There’s a great opera parlor game that involves naming characters who have a great bearing on an opera plot and are referred to in the libretto but who never actually appear. We’ve gone one better – in The Inspector, it’s the title character who never shows up. No matter, for everyone onstage spends the whole
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Inspecting: The Ladies
Meet the ladies of Mayor Fazzobaldi‘s family, descriptions courtesy of Mark Campbell’s libretto: Bernadetta: Mezzo-soprano. 40s–50s. Physically akin to her husband the Mayor, but taller. Pretentious, vain, and not above having a lust for power—and material gain—that is stronger than her husband’s. Beatrice: Soprano. Late 20s. Their daughter. As thin and delicate in physique as
Read MoreInspecting: Fazzobaldi
This week we’re workshopping the next Musto/Campbell opera. The Inspector will premiere next spring at The Barns, and we’re taking it apart and putting it back together stem-to-stern. Today, meet Mayor Fazzobaldi [pronounced Fatso Baldy for those of you who don’t speak Italian:)) Baritone. 40s–50s. Short, corpulent, bombastic, bellicose, and bumbling, a man driven by his
Read MoreUncertainty
We’re furiously working out the details of our open-ended approach to Zaide. We will offer anywhere from two to four possible endings, and the details will emerge during our rehearsal period. The desire to lock in the details now is tempting, but to do so would be to fly in the face of the whole
Read MoreA Place to Call Home
Yes, I’m still here, having fallen prey to the dreaded blog equation. The faster life rolls at you, the more there is to write about, and the fewer hours you have to do it with… I couldn’t let today pass without pointing you toward columnist John Kelly’s “Appreciating the Tenor of Opera Company Life,” in
Read MoreVote for Steve
Over at the Washington Post, Anne Midgette says that the White House could help classical music by having fun with it. Among her suggestions is friend of Wolf Trap and champion of all great songs everywhere, Steve Blier. Take a trip over to washingtonpost.com to vote early and often for Steve in the poll!
Read MoreEarth Day, WTOC Style
There are advantages to working next door to a National Park. To celebrate Earth Day and National Park Week, our staff meeting was held on the move, at the park. (This works particularly well with a staff of two.) A beautiful 3-mile hike in sunny 70-degree weather was just the ticket to make all operatic
Read MoreWhere to Begin?
If you aren’t already following Adaptistration‘s annual Take a Friend to the Orchestra blog series, you should check it out. I contributed a few years ago, and every year Drew taps a terrific range of writers to talk about their experiences with and advice on introducing people to our world. If you have just a
Read MoreInterpolating High F’s
“I sang Norma better than anyone had in years and I interpolated a high F at the end of the first act… you had better have a couple of high F’s you can interpolate into your life.” I treated myself to a trip to the Kennedy Center on Wednesday to see the current run of
Read MorePause
I don’t know if I’ve ever been the onstage recipient of the kind of audience response that greeted last night’s Bastianello & Lucrezia performances. We who toil in the fields of “classical” music often go through entire evenings onstage wondering if anyone in the audience is really with us. Of course, we sometimes find out
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