PROGRAM: Bravo 2007 Spring Opera and Dance

Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

The Official Magazine of the Detroit Opera House

BRAVO is a Michigan Opera Theatre publication .

Dave Blackburn , Mitch Carter, Editors

Contributors

Dave Blackburn Mitchell Carter

David DiChiera

Karen VanderKloot DiChiera

Tim Lentz

Roberto Mauro

Judith Slotkin

Publisher Echo Publications , Inc. Royal Oak, Michigan

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Physicians' services provided by Henry Ford Medical Center.

Pepsi-Cola is the official soft drink and juice provider of the Detroit Opera House.

Cadillac Coffee is the official coffee of the Detroit Opera House.

Steinway is the official piano of the Detroit Opera House and Michigan Opera Theatre. Steinway pianos are provided by Hammell Music, ex clusive representative for Steinway and Sons in Michigan.

President Tuxedo is the official provider of formalwear for the Detroit Opera House.

Michigan Opera Theatre is a nonprofit cultural organization , whose activities are supported in part by the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs , the National Endowment for the Arts, and other individuals , corporations and foundations. Michigan Opera Theatre is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Greetings, dear friends, and welcome to the Detroit Opera House.

We have some exceptional productions and unique events in store for you this spring, and we've planned a summer full of fun and enlightening educational programs for everyone to enjoy.

The 2007 spring season begins with two exciting dance engagements, Swan Lake and Where The Wild Things Are. American Ballet Theatre is a genuine nationa l treasure, and Swan Lake is a timeless classic, loved by ballet fans the world over. Together, they are the Grand Pas De Deux of the art form. This sumpt u ous production premiered at the Kennedy Center in 2000, and h as received both critical and audience acclaim for its stunning choreography and masterful interpretation of Tchaikovsky's score What's more, accompanied by our own Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra, these moving performances embody all that i s magical about an evening at the ballet. We are thrilled and honored to bring this production to the Detroit Opera House stage for you.

Where The Wild Things Are is a deCidedly different production, but one wh ich we are equally excited about. The Grand Rapids Ballet Company is Michigan 's premiere dance troupe, and though they are close "neighbors, " these performances mark th e company 's Detroit Opera House debut. Where The Wild Things Are is based on Maurice Sendak's award-winning children's book, and features sets and costumes deSigned by the author himself. The ballet, choreographed by Septime Webre and featuring music by Randall Woolf, was created specifica lly for ch ildr en, though it's a delight for the inner-child in all of us. It 's a perfect

opportunity to share the arts with your chi ldren or grandchildren, and we lo ok forward to seeing lot s of young faces in the audience.

Our 36 th Spring Opera Season kicks off in grand sty l e as we present Puccini's last , and grandest, masterpiece, Turandot, complete with opulent sets and exotic orchestration evoking legendary China. We are so pleased to present the return of Yu Qiang Dai to the Mich i gan Opera Theatre Stage. You may remember his triumphant company debut as Cavaradossi in our 1995 production of Tosca - now, he returns as Calaf (a role shared wit h MOT ve teran Eduardo Villa ), which ha s become his signature role. In May, we proudly present our first-ever production of The Abduction from the Seraglio Abduction includes some of Mozart's most engaging and difficult arias; th ese will be beautifully rendered in English b y an exciting young cast, which includes two of opera 's most sought-after sopranos, Elizabeth Futral and Leah Partridge, in the demanding role of Konstanze. Gounod 's Romeo and Juliet closes our Sprin g 2007 Season. We are thrilled to present this French masterpiece for the first time at the Detroit Opera House. Apropos of thi s universal legend of adolescent love, our production features some of the brightest young singers on the int ernatio nal scene.

It is paramount that I acknowledg e the generous sponsors who make these inc r edib l e performances possible. In this cha ll enging economic climate, I feel an exceptiona l gratitude for our corporate partners , as we ll as the foundations and individual donors who have gracious ly extende d their support

so that we may all enrich our lives with the arts. This support is critica l to Michigan Opera Theatre a nd the Detr oit Opera House, and t o the cultural we llb eing of our community. With that in mind, I would like to offer my heartfelt thanks to our season s pon sors, Cadillac, for making our spring opera season possib l e , and DaimlerChrysler, for their unwavering support of dan ce. I'm also pleased to extend my gratitude to JP Morgan Chase for underwriting four performances in our dance ser i es this season

I am delighted that you have joined us for this most excitin g season. Thank you and enjoy t h e show I

PRIVATE CLIENT GROUP

The Private Client Group is proud to announce that with every $1 million new investment management or trust account you open, we will donate $5,000 to the Detroit Opera House in your name. 50/ while we help clients preserve and grow their wealth through sound investment management, private banking, and .trust & estate administration, we will also ensure the arts remain for future generations. To experience the Private Client Group/ call William Goodhue, Market Executive, at 248.729.8431.

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PERFORMANCE

a commitment to Excellence

With its commitment to excellence in every performance, the Michigan Opera Theatre enriches our community and the quality of our lives.

The MASCO family of companies proudly supports the Michigan Opera Theatre 's great productions in its 2006 - 2007 season.

We believe a strong, supportive presence in the community where we live , work and do business is vital. It strengthens our dedication to excellence in all that we do.

C o urtesy of Mic hi gan Op era T hea tre

At (omerica Bank, we believe the arts play an important part in the community. They enrich our lives, stir our souls, and give us inspiration. Supporting the arts is a reflection of one of our core beliefs-that giving back to the communities we serve is our responsibility. But it's not simply a responsibility, it's also a great pleasure to see the joy it brings. And that's what we refer to in the banking business as a great return on an investment.

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SYNOPSIS

ries her ca n she find rel ease ; ers Od e tte and begs h er for- Act II of David Blair 's staging only then can the spell b e bro- given ess. Odette tells him that for ABT was first given at the Prologue ken. But if he should for swear she mu st kill herself , or sh e New York State Theater at Long before our stor y b egin s, her, she mu s t remain a swa n will forever b e a swan. Linco ln Center on J anuar y 18 , Od e tte , a b ea utiful prince ss, fore ve r. Siegfried , knowing that hi s 1966 , with Lupe Se rrano and falls und er th e spe ll of von destin y is forever changed, Ro yes Fernandez. The fir s t Rothbart , a wicked sorcerer. At that moment, von Rothbart declares h e will die with h er, performance of the co mplete appears. Th e prince , in hi s thus breaking von Rothb art 's ball e t s tage d by David Blair

ACT I : The prince' s birthday passion, reach es for his cross - power ove r Odette As dawn was give n b y ABT at the Civic party bow, but Odette imm ediately approaches , von Rothbart Op era House in Chicago on It is Princ e Sieg fri ed 's coming protect s th e so rcerer with h er app ea r s The lovers ans we r his February 16 , 1967 , with Na dia of age, and h e is celebrating body, fo r sh e knows that if h e threat b y throwing themselves Ne rina and Roye s Fernandez. with friends. Th e Queen is k ill ed b e fore the spell is bro - into th e lake. The sorcerer is It r ece ive d its first New York Mother arrives to give him his ken , she too will die. Th e sor - vanquished and his po we r perform ance at the New York present-a crossbow- and cerer di sa pp ea r s , and Odette destro ye d State Theater on May 9 , 196 7 , reminds him that as he is to slips away into the for es t. with Toni Land er and Bru ce become kin g, h e must choo se Siegfried realizes his fat e is Apotheosis Mar ks . A re -staged produ ction a bride at the ball the next now entwined with hers. The lovers are united in life of Swan Lake recei ve d it s ABT eve ning. She leaves, biddin g Dawn approa ches , and Odette after d ea th premi e re at the Kenne d y him to enjo y him se lf but is compelled b y the spell to Center for the Performin g Arts reminding him aga in to think return to h e r gui se as a swa n. Production History in Washington, D .C. on March about his royal obligation to Siegfried is left awes tru ck. The fir st production of Swan 27 , 198 1 , with Martine van be wed. Siegfried, realizing Lak e,with choreography b y Hamel and Kevin McKenzie. that h is carefree days are at an Intermission Julius (Wentzel) Reisinge r , en d , lea ves the party at the recei ve d it s world premi er e by A n ew production of Swa n h eight of the fes tivities to seek ACT III: The great hall the Ru ss ian Imperial Ballet a t Lake , with additional choreogthe so lace of the woods. Hera ld s and trumpets the Bolsh o i Theatre in Moscow raph y by Mikhail Baryshnikov Benno, hi s friend, finds him announce the sta rt of the ba ll on March 4, 1877 , dan ced by after Lev Ivano v and Marius and sugge sts that they go Eligib le young princess es from Pelagia s (Paulina) Karpako va Pe tipa , was given its wo rld hun ting Siegfr ied declines, all over the world arrive to b e as Od ett e-O dile and Stanislav pr emiere on Decemb er 2, preferring to be alone introdu ce d to Prince Siegfried Gillert as Prince Siegfried. 1988 , at the Oran ge Co unt y so that h e may choos e a bride. Performing Arts Center in

ACT II : Some hours later , by The y present their nation al Swan Lak e as we kno w it, with Costa Mesa, California , danced the lake dance s for the entertainment the Petip a/Ivano v choreogra- b y Su sa n Jaffe and Andris

Prince Siegfried enters a of the prin ce and th e Qu ee n phy, was given its first full - Liepa. This production moonli t cl earing in the for es t Mother, who reminds Siegfried length production at the rec eive d its New York preand sees a ma gnificent swan in that h e mu st choose one for Mar yi n sky Theatre in St. mi ere on May 8, 1989 , at the flight. He ca refully take s ai m , his wife. As Siegfried struggles Peter sburg on January 27 , Metropolitan Op era Hou se, but to hi s astonishment, th e with his responsibi li ty to 1895, wi th Pie rina Legna ni as dan ced again b y Ms. Jaffe and bird transforms into a breath - marry, hi s thoughts remain Od ett e-O dile and Pa vel Gerdt Ro ss Stretton. t akingly beautiful girl, and h e with Od e tt e, and he cannot as Prince Sieg fr ied withdraws into the t rees t o choose. Swan Lak e was revi ve d , with observe h er. Unable to re stra in American Ball e t Thea tre (then sta gin g by Kevin McKenzie his curiosity, h e steps out , on ly Tru mp e ts announce an unin - Ba ll et Theatre) first p erformed and lighting by Thoma s to sta rtl e and fright en her. He vi ted guest. It is vo n Rothb art , Act II of Swa n Lak e, with cho- Skelton, on May 21 , 19 93, at assures her that he wi ll do her wi th his daughter, Odil e. Sh e reograph y b y Anton Dolin the Metropolitan Op era no harm and asks her to se duce s Siegfried as von aft er Lev Iva no v and Mari u s H ou se, d anced by Sus an Jaffe explain the marvel he ha s just Rothbart h o ld s the court in Petip a, at the Center Thea tre and J eremy Collins. seen . Impresse d by his gentle- thra ll When Sieg fried in New York City on J anuar y n ess, Odette tells him the story announces his intention to 16 , 1940 , with Pa tri cia Th e wo rld premiere of this of her plight: sh e is a princ ess marr y Odile, vo n Rothbart Bowman as Odette and Mr. new produc tion was give n on of high birth who fe ll und er asks him to swe ar fidelity Do li n as Prince Siegfri ed . Mr. March 24 , 2000, at the th e spell of an evi l s orcerer, Siegfried r ea li zes too late that Dolin also choreograph ed the Kenne d y Center for the and no w h er fa te is to b e a he has b ee n the victim of a ter - gr and pas de deux from Ac t III Performing Arts in swa n Onl y in th e hours of rib Ie plot. Th e scene darkens. as th e "Black Swa n Pas de Wa shingto n , D.C. , d an ced by darkness m ay sh e assume h er Odette is seen at the castle Deu x, " whi ch premiered at th e Juli e Kent and Angel Co r ella. human gu ise. Ind ee d, this very door, weeping. Grief-stricken, Metropolit an Opera Hou se on The New York premi ere of this lake is fill ed with her moth er 's Siegfried ru sh es to the lake- Octob er 23, 1944 , with production was given on May tears . Od e tt e tells him she is side Tam ara Toumano va as Odile 19, 2000 , at the Metropolitan co ndemned for e ternity, and and Mr. Dolin as Prince Opera Hou se, dan ce d b y only if a virgin yo uth swears ACT N: The lakeside Siegfried. Susan Jaffe and Jos e Manu el eternal fid elity to h er and m arA great sto rm rages. Si eg fri ed , Carreno. bursting into the glade, dis cov-

AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE STAFF

Artistic Director: Kevin McKenzie

Executive Director: Rachel S. Moore

ARTISTIC

Associate Artis ti c Director:

Victor Barbee

Artistic Administrator: Crist in a Escoda

Ballet Masters:

Wes Chapman, Susan J ones, Irin a Kolpakova, Clinton

Lu ck ett , Georgin a Parkin son

Rehearsal Coord ina t or: Amy Acorn

Assis tant to the Art isti c Staff: Abby Kahn

Company Teachers:

Nancy Bielski, Ethan Brown, Wes Chapman, Rinat Im aev, Su san Jaffe, Clinton Luckett, Kirk Peterson, Na n cy Ra ffa , Vlad il en Semenov, Lup e Serrano

PRODUCTION

Director of Production an d Operations:

David G Lansky

Production Manager:

N. J ames Whitehill III

Technical Director:

Jarid Sum n er

Principal Stage Manager :

Dathan Manning

Stage Manager:

Danielle Vent imi gli a

Assistant Stage Manager:

Matt Lacey

Lighting Director: Brad Fields

Master Carpenter:

Frank LaMantia

Assis t ant Ca rp ente r:

Dan DePrenger

Flyman: Dan Hix

Master Electrician: Laura Carter

Ass istant Electricians:

J ames Wrobel, Paul Gibson

Property Master: Paul Wells

Assis t ant Property Man: Steven Dunbar

Wa rdrob e Supervisor: Bruce Horowitz

Ass ista nt Wardrobe:

Hilarie Jenkins, Caryn Wells, Andrew Corbo

Wigs and Make -up Master:

Riva Pizhadze

Ass is t ant Wigs and Make- up:

Tatyana Go fm an

COMPANY MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION

Director of Touring and Com p any Management: Don ya Hubby

Associate Company Manager: Step h anie Gasiorowski

Contract Coordinator: Ko Taguchi

Assistant to the Executiv e

Director: Laura Simpson

MUSIC

Music Director:

Ormsby Wi lkins

Principal Conductor: Charles Barker

Co n ductor and Music

Admi nis tr ator: David LaMarche

Concert Master: Ronald Oak land

Orchestra Personnel Manager: Matthew Dine

Rehearsal Pi anists: Barbara Bilach , Gladys Ce leste, David LaMarche , Henrietta Stern, Daniel Wa it e

