Polkan, The Golden Cockerel
What is your interpretation of the character of General Polkan?
General Polkan is a dynamic character who changes over the course of the story. In the beginning, he is the wise adviser to the tsar, seemingly the only person in the tsar’s world (the tsar included) who has any sense. He advises the tsar on tactical maneuvers, stands up to the tsar (at risk of punishment), and inspires the troops in battle. All of that changes, though, with the appearance of the Queen of Shemakha. Polkan is immediately enchanted by the queen and becomes unmoored, reduced to a babbling, posturing dullard. He is the embodiment of the Queen’s assertion that, to win a war, it is not necessary to have an army–she can win with beauty alone. Polkan’s demise is Act II is important, in part, because it presages the tsar’s, an act later.
How is singing Rimsky-Korsakov different from singing other composers?
For Polkan, specifically, Rimsky-Korsakov wrote very angular and chromatic music. Aside from two proclamations–both attacks, one to fire the cannons at the enemy and the other to try to seduce the Queen–all of Polkan’s lines are extremely chromatic. The chromaticism of the lines prior to the arrival of the Queen tend to be ascending–rising chromatic lines, showing, I think, Polkan’s rising temper: everyone around me is foolish, and I have to waste my time revealing their foolishness. With the arrival of the Queen, Polkan’s chromaticism turns around and descends: his strength and wisdom are unraveling, melting away in a descending chromatic scale. For this role, I have to be 100% tuned into that chromaticism, leaning into the cracks and corners of the lines.
What is essential for interpreting the music of Rimsky-Korsakov?
Rimsky-Korsakov’s score for The Golden Cockerel is stunning. The orchestration is incredible, and the Dallas Opera orchestra plays it wonderfully–you can tell they adore working with the incomparable Maestro Villaume (as do we all!). The lush cello solos, the brass calls, the gorgeous melodies (there is one melody in Act II that recalls the tune “Lavender Blue Dilly-Dilly” where time seems to stop as we live a rich, deep moment of beauty)–it is important, I think, for the singers to know exactly what the orchestra sounds are. We are in dialogue with certain instruments and in counterpoint with others–and those interactions reveal so much of what Rimsky-Korsakov was saying.
While working so directly on this production, especially the performers, can you explain what you have discovered along the way? What has the sense of community behind the scenes been like?
We are so fortunate to have Paul Curran as the director. Paul’s knowledge of Russian and of how this story both applied to early-20th-century Russia and applies to the world today, have been invaluable. He reveals the comedy inherent in the score and the story, the seductiveness of the words, and also the political undercurrents that are so important (and not at all comedic). His ability to channel Rimsky-Korsakov’s balancing of the political, comic, and seductive has been inspiring and so helpful. And with that guidance, the whole cast has bought into telling this story in a way that honors its root and tradition while being very much accessible to and relevant for audiences today. There is a Native American proverb: tell me a fact, and I will learn; tell me a truth, and I will believe; but tell me a story, and it will live in my heart forever. This cast has bought 100% into telling this story and having it live in people’s hearts forever.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Monday, October 28, 2019
Contact: Suzanne Calvin 214.443.1014
suzanne.calvin@dallasopera.org
In Concert – For One Night Only!
The Dallas Opera Hart Institute
For Women Conductors Showcase
~~~~
Celebrating 5 Years of Transformational Success
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2019 at 7:30 p.m.
The Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House
At the AT&T Performing Arts Center
Reserved Seats: $25 & $50
214.443.1000 or dallasopera.org/harttickets
~~~~
Featuring Singers from
“Opera for Peace – Leading Young Voices of the World”
In the Organization’s First U.S. Collaboration
DALLAS, OCTOBER 28, 2019 – The Dallas Opera is pleased to present an evening of splendid arias and sweeping orchestral favorites on Saturday, November 9th at 7:30 p.m. in the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House, AT&T Performing Arts Center. This one-time concert event, celebrating five years of program success, will feature The Dallas Opera Orchestra and international opera artists conducted by the six women chosen for the fifth annual residency of The Dallas Opera Hart Institute for Women Conductors taking place Oct. 27 through Nov. 9, 2019 at the Dallas Opera.
