Earth and Space News: Hawaii Opera Theatre 2022-2023 season

Showing posts with label Hawaii Opera Theatre 2022-2023 season. Show all posts

Monday, October 24, 2022

Gianni Schicchi Opens April 28 as 2022-2023 HOT Season's Third Opera

Summary: Puccini's Gianni Schicchi opens April 28 as the third 2022-2023 HOT season opera and closes the lineup of The Secret Garden and The Elixir of Love.

Puccini's Gianni Schicchi opens April 28 as the third 2022-2023 HOT season opera and closes the lineup that featured autumn's The Secret Garden and winter's The Elixir of Love.

Gianni Schicchi receives two performances in the comic opera's debut season at Hawai'i Opera Theatre (HOT). Opening night is scheduled for Friday, April 28, at 7:30 p.m. A closing matinee takes place Sunday, April 30, at 4:00 p.m.

Gianni Schicchi will be performed in Italian, along with English supertitles. The performance lasts for approximately one hour. No intermission is scheduled.

Gianni Schicchi (pronounce: jahn-nee skee-kee) by Italian opera composer Giacomo Puccini (Dec. 22, 1858-Nov. 29, 1924) numbers as the third installment of Il Trittico (The Triptych), a collection of three one-act operas. The Italian libretto, written by Italian librettist and playwright Giovacchino Forzano (Nov. 19, 1884-Oct. 28, 1970), traces to an episode in Canto XXX of the first cantica, Inferno, of Divina Commedia (Divine Comedy) by medieval Italian poet Dante Alighieri (May/June 1265-Sep. 14, 1321). The Metropolitan Opera hosted Il Trittico's premiere Saturday, Dec. 1918. The unrelated trio received seven performances in its premiere season.

Mark Morash conducts both performances of the 2022-2023 HOT season's third, closing opera. The Canadian conductor and pianist had made his HOT debut in the 2016-2017 season's three performances (Friday, Jan. 27; Sunday, Jan. 29; Tuesday, Jan. 31) of A Streetcar Named Desire by German-American composer, conductor and pianist André George Previn (born Andreas Ludwig Priwin, April 6, 1929-Feb. 28, 2019).

Gregory Keller (born July 1, 1974) directs the 2022-2023 HOT season's production of Gianni Schicchi. The American stage director had made his HOT debut in the 2021-2022 season's three performances (Friday, April 8; Sunday, April 10; Tuesday, April 12) of Puccini's Madame Butterfly (Madama Butterfly).

Joshua Jeremiah sings the title role of a clever father who enriches himself and secures a happy marriage for his daughter, Lauretta, by impersonating the deceased Buoso Donati. The American baritone's appearances mark his HOT debut.

Brian Vu appears as Rinuccio, whose Aunt Zita, deceased Buoso Donati's cousin, conditions her nephew's marriage upon relatives replacing a monastery as benefactors of Donati's will. The American tenor's performances as Rinuccio mark his HOT debut.

Blythe Kelsey portrays Zita, cousin of the deceased Buoso Donati and aunt of lovestruck Rinuccio. The Hawaiian mezzo-soprano most recently performed in the 2021-2022 season's two performances (Friday, March 11; Sunday, March 13) of Re-Emerging: HOT Live in Concert, Hawai'i Opera Theatre's celebration of the opera company's resumption of live performances. Since the age of 12, she has been associated with HOT productions, according to her biography on the concert's page at Hawai'i Opera Theatre's website. Blythe Iakuinipua'okahana Kelsey, sister of Hawaiian baritone and Met Opera singer Quinn Kamakanalani Kelsey, serves as HOT's Director of Artistic Administration.

Leslie Goldman performs as Nella, wife of Buoso Donati's nephew Gherardo and mother of Gherardino. The American mezzo-soprano's portrayal of Nella numbers as her second role in the 2022-2023 HOT season. She sang the maternal role of Susan Sowerby in the season opener, The Secret Garden by American composer and musicologist Nolan Ira Gasser (born Nov. 10, 1964).

Leslie's and Blythe Kelsey's appearances in Gianni Schicchi mark their second consecutive season of HOT production sharing. Leslie joined Blythe in the 2021-2022 season's Re-Emerging HOT in Concert.

Leslie's HOT repertoire also intersects with Blythe's brother. In the 2018-2019 season, Quinn and Leslie were cast in La Traviata by Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901). Quinn sang Giorgio Germont, whose son loves courtesan Violetta Valéry. Leslie sang Annina, maid to la traviata ("the fallen woman").

Robert Feng sings Betto di Segna, Buoso Donati's impoverished brother-in-law. His portrayal of Betto in the 2022-2023 season's closing opera numbers as the season's second role for the Chinese-American bass. He appeared as gardener Ben Weatherstaff in the season's opener.

Puerto Rican bass Ricardo Lugo leads a trio of inheritance-seeking relatives in his portrayal of Simone, another Donati cousin. American tenor and The University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa's Music Department Chair Larry (Laurence) Paxton appears as Simone's son, Marco. American mezzo-soprano Laurie Rubin sings La Ciesca, Marco's wife.

American tenor and Executive Director of Manoa Valley Theatre Kip Wilborn performs in two roles in Gianni Schicchi. He sings Maestro Spinelloccio, Buoso Donati's doctor, who mistakes Gianni Schicchi's mimicry for his patient's voice, and Ser Amantio di Nicolao, the unsuspecting notary who records a new will dictated by Donati impersonator Gianni Schicchi.