DEVELOPMENT

Director o f Developm ent: Peter W Lyden

Assoc iate Director of Development: Amy Brown

Director of Special Events: John Banta

Director of In st itu ti ona l

Support: Mimi Bradley

Director of Indivi dua l Givi n g: Leah Th eriault

Database and Fina n ce Manager: Caro l Radel

Manager of In stitutional

Support: Caroline Saudek

Coordinator, Member Events and Services :

J essica Nowaski

Membership Associate, Dancers ' Circle: Daryl Cannon Development Associate/ Ass istant to Director of

Development: Merrill Feather

Membership Assoc iate, Patron Ti cke ting :

Jillian Barsalou

Development Associate

Alison Goldstein

Development Asso ciate: Cat h erin e St illwe ll

MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS

Director of Press and Public Relations:

Kelly Ryan

Director of Marketing and Brand Management:

James Timm

Press Associate:

Susie Morgan

Press Associate and Staff

Photographer:

Myra Armstrong

Gro up Sa les Ma n ager:

Ellen Koga

Press Assistant:

Re becca Kim

Associate Staff Photographer: Rosalie O'Connor

FINANCE

Ch ief Financial Officer:

Rachel Pivnick

Fin ance Ma n ager:

Mary Sormeley

Payroll and Benefits Ma n ager: Cathe r ine P Brown

General Services Manager: Vince Lingner

Bookkeeper:

Marianne VanaselJa

Office Manager: Roseanne Forni

EDUCATION AND TRAINING

Director of Ed u cat ion an d Training:

Mary J o Ziesel

Artistic Director, Studio Company:

Kirk Peterson

Principal , Jacqueline

Kennedy Onass is School:

Franco De Vita

Director of Summer Int ensives: Nancy Raffa

Director of Educa ti ona l Outreach : Denni s J. Walters

Summer Intens ives

Manager: Heidi Hoffman

Training Programs Manage r: Molly Schnyder

Studio Company Manager: Dana Viltz

Studi o Company Ballet Mistress: Gage Bush

Artis ti c Coordinator for Educational Outreach: Richard Toda

Artistic Associate for Educational Ou tr each: Stacey Forsyth Ma h an

Manager of School Programs: Kevi n Edwards

Education Coord in ator: Maggie Seyffert

Summ er Intensi ve Assistant: Melody Boza

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES

Consu lting Orthopedist: Dr. W illiam Hamilton

Assistant Orthopedist: Dr. Philip Bauman

Physical Therapists: Peter Marshall, Julie Daugherty

Massage Therapist: O linda Cedeno

Immigrat ion Cou n sel: Worms er, Kiely, Ga lef &: J acobs LLP

Labo r Counsel: Kenneth A. Margo li s of Kauff, McCla in , and McGuire LLP

Accounting: Lutz &: Carr

In surance Brokers: DeWitt Stern

American Ballet Theatre is a m e mb er of t h e American Art s Alli ance, the Arts and Busine ss Council, Inc. and Dan celU.5.A. Th e dancers and stage managers are m embers of the Ind epen d en t Artists of America.

Co un cil for the IAA: law offic es of Leo n ard Leibowitz.

Tru ck in g b y Clark Tra n s fer Inc.

Barb ara Ma te ra , Ltd. is t h e Offi cial Costume Shop o f Am erican Ballet Thea tre.

Prese ntation bouqu ets b y Robb Alverson Designs, Lt d.

IT consu lting service for ABT is provid ed b y Advance d Micrograph ic Sy stems In co rporat ed, www.a m s ny. com

Tour booking by Jean-J acques Ces bron , Columb ia Artists Managem ent, LLC

VOLUNTEERS

Julio Alegria , Mickey Alfonso, Caro l Bec ker, Bettina Benso n , Melvin Be rnstein , Sara an d Te d Brews ter , Pau l Cahi ll , J udi Chandon , Nansi Cle ment, Ka therine Cole, Christina A. Cowe ll , J oseph Davis , Barbara Defazio , Vivie n Delugg, Sherry Derr , Indira Devi , Marjorie Faver, Anne Fr ankel , Rebecca Fri edman , J ud y Ginesi, No r ma and Ted Glatzer, Joa n Gott li eb, Karen Halpern , Hone y H il zen , Wanda Jon es, Kit Krei li ck, Soraya A. Kurbin , Luc y Lee, Maggie Le mont , She ll ey Limme r, Kat h ryn McLaughlin, Su e Me r k, Audrey Messer, Ina M.M. Mishkin, Barbara Myers, Gerry Oster, Eri c Perkin s, Marilyn Peskin, Esperanza Regu e ra, Ger i Richards, Betsy Rum l , Gail Rya n , Juan it a Seidel, Es t ell e Selze r, Fatimah M. Simmons, Linda Sitnik , Michae lene Stasko, Marianne Stege land, Jenn ifer Nage l Suttm eie r, J ennifer Tarlow, Steven Toback , Tom Vas iloff, J ohanna Weber, Pe r i Winkler, Ant h ony Yaz ze tti

ABT gratefully acknowledges support from The Rosh Foundation ABT Artistic Initiatives Fund .

ABT gratefu lly acknowledges Th e Lind a Allard and Herb ert Gallen Costume Fund.

American Ball et Theatr e gra tefu lly acknowledges Kalin and Stanley Sc hw alb for their generous endowe d giJt mad e in recognition oj the amazing artistlY and talent oj ABT's dancers.

ABT gratefu lly acknowl edges Barbara Hemme rle Gollust and Keith Gollust Jor their endowed gift in support oj th e Plincipal Condu ctor's Chair.

ABT grateJully acknowl edges Jam es S. and Amy Reg an Jor their endowe d gift in support oj th e Principal First Violin/Concert Ma ster Chair.

ABT is grateful to t he following sponsors of So loists an d memb e rs of the Corps de Ballet:

Carmen Corella Betti na Varoli

Veronika Part Olga an d Eric J orgensen

Maria Riccetto Margare t , Peggy and Lewis Ranieri

Craig Salstein Ms Dening Wu Loh ez

Ge=adi Saveliev Brian and Darlene He idtke

Misty Copeland Su san Fales-Hill

Zhong-Jing Fang Fred and Irene Shen

Melanie Hamrick Margaret King Moore Dancer Awa r d

Sarah Smith - Ch ris ti an Baha

Am e ri ca n Ba ll et Th eatre wis h es to ex press its app r ecia tion to Th ea tre Developm ent Fund for it s support of this season.

BALLET THEATRE FOUNDATION , INC.

BOARD OF GOVERNING TRUSTEES

J acqueline Kenne d y Onassis (1929- 199 4 ),

Honora ry Chairman Emelita

Caroline Kennedy, Honorary Chairman

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Lewis S. Ranieri , Chairman

Anne M Tatlo ck , Honorary Chair, Executive Committee

Mildred C. Brinn , Edward A. Fox, Vice Chairmen

Nicholas S. Sch orsch, President

BrianJ H e idtk e, Vice President & Treasurer

Karin Sc hwalb , Secretary

Thoma s M. West, Chair, Finance Committee

Ed wa rd A. Fo x, Chair, Nominating Committe e Su sa n Fales-Hill, Lawrence J Sha w, Co -Chairs, Development Committee

Sh aron Patri c k , Chair, Strategic Planning Committe e

Na nc y E. Ha vens -Ha sty, Chair, Audit Committee

Karin Schwalb, Chair, Marketing & Merchandising Committee

Li sa Smith Cash in, Nicho las S Schorsch, Co-Chairs , Capital Projects Committee

Br ian J H eidtke, Chair, Education Committee

Ali Wambo ld , Vice Chair, Nominating Committee

Rod Brayman

Barbara Hemmerle Gollust

Anka K Palitz

Jam es S. Regan

TRUSTEES

David H. Koch, Vice Chairman

Robin Ne us t ein , President Emerita

S Chr istopher Meigher, III , Vice Chair, Marketing & Merchandising Committee

J Dennis De lafield, Chair, Investment Committee

Mark Wa inger, Chair, Human Resources Committe e

J oan Taub Ades

Linda Allard

Muffie Potter As ton

Andrew F Bart h

Arlene Bla u

De von F Briger

Stefano Co rsi

Na n cy Ellison

Susan Fe in ste in

Sonia Florian

Lori Garofa lo

Timothy M. George

William J Gillespie

Robert J Giuffra, Jr., Esq.

J udith M. Hoffman

Wendy Eva n s J osep h

J Jeffer y Kauffman

Th eresa Khawly

Donald Kr am er

Tivia Kram e r

Konrad R. Kru ger

Kevin McKenzie

Th omas Melone

Lori A. Milken

Rachel S. Moore

An gelo R. Mo zilo

Laura Ro senwa ld

Matthew Rub e l

Ellen A. Schiavone

Mrs. Bernard L. Schwartz

Cindy L. Sit es

Susan F Sosi n

J ohn Steffens

Blain e Trump

J ean Vo lp e

J oh n L. Warden, Esq. Soffia Wathne

H ONORARY T RUSTEES

Rick i Gail Co nwa y

Gage Bu sh Engl und

Alexander C. Ewing

Deborah, Lad y Ma cMillan

Mrs. Herb ert D. Mende l

Mrs. Byam K. Steve n s, Jr.

Mrs. Will iam Zeckendorf

CHAIRMEN E MERITI

Step h enJ Friedman, Esq.

Ha m il ton E. J ames

Melville Straus

T RUSTEES EMERITI

Lucia Chase (1897-1986) C h arles Payne (1909 -1 99 4 ) Charles H. Dyso n (1 9 09 - 1997) Nora Ka ye Ro ss (1920-1987)

Mrs. Ward S. Hagan (1927 -2005) Oliver Smith ( 1918-1 99 4) Peter T. J oseph (1 95 0-1998)

Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

BRAVO 11

AND DANCE EDUCATION ...

tfje verfect vas Se Seux

BY DAVE BLACKBURN

Throughout its eleven year history, the Den on Opera House has been touted as "the home of dance in Detroit. "

And for good reason. The house's expansive main stage-th e largest in Detroit-is the only stage in so u th eastern Michigan suitable for large-scale dance productions. Additionally, the company 's commitment to presenting the world 's great ball e t companies , alongside smaller, but equally rele vant contemporary troupes , has brought exceptional dance to the city year after year.

Phenomenal productions by companies including the Bolshoi, Joffrey and Kirov ballets, to name just a few, have thrill ed dance fans young and old alike, but as dance programming has become a mainstay at the opera house , the company has refocused its attention from merely presenting dance, to expanding interest , awareness and audience for the art form through community outreach , educationa l programs , partnerships and non-performance danceoriented entertainment.

"We 've alwa ys been committed to presenting dance , and to bringing the highest- level of

programming possible to our audience ," said Carol Ha lsted , Director of Dance at the Detroit Opera House. "But we' re moving forward with new programs which are equally exciting, and which, we hope, will enlighten and en tertain a wider base of dance enthusiasts than our main stage productions."

As in past seasons , the Detroit Opera House continues to offer "Dance Talks " one hour prior to dance performances. Th ese free , informal lectures give audienc es an opportunity to gain insight into the performance and compan y th ey're about to see, and fr equentl y, they're fa cilitated by company danc ers or artistic staff, creating a unique opportunity to connect one-onone with a performer. "Dance Talks" however are just th e toe of the slipper, so to '

Wi th the comp letion and opening of the Ford Center for Arts and Learning at the Detro it Opera House , and more specifically, the Margo V Cohen Center for Dance , the company has added a new wing to its home for dance, and created an ideal ve nue for its expanded offerings.

"This new facilit y h as really opene d a lot of opportunities for us , not only in creating a dedicated space for dance companies to rehearse, www.MichiganOpera.org

but also in giving us a space that 's idea l for e ducating dancers, and helpin g provide them new opportunities in dance," said Kamilah Levens, Dance Education Coord inator for the company This pa st season, the compan y produced a successfu l dance film series in the DaimlerChrysler Theater of the Ford Center. The series fea tured films about

from all over Metro Detroit, gave teachers the opportunity to earn SB-CEU cred it s for parti cipation, while st udyin g with dance experts.

In the spring and summer months opportunities for dancers abound. In conjun ction with their main stage performances, both American Ballet Theatre and the Grand Rapids Ballet

Summer Intensive-an exceptiona l program for pre-professional dancers, which cu lminate s in two fin al performances showcasing some of th e most ta lente d youths in the coun tr y

During the summer, the Detroit Opera House will offer its own dance intensi ve for local yo uths. The intensi ve will be taught by respected dance professionals. Also new for the summer of 2007 will be the Detroit Opera House Civic Dance Company, which will offer dancers fiv e weekends of intense repertory training cu lmin ating in a public performance. Dancers interested in either program can contact the department of dance at the Detroit Opera H ouse.

With all the dance related activity at the Detroit Opera House, it 's easy to see why the company reports the highest number of dance subscribers in its history this season And, it's easy to see why enthu siasm for dance continues to grow.

"This is a vibrant art, and we 're thrilled by the enthus ia sm we see in our audi ences," sa id Ha lsted "Our patrons are passionate about dance, and we hope to engage them in new ways, to nurture their interest and provide them the very best in dance programming. "

dance , and gave patrons a unique opportunit y to connect with each other.

The Dep artmen t of Dance also create d a new Sunday workshop series for dance teachers , which featured a variety of topics. The series, which drew teachers

Detroit Opera House

Company will host public master classes at the opera house. In March, the staff of the Alvin Ai ley School w ill visit to audition for new students. And in July, the staff of American Ballet Theatre will return for their tenth an nual Detroit www.MichiganOpera.org

Parties interested in additional information about all things dance at the Detroit Opera House are encouraged to visit www.MichiganOpera.org, call (313) 2373251 or email dance@motopera.org.

Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

THE CAST

Max Alexey Kulp in (30, 3 1) Attila Moso lygo (31 m )

Max's Relatives Kara Bond , David Braciak, Mindy Mosolygo, David Schultz, Ma rth a Be ll amy, Carissa Churchill, Ke ll y Clark, Chelsea Clow, Ericka Goss, Larissa Tanis

Mama Stephen Sanford

Max's Toys ........ ... .. .... .. ... .. Davi d Braciak, La ur a McQ u een, Mindy Mosolygo, David Schultz

Sea Creatures ..... .... . ......... .Dawnell Dryja, Nicho las Schultz

The Wild Things

Bernard ................... ......... ...... .. ... ... .... ..... ....... .... Al Goss

Bruno Thomas Ro ltsch

Tzippi .. .. .. ... . .... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .... .. ...... ............ W ill ie Waalkes

Emil .] oey Schu lt z Moishe Vincent Carbone

Aaron, the Faun .. ...... .. ...... .... .................... Stephen Sanford

Gang of Lost Maxes Kara Bond , Chelsea Clow, Laura McQueen , Mindy Mosolygo , David Schultz

Dream Mama Kateryna Derechyna

Dream Max with Mama David Schultz

SYNOPSIS

Scene I - Max Max, a small boy in a wolf suit , is p laying in the ha ll way outside his room , stalking his toy soldiers, ambushing his teddy bear from his 'Jungle" tent cloth strung up across the hall , and being thoroughly, happil y naughty.