The spotlight will be on 2019 conductors:
Seeking to address a long-standing issue of gender imbalance, The Dallas Opera in 2015 launched a unique, new residential program—one of only three in the world—designed to provide training and career support for distinctively talented women conductors on the cusp of major international careers.
“Big D is my Big W,” observed Polish conductor Marta Kluczyńska. “I feel awesome.”
Concert repertoire includes popular works by Rossini, Puccini, Mozart, and Bizet; as well as moving selections by Verdi, Donizetti, Delibes and Handel (see the complete program listings on p. 4).
Reserved seating for The Dallas Opera Hart Institute Showcase Concert on November 9, 2019 is available for $25 or $50 per person (depending on the section) and can be purchased at https://dallasopera.org/harttickets or through The Dallas Opera Ticket Office at 214.443.1000.
~~~~
A new and exciting aspect of this year’s Hart Institute is The Dallas Opera’s partnership with the “Opera for Peace – Leading Young Voices of the World” program. Outstanding opera artists will rehearse and perform with the institute conductors and The Dallas Opera Orchestra, in the organization’s first collaboration in the U.S.
“Opera for Peace is a new cultural movement reflecting the reality of today’s globalized world,” the organization states. “We believe in the strength of connecting nations. Artistic development occurs through a unique and personalized global schedule of high level training projects, concerts, masterclasses, educational exchanges, special cultural diplomatic projects and events. We give special support to artists from disadvantaged backgrounds and promote diversity, social justice and equality. We provide a platform for our artists and partners to speak about social issues facing our world.” For more information visit operaforpeace.org.
“Opera for Peace—Leading Young Voices of the World is delighted to collaborate with The Dallas Opera Hart Institute for Women Conductors on their fifth annual residency,” adds Opera for Peace General Director Julia Lagahuzère. “Sharing the same values, vision and ambitions, our partnership will further advance our art form and give new opportunities to talented artists.
“The Hart conductors will lead young international singers,” she noted, “alongside world-famous Peace Ambassador tenor Brian Jagde in a celebration of equality, diversity and artistic excellence.”
Mr. Jagde, a native of New York and graduate of San Francisco Opera’s Adler and Merola programs, returned to the War Memorial stage last season where his Cavaradossi in a new production of Tosca was acclaimed the highlight of the evening. He will reprise the role this season at both Vienna State Opera and at the Metropolitan Opera, where his performance will be seen “Live in HD” around the world.
The phenomenal Ukrainian baritone, Andrei Kymach, the 2019 First Prize Winner of the BBC Cardiff “Singer of the World” Competition and a recent graduate of the Bolshoi Young Artist program, will also be performing in concert.
American mezzo-soprano Raehann Bryce-Davis, praised by The San Francisco Chronicle for her “electrifying sense of fearlessness,” will make her LA Opera debut in the world premiere of Aucoin and Ruhl’s Eurydice. Another exceptionally talented young artist, Puerto Rican tenor Ángel Vargas (who, earlier this year, was awarded his master’s degree from Rice University), a winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions – Puerto Rico District and a finalist in the Gulf Coast Regionals, will also share the Winspear stage.
Additional soloists on the program include Nicaraguan-American soprano Gabriella Reyes, the 2018 recipient of the Sara Tucker Study Grant from the Richard Tucker Music Foundation and grand finalist in the 2017 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions; Korean-American countertenor Kangmin Justin Kim, renowned for his interpretation of the music of Mozart and the Baroque Era; South African baritone Chuma Sijeqa, a Link Artist of the Royal Opera House’s 2018-19 Jette Parker Young Artists Programme in the U.K.; and soprano Meryl Dominguez, now in her final year of residency at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia.
Artists engaged in the program will work and rehearse with the Hart conductors throughout the second week of the Institute.
~~~~
“Even for the most talented artists, a journey to the forefront of the conducting profession is difficult, and particularly so for women,” wrote Taiwanese conductor Madeline Tsai. “The Dallas Opera Hart Institute gives its residents a strong gust of wind forward as they sail toward their dreams on the horizon.
