If you fall into the “mature singer” category, finding a summer program fit can be a challenge. One program recognized this, and has created an innovative new program that offers training and much more.
In our January issue CS featured an article on the Feb. 10 world premiere of a new opera, The Grapes of Wrath. Now we take the opportunity to talk with composer Ricky Ian Gordon and baritone Brian Leerhuber (Tom Joad) one month after the opera’s Minnesota Opera premiere and just prior to its Utah Opera opening.
One idea to revive what some call the dying art form of opera is to produce new works with stories and themes that resonate with modern-day operagoers. Minnesota Opera and Utah Opera have joined to coproduce a new work by Ricky Ian Gordon based on John Steinbeck’s epic classic, The Grapes of Wrath. Read about the production process, including the challenges the singers are facing in bringing this new work to life.
Transport yourself back in time to Honolulu, Hawaii on Feb. 11, 1854.
A new summer program in Hawaii offers singers a chance to combine learning with pleasure. Read about the inaugural 2005 program, what new things will be offered in 2006, and learn about the history of opera in Hawaii.
