January 5, 2016- Virginia Opera, The Official Opera Company of the Commonwealth of Virginia, is proud to announce the stunning 2016-2017 Season. Pushing the envelope on exciting repertory as well as continuing the popular First of Firsts series (now in its sixth year), Virginia Opera announces a new artistic initiative that will span over five seasons – The Puccini Cycle. Virginia Opera President and CEO, Russell P. Allen says, “Expect the unexpected on Virginia Opera stages across the state – from brand-new productions of traditional repertory to innovative and engaging selections of opera fare never before experienced by our patrons – as Virginia Opera proceeds into its 42nd Season!”
The season starts with a unique and bold pairing, rarely seen on a double bill. A First of Firsts production of Kurt Weill’s scintillating masterpiece, The Seven Deadly Sins, together with Leoncavallo’s deadly, classic tale of revenge, Pagliacci.
The Seven Deadly Sins will be a tour-de-force production, performed under the baton of Virginia Opera’s own Principal Conductor, Adam Turner, recent inaugural recipient of the prestigious conducting fellowship named in honor of Julius Rudel and Kurt Weill. Sung by the internationally renowned Weill specialist, Ute Gfrerer, in her American operatic stage debut, and directed by Keturah Stickann, a protégé of Virginia Opera favorite Lillian Groag.
Setting out on a journey across America to aid her poverty-stricken family, The Seven Deadly Sins is the story of Anna – manifested as two facets of one personality, one who sings and one who dances – as she finds herself on a seven-year, seven-city quest – ultimately encountering each of the seven deadly sins. With a melodic score by Kurt Weill, and a tantalizing tale by Bertolt Brecht, the story focuses on Anna’s unsettling challenges and inner struggles – a tale with clear 21st Century resonance.
The Seven Deadly Sins will be sung in English with English supertitles.
This double bill, designed to keep you on the very edge of your seat, will raise the curtain after intermission on Ruggero Leoncavallo’s gripping Pagliacci, also conducted by Adam Turner and directed by Keturah Stickann. In a full–blown traditional production of this classic, when the clown realizes that he, too, experiences sorrow like any other man, his fast-paced journey of jealousy and murder becomes all-consuming. A standard of the operatic stage, featuring one of the most famous tenor arias of all time, “Vesti la giubba,” Pagliacci is a gripping drama of love, deception and revenge. Starring internationally acclaimed soprano Kelly Kaduce, in her Virginia Opera debut, and the anticipated return of the dynamic Michael Chioldi (Salome 2015), with Virginia Opera’s adult and children’s choruses, this production will captivate audiences across the Commonwealth.
Pagliacci will be sung in Italian with English Supertitles.
The Seven Deadly Sins and Pagliacci will be performed at:
The Edythe C. and Stanley L. Harrison Opera House – Norfolk – September 30, October 2 & 4, 2016
George Mason University’s Center for the Arts – Fairfax – October 8 & 9, 2016
The Carpenter Theatre at Dominion Arts Center – Richmond – October 14 & 16, 2016
Next, Virginia Opera will offset the serious nature of the opening productions with a whimsical telling of Gioachino Rossini’s The Barber of Seville. Rossini’s perfect masterpiece of opera buffa, The Barber of Seville follows the exploits of Figaro, the mischievous barber, tossing the audience from one hilarious situation to another! Conducted by John Baril, Music Director of Central City Opera in Colorado, host to one of the nation’s original summer opera festivals, The Barber of Seville is often viewed as the world’s most popular comic opera!
As the all-knowing barber, Virginia Beach native Will Liverman, a graduate of Virginia’s Governor’s School for the Arts, will star in his Virginia Opera debut, joined by a cast of Virginia Opera audience favorites. Welcoming back Megan Marino and Andrew Owens, former Herndon Foundation Emerging Artists, both of whom now enjoy stellar international careers, including recent performances of The Barber of Seville at Florida Grand Opera, this cast will amaze and delight. Michael Shell (The Magic Flute 2013) directs this rendition of his clever production, recently enjoyed at leading opera houses across the country.
The Barber of Seville will be sung in Italian with English supertitles.