Scene II - Mama. Max's lou d au nts, un cl es, and co u sins enter for Sunday dinner Max is then fr ightened by the shadow of something making very strange noises. It turns out to be his Mama and her wheezy old vacuum cleaner. She sco lds Max, but he continu es to be naughty and defy her. Soon he is sent to bed without his supper.

Scene III - Max's Room Max sulks and begins to think of terrible revenge. His room starts to change , and all about him a forest grows. A little sailboat appears and Max climbs in. He is alone at sea, moving through days and n ights unt il , as dawn approaches, sea creatures appear, and then a huge sea monster rears up from the water. Max utters a command , and the creature slowl y si n ks down. Soon an island comes into view with palm trees, a plateau, and a large cave.

Scene N - The Wild Things Max moors h is boat and then hears distant rumbling noises. Wi ld creatures hurtle out of a cave, shouting at Max and maki n g wicked fu n of him Though they seem comical, Max soon has enough o f their antics and noise. H e howls at them and stares into their yellow eyes , silencing them. Max takes stock of his surroundings, and every time a Wild Th ing stea ls u p on h im i t is frozen back into submissio n by Max 's magic stare.

Scenes V and VI - Coronation and Wild Rumpus . The fo r es t thickens and the sea disappears . A wh ite goat b r ings in a crown but keeps it out of Max 's reach. The Wi ld Th ings form a procession and then crown Max "Ki n g of all Wild Th ings. " The W il d Rumpus begins: Max , the monsters, and a gang of lost Maxes hurt le about , dancing wildly. Suddenly Max stops the dance and sends the Wild Things to bed without any supper.

Scene VII - Max Alone Max takes off his crown , sits by h imself , and dreams of home, his Mama , and a hot supper. He gets up , tiptoes past the sleeping Wild Things, and makes his way to the edge of the island to summon his b oat again.

Scene VIII - Parting. The Wild Things wake up, one by on e, and rush after Max, mu tt ering and making threaten ing ges tures. They are very angry that he shou ld want to leave them , b u t the boat pulls away from the sh ore and Max is once again alone at sea, sailing back through days and n ights. A fo r est grows around h im and he leaves the boa t.

Scene IX - Max's Room Max 's room slowly becomes visib le. At the back of the room is a tray on a table. Max sees his bowl of soup and then tastes i t.. .his supper is st ill hot.

PROFILES

Septime Webre , Chor eographer , was appointed artistic di r ector of The Washington Ba ll et in June 1999 after six years as arti st ic director of American Repertor y Ba ll et in New Je r sey. He has crea ted works that appear in the repe rt oires o f many companies in North America, including Paci fic Northwes t Ba ll et, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, North Carolina Dance Theatre, Dayton Ba ll et, Ba ll et Aust in , Atlanta Ballet , Aspen Ba ll et, Sacramento Ballet, Cincinnati Ba ll et, Co lorado Ba ll et, Lou isvi ll e Ba ll et, and Ba ll et Memph is, among ot h ers. As a dancer, Mr. Webre was featured in works by Ba l anch ine, Taylor, Tudor, Ailey, and Cunningham as well as in principa l and solo ro les from the classica l repertoire. His rece n t projects include The Washington Ballet's h igh ly successfu l trip to Cu ba in fa ll 2000' a collaboration with Artistic Director Molly Smith at Wash'ington 's Arena Stage (Coyot e Builds North America); and Journey Home, a co llabo r ation with Sweet Ho n ey In The Rock, vis u al artist Sam Gilliam and playwrigh t Norman All en. A former member of the board of d irectors of DancelUSA, Mr. Webre si ts on the board of the Cul tura l Alliance of Greater Washington, and h as been h onored by Young Au diences of th e Dis trict of Columbia and received a number of fellowships and for his choreograph y. He graduated from the Un iversity of Texas with a BA in HistoryfPre-Law.

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

Maurice Sendak, AuthorlIllustrator.

Ma uri ce Sendak 's m an y books h ave incl ud ed A Hole Is To Dig, wi th Ruth Krau ss; the Littl e Bea r se ri es, wi th Eli se

H olm elund Min ari k; Kenny's Wind ow; Th e Sign on Ro sie's Door; Nutshell Libra ry; Wh ere the Wil d Th ings Are; Th e BatPoet and Th e Anim al Family, with Rand a ll j arrell ; Hec to r Pro tec tor; Higg lety Pigg lety Pop !; In th e Nig ht Kitchen; Th e Jun iper Tree; Outsid e Over Th ere; Dear Mili ; I Saw Esa u, wi th Ion a and Pet er Opie; We Are All in th e Dump s with Ja ck and Guy; Swin e Lak e, with j am es Mar sh all ; and Brun dib ar, with Tony Ku shn er. He is the reC ipien t of the 1964

Ca ld eco tt Meda l , th e 197 0

H an s Chri s tian And er sen

Me d al (th e onl y Am eri ca n illu stra t or eve r to receive thi s awa rd ), the 1983 Laura In ga lls

Wild er Awa rd from the Am eri ca n Lib r ar y Association , and a 1996 N ati on al Med al o f Arts. In 200 3, h e r ece ive d th e fi rs t As trid Lindgren Mem orial

Awa rd , an inte rnation al priz e fo r childr en 's li te ra ture es tablish ed by th e Swe di sh gove rnment . He ha s d esign ed se ts and cos tum es for nu mero u s produ c ti on s wo rl dw id e , including Moz art 's Id om eneo, jana cek 's Cunning Littl e Vix en , Prokofi ev's Lov e f or Three Orange s , Rav el 's f Enfant et les Sortil eges and fH eure Es pagn ol e, Tch aikovs k y's Nutcrac ker, H an s Krasas Brundibar , and Olive r Knu sse n 's op era s base d on hi s bo ok s Wh ere th e Wild

Th ings A re and Higg lety Pigglety Pop.

Randall Woolf, Composer, studi e d compo siti on priva tely wi th Davi d Del Tredi ci and j osep h Man eri , and at Harvard wh er e h e ea rned a Ph.D H e is a m emb er of th e Comm on Se n se Co mpo se rs Co ll ec ti ve.

In 1999 -2000 , Mr. Woolf was a Gugge nh eim Fell ow.

In Ma rch 2003 , the stri ng qu art e t Ethel premi er ed hi s

16 BRAVO

q ua rt e t Go rillas . In 2 004 h e his tory m arke d b y steady p asses three ma in stage co mp ose d a theatri ca l wo rk growth , a co mmitment to produ cti on s at DeVos for flut e and elec tro ni c so und - exce ll en ce , and stron g Performan ce Hall ; three trac k fo r Ran som Wilso n 's co mmunit y supp ort. Dan ce r s' Th ea tre Se ri es so lo rec it al at Lin co ln Ce n te r ; pro du ctions in th e intim a te and Wom en At An Exhibiti on , In 19 71 the Comp an y s tarte d se tting of th e Comp an y's for or ch es tra an d electronics, as the Gr and Rapid s Civi c Studio A; and variou s b en e fit for the Akron Art Mu se um Ball e t und er foundin g Arti stic p erformanc es and tou rs and Symphon y with a vi d eo Direc tor Sally Seven. In 1983 throu gh out th e sta te - to talin g b y Mary Harron (d ir ec tor o f th e Gr and Rapids Civic Ba ll et over 65 p erform an ces pe r Am erica n Psyc ho and I Shot m erge d with th e Summerfest seaso n. The Comp an y h as Andy Warh ol) and j o hn C Sc h oo l of Grand Rapi d s, a pe rfo rmed in Qu ebec , Wa lsh Wo m en At An co n serva tor y sc hoo l for d evel - Ca n a d a, Boyn e City, Cad ill ac , Exhibition was p erformed in opment of profess ion al Midland , Mu sk egon , St. New Yo rk b y th e Am eric an d ance rs, and sub se qu ent ly j ose ph and more ; an d wi th Co mp ose r s Orch es tra, was r eo rgani zed t o form th e the De troit Symphon y Nove mb er 17 , 2004 at Gra nd Rapids Ball et Co mp an y Orch es tra , Gr and Rapid s Ca rnegie Ha ll 's mu ltim edia alon g with the Scho ol of th e Symp h ony, Op era Gr and ve nu e Zankel Ha lL Gra nd Rapid s Ball et Compan y Rapid s, th e j ack son Mr. Woo lf 's w or ks h ave b ee n Und er the artis tic d irec ti on o f Symphony, Ri chm ond p erfo rme d b y th e Chamb er Ch art el Arthur , GRBC m oved Sym phon y, Midl and Mu sic Soc ie ty of Lin co ln in to region al s tatu s and j oine d Sym phon y, and West Sh or e Cent er Tw o , New Mill enniu m the Mid wes t Region al Ball e t Symphony, among o thers. En se mb le, the EO S Orch es tra , Assoc iati oniRe gion al Dan ce co ndu c to r Ra n som Wi lson , Am eri ca. Durin g th e 1993 - Throu gh the ge n ero si ty of an Fu lc rum Po int , the Pitt sburgh 199 4 seaso n , profess ion al ar ts -co n sciou s co mmunity, New Mu sic Ens emb le, the d an ce r s we re p lace d u n d er The Nex t St ep Ca mp aign Se attle Sympho n y, th e Paul co ntrac t for the fir st tim e. all owe d the Company t o Dresh er Ense m bl e, Bang on a tran s form an old abandon ed Ca n/SPIT Orchestra , Tod ay, th e professional bu s ga rage in to a we llCa liforni a EAR Unit , co mp an y consis ts o f fou rtee n d es ign ed da n ce r eh earsa l Am er ic an Compo se r s fu ll tim e d ancer s and on e space and scho ol fa cility Sin ce O r ch es tr a, twis ted tutu , an d ap prentice; th e Sch oo l of the it s o p en in g in 2000 , thi s o th ers. He ha s also arran ged Gr and Rapid s Balle t Co mp an y p erman ent h ome h as all owe d mu sic for j ohn Cale inclu d in g h as an enro llment o f ove r 30 0 th e Balle t to add n ew opp orhi s sco r e Am erican Psych o, s tu de nts tau gh t b y in stru ct ors tunities fo r th e co mmuni ty base d on th e n ovel b y Bret from profess iona l d an ce back- su ch as th e popular Dan cers ' Eas t on Elli s, Krono s Qu arte t , gro und s; an additi on al 700 Th ea tre Se ries . Designe d to Siou xs ie Siou x and David stud ent s receive fr ee introd u c- brin g the art form cl oser physLan g Hi s ba ll et mu sic for to r y cla sses th rough th e ica ll y to the audien ce, the Wh er e th e Wild Things Are is awa rd -wi n n ing "St ep s in a Dan ce rs ' Th eatre Se ri es tr an sava il ab le on th e New Direction " p rogram; and form s a r eh ear sa l spa ce into a CrilEm er gen cy Mu sic lab eL the out reac h progr ams GRBC sm all and intimat e thea tre for Hi s CD Mo d ern Primitive is o ffer s to the community are on ly 9 6 audien ce m em be r s. on Im age Recordings. ou tsta nding w ays to fos ter th e The facility also all owe d the co nn ec tion b etwee n th e art s Co mp an y to exp and i ts HISTORY OF THE an d edu ca ti on . sc h oo l , pro vi d e reh ea rsa l

GRAND RAPIDS BALLET s p ace for ot h er orga n izatio n s ,

COMPANY Sin ce the app ointm ent of and invi te scho ol chil d r en into Artistic Direc tor Go rd on the bui lding for a popul ar Ce lebra ting it s thirt y-fifth Peirce Sc hm idt in 19 98 , the field trip , "Escap e to the seas on , th e Gra n d Rapid s Co mp an y has seen trem en- Ball e t ," wh ere th ey lea rn Ball et Co mpany (GRB C) d ou s growth and prese nt e d ab out what it tak es t o run a re m ain s co mmitt ed t o its more th an fifty n ew wo rk s , p ro fessiona l b all e t co mp any mi ssio n , to lift th e hum an spirit includ in g th e spec tac u lar th ro ugh th e art of dance. A p remie r es of Caught in a Resp ondin g to the de m and of p ro ud rec ip ient o f th e Mids umm er N ight 's Drea m , the Dan ce r s' Th ea tre Se r ies

Art Serve Michigan Gove rnor's Pri so ner of Ze nda , Ca n- Can, and trem endou s gro wt h o f th e Art s Awa rd fo r Ou tstanding Pete r Pan, and two in cre dibl e Co mp an y and Sch oo l , GRB C Cultural Organiz ati on , co ll ab o r ati ons wi th Bela Fleck an n o unce d an oth er exc iting Michigan 's on ly profession al and th e Fleckt on es. GRB C's $6 .2 million expan sion in b all e t company ha s a r ich p erfo rman ce sea son en co m - Se pt e mb er 200 6 Stage 2 : A

Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

Campaign for Ballet will Choreographer between Performing Arts Company, include th e addi ti on o f a 300 - 1989 -1 995. He has received Chicago Repertory Dance seat theatre adjacent t o the the Ruth Page Award for Ensemble, and the Gran d Company's current facility, Choreography for his ballets Rapids Ballet Profess ion al creating the Meij er Royce THE GIFT OF THE MAG I , Trainees. Sh e also regularly Cente r for Dance. Th e n ew and HANSEL AND GRETEL stages full length ballets on Peter Martin Wege Th eatre is the Grand Rapids Ballet sc h eduled to ope n in fall 2007 In 1993 Mr. Schmidt made his Company and wi ll h ouse the Compa n y's television de but as Dancers' Th ea tre Se ri es, as director!choreographer of his She served as GRBC's Ballet we ll as performances by the "strictly for television" ba ll et Mistress in 1997 and as stud ents o f the Schoo l of the GESUALD O created for Int erim Artist ic Director in Grand Rapids Ballet Company, PBSIWTTW Chicago, for 1998 wh en, in the fall, sh e including the 700 centra l- city which he received a Prime hired Gordon Peirce Schmi dt yo uth of th e Compa n y's "Steps Time Emmy Award to choreograph the b allet in a New Direction progr am. " Nomination for Outstanding DRACULA for th e company The space will also offer Individual Achievement - They were hir ed as Art istic expanded opportuniti es for Cultural Programming and Assoc iate Artist ic educationa l programs and any Director, r espec tively, in number of new ventures th e In the autumn of 1998 Mr. J anuary o f 1999 Company wishes to under- Schmid t was commissioned take. The 300-seat design will by the Grand Rapids Ballet

Ms. Berman earned her keep the in timate feel for the Company to create a full- Bachelor of Science Degree Dancers' Theatre Series that lengt h adaptation of Bram from Skidm ore Co llege and audi ences have come to love, Stoker's DRACULA, w hi ch h e her Masters Degree in Theatre while also allowing access to set to his own arrangement o f from No rth weste rn Univers ity the Series for more patrons. music by Rachmanin o ff. He whe r e she gradu ated with was hired as Artistic Director honors.