Puccini's Gianni Schicchi closes Hawai'i Opera Theatre as the 2022-2023 HOT season's third opera. The season marks the 62nd year of performances for the opera company. Hawai'i Opera Theatre's first opera, Puccini's Madama Butterfly, received three performances (Saturday, March 4; Sunday, March 5; Tuesday, March 7) in 1961.

Puccini's Zita is sung by Blythe Iakuinipua'okahana Kelsey, sister of world-famous Hawaiian baritone Quinn Kamakanalani Kelsey; photo of Blythe (center) with music-loving parents, Debbie and Christopher "Chris" Kelsey: Hawaii Opera Theatre, via Facebook Oct. 20, 2020

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Dedication

This post is dedicated to the memory of our beloved blue-eyed brother, Charles, who guided the creation of the Met Opera and Astronomy posts on Earth and Space News. We memorialized our brother in "Our Beloved Blue-Eyed Brother, Charles, With Whom We Are Well Pleased," published on Earth and Space News on Thursday, Nov. 18, 2021, an anniversary of our beloved father's death.

Image credits:

Hawai'i Opera Theatre's closing 2022-2023 opera, Puccini's Gianni Schicchi, hilariously preposterizes an event in Divina Commedia (Divine Comedy) by medieval Italian poet Dante Alighieri (May/June 1265-Sep. 14, 1321): Hawaii Opera Theatre, via Facebook July 20, 2022, @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/posts/pfbid0KfwtbC7NfJ32xkn1jWFQD5nVXh3ec4z48Kwx4DuzvXQzMKsgLrKsNuDjY7wzy7kAl

Crean, Elisabeth A. "Love for opera keeps the Kelsey family close-knit." Honolulu Star-Bulletin > Features. March 28, 1996.
Available @ http://archives.starbulletin.com/96/03/28/features/story2.html

Frolic Hawai'i. "Catch up with Quinn Kelsey & win tickets to HOT’s ‘Rigoletto." Honolulu Magazine. June 21, 2016.
Available @ https://www.honolulumagazine.com/catch-up-with-quinn-kelsey-win-tickets-to-hots-rigoletto/

Hawaii Opera Theatre. "Closing the season in April, we have Gianni Schicchi, a hilarious one-act farce filled with ridiculous plans, hijinks, and trickery. This is the perfect opera for first-timers, and even though it's brief, it will leave you in stitches while humming Puccini’s glorious melodies. #OperaSeason #ExpericneOpera #SubscribeAndSave #TheSecretGarden #ElixerOfLove #GianniSchicchi #OperaIsForEveryone #Honolulu #HonoluluEvents #Music #Song #LocalTalent #Blaisdell #Opera #LastShowOfTheSeason #Hawaii #Aloha⁠ #Florence." Facebook. July 20, 2022.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/posts/pfbid0KfwtbC7NfJ32xkn1jWFQD5nVXh3ec4z48Kwx4DuzvXQzMKsgLrKsNuDjY7wzy7kAl

Hawaii Opera Theatre. "Our 2022/2023 season features three productions that all celebrate light and life! We're excited to announce the first production this season, The Secret Garden. One of the most beloved children's stories blossoms on stage this October with The Secret Garden, an enchanting opera that the whole family will love! This inspiring story -- in a new production featuring a tropical flair -- shows how lives can be transformed when our imagination is unlocked. ⁠Stay tuned to discover which show is next! With tickets starting as low as $30, we invite you to experience opera with aloha this season! ⁠#OperaSeason #ExpericneOpera #SubscribeAndSave #TheSecretGarden #OperaIsForEveryone #Honolulu #HonoluluEvents #Music #Song #LocalTalent #Blaisdell #Opera #Sing #FirstShowOfTheSeason #WhatsNext." Facebook. July 18, 2022.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/posts/pfbid02ywXnNXAXje4LeWhyC258fhx9drwLJY2phpF2Fr5wsQsj4zUngwTmjJztYDaTkzMzl

Hawaii Opera Theatre. "We send aloha and condolences to the Kelsey 'Ohana, who mourn the passing of Debbie Kelsey. A long-time member of the HOT Chorus, she gave the gift of music to the HOT 'Ohana and has inspired countless generations through her work at University Lab School, Central Union Church, Kamehameha Schools Kapālama, Prince Kūhiō Hawaiian Civic Club, and the Queen Emma Hawaiian Civic Club. She will be remembered, missed, and celebrated. #restinaloha." Facebook. Oct. 20, 2020.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/posts/10157890317772712/

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "3 Productions You Don't Want to Miss: Introducing Our 2022-2023 Season." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > What's New.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/3-productions-you-dont-want-to-miss-introducing-our-2022-2023-season/

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "2016-2017: A Streetcar Named Desire January 27, 29, & 31, 2017." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > Shows > Past Productions.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/streetcar-named-desire/

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "2023 HOT Opera Season." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > 2023 HOT Opera Season.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/2023-hot-opera-season/

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "Blythe Iakuinipua'okahana Kelsey." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > Shows > Past Productions > Re-Emerging: HOT Live in Concert.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/re-emerging/