“I am immensely grateful and honored for this incredible opportunity to learn from an amazing faculty and other talented artists at the Institute.”
~~~~
Naming Support for the Institute from Linda and Mitch Hart
Initial Support from the Richard and Enika Schulze Foundation
Additional Support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation,
Baker Botts LLP, Cindy and Charlie Feld, Jenifer and Peter Flynn,
Susan and Mark Geyer, Holly and Tom Mayer, J.P. Morgan,
Betty and Steve Suellentrop, and Martha and Max Wells,
Debra Witter and Scott Chase, and Texas Women’s Foundation
Made Possible by an OPERA America Innovation Grant
Supported by the Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation
~~~~
REPERTOIRE FOR THE 2019 HART INSTITUTE CONCERT:
Overtures to The Marriage of Figaro, The Barber of Seville, Don Giovanni, William Tell, La forza del destino, Prelude to Act III of Manon Lescaut
“O mio Fernando” from La favorita (Donizetti)
“O soave fanciulla” from La bohème (Puccini)
“Ombra mai fu / Se bramate d’amar chi vi sdegna” from Xerxes (Handel)
“Addio! mio caro bene” from Teseo (Handel)
“Votre toast, je peux vous le rendre” or the Toreador Song from Carmen (Bizet)
“Au fond du temple saint” from The Pearl Fishers (Bizet)
“La calunnia” from The Barber of Seville (Rossini)
“Se tradirmi tu potrai…Tu che vedi il pianto mio” from Lucia di Lammermoor (Donizetti)
“Tu, che di gel sei senta” or the Death of Liù from Turandot (Puccini)
“Parigi o cara” from La traviata (Verdi)
“Dôme épais le jasmin” or the Flower Duet from Lakmé (Delibes)
“Donna non vidi mai” from Manon Lescaut (Puccini)
(Please note: 2019 Hart Showcase Concert repertoire selections are subject to change)
~~~~
ABOUT THE DALLAS OPERA:
One of the leading opera companies in the country, The Dallas Opera has an extraordinary legacy of world-class productions and thrilling premieres featuring the greatest operatic artists of our time. Inaugurated in 1957 with a concert featuring the incomparable Maria Callas, TDO is known for the notable U.S. debuts of a host of legendary artists including Plácido Domingo, Dame Joan Sutherland, Jon Vickers, Franco Zeffirelli, and Sir David McVicar. The company has long been an industry leader and innovator through groundbreaking initiatives like the Hart Institute for Women Conductors, free public simulcasts, acclaimed art song recitals, the national vocal competition, special concerts, and outstanding family and award-winning education programs. TDO’s home is the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House, a jewel in the Dallas Arts District. As one of the largest performing arts employers in North Texas, TDO is proudly committed to diversity, onstage and off, and is a major contributor to the economic vitality and international cultural reputation of this region.
2019-2020 SEASON SPONSOR
The Nancy A. Nasher and David J. Haemisegger Family
~~~~
EVENTS, GUESTS AND ARTISTS SUBJECT TO CHANGE
The Dallas Opera is supported, in part, by funds from: Elsa von Seggern Foundation;
Texas Instruments; the City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture;
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.
All performances in The Dallas Opera’s 63rd International Season will take place in the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House at the AT&T Performing Arts Center, unless otherwise indicated. Evening performances will begin at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday matinees begin at 2:00 p.m. unless otherwise stated. English translations will be projected above the stage at every performance and assistance is available for the hearing impaired.
The Joy and Ronald Mankoff Pre-Opera Talk will begin one hour prior to curtain at most performances. Full and Flex subscriptions are designed to meet the needs of every budget. Prices range from just $57 (for three performances of your choice) to a top orchestra floor price of $777 for all five mainstage productions. Single tickets are priced from $19 to $289 (a few box seats may be higher). For additional information or to make your purchase, call 214.443.1000 or visit dallasopera.org.
_____________________________________________________________________________
###