Origina l programming, inno- of the Grand Rap id s Ballet vative choreography, and a Company in 1999 and since

commitment to excellence are that time has created more

hallmarks of the Grand Rapids than fifty new works for the

Ballet Co m pa n y W ith artists company inclu d in g an historic invested in the commu nity co llab oratio n wit h Gr amm y-

GRAND RAPIDS BALLET

COMPANY

PROFESSIONAL DANCERS

Akop Akopian, from Arm enia, and a community that wi nning arti sts Bela Fleck &. curr ent ly in his six th seaso n supports the arts, the Grand the Flecktones. with th e Company Rapids Ballet Company has created a flourishing arts

Laura Schwenk-Berman, Gaiane Akopian , from center for all of Michigan, and Associate Artistic Director and Armenia, current ly in h er continues to provide the Director of the School of the sixth season with the h ighest level of excellence in Grand Rapids Ballet Company Company dance theatre and education began her career dancing for all individua ls. principal ro les wit h the Kara Bond, from Grand Ga rden State Ba ll et. She then Rapids, curre ntly in h er ninth Gordon Peirce Schmidt, danced with Chicago Ba ll et , season wi th th e Company Executive / Artistic Director Boston Repertory Ballet, and and Choreographer of the for seven years with the David Braciak, from Grand Grand Rapids Ballet Company Pacific Northwest Ballet in Rapids, currently in his sixth performed with many compa- Seatt le. Whi le with PNB, she season with the Company nies in the United States and danced in the film, Europe dancing' with the "Nutcracker: The Movie"

Chelsea Clow, from Illinois, Maryland Ballet, Mi lwaukee directed by Carrol Ballard , sets currently in her second season Ballet, Chicago Ballet, Chi cago and costumes by Maurice wit h the Company City Ballet, and was the first Sendak, and choreography by American to receive a full time Kent Stowell Ms. Berman has Kateryna Derechyna , from the contract with the Vienna State toured extensively throughout Ukraine , currently in her Opera Ballet. the United States, Europe, and second season with the

Hi s first commissioned ballet, Asia. Company

BY DJ ANGO, a lively evocation of the j azz -age, went on Her choreography credits Dawnell Dryja, from Detroit, to become the signature work include works created for the current ly in her fifth season for Ballet Chi cago for wh om North western Univers ity with the Company Mr. Sc h midt was Resident Dance Ensemble, Momenta l

Alexey Kulpin, from Russia , curren tly in hi s second season with th e Company

Laura McQueen, from Grand Rapids, curren tly in her fourth season with the Com p any

Attila Mosolygo, from Hungary, currently in hi s eleventh season with the Company

Mindy Mosolygo , from Grand Rapids, curren tl y in her fourteenth season wi th the Company

Stephen Sanford, from Missouri, currently in his sixt h season with the Compa n y

David Schultz , from Grand Rapids, currently in his second season with the Co mpany

Nicholas Schultz, from Grand Rapids, curr en tl y in hi s fourth seaso n with the Company

Apprentice - Larissa Tanis , from Illinois, currently in her second season with the Company

GRAND RAPIDS BALLET COMPANY PRODUCTION STAFF

Evange line Rose W hitl ock, Production Stage Manager Kevin Hoekstra, Technical Director J amie Tinker Heeringa, Costumer Marianne Va n Stee, Head Wardrobe

Randy DeBoer, H ead Ca rp enter Stasia Savage , Head Properties

Matthew Taylor, Head Electrician Ca rl os Ag uil ar , Electric ian Wayne Eas tm an , Carpente r Judi e Olivier, Costume Assistant

Kimberly Con treraz, Assistan t Stage Manager

Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

THE CAST

In order of vocal appearance

Mandarin Matthew Trevino*

lill Egli se Gutierrez *

CalM Yu Qiang Dai (21,25,28)

Eduardo Villa (22, 27, 29)

Timur Aru tjun Kotchinian

Prince of Persia .. .. .. Lonel Woods

Ping Michael Mayes

Pang Eric Johnston

Pong .Jeffre y Halili *

Handmaiden 1 Leah Dexter

Handmaiden 2 J acqueline Echols*

Altoum Rico Serbo

Turandot Anna Shafajinskaia * (21, 25 , 28)

Othalie Graham * (22m, 27, 29m)

* Michigan Opera Theatre debut t Young Artist Apprentice

Last Michigan Opera Theatre production of Turandot, 1998

Directed by: Dejan Milandinovic

Conducted by: Steven Mercurio

SYNOPSIS

Setting: Peking, China, in Legendary Times

ACTI

At sunset , outside the Forbidden City in Peking, a Mandarin reads the crowd an edict: any prince seeking t o marry the Princess Turandot must answer three ridd les. If he fails , he dies. The latest suitor, the Prince of Persia, is to be executed ' at the moon's rising; b loodthi r sty citizens urge the executioner on In the tumult, a slave gi rl , Lill , kneels b y her aged mas ter, who has fallen from exhaustion. A handsome yout h , Ca lM, recognizes the old man as his long-lost father , Timur, vanquished king of Tartary When Timur re vea ls that on ly liD has

remained faithful to h im, CalM asks why Sh e r ep li es it is because once, long ago, CalM smiled at he r. As the sky darkens, the mob again cries for blood but greets the moon wi th sudden , fearful silence. The onl ookers are moved when th e Prince of Persia passes by, and they ca ll upon the princess to spare him. CaLlf too demands that she sh ow herself. Turandot appears, and with a conte mptu ous gesture, bids the execution proceed. The crowd falls prostrate As the death cry is heard from the distance, CalM, transfixed by the beauty of the princess, s trid es to the gong that announces a new suitor. Sudden ly Turandot's three ministers, Ping , Pang and Pong , appear to discourage him. When Timur and the tearful liD also beg him not

TURANDOT

to risk his life Ca lM tries to comfort them, but h e strikes the gong and calls Turandot 's name.

ACT II

In a palace pavilion , Ping , Pang and Pong lament Turandot 's reign , praying that love will conquer her heart and peace will return. Th e three le t their thoughts wander to their country homes, but the noise of the populace gat h ering to hear Turandot question the new challenger ca ll s them back to reality

In the palace, the old Emperor, perched on a high throne , vainly asks Ca lM to reconsider. Heralded by a chorus o f ch ildren, Turandot enters to describe h ow her beautiful ancestor, Princess Lou-Ling , was abducted and killed b y a conquerin g prince; in revenge, she has turn ed against men and determined none sha ll eve r posses h er. Facing CalM , she poses her first question: What is born each night and dies each dawn? "Hope, " Ca lM answers correc tl y Unn erved, Turandot co ntinu es: What flickers r ed and warm like a flame , yet is not fire? "Blood," replies CalM a ft er a moment 's pause. Shaken , Turandot deli vers h er third ridd le : What is like ice but burns? Tense si len ce prevails until Calaf triumphantly cries , "Turandot l " While the crowd voices th anks, th e princess begs her father not to give

her to the s tr anger. h Hoping to win er love , CalM offers

Turandot a challenge

of his own: if sh e can E .

learn his n ame by dawn , he will forfeit his life .

ACT III

In the palace garden, Ca lM hears a proclamation: on pain of death no one in

Pekin g shall sleep until Turandot learns the stranger 's name. The prince foresees victor y for his love , but Ping , Pang and Pong try to bribe him to leave the city As the fearful mob threatens him with drawn daggers to learn his name, so ldi er s drag in liD and Timur; Ca lM tries to convince th e mob that neither of them knows his secret. When Turando t appears, commanding the dazed Timur to speak, liD cri es out that she alone knows the stranger's identity bu t will never reveal it. Though tortured, she remains si lent. Impressed by such end ur an ce, Turandot asks liD's sec ret. "Love," r eplies the girl When the princess signals the sold iers to intenSify th e torture , LiD snatches a dagger and ki ll s herself. Th e crowd, fearful of her ghos t , forms a funeral procession. Turandot, veiled b y her attendants, remains alone to confront CalM, who tears the covering from h er face and impetuously kisses her. Knowing emotion for the first time, Tur an dot weeps. The prince, now sure of winning her, reveals his identity

As the people hail the Emperor, Turandot declares she knows th e stranger 's name: it is Love. The court sa lu tes the power of love and life.

-Co ur tesy of Opera News

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10uccini anb turanbot

BY ROGER PINES

When Turandot premiered at Mi l an's La Sca l a on April 25, 1926, there occurred an event unique in the history of opera: following the death of Liu, Arturo Toscanini stopped the orchestra and, turning to the au dience, announced, "Here the opera ends, becau se at this point the maestro di ed." The performance concluded there, with the opera's ending unheard by th e first night audience. Not hing could have demonstrated more powerfully that Turandot had brought down the curtain on I talian opera 's greatest era. Puccini's "swan song" h a lt e d the amazing flow of inspiration that had begun w ith Rossini and continued with Bellini, Donizetti , and Verdi. Worthy Italian stage works hav e been written since Turandot , but it remains the last opera in Itali an to enter the stan dard repertoire.

For the first Turandot audiences, s urpri ses came not only in the sheer magnificence of the sco reby far Puccini 's greatest achievement as an orchestratorbut also in the titl e role. For a change, Pucc ini had it in for his l ea ding soprano; he created an atypica ll y unsympatheti c h eroine, while hammering away mercilessly at th e singe r 's upper register. Distinguished Wagnerians have excelled in this role. Like the Gotterdammerung Brunnhilde, Turandot requires a vast sound with tremendous thrust , but the resemblances end there; th e Valkyrie can exhaust a soprano Ealyn n

with its sheer l engt h , whereas Turandot , although consistently high er, h as only about twenty minutes of music.

If full y in command on th e voca l side ,

the soprano can be fr ee to embody the characte r , and here extraordinary interpretive skill is essential. As in Salome, it is a ll too common in this opera to encounter a monster, with both heart and vo i ce as hard-edged as her long fingernails To make Turandot reasonably credib l e, the soprano must endow her with a soul from the b eginning. Many Turandots welcome the chance to melt the ice in the aria "Del primo pianto," which occurs within the final duet. Her e the princess, weeping her first tears, reveals that she had been in anguish since she first caugh t sight of Calaf.

The obvious dramatic contrast in, of course, Turandot vs. the sl ave Liu, the typical " Puccini girl " : sweet ly tender-hearted like Mimi, selfless lik e Minnie, self-sacrificing like Butterfly As with Turandot, the role is not long, but the phrases are exqu i sit el y shaped. Every thingincluding thos e trick y pianissimo high B-flats-must be voiced not simply with technical ease, but also with the passionate sincerity that is the h allma rk of any good Puccini singer. Liu also cannot be played with such fragilit y as to render her s ub sequent fortitud e and suicide inconceivable.

The male contingent includes one o f Pucc in i's mo st prominent bass roles, that of Timur , exi l ed King of Tartary. His function is chiefly to attemp t to warn his son (a lb eit futilely) against becoming obsessed wit h Turandot. In Act Three , Timur finally lashes out at the forces that have caused Liu's death. In all Timur's utterances, one

Voss in Michigan Opera Th eatre's 1994 Turandot.

should hear a ro ll ing bas so ca ntant e that can a l so hold its own in the act-one en se mbl es . Ping , Pa n g and Pon g grew out of Gozzi's four "mask s"-o riginally Venetian co mmedia figure s (Truffaldino , Brighella, Pantalone , and Tartaglia ) who find th e mselves in Ch ina and b eco m e officials in the em peror 's court. Pu cc ini 's trio have the titl es of Chance ll or, Grand Purveyo r, and Chi ef Cook. Lik e Gozzi's commedia quartet, t h ey serve to some d eg ree as co mme nt a t or s, but play no crucial role in th e drama. Th e ir mo ve m e nt i s inva r iab ly d e tail e d and precise, likew i se thei r scenes , which requires superb l y poli s h e d mu sician ship.

Th ere remains the l ea ding man, Prin ce Ca l af, in voca l we ight the h eaviest of all the Pu ccini heroes. Today on e ca n get away with b e lting out hi s music , but all Ca lafs shou l d note how Ju ssi Bj6rling fl oated his way throu gh "N on piangere , Li u. " I n addition to tho se challenging ridd les, Calaf h as hi s own pur e l y v oca l tria l s to e ndur e, chi e fly th e large-sca le fina le of Ac t One ; th e triumphant h igh Cs of th e Riddl e Scene-one requ i red , th e other optional; the u n iversa ll y b e lo ved "Ness un dorma," in w h ic h th a t final "v inc e rb " represe n ts t h e audience's single greatest moment of anticipation ; and the thankless but taxing love du e t.

Turandot covered the major opera hou ses before the end of the 1920s, and ha s been p layed regula rly eve r si n ce. In Am erica, ho weve r, it did not tak e off in popu larity until Birgit Nil sson's prin cess introduc e d a gene r ation of American operagoers to this work. Turandot may not hav e earned th e u n iv ersa l lo ve accorded Puccini's " big thr ee" ( La Boh em e, Tosca , Madame Butt erjly), but it offers an audience something quite different: blessed and we lc o m e esca pi s m , a journe y i nto a fair y-ta le wo rld It s appeal wi ll n eve r di e, not as long as we ha ve dramatic so prano s with gleaming high Cs and h eroi c tenor s who can se nd u s out into the ni g ht wi th "Ness un dorma " ringing in our ea rs.

Ro ger Pines serves as Dramaturg Jor the Lyr ic Opera oj Chicago, and contrib ut es Jreque ntl y to op era publications int erna tionally.

Pu ccin i and Turandot is reprint ed Jrom BRAVO Magazine,fall1998.

While everyone's busy debating stem cells, we're busy producing results.

While the stem cell debate rages, scienti st s at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology are using thi s important science to advance medicine and save lives.

Technion researcher s have turned embryonic stem cells into insulinproducing cells for treati ng diabetes , and into muscle and blood vessel cells fo r future replacement parts. They are successfully growing stem cells into beating heart muscle , which is already being used to test new drugs and to study the effects of stresses on the heart.

Most recently, Technion researchers have shown that stem cells can be integrated into a damaged heart, where they help regulate its activity, in effect becoming a biological pacemaker.

Eventually, this could eliminate mechanical pacemakers, which require surgery to replace the battery every few years, and could replace damaged cells in patients who have had heart attacks.

Technion scientists are also developing special cell lines that can address one of the most significant challenges of stem cell technology-how to coa x more of the cells to develop into specific types that are needed-say heart or nerve cells

The American Technion Society is proud to be a partner in these efforts . With your help , we can ensure that Israel's scientists continue shaping a stronger Israel and a better, safer world.

Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

ABDUCTION

THE CAST

In order of vocal appearance

Belmonte Shawn Mathey* (12, 16 , 19) Ryan MacPherson* (13m, 18)

OSrrlln Grego r y F rank * (12 , 1 6, 19) Pete r Lobe rt * (13, 18)

Pedrillo Doug Jones

Konstanze Elizab e th Futral* (12, 1 6, 19) Lea h Partridge* (13m, 18)

Blonde Amanda Pabyan *

Pasha Selim TBA

* Michigan Opera Theatre debut t Young Artist Apprentice ? U.s opera debut

2007 marks Michigan Opera Theatre's first production of The Abduction From the Seraglio

SYNOPSIS

Setting: Turkey, in the 18th Century

ACT I

Pasha Se lim h as three Europeans from Turkish pirates-Constanze, a Spani sh woman of good family ; Blonde, her Engli sh maid; and Pedrillo , the servant of Consta n ze's fi ance, Belmonte. A Spanish n obleman, Belmonte h as traced them to the Pasha 's seaside palace, wh ere Co n st anze is the Pasha's favor it e and Pedrillo the gardener. Blonde h as been given as a gift by the Pasha to Osmin, oversee r o f hi s harem. Outs id e the palace walls, Belmonte yea rn s for Constanze. His first encounter is wi th the huge, cantankerous Osm in , who is on a ladder picking figs and singing about h ow t o deal wi th sweethearts-with su spicion.

Osmin is polite until Belmonte mentions Pedrillo , the custodian 's ri va l for Blonde. Osmin th en scares Belmonte away and rails at Pedrillo, wh o has come in hopes of making peace with him. Belmonte returns to find his former servant, who tells him the pasha is in love with Constanze but will not force himse lf on h er. Thi s makes Belmonte l ong even more to see hi s beloved, who soon appears wi th Selim, heralded by J ani ssaries. When the pasha asks why she is always depressed by his attentions toward her, Constanze replies she cannot forget h er love for the m an from wh om she was sepa r at ed, then leaves. Pedrillo introduces Belmonte to the pasha as a gifted young archi tect. Selim welcomes him and , departing , promises a con ference the next da y. Osmin bars the way wh en Belmonte and Pedrillo try to

ent er the palace , and the two foreigners get him off th e track b y marching him in circl es He is soo n too dizzy to n ot ice th ey h ave gained access.

AC T II

In the garden, Blonde confounds Osmin b y te llin g how he rea ll y ought to trea t wo men-with tenderness and fl atte r y, then easi ly faces him down when he threatens h er. Constanze appea r s, m ournin g at length her se p ara ti on fr om Belmonte. Her sad state o f mind does not imp rove when the pasha again asks her to marry him. Sh e proudly repeats her refusa l , preferring torture and death. W h en they have gone, Blonde and Pedrillo dance into the garden, busily discussing escape: they w ill ge t Osmin drunk , and all four lovers will elope in Belmonte 's boat, whi ch li es o ffsh or e. Blonde looks forward to telling Constanze of Belmo nte's arrival. Pedr ill o screws hi s courage to the sticking place , then goes abou t plying Osmin with wi n e, findin g the fat man unusually cooperative. Ineb ri ated, Osmin weaves off wi th hi s w in eskin, leaving the coas t clear. Belmonte at las t meets Constanze, greeting h er with tears of JOy. Their happy reunion, sh ared by Blonde and Pedrillo , darkens when Belmonte and Pedrillo j ea lously question the women's faithfuln ess, but mis und ersta ndin gs melt as eve ning falls.

ACT III

m aide n held cap ti ve by the Moors an d rescued by a foreign lover; it is the signa l for escape. But wh en the wome n finally appear, the n oise awake n s Osm in , who is n o t too hun g-over to realize wh at i s go ing on. He takes grea t delight in h aving all four elopers captured and bound, savoring their immine n t death b y hanging. The pasha is se nt for. W hil e Cons tanze offers to die to save her beloved , Belmonte more realistically suggests the pasha might co ll ec t a handsome ransom from his wea lthy family, th e Lostados. At this the pasha rea liz es th at Belmonte is the so n of an old enemy, the man w h o exiled him from his own co untr y. His wrath at Constanze's b etr aya l is double d , and when h e retires to give or de r s for th e lovers' tort ur e, Belmonte and Co n sta nz e vow to welcome death toge th er. Bu t the pasha even tu ally decides that rather than take blood for blood h e will free Constanze and Belmonte, even Blonde and Pedrill o. This magnanimous act co nfou nd s Osmin, who protests the loss of Blonde to n o ava il , because the pasha declares lo ve cannot b e won by force. He storm s off in a r age as everyone else p r aises the pasha 's wisdo m and clemency before th e coup les sai l for h ome.

Jl6Suction from tfje t; §eragllo

BY ROBERTO MAURO

Throughout the past season, opera companies and symphonies alike have, in reverence to the 250th anniversary of his birth , filled their various seasons with works by the immortal Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. No dIfferent, Michigan Opera Theatre decided to program a work that not only is a welcome addition to the company's repertoire but also represents a symbolic place within the composer's operatic literature . The opera in question is none other than Die EntJurung aus dem Serail, or in the Michigan Opera Theatre production, The Abduction from the Seraglio.

The origins of Abduction from the Seraglio date from a turbulent period in the composer's life. Mozart had been in the employment of the archbishop of his hometown of Salzburg, but growing tensions between employee and employer lead to an abrupt severing of all ties to the court. Mozart found his way to Vienna, and much to the anxiety of Mozart's overbearing father, Leopold, young Wolfgang was reunited with his old friends the Weber family, which included daughter Constanze. Not long after his arrival in Vienna, Mozart received a commission to write a comic opera for the city's National Singspiel. (A singspiel is an opera given in the native language of the audience, consisting of set numbers interspersed with dialogue . ) The subject was librettist

Gottlieb Stephanie's adaptation of Cristoph Friedrich Bretzner's Turkish rescue operetta Belmont und Constanze. Still angry from his treatment at the hands of his former employers, Mozart threw himself into the composition of Seraglio, completing the opera in time.

But fate stepped in and the premiere of Seraglio was delayed. A Russian dignitary's visit lead to the bureaucratic decision to celebrate his arrival with a performance of a more serious work by Gluck. SeragliO did not reach the stage of the Burgtheater until July 16, 1782, almost a year after Mozart began work on it. During this time, Mozart made significant revisions to the opera. The National Singspiel had a roster of some of the finest singers in Europe, amongst them, bass Ludwig Fischer, who was considered the greatest German bass. Like most composers, Mozart tailored his roles to the singers available to him. Consequently, the role of Osmin was expanded, with the composer giving Osmin two major arias. Additionally, during this period, Mozart also fell in love with, courted and married Constanze Weber. Mozart had initially met the Weber family during the winter of 1777-78 while he was undertaking his last concert tour. Initially, Mozart was interested in Constanze 's older sister Aloysia. While Aloysia was the first great love of his life, after initial flirtations , she treated his interest with little enthusiasm. Mozart turned his attention

www.MichiganOpera.org

to Constanze, much to his father's dismay. In fact , Leopold Mozart 's consent to their union didn't arrive until the day after Wolfgang and Constanze were married in St. Stephen'S Cathedral, August 4, 1782, a mere three weeks after the premiere of Seraglio.

Mozart was also conscious of using Seraglio to send a message to the public as well. This opera was after all premiered during the Age of the Enlightenment, and Seraglio, with its central themes of human reconciliation and the overcoming of nationa l hatreds, is the very embodiment of progressive ideals espoused by the Enlightenment. These ideals are best illustrated by the character of the Pasha Selim, whose rational tolerance was deliberately designed to contrast European religious fanaticism and also as a ca l culated compliment to the virtues of Emperor Joseph II. Furthermore, the subplot of the servants also carries an Enlightenment message. The spirit of liberty, embodied by Blonde, is pitted against bloodthirsty despotism, represented by Osmin.

While Seraglio isn 't perhaps one of Mozart's most popular operas, Mozart certainly created characters and situations of real dimension , and one can easily view Seraglio as a stepping stone to Mozart's greatest human operas such as The Marriage of Figaro. At its premiere, Seraglio was an unqualified success and the most popular and frequently performed of all Mozart 's operas during his lifetime. It is a worthy addition to the Michigan Opera Theatre repertoire.

Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

THE CAST

In order of vocal appearance

Tybalt Russell Th omas*

Paris Michael Mayes

Capulet.. Step h en Lusmann

Juliet.. Dina Kuz n e t sova* (2,6,9)

Evelyn Pollock* (3m, 8)

Mercutio Kyle Pfortmiller

Romeo Arturo C ha co n Cruz* (2, 6, 9)

Jo nath an Bo y d (3 m , 8)

Gertrude Susan N i cely*

Gregorio Matt h ew H ayward *

Benvolio ...... . ....... Brandon Snook*t

Frere Laurent Peter Vo lp e*

Stephano Lauren McNeese*

Le Duc Peter Volpe

* Michigan Opera Theatre debut t Young Artist Apprentice

last Michigan Opera Theatre production of Romeo and Juliet, 1990

Directed by: Bernard Uzan

Conducted by: David Stahl

SYNOPSIS

Setting: 14th Century, Verona, Italy

PROLOGUE

A brief orchestral introduction is heard. When the curtain rises, the en tire cast is assembled on the darkened stage, and they sing of the feud between the Capu lets and the Montagues , and of th e tr agic love of Romeo and Juliet.

ACTI

Scene: Ballroom of the Capulets

Coun t Capule t , a Veronese nobleman, is hosting a masked ball in honor of his daughter juliet 's entrance into society

Tyba lt , his nephew, discusses with Count Paris, his co u sin Juliet 'S forthcoming marriage, of which she knows nothing.

Juliet an d h er father enter and she is introduced to the company When the guests leave for the banquet hall, Juliet stays and expresses her joy and exc itement in the festive surroundin gs. Aft er she leaves it appears that the party h as been crashed by a group of the hated Montagues-Romeo,

Mercutio , and a few compa ni ons, all wearing masks. However, Romeo is uneasy, and Me rcuti o sugges ts in song that Mab, Queen of the Fairies, is responsible. They draw aside as Juliet and Gertrude, her nurse , ente r Romeo is entranced with Juliet's beauty and falls in love at first sight. When Grego ri o, a Capu let retainer, summon s the nurse to suppe r , Romeo is free to address Juliet. Hardl y h as h e s tolen his fi rst kiss when Tybalt interrupt s their duet, recognizes Romeo as his m orta l en emy and vows his death. The young Montague, appalled to find that h e has fall en in love with a Capulet, summon s his friends and a fight grows imminent. But Count Capulet intervenes. He does no t want the festivities spoiled, so he permits Romeo and his friends to leave in peace.

ACT rr

Scene: Th e garden of the Capulets, with juliet's apartment above Romeo h as aga in braved the wrath of the en emy for an o ther chance to see Ju liet. Gaz ing up at her balcony, he sings a lovely serenade. Juliet appears and they sing a love duet. juliet's nurse calls for her and she reenters her apartment, but after a few moments, she reappears to bid Romeo good n ight. She tells him if he wishes to marry her, she will give him her life, but if he jests , then he sh ou ld leave and see her no more. With h er hand reaching down to his, the lo ve rs b id each other farewell until the morrow.

ACT III

Scene 1: Friar Laurence's cell

Dawn is breaking whe n Romeo h asten s to meet Juli et in Friar Laurence 's b leak ce ll. Th e old monk, reflecting that perhaps this union might end the feud between the two fam ilies, blesses them and unites the love r s in marriage as they kneel before him with nurse Gertrude as witness.

Scene 2: A street near the Capulet's palace

Romeo's page Stephano is looking fo r his master and sin gs an impudent song whic h rouses the household. Angry at the noise that awakened him, Grego ri o rushes out to put an end to the imp ertinence with his sword. Mercutio fi nds them fencing and blames th e Capulet retainer for drawing on a mere boy Then Tybalt joins in engaging Me rcuti o until Romeo arrives in time to separate them. Romeo does not want to fight a kinsman of his beloved and ignores the insults. But Mercuti o and Tyba lt resume their quarrel , and Me rcu ti o is despe r ate ly wounded, wh ereupo n Romeo flings his scruples as id e and avenges the murder of his friend. As Tybalt

falls b efore Romeo's sword, cries of vengeance rise on all sides. The Duke of Verona makes an impressive entrance and banishes thqust - married Romeo from Verona.

AC T IV

Scene: juliet's chambers

At the risk of hi s life, Romeo finds his way to his bride's room to bid her a tender farewell. After he leaves, Friar Laurence enters to tell Juliet that plans are being made for her to marry Count Paris. He co unsels her to remain patient and gi ves her a potion to drink which will induce a death-like trance for an exte nd ed period

After she awakens sh e can escape from her tomb and leave with Romeo. W h en Ju liet sees her father and Paris appro ac hing, sh e quickly drinks the potion, grows faint, and appears to fall lifeless into her father's arms

ACT V

Scene: j uliet's tomb

In the sil en t vault of the Capulets, Juliet lies on the bier, still in a trance . Romeo has h ea rd th at Juliet had died and he frantica lly forces in the door to see his bride one last time. The gloom and so lemnity of the place and juliet's beauty untouched by death, stir him passionately and his farewell reflects hi s torment. He is unaware that sh e is merely in a trance, but he knows he cann ot live without her, so he d rinks a phial of poison. He has barely swa ll owed the potion w h en Juliet awakes and togeth er they ce leb r ate th eir shortlived JOY Romeo tells Juli et of the po iso n which is already numbing his limb s. They have ti me only to say farewe ll. Juliet draws a dagger which had been concealed in h er burial garments, and stabs herself. Begging God's forgiveness, th e two sta r-crossed lovers enter into their eterna l sleep claspe d in each other's arms.

-Courtesy of Opera News

Q&A with Bernard Uzan

Bernard Uzan's extensive background in Opera includes success as a general director, artistic director, stage director, and designer. He has directed more than 300 productions throughout the Americas and Europe, and codesigned more than 75. New productions he has produced Jor Michigan Opera Theatre include The Pearl Fishers, Manon, The Marriage of Figaro, Samson and Dalila, and Salome. In Fall, 2007, his libretto, Cyrano (set to music by David DiChiera), will premiere at the Detroit Opera House.

QIn France in 1967 you won the prize for best you n g actor for the role of Mercutio in Romeo andJttliet. How did yo u go from stage acting to directing operas?

AI can tell you something funnyI directed my first opera before I ever attended one. I was li ving in Boston in 1980 and Opera Boston had just started rehearsing Faust when Sarah Caldwe ll asked m e to direct th e dialogue scenes. After a few days she was not feeling well and asked if I wou ld like to direct the entire opera. I said 'of course' and that's how I got started.

I decided that I wanted to do more because I fell in love with opera, and also because I met Diana [Soveiro, his wife], who was reading the part of Marguerite. I learned to read music. It took me six months; I cannot say

Metropolitan Opera production. So its revival had already begun.

Now when you think about it, how many French operas do we h ave? You have Carmen, Werther, you ha ve Pearl Fishers, Tales oj HoJJman. Maybe three or four more and that's it. There just aren't that many good French operas so at some point you have to do some of the lesser performed ones.