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "Conductor: Mark Morash* *HOT Debut." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > Shows > Past Productions > A Streetcar Named Desire.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/streetcar-named-desire/

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "Gianni Schicchi: Learn More." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > 2023 HOT Opera Season.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/2023-hot-opera-season/gianni-schicchi-live-at-the-blaisdell/

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "Gregory Keller HOT Debut Yes." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > Shows > Past Productions > Madame Butterfly.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/madame-butterfly/

Marriner, Derdriu. "The Elixir of Love Opens Feb. 17 as Second 2022-2023 HOT Season Opera." Earth and Space News. Oct. 17, 2022.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2022/10/the-elixir-of-love-opens-feb-17-as.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Hawai'i Opera Theatre Has Three Operas in Joy-Themed 2022-2023 Season." Earth and Space News. Monday, Oct. 3, 2022.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2022/10/hawaii-opera-theatre-has-three-operas.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Il Trittico Is the Dec. 8, 2018, Met Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast." Earth and Space News. Monday, Dec. 3, 2018.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/12/il-trittico-is-dec-8-2018-met-opera.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Kathleen Howard Created Zita in Puccini's Gianni Schicchi at Met Opera." Earth and Space News. Monday, July 12, 2021.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2021/07/kathleen-howard-created-zita-in.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Kathleen Howard Honed Zita With One Gianni Schicchi and Nine Laurettas." Earth and Space News. Monday, July 19, 2021.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2021/07/kathleen-howard-honed-zita-with-one.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Quinn Kelsey Has Tallied Nine Met Roles, Seven Operas, 90 Performances." Earth and Space News. Monday, Sep. 26, 2022.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2022/09/quinn-kelsey-has-tallied-nine-met-roles.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Quinn Kelsey Sings Amonasro, Marcello, Rigoletto at Met in 2022-2023." Earth and Space News. Monday, Sep. 19, 2022.
Operabase. "Alissa Anderson Contralto." Operabase > Artists.
Available @ https://www.operabase.com/artists/alissa-anderson-23598/performances/en

Marriner, Derdriu. "The Secret Garden Opens 2022-2023 Hawai'i Opera Theatre Season Oct. 14." Earth and Space News. Monday, Oct. 10, 2022.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2022/10/the-secret-garden-opens-2022-2023.html

"World Premiere Il Trittico {1} Il Tabarro {1} Suor Angelica {1} Gianni Schicchi {1}." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 70380 World Premiere Il Trittico {1} Il Tabarro {1} Suor Angelica {1} Gianni Schicchi {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 12/14/1918.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=70380

Monday, October 17, 2022

The Elixir of Love Opens Feb. 17 as Second 2022-2023 HOT Season Opera

Summary: The Elixir of Love opens Feb. 17 as the second 2022-2023 HOT season opera in a lineup starting with The Secret Garden and ending with Gianni Schicchi.

Donizetti's The Elixir of Love opens Feb. 17 as the second 2022-2023 HOT season opera, following Hawai'i Opera Theatre's autumn opener, The Secret Garden, and followed by the season's spring closer, Gianni Schicchi.

The hilariously love-convoluted opera receives two performances in Hawai'i Opera Theatre's 2022-2023 season. The Elixir of Love opens Friday, Feb. 17, at 7:30 p.m. and closes with a Sunday matinee, Feb. 19, at 4:00 p.m. Both performances are held at the opera company's performance venue, the Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall, near O'ahu's southern shore in downtown Honolulu.

The Elixir of Love is performed in English, with English supertitles displayed for the audience. The performance lasts for approximately 2 hours 20 minutes, with one intermission.

The 2022-2023 season's performances of The Elixir of Love number as the second season of the opera's staging by Hawai'i Opera Theatre (HOT). Forty-six years separate The Elixir of Love's HOT debut and its reactivation in the 2022-2023 HOT season.

The comically melodramatic opera's first HOT staging occurred as the first of three operas in the 1975-1976 season. The Elixir of Love received three performances (Friday, Jan. 30; Sunday, Feb. 1; Tuesday, Feb. 3). The second opera, La Fanciulla del West by Italian opera composer Giacomo Puccini (Dec. 22, 1858-Nov. 29, 1924), was performed as the first of the season's two winter operas (Friday, Jan. 16; Sunday, Jan. 18; Tuesday, Jan. 20). La Traviata by Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901) closed the 1976 season, with mid-February performances Friday, Feb. 13; Sunday, 15; Tuesday, Feb. 17).

The Elixir of Love is an English-language adaptation of L’Elisir d’Amore by Italian composer Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (Nov. 29, 1797-April 8, 1848). Italian librettist and poet Felice Romani (Jan. 31, 1788-Jan. 28, 1865) wrote the opera's Italian-language libretto. L'Elisir d'Amore premiered Saturday, May 12, 1832, at Teatro della Canobbiana in Milan, Lombardy region, north central Italy.

Donizetti's L'Elisir d'Amore was set in the Spain's Southern Basque Country in the late-18th century. Hawai'i Opera Theatre customizes the opera with a reimagined setting in "present-day Hawai’i in a quaint town outside a rum distillery," according to Hawai'i Opera Theatre's profile page for The Elixir of Love.