Performances across the state at:
The Edythe C. and Stanley L. Harrison Opera House – Norfolk – November 11, 13 & 15, 2016
The Carpenter Theatre at Dominion Arts Center – Richmond – November 18 & 20, 2016
George Mason University’s Center for the Arts – Fairfax – December 3 & 4, 2016
Virginia Opera will take a step into the macabre with its next production, Der Freischütz (The Magic Marksman), with one of the most haunting scores in all of opera. Carl Maria von Weber, founder of German Romantic Opera and Wagnerian forefather, created a compelling drama that twists reality with supernatural powers and phenomena. A forester, ensnared by dark powers, seeks to ensure his win in a shooting contest. This eerie backdrop of mysterious places and dark forests, supporting a grim fairy tale from a bygone age, has never been experienced on Virginia Opera stages!
The company premiere of this work, rarely seen in America, is a major, bold step for Virginia Opera in presenting a brand-new English translation commissioned specifically to revitalize this unique piece of operatic repertory and make it more accessible to American audiences. In his Virginia Opera debut, celebrated heldentenor Issachah Savage, recently recognized by The Washington Post as one of the “Stars of Tomorrow,” and winner of the 2014 Seattle International Wagner Competition, leads an acclaimed cast. Conducted by Adam Turner, the production includes Virginia Opera favorites Katherine Polit and Jake Gardner, and features the famous and thrilling Huntsman’s Chorus! Evoking his signature intensity and captivating drama, international director Stephen Lawless, whom audiences will recall for his recent acclaim on our stages (Salome 2015), returns with a production of theatrical virtuosity.
Der Freischütz (The Magic Marksman) will be sung in English with English supertitles.
Performances across the state at:
The Edythe C. and Stanley L. Harrison Opera House – Norfolk – January 27, 29 & 31, 2017
George Mason University’s Center for the Arts – Fairfax – February 4 & 5, 2017
The Carpenter Theatre at Dominion Arts Center – Richmond – February 17 & 19, 2017
To conclude this stellar season, Virginia Opera offers Turandot, by Giacomo Puccini – the next delectable sample from Virginia Opera’s Puccini Cycle (2015-2020), which launched this season with sold-out performances of La Bohème. Conducted by returning guest conductor, John DeMain (Carmen 2014) and directed by audience favorite Lillian Groag (La Traviata 2015), this will no doubt be another landmark production ending a very memorable season.
Based on an ancient fable set in China, this story of the legendary Princess Turandot, so desirable that men came to risk their heads for her hand in marriage, weaves the quest for love with consequences that few would be willing to chance. From the opening moments of Puccini’s extravagant and exotic score, you will be thrown into a world of suspense. Featuring “Nessun dorma,” one of the most famous opera arias of all time, and sung by a stellar cast of internationally recognized singers, led by the mesmerizing Kelly Cae Hogan (Salome 2015) and Roger Honeywell in his Virginia Opera debut, along with a substantial cast of adult and children’s choristers, this epic new production will ensure a fitting conclusion to the 2016-2017 season.
Turandot will be sung in Italian with English supertitles.
Performances across the state at:
The Edythe C. and Stanley L. Harrison Opera House – Norfolk – March 17, 19 & 21, 2017
George Mason University’s Center for the Arts – Fairfax – March 25 & 26, 2017
The Carpenter Theatre at Dominion Arts Center – Richmond – March 31 & April 2, 2017
Subscription tickets starting as low as just $66 for all 4 productions are now on sale for performances in Norfolk and Richmond. Subscriptions for performances at George Mason University’s Center for the Arts will go on sale later this Spring.
Subscription tickets and ticket information at:
The Edythe C. and Stanley L. Harrison Opera House
Norfolk, VA
866.673.7282
vaopera.org
The Carpenter Theatre at Dominion Arts Center
Richmond, VA
866.673.7282
vaopera.org
George Mason University’s Center for the Arts
Fairfax, VA
703.993.2787
About Virginia Opera
Virginia Opera Association, Inc., currently in its 41st season (2015-2016), is known and respected nationwide for the identification and presentation of the finest young artists, for the musical and dramatic integrity of its productions, and for the ingenuity and variety of its education and outreach programs. Mainstage performances in three markets across the Commonwealth reach nearly 50,000 attendees annually. In March of 1994, by unanimous vote of the Virginia General Assembly, Virginia Opera was named The Official Opera Company of the Commonwealth of Virginia in recognition of the organization’s contribution to the state as well as to the world of opera.
For tickets and information visit vaopera.org or call 866.673.7282.