QAre there directing challenges specific to French Opera?

Yes, and Romeo and Juliet is a specia l cha llen ge because-let me be very honest-Gounod was no longer a young man when he wrote it I'm a grea t musician but I can follow a score.

The next season I did about three operas. David DiChiera was one of the first to give me a chance-in the fall of '82 I came here to Detroit to direct both La Traviata and FaLLst

QA few years later yo u directed a new production of Romeo and Juliet for [Op era de Montreal. Did that production spark the operatic revival of Romeo andJttliet that ensued?

AI don't think so. Opera is cyclic; every 10 or 15 years suddenly everybody does the same opera. One year after directing Romeo and Juliet in Montreal I did it in San Francisco w ith the

Aand sometimes the music does not reflect the passion of two young l overs. You know what I mean? In the bedroom scene you wonder, really? That's what they do at 18? When they talk about [sings] Nuit d'hymenee! 0 douce nuit

d'amour! [Destin y chains me to you forever] it's like two old peopie reminiscing.

So you have to find a way of bringing the passion out. But in genera l it's a beautiful work; the balcony scene is well written, the chorus scenes are beautifu l and th e tomb scene at the end is touching. There are cha llenges but every opera has challenges.

QThis fall you are crea ting a new French opera. Why did you choose the story of Cyrano?

AI a l ways lo ved Cyrano, a l ways lo ved the story, and I always lo ved the French text. Six years or seven years ago I approached David because I knew from his sty le of music that he cou ld write something li ke this.

QWhat is your impression of the music?

AIt's beautiful, it's perfect for the piece. David captured, exactly, the feeling of the piece and it is real music. Sometimes in modern opera you wonder what it is but in thi s case it 's really beautiful. I'm very much in l ove w i th that music.

Visually it's going to b e beautiful, too. We have a great designer with John Pascoe, who brings a touch of poetry to everything. Now his starti n g point is realism so you a lways know where you are. For instance, if the story has a balcony he gives you a balcony-not a cave somewhere. But to that realism John brings a distinct vision and sense of poetry.

QWhich film version of Cyrano is your favorite?

AThe last one, with Depardieu. The reason it's my favorite is because, number one, Depardieu is extrao rd inary in it and, number two, it is faithfu l to the original text.

That is what has been missing in a lot of the movies and operas and plays that have been done on Cyrano. The French text is a masterpiece and when we avoid it by translating it or by doing something in English or Chinese or whatever the language is, all we are left with is a guy with a big nose who is in love with a girl.

Therefore I tried to keep close to the origina l text in the libretto. Of course, there are a lot of cuts because there are about 80 characters in the original play. In an opera you cannot have 80 charactersthe company would go bankrupt!

www.MichiganOpera.org

Librettist Bernard Uzan (foreground) and composer David DiChiera at the Cyrano workshop.

"The French text is a masterpiece and when we avoid it . . . all we are left with is a guy with a big nose who is in love with a girl. "

Celebrate excellence

Gr and Valley celeb ra tes the imagina tion, creativity an d beau ty of the arts. We ap plaud the talented people w h o sh are o ur passion for excellence and our commitment to person al achievem ent. For more informa tion ab out the outstanding o p po rtunities at Grand Valley; call (800) 748 -024 6 or visi t wwwgvsu .e du .

GRANDVALLEY STATE UNIV ERSITY (800 ) 748 -0 24 6 www.gvs u.edu

WORLD PREMIERE FESTIVAL WEEKEND

Michigan Opera Theatre's Annual Opera Ball

Friday. October I2. 20 0 7

World Premiere and Ga l a

Saturday. October I3, 2 0 07

Gala dinner follows perfol'm a n ce

Brunc h with the artists of q,rcno

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Information and sponsorship opport u nities P l ease contact Heather Ham il tonn:toL (3 13) 237-3425 or h h amilton@ 2 ra.org ..

Libretto by Bernard Uzan Orchestration by Mark 0, Flint

Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra

Violin I Tamara Sherman

Charlotte Merkerson * t Julia Kurtyka

Concertmast er

Ronald Oakland Viola

Conc ertmaster for John Madison*t

Swan Lake Scott Stefanko t

Flute

Pamela Hill * t

Laura Larson t

Kell y Daniels Timpani

Tamara Kosinski Leonardo Soto*t

Dennis Carter Comet Percussion

Kelly McDermott

Laura Roelofst Kathleen Grimes t Oboe

Assistant Barbara lmich t Kristen Beene*t

Concertmaster James Greer

Velda Kellyt Trace y Riggs

Bryan Johnston t Julianne linn

Sally Pituch t

Stephanie Shapiro

Carol Evanst Clarinet

Kevin Filewych t Cello

Brian Bowman * t

David Kuehn John Dorsey* t

David Ammer David Taylor

Trumpets

David Kuehn*t

Dan Maslanka

Ray Riggs

Gordon Simmonst Celeste

Derek Lockhart Angelina Pashmakova

Mark Flegg

Mitch Wechsler

AndrewWu t Nadine Deleury* t J William King t * Principal

Beth Kirton t Diane Bredesent Suzanne Rozmary

Jason Bendler Minka Christofft Georg Klaas

James KUjawski Nancy Steltmann

John Iatzko

Bassoon

Trombone t Michigan Opera

Maury Okun* t Theatre Orchestra

Greg Neart member

Ava Ordman

Violin II Eugene lenzen

Eric Varnert

Bryan Pokorny Detroit Federation of Victoria Haltom * t Robert Clemens Jeff Lyman Musicians Local # 5

Brooke Haplamazian t Roger Maki-Schramm Tuba

Molly Hughes t Bass

Fritz Kaenzig American Federation of Henrik Karapetyan t Derek Weller* t Hom

Phillip Sinder Musicians

Anna Wellert Clark Suttlet Kyle Mills*+

Janet Sullins Jean Marie Posekany Carrie Banfield t Harp

Elizabeth Rowin Robert Stiles

Constance Markwick Shawn Wood

Katherine Widlar

Susan Mutter

Patricia Terry-Ross*t

Michigan Opera Theatre Chorus

Daniel Aggas

Wallace Ayotte

Amy Dolan-Malaney

Rebecca Eaddy

Ryan Banar Ken Ebaugh

Monique Bates

Victoria Bigelow

Kim Brooks

Fred Buchalter

Patrick Clampitt

Jacqueline Echols

Brandy Ellis

Marko Farion

Louise Fisher

Kurt Frank

Leslie Hill

Bernard Holcomb

Richard Jackson

Clarence Jones

Tom Kabala

Cheryl Kashi

Jeffrey Krueger

Tamara Lehew Whitty

Deborah Dailey Yvonne Friday Tony

Aida de la Cruz

Jean Derricotte-Murphy

Leah Dexter

Rosaline Guastella

Conda Green

Ann Marie MacFarlane

Miroslav Manovski

Celeste Headlee Wes Mason

Elizabeth McGhee Stephen Stewart

Anthony P McGlaun Gregory Stinson

Kim Millard

Darren Orta

Daniel Paradowski

Lucille E. Thompson

Christopher Vaught

Justin Watson

Jan Phillips N orman Weber

Annie Radcliffe Adrienne Webster

Aaron Sanko

Stephanie Schiff

Michael Wilanowski

Amber Williams

Kenneth R. Shepherd Lonel Woods

Woojin Shim Anamaria Ylizaliturri

Brandon Snook

The American Guild of Musical Artists is the official union of the Michigan Opera Theatre Chorus.

Auxiliary Chorus - Rackham Symphony Choir

Maureen Abele

Beth Adams

Mike Boettcher

Byron Burbank

Iris Diop

Leslie Hochadel

Joe Dluzeniewski Ray Litt

Tim Doty Pat Minnick

Steve Pejuan

Connie Randall

Tony Ruda

Jeff Fritz Jim Moore Clifton Shaw

Gary Hasley Tony Noto

Chelsea Stocks

Children's Chorus

Veronica Battersby

Kerry Banish

Maddie Dorsey

Lauren Ellsworth

Jack Fordon

Madaline Gratsch

Jeremy Harr

Madeleine Krick

Maggie Malaney

Tyler Moylan

Jacqueline Navarra

www.Mi chiganOpera.org

Linda VanBuren

Deb Webb

Will Yeats

Emily Sherrer

Patrick Takata

Madalyn Tenace

Madeline Thibault

Jessica Tifft

Artist Profiles

5 UZANNE MALLARE ACTON

Chorus Mastel; Turandot, The Abduction from the Seraglio, Romeo and juliet

Suzanne Mal1are Acton , Michigan Opera Theatre 's Chorus Master and Assistant Music Director, is recognized for her versatilit y and dynamic style from the concert hall to the opera stage. Conducting credits include West Side St01Y, II Barbi ere di Siviglia , Musi c Man, Pirat es of Pen z ance , Mikado, Daughter of the Regim ent, and Die Fl edermaus for Michigan Opera Theatre , My Fair Lady and La Traviata for Dayton Opera, Meny Widow and Madama Butterfly for Artpark, and Tasca for Augusta Opera. As Artistic DirectorlMusic Director for Rackham

Symphony Choir: Carmina Burana, African Sanctus, Too Hot to Handel , and Amahl and the Night Visitors.

CHRISTOPHER BARBEAU

Fight ChoreographeJ; Romeo and juli et Christopher Barbeau, our resident fight director , has been contributing to nearly every show containing a fight at Michigan Opera Theatre since 200l. An accomplished martial artist and fencer with a BA in English, history, philosophy and physics from the University of Michigan , he is also the fight director for Toledo Opera. Having participated in over 350 theatrical productions and 13 feature films, and having made countless appearances at Renaissance Faires, Celt ic Faires, H aunted Houses and other themed eve nt s and attract ions , he has over 33 years of experience as a stunt performer, ch oreographer and instructor for theatrical combat, stunts and speCia l FIX. Chris directs the Ring of Steel Action Th eatre, which specializes in training actors for the demands of stage vio lence and in providing support to area productions. He appears regularly at libraries, sc h ools and conventions as a lec turer and guest artist.

JONATHAN BOYD

Romeo, Romeo and juli et (3 m , 8) American tenor Jonathan Boyd returns to Michigan Opera Theatre as Romeo, having debuted with the company as Tamino in The Magic Flut e (2004 ) and also performed as George Hancock in Margaret Gamer (2005) Mr. Boyd has performed in op era and oratorio throughout Europe, N orth America and South America, and has recentl y made debut appea r ances at Teatro Colon, Le Grand Theatre de Limoges and the Palais des Beaux Arts Bruxelles , among others. His most recent engagements have included Falstaff at Le Grand Theatre de Limoges , Werth er at Teatro Colon and Don Giovanni and The Meny Widow with Florentine Opera. Following his appearances in Detroit , Mr. Boyd will again portray Romeo at Nashville Opera, and will also perform in Die Zauberjlot e with Portland Opera, A Midsummer Night's Dream with [Opera de Nice and Don Giovanni with Opera Carolina.

ARTURO CHAC6N-CRUZ

Romeo, Romeo and juli et (2, 6, 9)

In a season of debuts for the young tenor, Arturo Chacon-Cruz sings his first Romeo while making his Michigan Opera Theatre debut. This season he is also making his Italian debut with Teatro Comunale di Bologna singing Rodolfo in La Boheme, his Spanish debut as Christian in Cyrano de Bergerac with Valencia Opera opposite Placido Domingo, his debut with Festival de Radio France and Montpellier Opera singing Marcello di Bruges in II Duca d'Alba, and his debut at the Teatro San Ca rlo in Naples as Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi. Chacon-Cruz has received many awards, including, First Place and the Audience Choice Award at the 2003 Eleanor McCollum Competition at Houston Grand Opera , and the Metropolitan Opera Nationa l Counci l Auditions in the New England Region. He

was also a winner of Operalia 2005. He is a graduate of the prestigious Houston Grand Opera Studio.

Yu QIANG DAI

Ca laf, Turandot (21, 25, 28)

Despite earning a degree in engineering from the Beijing Institut e of Indu stry and Technology, Chinese tenor Yu Qiang Dai decided to pursue a life as a professional opera singer. He then attended opera classes at the Central Academy of Drama and became a company member in the Shan Xi Song and Dance Company. From 1990 to 1992, the National Opera House engaged him to sing Calaf in Puccini5 Turandot , a role in which he has earned wide recognition. In 1996, Mr. Dai was awarded the top prize in the Shizuoka Int erna ti onal Opera Contest in Japan. In Augu st 2004, he released an album on EMI Classics titled "Yu Qiang Dai, Opera Arias. " Over the past five years Mr. Dai ha s made debuts all over the world, including his Michigan Opera Theatre debut during the 2005 season as Cavaradossi in Tasca.

LEAH DEXTER

First Handmaiden, Turandot

American mezzo soprano Leah Dexter made her Michigan Opera Theatre debut as Annie in Porgy and Bess, 2006. She returns this season as Firs t Handmaiden in Turandot. A Michigan nati ve, Ms. Dexter holds both bachelor5 and master's degrees in music from the University of Michigan. She has performed with the University of Michigan Opera, Toledo Opera, Motor City Lyric Opera , New Opera Festival of Rome and the Brevard Music Center, among others Recent engagements include a debut with Opera Theatre of St. Louis as Mae Jones in Stre et Scene, a performance as featured soloist vvith the Charles Ives Music Festival in Ann Arbor and Voices of Light with the Rackham Symphony Choir and Orchestra.

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JACQUELINE ECHOLS

Second Handmaiden, Turandot

American soprano, and Michigan native, Jacqueline Echols makes her Michigan Opera Theatre main stage debut as the Second Handmaiden in Turandot. Ms. Echols holds a bachelor's degree in music from Wayne State University. Since 2003, she has performed in many productions with the Michigan Opera Theatre Chorus and has appeared on stages including Orchestra Hall, opening for Cook , Dixon and Young, formally known as the The Three Mo' Tenors. Ms. Echols has recently traveled and performed solo recitals throughout Austria and Italy. She is currently a fulltime voice teacher at the Marvin L. Winans Academy of Performing Arts, where she teaches various vocal ensembles. Among them, she directs the High School Concert Chorale, an awardwinning performance ensemble which will be performing in Toronto in the spring of 2007.

MARK D. FLINT Conductor, Romeo and Juliet

Since his Michigan Opera Theatre debut conducting Carmen, in 1977, American maestro Mark D. Flint has conducted over 20 productions with the company. Most recently, Mr. Flint conducted the company's production of Cinderella, during the spring 2006 season. In addition to his duties as General and Artistic Director of Augusta Opera, recent guest appearances include Rigoletto in Hawaii, La Boheme in Edmonton and Susannah in Orlando. Future engagements include Samson in Orlando, The world Premiere of Ned Rorem 's Our Town and I Pagliacci at Lake George Opera

Future engagements include the world premiere of Cyrano, for which he has also provided the orchestration.