American conductor and pianist Benjamin Makino conducts both of the 2022-2023 HOT season's performances of The Elixir of Love. He most recently conducted the 2021-2022 HOT season's three performances (Friday, April 8; Sunday, April 10; Tuesday, April 12) of Puccini's Madame Butterfly (Madama Butterfly).

Stage director, librettist, fight choreographer and stunt artist Maria Todaro directs the 2022-2023 HOT season's second opera. Her directorship marks her HOT opera debut.

The appearances of the production's four principal singers mark their HOT debuts. Canadian operatic soprano Natalie Image sings Adina, a wealthy landowner for whom love overcomes her prideful disdain. American tenor Andrew Stenson portrays Nemorino, a poor peasant who wins Adina's love before he learns of his inherited wealth from his recently deceased uncle. Mexican-American baritone Efraín Solís appears as Dulcamara, an itinerant medicine man whose quack product of cheap wine packaged as love potions emboldens Nemorino and brings ensuing respect and success to the quack. Brazilian baritone Igor Vieira impersonates Belcore, Adina's suitor, who accepts rejection with the good-natured outlook of a plethora of other women, such as Adina's friend Giannetta, as marriage candidates.

American coloratura soprano, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa voice lecturer, Brigham Young University-Hawaii (BYUH) adjunct faculty and therapeutic voice researcher Martina Bingham performs as Giannetta, Adina's friend, who interests irrepressibly hopeful Belcore. She had made her HOT debut as Barbarina in the 2019-2020 HOT season's three performances (Friday, Feb. 14; Sunday, Feb. 16; Tuesday, Feb. 18) of The Marriage of Figaro by Classical Era composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Jan. 27, 1756-Dec. 5, 1791).

The 2022-2023 HOT season's third opera, Puccini's Gianni Schicchi, opens two months after The Elixir of Love. Gianni Schicchi's two performances (Friday, April 28; Sunday, April 30) close Hawai'i Opera Theatre's 2022-2023 season.

Inspiration for Hawai'i Opera Theatre's Hawaiian reset of Donizetti's The Elixir of Love comes from Hawai'i's Plantation Village; the living history museum and botanical gardens includes the red-accented Chinese Society Building (Tsoong Nyee Tongg), reconstructed on site of original 1906 building according to identical Society Building built at same time in Kula, west central Maui, according to historic preservation architect Anne Spencer Leineweber (March 18, 1947-June 20, 2015) in "Havai'i's Plantation Village" (1993; page 121): Hawaii Opera Theatre, via Facebook Aug. 3, 2022

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Dedication

Hawai'i Opera Theatre modernizes Donizetti's L'Elisir d'Amore setting in late 18th century Spain's Southern Basque Country with a reimagined setting on a rum distillery plantation in Hawaii: Hawaii Opera Theatre, via Facebook July 19, 2022, @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/posts/pfbid024t6oC1mWtXDTth8Hc3VGCNqgHQ1yxLhF57Jp6T74mae5ooFxRRhngF21MK7ZtkpQl

Hawaii Opera Theatre. "Hawaii Opera Theatre is at Hawaii's Plantation Village. Waipahu, HI. Elixir of Love, our season's second show, takes place in a quaint town outside a rum distillery. We’re here at Waipahu Cultural Garden Park, soaking up inspiration with the design team! #sugar #rum #history #seasonplanning #inspiration #design #luckywelivehawaii #Aloha #hawaii #setdesign #costumedesign." Facebook. Aug. 3, 2022.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/posts/pfbid0wa39m48e2WzEAt8S7E4G798ghEViULNTUQSM8SjyWpcjFQU7zhMDKA1G4kw6JKQFl

Hawaii Opera Theatre. "Next in the season, we have Donizetti’s charming comedy, Elixir of Love. This light-hearted opera is set in a quaint town just outside a Rum Distillery in present-day Hawai'i. Discover how hearts are won in this fantastic ensemble cast just in time for Valentine’s Day! Stay tuned to discover the final show of the season! With tickets starting as low as $30, we invite you to experience opera with aloha this season! ⁠#OperaSeason #ExpericneOpera #SubscribeAndSave #TheSecretGarden #ElixerOfLove #OperaIsForEveryone #Honolulu #HonoluluEvents #Music #Song #LocalTalent #Blaisdell #Opera #SecondShowOfTheSeason #Hawaii #SugarCane #Aloha." Facebook. July 19, 2022.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/posts/pfbid024t6oC1mWtXDTth8Hc3VGCNqgHQ1yxLhF57Jp6T74mae5ooFxRRhngF21MK7ZtkpQl

Hawaii Opera Theatre. "We are gearing up for another exciting season, and we have lots of preparation ahead of us! Follow along to see how an opera goes from the planning stages to the execution. #opera #inspiration #operaseason #planning #setdesign #costumedesign #tours #honolulu #hawaiilife #liveperformance #LuckyWeLiveHawaii #operaforeveryone #hawaii." Facebook. Aug. 9, 2022.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/videos/we-are-gearing-up-for-another-exciting-season-and-we-have-lots-of-preparation-ah/421486889782414/

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "1976: The Elixir of Love January 30; February 1, 3." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > Shows > Past Productions.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/shows/past-productions/

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "2023 HOT Opera Season." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > 2023 HOT Opera Season.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/2023-hot-opera-season/

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "The Elixir of Love: Learn More." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > 2023 HOT Opera Season.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/2023-hot-opera-season/the-elixir-of-love-live-at-the-blaisdell/

"Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "Martina Bingham* *HOT Debut." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > Past Productions > 2019-2020 > The Marriage of Figaro.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/the-marriage-of-figaro/

Leineweber, Spencer. "Havai'i's Plantation Village." Pages 120-125. In: Pawuludevage Leelananda Prematilleke, ed. Cultural Tourism: International Scientific Symposium, 10th General Assembly, Sri Lanka. Charenton-le-Pont, France: ICOMOS, 1993. ICOMOS International Council on Monuments and Sites > Resources > Publications.
Available @ https://www.icomos.org/publications/93sy_tou14.pdf

Marriner, Derdriu. "The Secret Garden Opens 2022-2023 Hawai'i Opera Theatre Season Oct. 14." Earth and Space News. Monday, Oct. 17, 2022.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2022/10/the-secret-garden-opens-2022-2023.html

MN Opera. "Maria Todaro." MN Opera > Biography.
Available @ https://mnopera.org/biography/maria-todaro/

Prematilleke, Pawuludevage Leelananda, ed. Cultural Tourism: International Scientific Symposium, 10th General Assembly, Sri Lanka. Charenton-le-Pont, France: ICOMOS, 1993.
Available via ICOMOS (Conseil International des Monuments et des Sites International Council on Monuments and Sites) @ https://www.icomos.org/fr/ressources/publications/librairie-de-l-icomos/116-english-categories/resources/publications/290-ics-cultural-tourism-1993

Yatsuhiro, Shayna. "Spencer Leineweber’s Historic Impact." Historic Hawai'i Foundation > Blog. April 28, 2021.
Available @ https://historichawaii.org/2021/04/28/spencer-leinewebers-historic-impact/

Monday, October 10, 2022

The Secret Garden Opens 2022-2023 Hawai'i Opera Theatre Season Oct. 14

Summary: Gasser's The Secret Garden opens the 2022-2023 Hawai'i Opera Theatre season Oct. 14 as an operatic adaptation of Frances Hodgson Burnett's 1911 novel.

Nolan Gasser's The Secret Garden opens the 2022-2023 Hawai'i Opera Theatre season Oct. 14 as an operatized adaptation of Frances Hodgson Burnett's same-named 1911 novel.

Hawai'i Opera Theatre (HOT) stages The Secret Garden as the first of two new additions to the opera company's repertoire in the 2022-2023 season. The HOT production personalizes the opera by resetting "the same traditional story you love . . . in a tropical Hawaiian oasis," according to Hawai'i Opera Theatre's profile page for The Secret Garden.

The family-friendly opera receives two performances in its HOT debut season. Opening night takes place Friday, Oct. 14, at 7:30 p.m. The happy-ending opera closes with its second performance Sunday, Oct. 16, at 4:00 p.m. Both performances are staged in downtown Honolulu at Hawai'i Opera Theatre's performance venue, the Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall.

The English-language opera is sung in English, along with English supertitles for the audience. The Secret Garden lasts for approximately 2 hours 20 minutes, with one intermission.

The Secret Garden's HOT debut occurs nine years (9 years, 7 months, 13 days) after the opera's premiere Friday, March 1, 2013, at Zellerbach Hall on the University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley; UCB) campus. The San Francisco Opera had commissioned American composer and musicologist Nolan Ira Gasser (born Nov. 10, 1964) with operatizing the English children's literature classic by Anglo-American playwright and novelist Frances Eliza Hodgson Burnett (Nov. 24, 1849-Oct. 29, 1924). The English-language libretto was written by English dramatist and novelist Carey Harrison (born Feb. 19, 1944), son of English actor Sir Reginald Carey "Rex" Harrison (March 5, 1908-June 2, 1990) and his second wife, German actress Lili Palmer (Lilli Marie Peiser; May 24, 1914-Jan. 27, 1986).

Elizabeth Askren (born 1976) conducts both performances in the 2022-2023 HOT season. The American conductor and pianist's conductorship of The Secret Garden marks her HOT debut.

American stage director and administrator Karen Tiller directs Hawai'i Opera Theatre's production of Gasser's The Secret Garden. She switched to production direction in 2013, after 10 and one-half years (December 2003-January 2013) as Executive Director of Hawai'i Opera Theatre.

Three of The Secret Garden's four principal singers make their HOT debuts in the production. Filipina-American soprano Laura Corina Sanders sings Mary Lennox, whose blooming restoration of an untended garden ultimately gladdens all lives in her new, formerly disparaged home. American mezzo-soprano Abi Levis (Abigail Levis; born March 1987), appears as Martha Sowerby, who tells Mary about the abandoned garden. Cuban-American tenor Andres Acosta portrays Dickon Sowerby, Martha's nature-loving brother.

Japanese tenor Taka Komagata performs as Colin Craven, Mary's cousin, who sheds illness for health via his involvement in the re-discovered garden. Komagata had made his HOT debut as Goro the marriage broker in the 2021-2022 season's three performances (Friday, April 8; Sunday, April 10; Tuesday, April 12) of Madame Butterfly (Madama Butterfly) by Italian opera composer Giacomo Puccini (Dec. 22, 1858-Nov. 29, 1924).

