I’m finishing up two and a half days in Philadelphia (brilliant view from my hotel at left), shaking up the world of opera with colleagues from Opera America. In an attempt to synthesize the ideas and energy that result from an opportunity like this, I usually craft a written summary. This time, I’ve decided to
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Studio Shuffle
Wednesday’s Little Lunch Music concert for Wolf Trap Foundation employees featured four of our Studio Artists. In a preview of next month’s Aria Jukebox concert format, the audience chose the selections. Thanks to mezzo-soprano Aleksandra Romano, baritone Brian Vu, soprano Courtney Johnson and tenor Yoni Rose for some amazing midday music. (See below the photo
Read MoreLoad In!
It’s time to squeeze the Giovanni set through the sliding glass doors on the side of the German Barn and up the ramp to the stage. (My kingdom for a loading dock… or an elevator…) And while we were at it, we had a lovely lunch with the crews of the scene and costume shops
Read MoreDancing
by Lee Anne Myslewski Imagine waking up on a clear morning at the beginning of a new artistic adventure…the sun is high, the humidity is already in the air. And you’re headed to one of the largest outdoor theaters in the US…to that sacred backstage space. When you arrive you meet a tiny blonde pixie
Read MoreDon Giovanni Casting Update
Making opera at WTOC is a continual dance between process and product. The same could be said of life in any opera company, but here it’s more central than most other places. We focus on the process because our mission is to develop and promote the skills and artistry of our young professional singers. We
Read MoreA Guest from (the other) Vienna
Above: Robert Koerner & Jean-Paul Fouchécourt (Opéra de Lyon), Thomas Lausmann (Wiener Staatsopera) and Philip Broeking (Komische Oper Berlin) talk with WTOC artists and staff about auditioning and working in Europe. They discussed how Fest contracts are and aren’t similar to YAPs in the United States, how the singer/manager business relationship is different in Europe, and how
Read MoreLeporelli
Kicking off this season’s Little Lunch Music series: Craig Irvin (left) and Ryan Kuster (right), delivering a two-man version of Leporello’s Catalogue Aria. (Which, I believe, should always be delivered as a spontaneous duet. From now on.) Lunch Music is a weekly offering for employees of the Wolf Trap Foundation during which our singers generously volunteer
Read MoreFirst Week on the Job
Most new jobs or internships move slowly at first, to give the newbie a chance to get his feed on the ground. But if you’re reporting for work as a Wolf Trap Opera Studio Artist, it’s a different story… During their first 6 days at Wolf Trap, these 20-somethings have already: Strutted their stuff in
Read MoreInstant Family
If you come to a show at The Barns (or almost any other opera house, frankly), you could be forgiven for thinking that the people who put together and perform the show you’re seeing have been working together for a while. Months, for sure. Years, perhaps. What isn’t often realized by audiences is that the
Read MoreDizzy with Delegation!
It’s a most wonderful time of the year. Artists and staff bring new energy into the building, the weather is still temperate enough to be tolerable, and season projects are all in their uncomplicated full-of-potential infancy. But May is delicious mostly because of delegation. In the blink of an eye, a 2.5-member team is doubled
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