GREGORY FRANK Osmin, The Abduction from the Seraglio

American bass Gregory Frank makes his Michigan Opera Theatre debut as Osmin in The Abduction from the Seraglio.

Mr. Frank began his stage career as a member of the Chicago Lyric Opera Center for American Artists , and has since performed extensively throughout Europe. He has been an ensemble member with various German theatres, among them , Wurzburg, KrefeldMbnchengladbach, Dortmund and the Badische Staatstheater in Karlsruhe. Mr. Frank's recent engagements include Khovanshchina in Frankfurt and The Bartered Bride with Baltimore Opera. Following his appearances in Detroit, Mr. Frank will return to Frankfurt for productions of Don Carlos, Don Giovanni and The Abduction From the Seraglio, in which he will reprise the role of Osmin.

ELIZABETH FUTRAL

Konstanze, The Abduction from the Seraglio (12, 16, 19)

American coloratura soprano Elizabeth Futral makes her Michigan Opera Theatre debut as Konstanze in The Abduction from the Seraglio. Having performed with many of North America's most respected companies, Ms. Futral has gained an excellent reputation for stunning vocalism and her vast dramatic range. Recent engagements include Adina in L Elisir d'Amore with the Washington National Opera, Galatea in Acis and Galatea with Musica Angelica, Violetta in La Traviata with Los Angeles Opera, the world premiere of Tan Dun 's The First Emperor with the Metropolitan Opera, Semele with New York City Opera and r Assedio di Corinto with both Baltimore Opera and Lyric Opera of Chicago.

CLAUDE GIRARD

Set Designer, The Abduction from the Seraglio and Set and Costume Designel; Romeo and Juliet

Angelica, Gianni Schicchi, Cavalleria RusticanaiI Pagliacci, Madama Butterfly, n Barbiere di Siviglia, Don Giovanni , The Merry Widow, Nabucco, AIda, La Traviata and Die Fliegende Hollander for l'Opera de Montreal , Opera de Nancy (France), Liege (Belgium) , Philadelphia, Portland , Seattle, Tulsa, Detroit, Dayton, Louisville , Hamilton, Winnipeg , Calgary and Vancouver. In addition to opera sets, Mr. Girard has created designs for more than 30 ballet productions and has had the opportunity to direct artistic events throughout Canada and France. Mr. Girard created design concepts for Don Giovanni performed at the Banff Opera Festival (1993). He also directed the 1991 , 1992 and 1993 Canada Day celebrations for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) and Societe RadioCanada (SRC).

OTHALIE GRAHAM

Title role, Turandot (22m, 27, 29m)

Canadian soprano Othalie Graham makes her Michigan Opera Theatre debut as Turandot. Ms. Graham has performed with many of the nation's leading companies and festivals, including Opera Delaware, Sacramento Opera , Philadelphia 's Academy of Vocal Arts, the Utah Festival Opera and the California Festival Opera, among others. Ms. Graham also performed Der Rosenkavalier with Italy's Casalmaggiore Festival and made two appearances with Sweden's Julita Opera Festival in 2001 , and 2003. Ms. Graham is also a frequent performer on the concert stage , with credits including performances with the Princeton University Orchestra and the Westfield Symphony Orchestra, among others. Following her appearances in Detroit, Ms. Graham will perform in n Trovatore with the Utah Festival Opera and Elijah with Bryn Terfel and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

EGLISE GUTIERREZ Liu, Turandot

Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

Born in Quebec, Claude Girard pursued his studies at the School of Fine Arts in Quebec City and in Venice. He began his designing career in 1967, working for Le Grands Ballets Canadiens. He has since designed sets, costumes and lighting for productions including Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serai!, La Cenerentola, Romeo etJuliette, Norma, La Boheme, Suor www.MichiganOpera.org

Cuban-American soprano Eglise Gutierrez makes her Michigan Opera Theatre debut as Liu in Turandot. A rising star in the international opera world, Ms. Detroit Opera House

Gutierrez mad e h er professiona l debut as Lu cia in Lucia di Lamm ermoor in Bogota Colombia just three years ago. In the seasons since, sh e h as mad e notable debuts on Eu ropean stages includin g the Finnish National Opera in Helsinki and Tea tro dell Op era in Rome , as we ll as in South America at the Teatro Co lon in Buenos Aires. In the United States she has performe d wi th nu merous opera co mpanies and orch es tras, including the Opera Orchestra of New York, Santa Fe O pera , Saraso ta Opera and Sacramento Sym ph on y Recent engagements inclu de Rigo lett o and La Son nambula at the Teatro Verd i di Tri es te and Mend elsso hn s Elijah wi th the Utah Symph ony Following her appearan ces in Detroit , Ms Guti errez will close the season in a n ew production of Lucia di La mmermoor at the Savonlinna Opera Fe stival in Finland.

JEFFREY HAUU

Pong, Tu randot

Young Filipino -Can adian tenor J effr ey Halili m ak es his Michigan Opera Th eatre debut as Pong in Turandot Rece ntly h e comple ted hi s tra ining at the Academy of Vocal Art s wh e re he performed numerou s roles in ope ra s including Rigo letto , La Navarra ise, Iolanta, Cos i fan Tutte, Ele htra , rAmico Fli tz, Le Nozze di Figaro, Die Zaub erflote, and Lucia di Lamm ermoor. "[Hurling] hims elf across th e stage with demonic energy " in AVI\s produ ction of Das Rhe ingo ld, "th e clever fire god Loge furnished tenor Jeffrey Halili with an exce ll ent ve hicl e for his gifts; his dynam ic characteriza tion , deft verbal pointing and legato flow [w hich ] gave cons istent pleasure." Thi s past year, Mr. H alili h as perfonned Han y in La Fanciulla del West with Flori da Grand O p era and a "highly energized and graceful" Gas tone in La Tra viata wi th Virginia Opera. H e h as attended several notable su mmer programs including those at Glimme rgla ss Ope r a , Santa Fe Opera, and Chautauqu a Opera w h ere h e gave ''first rate performances" as Goro in Madama Butterfly, No rmann o in Lucia and Gi les Co rey in Th e Crucible. At Santa Fe Opera , he pe rformed Ajax I in La Belle Helene alongside Su san Graham.

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MATTHEW HAYWARD

Gregorio, Rom eo and Juli et American lyri c- baritone Matthew H aywa rd mak es hi s Michi gan Opera Theatre d ebut as Gregorio in Rom eo an d Juli et. Mr. H aywa rd has enj oyed a close relation ship w ith the Asp e n Music Fest iva l , and has performed rec itals there featurin g the w ork s of Duparc, Schub e rt and We ill

amo n g ot h ers. H e h as rece ived acclaim recently for performances in recita l and on the opera s ta ge, including Figaro in II Barbie re di Siviglia , Papageno in Th e Magic Flut e, Pe ter in Han se l and Grete l and Jupiter in Offenbachs Orpher aux Enfers.

Buss HEBERT

Stage Director, Tu ran dot

American directo r Bli ss Heb e rt is known for hi s prolific output of acclaimed productions- mor e than 300 productions of 100 operas, wi th 41 different ope r a compa nies. Mr. Hebert has provide d s tage

direction for th e Metropolitan Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Chicago Lyric Ope ra , and tOp era de Montreal, among others . Mr. H eb ert 's most r ecent production with Michi gan Opera Theatre was the criti ca lly acclaim ed new produ ction of Aida, which graced the co mpany's stage in honor of the Detroit Opera Hou se's tent h anniversary, in 2006. Mr. H ebert's productions of Stravinsky's Le Rossignol and Oedipus Rex appear on Sony Records , an d the multi-face tted artist can also b e h eard as pianist and harp sichordist in works by Ba ch , Sc hoenberg and Berg , on releases from Columbia Record s.

ERIC JOHNSTON

Pang, Turandot

Ameri can tenor Eric Johnston mad e his Michigan Ope ra Theatre debut as Dr. blind in Die Fl edermau s ( 2003 ) He re turned to Detroit last seaso n to sing the Second Jew in Salome. For the 2007 Sp ring Season , Mr John sto n sings Pang in Turandot. Mr. J ohnston'S everexpanding repertoire ranges from Wagner to Pu ccini , and on to Gilbert and Sullivan. He performs frequently with American compa nies, including Augusta Opera , Nashville Opera , Lake George Opera and Chautauqua Opera , among others. Recent engagements incl ude Susannah with Virginia Opera and La Traviata with Opera Columbus. Follo wi n g his appearances in Detroit, Mr. Johnston will travel to Milwaukee for performances of Macb eth and Salome with Florentine Opera, and then on to Nash vi ll e where he wi ll sing Tybalt in Rom eo et Juliette.

DOUG JONES

Pedrillo , The Abduction from the Seraglio

American tenor Dou g Jones returns to Michigan Opera Theatre as Pedrillo in The Abduction from the Seraglio. Often reengaged with the Seattle Opera, Mr. Jones has performed a variety of roles with the company including Borsa in Rigoletto, Edmon dolD ancing Master in Manon Lesca ut, and Tanzmei ste r in

'\vww.M.ichiganOpera.org

Ariadne auf Naxos , as well as roles in Tristan und Isolde, The Magic Flute, B01is Godonov, Eugene Onegin and Parsifa l.

Int ernationa lly, he recently made his d ebut with th e Royal Opera Covent Garden as Tobias in Sweeney Todd, as well as his debut in Vienna as Sesto in Handel 's Giulio Cesare in th e Wiener Musikverein. Engagements for the 20062007 Season and beyond includ e Goro in Madama Butt erfly and Rem endado in Carmen with Aus tin Lyric Opera, Vasek in Th e Bart ered Brid e with Baltimore Opera, Beppe in I Pagla cci with Seattle Opera, and Boris Godonov with San Diego Opera

ALLEN CHARLES KLEIN

Set, costum e and lighting des igneJ; Turandot

American d es igne r Allen Charles Klein is one of th e world's most sought-after sce nic artists. The only American deSigner to have fo cu se d hi s career ex clusi ve ly on production and design for the operatic stage, his work has been featured by many of th e world's grea t opera co mpanies and festi va ls, including the Metropolitan Opera of New York, tOpera de Montreal, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Vienna State Opera, the Edinburgh Festiva l and the Glyndebourne Festiva l. No tabl e rec ent Michigan Opera Theatre productions include 2006 's Aida, 2004's Rigoletto , 2002 's Th e Mania ge of Figaro and Werther in 1999. Mr. Kl ein has designed the world premiere productions of Floyd's Of Mice and Men and The Passion of Jonathan Wade, Pasatieri 's The Sea Gull and Eaton 's The Temp est. Together with stage director Bliss Heb ert , Mr. Klein has collaborated on the creation of more than 50 productions.

ARUTJUN KOTCHINIAN Timur, Turandot

Armenian bass Arutjun Kotchinian debuted with Michigan Opera Theatre as Oroveso in Norma, 2005. This season, he returns to sing Timur in Turandot. Mr. Kothinian ha s appeared with opera companies su c h as the Ro ya l Opera House , Teatro la Sca la and Deut sche

Oper Berlin. Recent engage m ents include Turandot at the Hamburg State Ope r a and Royal Opera House, Oedipe at the Gran Teatre del Li ceu in Barcelona , and th e title ro le in Boris Godunov in Han n over Future engagements includ e II Trovatore at the Festival of Orange, The Magic Flute in Toulouse and Lucia di Lamm ermoor at the Deutsche Ope r Berlin.

DIN A KUZ NETSOVA

Juli et, Romeo and Juli et (2, 6, 9)

Russian-American soprano Dina Kuznetsova makes her Mich iga n O p era Theatre debut as Juli et. Known for passionate portrayals o f th e heroines of Italian and French opera, Ms. Kuznetsova h as attrac ted th e att enti on of th e world's major opera companies with her ou tstand ing musicianship and compe lling stage presence She h as performed wi th co mp anies including Chicago Lyric Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, Ope ra Pacific, Cinci nn at i Opera and Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin Ms Kuznetsova began th is seaso n with a nationally televised Sep tember 11 dedicatory co n ce rt Oth er rece nt en gagemen ts include Juli ette with Lyric Opera of Chicago and Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi wi th the Royal Opera Covent Garden. Upcoming engagements include a Dvorak program wi th the New York Festival of Song.

PETER LOBERT

Osmin, The Abduction from the Serag lio (13m, 18)

German-born bass Peter Lobert makes his No rth American debut as Osmin in Th e Abduction from the Seraglio. H e h as previous ly sung th e role at Stadttth eater Pforzheim and Badischen St aa tstheater Karlsruhe. He h as also appea red as Daland in The Flying Dutchman and Sarastro in The Magic Flute. His recent en gagements include his debut of

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Hunding in Die Walkure at the Staats th eater Karlsruhe , Fafner at the Deutschen Oper am Rhein and Mon tero n e in Rigoletto at the Komischen. He earned the distinction of being a finalist in th e 2006 Richard Wagner Sin gin g Competition. Peter began training his vo ice in 1966 under the direction o f Ju rgen Hartfiel at the Carl Maria von Weber University of Music in Dr esden, Germany Simul ta n eous ly, he stud ied pri vately with Celes ti na Casapietra in Berlin. From 2000-2002 , Mr. Lobert was engaged as a gu est singer at the Stad tt heater Chemnitz.

STEPHEN LUSMA NN

Capulet, Romeo and Juli et American baritone Step h en Lusmann made hi s Michigan Opera Theatre debut in Jake Heggie's Deadman Walking , in 2003. For the 2007 Spring Opera Season he returns as Capule t in Romeo and Juli et During the course of his ri ch operatic career, Mr. Lusmann h as performed more than forty leading roles, with many of the wo rld 's leading opera companies, includ in g Oper der Stad t Bonn, Opera de Monte Ca rl o, Stadttheater Luzern , Washington Opera , Cin cinna ti Opera, Boston Lyri c Opera and O p era Caro lina among others. Mr. Lu smann is an Associate Professor of Voice at the Universit y of Michigan and is also a member of the voice faculty at the Seagle Music Colony H e can be h eard on recordings o f Str auss' Der Friedenstag on the Koch Int ernational label, Operangala on Tonstudio AMOS and on E. E. Cummings: An American Circus on Centaur Records.

RYA N MACPHERSON

The Abduction from the Seraglio (13m, 18)

Tenor Ryan MacPherson makes his Detroit debut as Belmonte in The Abduction from the Seraglio. As a graduate student at Yale Unive r sity, Ryan sang the roles of Rodolfo in La Boheme, Vaudemont in Tch aikovsky's Iolanta , Fenton in Falstaff, Ein So ldat in De l' Kaiser Von Atlantis, and Eisenstein in Di e Fledermaus. Prior to his studies at Yale, he attended the University of Missouri-Colu m b ia, an d was h ea rd as Sam in Susannah, Tony in West Side Story, and Whizzer in March of the Falsettos. Last season Mr. MacPherson took the stage as Ferrando in Cosi fan Tutti for New York City Opera. He also recently made his deb u t with Shreveport Opera in the title role in Faust. This season's engagements include the roles of Anathol in Vanessa with New Yo rk City Opera, and two performances of Don Jose in Carmen at Opera Memphis and at the Na ti onal Concert Hall in Dublin. He also makes hi s debut at the Ope r a Nat ion al de Paris.