American mezzo-soprano Leslie Goldman completes the Sowerby family as Susan, Martha and Dickon's loving mother, whose letter brings Colin's father happily home. She most recently sang nursemaid Annina in the 2018-2019 HOT season's three performances (Friday, May 17; Sunday, May 19; Tuesday, May 21) of La Traviata by Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901).

Chinese-American bass Robert Feng portrays gardener Ben Weatherstaff. Feng returns to Hawai'i Opera Theatre after appearing in two roles in the previous, 2021-2022, season's production of Madama Butterfly. He had performed as Butterfly's monastic uncle and as Prince Yamadori, selected by Goro (Taka Komagata) as Butterfly's next husband, in the season's three performances on Friday, April 8; Sunday, April 10; Tuesday, April 12. He had made his HOT debut in Re-Emerging: HOT Live in Concert. Hawai'i Opera Theatre's two performances (Friday, March 11; Sunday, March 13) of 90-minute operatic selections had celebrated the return to live opera after the 2020-2021 season's coronavirus-compelled cancellations.

Leslie Goldman and Robert Feng return in the 2022-2023 HOT season for the season's third opera, Puccini's Gianni Schicchi. Goldman sings Nella, wife of deceased Buoso Donati's disinherited nephew, Gherardo. Feng sings Betto di Signa, deceased Buoso Donati's disinherited, poor brother-in-law.

Two secondary roles mark HOT debuts for their singers. American contralto Alissa Anderson sings Mrs. Medlock. American bass-baritone Damien Geter appears as Archibald Craven, Colin's father, whose despair transforms into happiness with his son's health and the healthy blooming of his deceased wife's garden.

The 2022-2023 HOT season's second opera, The Elixir of Love, opens four months after The Secret Garden. The Elixir of Love is staged as the English-language version of L’Elisir d’Amore by Italian composer Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (Nov. 29, 1797-April 8, 1848). The season's second opera is slated for two performances. The Elixir of Love opens Friday, Feb. 17, at 7:30 p.m. and closes with a Sunday matinee, Feb. 19, at 4:00 p.m.

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Hawai'i Opera Theatre's 2022-2023 season localizes Nolan Gasser's The Secret Garden by resetting the same-named classic English children's literature novel in Hawai'i: Hawaii Opera Theatre, via Facebook July 18, 2022, @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/posts/pfbid02ywXnNXAXje4LeWhyC258fhx9drwLJY2phpF2Fr5wsQsj4zUngwTmjJztYDaTkzMzl

Hawaii Opera Theatre, via Facebook Aug. 18, 2022, @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/videos/hot-is-partnering-up-with-a-maris-gardens-for-our-upcoming-opera-the-secret-gard/604627757887042/

For further information:

Alissa Anderson Contralto. "Resume: Roles." Alissa Anderson Contralto.
Available @ https://www.alissaandersoncontralto.com/resume

Anders, Bodhi. "Taka Komagata, Tenor for Don Giovanni, featured performer at the 2018 Halifax Summer Opera Festival." Halifax Summer Opera Festival. July 22, 2018.
Available @ http://halifaxsummeroperafestival.com/taka-komagata-tenor-for-don-giovanni-featured-performer-at-the-2018-halifax-summer-opera-festival/

Dornbush, Laura. "First Look: Hawai‘i Opera Theatre’s 'The Secret Garden.'" Honolulu Magazine. Oct. 4, 2022.
Available @ https://www.honolulumagazine.com/first-look-hawaii-opera-theatres-the-secret-garden/

Hawaii Opera Theatre. "1st Rehearsal today for The Secret Garden! You’re in for a treat with all this talent." Facebook. Sep. 21, 2022.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/videos/1st-rehearsal-today-for-the-secret-garden-youre-in-for-a-treat-with-all-this-tal/497283961822837/

Hawaii Opera Theatre. "HOT is partnering up with a Mari’s Gardens for our upcoming opera, The Secret Garden! Stay tuned to learn more! #marisgardens #plantsmakepeoplehappy #luckywelivehawaii #opera #collaboration #partnership #October2022 #tropicalvibes #bookclub #thesecretgarden." Facebook. Aug. 18, 2022.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/videos/hot-is-partnering-up-with-a-maris-gardens-for-our-upcoming-opera-the-secret-gard/604627757887042/

Hawaii Opera Theatre. "Meet Taka Komagata! Taka plays Colin Craven in our upcoming production of The Secret Garden! Find out how he prepares for his role and what his guilty please is! Don't miss your chance to see The Secret Garden live at the Blaisdell on October 14 & 16! #artist #artistinterview #thesecretgarden #anime #NHK #meettheartist #october #blaidsell #honolulu #hawaii #familyfriendly #funforthewholefamily #operaforeveryone #gettoknowme #live #literature #books #SourGummies #hotartist." Facebook. Sep. 20, 2022.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/videos/artist-interview-with-taka-komagata/1956143574717851/

Hawaii Opera Theatre. "Sampling the mainstage season in #studio101 #hotopera #season #preview #sample #pauhana #operaisforeveryone #opera #honoluluevents #honolulu #thesecretgarden #theelixiroflove #giannischicchi #2022 #2023 #blaisdell." Facebook. Sep. 15, 2022.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/posts/pfbid0arck6GesCKtERAK2UWsUCt4BkVdnffdKNxgFQGqGxVHbztVudvqXJVHMcmTV2qAFl

