Carl is unique among the alumni on the upcoming August 24 concert, for he was a member of an Associate Artist program run for two years in the 1980’s. That program was an early precursor for our current Studio Artist program, as it was focused on singers at a slightly earlier phase of their careers.
Read MorePosts Categorized: WTOC History
Homecoming: James Valenti
James sang what was to become one of his signature roles at Wolf Trap in 2004; Rodolfo in La bohème. In another first for the WTOC, that Bohème represented our first cover-to-cover full opera done with the National Symphony Orchestra. When James returns to the Filene Center stage on August 24, he’ll sing the anthem
Read MoreHaving to Choose
We pulled together 14 alumni of the Wolf Trap Opera Company for the exciting anniversary concert at the Filene Center on August 24, 2011. Opera’s Greatest Hits will cover all 4 decades of the Company’s history and reach across hundreds of years of iconic opera arias and ensembles. As luxurious as this is, my only
Read MoreWTOC 1985: Transformations
Susa’s Transformations took The Barns by storm in summer 1985. An amazing cast in an exciting and edgy production. I had just managed to worm my way into Wolf Trap (see the music staff listing below), having defected recently from my first career in music therapy. (Possibly, the fact that this production of Transformations was
Read More1984 Wolf Trap Opera Company: Overview
It’s great fun to begin to see truly familiar names in programs and paperwork from the mid-80’s. The 1984 list includes coaches who were to become my colleagues (JoAnn Kulesza, Carol Palca), Foundation staff who are still here toiling away at the Trap (Bob Grimes of The Barns), and an administrator who was to become
Read MoreWTOC 1984: A Little Night Music
There’s a sad absence of photos in the files for Sondheim’s debut at the WTOC in 1984. Night Music played for three performances at The Barns in August.
Read MoreWTOC 1984: Albert Herring
I turned up no artist photos from 1984’s Albert Herring – just a handful of snapshots of the set. Britten’s comic opera was conducted by WTOC Music Director Richard Woitach and directed by David Ostwald.
Read MoreWTOC 1984: The Coronation of Poppea
After the success of the previous season’s La calisto, the Company mounted another baroque opera at The Barns in July 1984 – Monteverdi’s Coronation of Poppea. With its numerous roles, it was a wonderful vehicle for the resident ensemble of young artists. The cast boasted now-General Director of Fort Worth Opera Darren Keith Woods as
Read MoreWolf Trap Opera Company 1983: Overview
Other than a showcase performance at the Meadow Center, the Company’s 1983 activities were exclusive to its relatively new home at The Barns. In addition to full productions of Donizetti’s Tutor’s Dilemma and Cavalli’s La calisto, patrons enjoyed a cabaret-style performance of Kurt Weill – After Dark, which wove materials from Mahagonny and Street Scene.
Read MoreWTOC 1983: La calisto
Cavalli’s La calisto marked the Company’s first return to the baroque since the 1977 L’egisto. The latter was on the big outdoor stage, but the 1983 Calisto enjoyed the intimacy of The Barns. The late Joseph McLellan wrote in The Washington Post, “[Calisto‘s] plot is a running battle between the sublime and the (intentionally) ridiculous…
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