Hawaii Opera Theatre. "A ticket giveaway contest is right around the corner! #giveaway #contest #staytuned #thiscouldbeyours #operalover #Bookclub #theatre #thisfall #October #thesecretgarden #HOTsecretgarden #HOTopera." Facebook. Aug. 19, 2022.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/posts/pfbid02DPcunAVkfrwNsuY6445r72hJ1NsGcx46xJQ4E6r2Vy8XgUb5zV7ArmfRnF6pX89Jl

Hawaii Opera Theatre. "Tickets Hot Off the Printer! Rivers and Lore, our incredible box office team, are getting your tickets ready! We are so stoked to open our season in October with The Secret Garden. #tickets #boxoffice #HOTOpera #The SecretGarden #HOT #October #Live #Blaisdell #thingstodo #theatre #event #Honolulu #aloha #hawaii #oahu #hawaiilife #hilife." Facebook. Aug. 25, 2022.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/posts/pfbid0QfTmXzdi6AkeypXBQ1aKkTXrgvdDJdhTshUiD6wa38oxSEhm2wjiHBr8JHbqc4M2l

Hawaii State Legislature. "Karen Tiller Polivka." Hawaii State Legislature > Session 2018.
Available @ https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session2018/other/GM602_Polivka_Resume.pdf

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "2023 HOT Opera Season." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > 2023 HOT Opera Season.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/2023-hot-opera-season/

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "La Traviata." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > Past Productions > 2018-2019.
Available @ http://www.hawaiiopera.org/la-traviata/

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "The Secret Garden: Learn More." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > 2023 HOT Opera Season.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/2023-hot-opera-season/the-secret-garden-live-at-the-blaisdell/

Kronberg, Allison. "#HOTSPEAKS: Singer Gets Kids Excited About Opera." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > News-Events > Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/news-events/tag/leslie-goldman/

Lau-Grover, Kristen (Kristen). "Karen Tiller on HPR's The Conversation." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > News-Events. March 15, 2017.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/news-events/three-decembers-hprs-conversation/

MacMillan, Kyle. "Damien Geter takes on the disparate roles of composer and performer." CSO Chicago Symphony Orchestra > Experience. March 8, 2022.
Available @ https://cso.org/experience/article/9222/damien-geter-takes-on-the-disparate-roles-of

Operabase. "Leslie Goldman McInerny Mezzo-soprano." Operabase > Artists.
Available @ https://www.operabase.com/artists/leslie-goldman-mcinerny-70469/en

Operabase. "Taka Komagata Tenor." Operabase itthon [Home] > Művészek [Artists].
Available @ https://www.operabase.com/artists/taka-komagata-2136161/hu

Salazar, David. "Joshua Jeremiah, Laura Corina Sanders, Taka Komagata, Efrain Solis, Andrew Stetson Headline Hawai’i Opera Theatre’s 2022-23 Season." OperaWire. May 7, 2022.
Available @ https://operawire.com/joshua-jeremiah-laura-corina-sanders-taka-komagata-efrain-solis-andrew-stetson-headline-hawaii-opera-theatres-2022-23-season/

TB. "Abi Levis: We're Really Innovative." NATS National Association of Teachers of Singing > The Latest > Voices of COVID-19. March 16, 2020.
Available @ https://www.nats.org/Voices_of_COVID-19_-_Abi_Levis.html

Tiller, Karen. "Karen Tiller." LinkedIn.
Available @ https://www.linkedin.com/in/karen-tiller-8a92b09

Monday, October 3, 2022

Hawai'i Opera Theatre Has Three Operas in Joy-Themed 2022-2023 Season

Summary: Hawai'i Opera Theatre stages three operas in its joy-themed 2022-2023 season: The Secret Garden, The Elixir of Life and Gianni Schicchi.

The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett's same-named classic operatized by Nolan Gasser, opens Hawai'i Opera Theatre's 2022-2023 season: Hawaii Opera Theatre, via Facebook Aug. 19, 2022

Honolulu's Hawai'i Opera Theatre stages three operas in its joy-themed 2022-2023 season as a celebration of light and life through The Secret Garden, The Elixir of Love and Gianni Schicchi.

Hawai'i Opera Theatre (HOT) offers two new operas and one previously performed opera in the opera company's 2022-2023 season. Gianni Schicchi and The Secret Garden make their HOT debuts. The Elixir of Love returns after a 46-year absence from HOT's seasonal performance roster. The Secret Garden, The Elixir of Love and Gianni Schicchi are offered separately as autumn, winter and spring performances, respectively.

The Secret Garden receives two performances for the opera's HOT debut. Opening night is set for Friday, Oct. 14, 2022, at 7:30 p.m. The second, closing performance is scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 16, as a matinee at 4:00 p.m.

The Secret Garden is based upon the same-named classic of English children's literature published in 1911 by Anglo-American novelist and playwright Frances Eliza Hodgson Burnett (Nov. 24, 1849-Oct. 29, 1924). The San Francisco Opera commissioned the family-friendly opera from American composer and musicologist Nolan Ira Gasser (born Nov. 10, 1964) and English dramatist and novelist Carey Harrison (born Feb. 19, 1944), son of English actor Sir Reginald Carey "Rex" Harrison (March 5, 1908-June 2, 1990) and his second wife, German actress Lili Palmer (Lilli Marie Peiser; May 24, 1914-Jan. 27, 1986). The opera's premiere took place Friday, March 1, 2013, at Zellerbach Hall on the campus of the University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley; UCB).

The English-language opera is sung in English in both HOT performances. English supertitles will be displayed.

The Elixir of Love is staged as the 2022-2023 HOT season's second opera. The comic opera receives two performances this season. Opening night is slated for Friday, Feb. 17, 2023, at 7:30 p.m. The second, closing performance is set for Sunday, Feb. 19, as a matinee at 4:00 p.m.

Hawai'i Opera Theatre's debut of The Elixir of Love took place over four and one-half decades ago, in the 1975-1976 season. The opera received three performances in its debut season. HOT's Elixir of Love opened Friday, Jan. 30, played Sunday, Feb. 1, and closed Tuesday, Feb. 3.

The Elixir of Love remained unperformed until the 2022-2023 season. This season's two performances of The Elixir of Love increase the opera's HOT performance tally from three to five.

The Elixir of Love is an English-language version of L’Elisir d’Amore by Italian composer Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (Nov. 29, 1797-April 8, 1848). Donizetti's Italian-language original libretto was written by Italian librettist and poet Felice Romani (Jan. 31, 1788-Jan. 28, 1865). L'Elisir d'Amore's premiere was held Wednesday, June 15, 1831, at Théâtre de L’Académie Royale de Musique, now known as Opéra National de Paris (National Opera of Paris).

Hawai'i Opera Theatre's two February 2023 performances will be sung in English. Also, English supertitles will be displayed.

Gianni Schicchi places as the third and last of the 2022-2023 HOT season's three opera. The farcical slapstick opera receives two end-of-season performances. Opening night is planned for Friday, April 28, 2023, at 7:30 p.m. The second, closing performance is timetabled for Sunday, April 30, as a matinee at 4:00 p.m.

Italian opera composer Giacomo Puccini (Dec. 22, 1858-Nov. 29, 1924) composed Gianni Schicchi (pronounce: jahn-nee skee-kee) as the third installment of Il Trittico (The Triptych), a collection of three one-act operas. The Italian libretto, written by Italian librettist and playwright Giovacchino Forzano (Nov. 19, 1884-Oct. 28, 1970), originates in an episode in Canto XXX of the first cantica, Inferno, of Divina Commedia (Divine Comedy) by medieval Italian poet Dante Alighieri (May/June 1265-Sept. 14, 1321). Il Trittico premiered Saturday, Dec. 14, 1918, at the Metropolitan Opera.

The two HOT performances in April 2023 was be sung in Italian. English supertitles will be displayed.

All three operas will be presented at the Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall. Hawai'i Opera Theatre's performance venue is located in the Neal S. Blaisdell Center at 777 Ward Avenue, in downtown Honolulu's south shore Kaka'ako neighborhood.

The multi-purpose complex's original name, Honolulu International Center, had been determined by a City Council resolution adopted Tuesday, Sep. 24, 1963, according to land use consultant and planner John T. Young in "War Memorial Municipal Auditorium," posted Sunday, Oct. 18, 2015, to his blog, To Take Responsibility. The center received its current name from the City Council Wednesday, Jan. 14, 1976, to honor Neal Shaw Blaisdell (Nov. 6, 1902-Nov. 5, 1975). Honolulu's eighth mayor (1955-1969) had presided over the center's dedication Saturday, Sep. 12, 1964.

Honolulu's Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall serves as the performance venue for Hawai'i Opera Theatre's lineup of Gasser's The Secret Garden, Donizetti's The Elixir of Love and Puccini's Gianni Schicchi in the opera company's 2022-2023 season: Robert.Allen, CC BY SA 3.0 Unported, via Wikimedia Commons

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Dedication

The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett's same-named classic operatized by Nolan Gasser, opens Hawai'i Opera Theatre's 2022-2023 season: Hawaii Opera Theatre, via Facebook Aug. 19, 2022, @ https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiOpera/posts/pfbid02DPcunAVkfrwNsuY6445r72hJ1NsGcx46xJQ4E6r2Vy8XgUb5zV7ArmfRnF6pX89Jl

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "1976: The Elixir of Love January 30; February 1, 3." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > Shows > Past Productions.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/shows/past-productions/

Hawai'i Opera Theatre. "2023 HOT Opera Season." Hawai'i Opera Theatre > 2023 HOT Opera Season.
Available @ https://www.hawaiiopera.org/2023-hot-opera-season/

Marriner, Derdriu. "Florence Easton, Puccini’s Lauretta Creator, Died Aug. 13, 1955." Earth and Space News. Monday, Aug. 12, 2019.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/08/florence-easton-puccinis-lauretta.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Il Trittico Is the Dec. 8, 2018, Met Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast." Earth and Space News. Dec. 3, 2018.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/12/il-trittico-is-dec-8-2018-met-opera.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Quinn Kelsey Sings Amonasro, Marcello, Rigoletto at Met in 2022-2023." Earth and Space News. Monday, Sep. 19, 2022.
Young, Peter T. "War Memorial Municipal Auditorium." To Take Responsibility. Sunday, Oct. 18, 2015.
Available @ https://totakeresponsibility.blogspot.com/2015/10/war-memorial-municipal-auditorium.html