SHAWN MATHEY

Belmonte, The Abduction from the Serag lio

American tenor Shawn Mathey makes his Michigan Opera Th ea tre debu t as Belmonte in The Abduction from th e Seraglio. Mr. Mathey has spent much of the 20062007 season performin g abroad in roles including Belfiore in La Finta

Giardiniera at the Opernhaus Zurich and Ferrando in Cosi fan tutte in Paris. Mr. Mathey also performed Ferrando for his debuts with both the Salzburg Fest ival and Aix-en-Provence Festival, as well as the Vienna Staatsoper. He will spend much of the spring performing in the United States, having just completed an engagement as Gerald in Lakme with the Minnesota Opera. Following his Detroit appearances, Mr. Mathey will again sing Ferrando with the Cincinnati Opera. Additional upcoming engagements will take him to Washington DC, Paris, Vienna and Munich.

MICHAEL MAYES

Ping, Turandot and Paris, Romeo and juliet

American baritone Michael Mayes returns to Michigan Opera Theatre for two roles during the spring season, Ping in Turandot and Paris in Romeo and Juliet Since making his company debut in Rigoletto, Mr. Mayes has performed frequently with the company, including appearances in Faust, Tosca, Margaret Garner and The Daughter of the Regiment. With a strong voice and even stronger sense of drama, he has made waves in the opera world for his command of the stage and attractive masculine presence. Originally from Conroe, Texas , Michael has performed with several opera companies across the United States including Madison Opera, Cincinnati Opera, Palm Beach Opera, Skylight Opera, Opera Theatre Highland Park, Central City Opera, Union Avenue Opera Theatre, and Ft. Worth Opera. Other engagements this season and beyond include Guglielmo in Cosi fan tutte with Opera on the James, the title role in The Barber of Seville with Du luth Festival Opera, and the Father in Opera Company of Philadelphia's production of Hansel and Gretel.

LAUREN McNEESE

Stephano, Romeo and juliet

American mezzo-soprano Lauren McNeese makes her Michigan Opera Theatre debut as Stephano in Romeo and Juliet. An alumna of the Lyric Opera Center for American Artists, Ms. McNeese has appeared frequently in Lyric Opera of Chicago productions, including, most recently, as Dorabella in Cosi fan tutte.

Other recent engagements include Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro and Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni with Minnesota Opera and Isolier in Le Comte Ory with Wo lf Trap Opera. FollOwing her Detroit appearances, Ms. McNeese will travel to Toronto to perform Mozart's C Minor Mass with the Toronto Symphony, before debuting with Los Angeles Opera as Teba ldo in Don Carlo and Javotte in Manon. In the following summer, Ms. McNeese will sing Rosina in PORTOpera's production of II Barbiere di Siviglia.

ROSA MERCEDES

Choreographer, Turandot

Spanish choreographer Rosa Mercedes made her Michigan Opera Theatre debut choreographing Aida in 2006. For 2007, she returns as choreographer of Turandot. A featured dancer and choreographer with many of the world 's leading opera companies , Ms. Mercedes has worked with the Metropolitan Opera of New York, Opera di Roma, Florida Grand Opera and Baltimore Opera , among others. She has choreographed numerous productions, including La Gioconda, Salome, Turandot, Don Giovanni and Carmen. Ms. Mercedes has also enjoyed a distinguished career as a soloist and principa l dancer with the world's foremost Spanish dance and Flamenco companies, and is the Founding and Artistic Director of Duende Ballet Espano!.

SUSAN NICELY Gertrude, Romeo and juliet

sively in Europe and South America. She has gained much acclaim for performances of Marthe in Faust, the Old Lady in Candide and Marcellina in Le Nozze di Figaro, as well as more dramatic portraya ls of Mama Lucia in Cavallena Rusticana and Mama McCourt in The Ballad of Baby Doe. Recent engagements include La Traviata with both Atlanta Opera and Opera Pacific, Cavalleria Rusticana and La Cenerentola with Dallas Opera and Faust with Palm Beach Opera. FollOwing her appearances in Detroit, Ms. Nicely will sing Berta in II Barbi ere di Siviglia with both Atlanta Opera and Opera Omaha.

AMANDA PABYAN

Blonde, The Abduction from the Seraglio

American soprano Amanda Pabyan makes her Michigan Opera Theatre debut as Blonde in The Abduction from the Seraglio, a role which she has recently performed at the May Festiva l in Cincinnati and Opera Co lorado. Ms. Pabyan possesses a wideranging operatic repertoire, and has gained notoriety for performances in the United States and abroad. She has performed with American companies including Florida Grand Opera, Glimmerglass Opera , Washington National Opera and New York city Opera, among others. Abroad, credits include Lucia di Lammermoor and Lakme with Canterbury Opera, and concert appearances in Genoa, Ita ly, and at the Austrian Cultural Institute . Other recent engagements include productions of Die Zaubelj10te with Pittsburgh Opera, Opera Co lorado, Utah Opera and Dallas Opera.

LEAH PARTRIDGE

Konstanze, The Abduction from the Seraglio (13m, 18)

American soprano Leah Partridge makes her Michigan Opera Theatre debut as Konstanze in The Abduction from the Seraglio. Critically praised for her bel canto and Verdi repertoires, Ms. Partridge has made many triumphant appearances in the title ro le of Lucia di

Opera House Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

American mezzo-soprano Susan Nicely makes her Michigan Opera Theatre debut as Gertrude in Romeo and Juliet. Ms. Nicely has performed with many of the nation 's most prestigious companies, including Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, Cincinnati Opera and New York City Opera , among others, and has also performed extenwww.MichiganOpera.org

Lamm er moor and Violetta in La Traviata

She has performed with notable companie s including Florida Grand Opera, Chicago Opera Theatre , Opera Hong Kong, Teatro Carlo Felice di Genova and Tea tro Colon in Buenos Aires, among others Ms. Partridge's recent engagem ents include Amina in La Sonnambula with the Florida Grand Opera and Rosina in II Barbiere di Siviglia in her debut appearance with Atlanta Opera She will create the ro le of Roxane in David DiChi eras world premiere opera, Cyrano, h ere at the De troit Opera Hous e.

KYLE PFORTMILLER

Mercutio, Romeo and Juli et American baritone Kyle Pfortmill er was born in Elgin, Illinoi s and currently resides in New York City He has emp loyed his unique talent in opera, operetta and musical theatre from the contemporary to th e classic. He made hi s Michigan Opera Theatre debut as Schaunard in the 2005 production of La Bohem e and ret urn ed la st season to perform Dandini in Cinderella. His repertoire also includes the title roles in Don Giovanni and II barbiere di Siviglia, as well as Eisenstein (Di e Fledermau s), Silvio (I pagliacci), Escamillo (Carmen), Count Carl Magnus Malcolm (A Littl e Nig ht Music), Billy Bigelow (Carousel), H enr y Higgins (My Fair Lady), J ohn the Butcher (Hugh the Drover), PierreiRed Shadow (The Dese rt Song), and Hajj , the Poet (Kismet). He has performed with opera companies and festivals throughout North America, including New York City Opera, Sarasota Opera and the Lak e George Opera Festival , and in the 2005/2006 season he made his European debut in a new production of I Pagliacci with th e Ne therlands Opera.

EVELYN POLLOCK

Juliet, Romeo and Juliet (3m, 8)

American lyric coloratura soprano

Evelyn Pollock makes her Michigan Opera Theatre debut as Juli et. An emerging yo ung artist , Ms. Pollock recently made her debut at th e Wo lf Trap Festival as Zerlina in Don Giovanni and Clorinda in La Cenerentola. She ha s also r ece ntly performed Musetta in La Boheme with Kentucky Opera, Elvira in L Italiana in Algeri with Palm Beach Opera and a

Detroit Opera House

concert of Shubert's Mass in G Major as well as Mozart's Regina Coeli at Carnegie Hall. Ms. Pollock has performed with numerous opera companies in the United States, including Santa Fe Opera , Minnesota Opera and Tulsa Opera. In her most recent engagement, Ms Pollock made her rol e debut as Na netta in Verdi's Falstaff with the Opera Company of Philadelphia.

H er upcoming engagements include a return to the Detroit Opera House as Roxane in Dr. David DiChiera 's new work, Cyrano, in the fall of 2007. Add itionall y, she will p erform the role of Roxane with Opera Company Of Philadelphia.

ANNA SHAFA]INSKAIA

Title role, Turandot (21, 25, 28)

Ukrainian soprano Anna Shafajinskaia makes her Michigan Opera Theatre debut as Turandot, a role with which she recent ly made her Spanish debut at th e Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona, and which she will soon repri se there. A winner of the Lu c iano Pa va rotti International Competition, Ms. Shafajinskaia came to the attention of opera fans world- wide when she was invited to sing Tasca opposite Luci ano Pavarotti. She has since developed a reputation as one of the world's foremost dramatic sopranos. Recent engagements have included La Gioconda with Deutsch e Oper Berlin , Piqu e Dame with the Finni sh Na tional Opera, Tasca with Den Norske Opera and L Amour des trios Oranges for the Ne derlandse Opera. Upcoming engagements for Ms. Shafajinskaia include Manon Lescaut in Nice and Tasca with New York City Opera.

KENDALL SMITH

Lighting Designer; The Abduction from the SeragliO

Kendall Smith returns to Michigan Opera Th eatre in 2007, to design lighting for The Abduction Jrom the Seraglio, his 53rd production with the company Mr Smith made his Michigan Opera Theatre debut in 1988, with The Ballad oj Baby

Doe , and most recently d es ign ed lighting for th e company's 2006 productions of Aida and Cinderella. Mr. Smith's work ha s been featured in numerous productions by respec ted opera companies, theat ers and festi va ls , including Florida Grand Opera, the Oregon Shakespeare Festi va l , Indi anapolis Opera , the Weston Pla yhouse, Geve Theatre , Boston Lyric Opera and Opera Pacific , among others.

DONALD EDMUND THOMAS

Lighting Designer; Romeo and Juliet

American lighting designer Donald Edmund Thomas has design ed productions of Salome, Le Nozze di Figaro and II Trovatore in previou s seasons. For the Spring 2007 Season, he returns to design lighting for Rom eo and Juliet. Recent designs include Manon Lescaut for Seattle Opera , Aida and Madama Butterfly for Palm Beach Opera, Don Pasquale for Toledo Opera and Rom eo et Juliette for Atlanta Opera. For over twenty seasons Mr. Thomas has deSigned f6r the Florentine Opera in Milwaukee, most recently creating La Fille du Regiment. For fifteen seasons Mr. Thomas has also designed the Summer Opera Theatre Company productions in Washington, D.C. , whe re he wi ll design Little Wom en and Tasca this summer. Outside of opera, he designed Irene Wertzel's n ew play, In The Mood , for the Olney Thea tre Center, and production s of Ira Levin 's Deathtrap and The Man oj LaMancia for the Maltz-Jup it er Theatre in Florida. Mr. Thomas teaches lighting design at CUA in Washington, D.C. , and his designs have been seen on Broadwa y, off-Broadway, and on numerous national tours of shows.

RUSSELL THOMAS

Tybalt , Romeo and Juli et American tenor Russell Thomas makes his Michigan Opera Theatre debut , and hi s ro le debut, as Tybalt in Rom eo and Juli et. Formerly a member of the Metropolitan Opera's Lindemann Young Artist Developme nt Program , Mr. Thoma s made his Metropolitan Opera debut as Herald in Don Carlos. He has performed

with many American opera companies, includin g Florida Grand Opera, Opera Th eatre of St. Louis and Opera North, among oth ers, and recent ly made his European debut as Sultan So lim an in Zaide at th e Vienn a Festival. Other rece nt engagements includ e Fidelio with the Metropo li tan Opera, Id omeneo Scene with the Seattle Symphony an d La Boheme with Seattle Opera. Fo llo win g hi s appearan ces in Detroit , Mr. Th omas will re turn to New York for performances of Vaughan Williams' On Wenloch Edge with the Chambe r Music Society of Lin co ln Ce nter, at Alice Tu lly Hall.

R ICO S ERBO

A ltoum , Turandot

Rico Se rbo hai ls from Ca liforni a wh ere h e studied at the Uni ve r si ty of th e Pacific. He remained on th e West Coas t to b egin hi s professionallife at San Francisco Opera. Subsequently h e was en gage d as prin cip al tenor with the Th eater der Sta dt Kob lenz an d th e Staa tsth eater am Gaertne rplat z in Munich. Mr. Se rb o also t hrill ed audiences wi th num ero u s gu es t appearances throughout Germany, Au stria and Switzerland offering stirrin g p erforman ces o f many roles includin g the Duk e in Rigoletto, Al fredo in La Tra viata , Tamino in Th e Magic Flut e, Rodo lfo in La Boheme, the Italian Tenor in Der Rozenhavalier to name a few. Hi s return to the U.S. ha s brought engage m en ts wi th numerous American opera companies. Besides Michigan Opera Theatre, Mr. Se rbo ha s distingui sh ed himself a t New York City Opera, Sa n Di ego Opera, Opera Co mp any of Boston , Pitt sburg Ope ra , Philad elp h ia Ope r a, Hou sto n Opera, Lyri c Opera of Chicago , Washington Opera and many oth ers.

M ATT HEW TR EV INO

Mandarin, Turandot

America n bass Matthew Trevino

m akes hi s Michigan Opera Theatre d ebut as Mandarin in Turand ot. Mr. Trevino is r ap idl y ga ining a reputation as one o f the most so u ght -after ba sses on the west coas t. As a reside n t arti st with the San

Fra ncis co Opera 's pres tigious Merola Program, Mr. Trevino performed La Calis to, Gianni Sc hicc hi and II Barbi ere di Siviglia with the company Additionally, he perform ed as Don Alfonso in a production of Cosi fan tutte which toured nation ally wi th Sa n Fran cisco Opera 's Western Opera Thea ter. Mr. Trevino has performed wi th num ero u s other companies in th e Western United Sta tes , includin g Opera Sa nta Barbara, Eugene Opera and Neva da Opera, and ca n often be found performing with companies in his home s tat e o f Texas, including Fort Wo rth Opera , Amarillo Opera and Waco Lyric Opera. Mr. Trevino's up c oming engagements includ e Escamillo in Carm en wi th Amarillo O p era, Beetho ve n 's Ni nth Sy mph ony with th e Ma rin Symphony and a d eb ut in La Gioconda at the Teatro Municipal de Sa ntia go

B ERNA RD U ZAN

Stage Director, Rom eo and Julie t

David DiChiera's opera Cyrano, and will return to Detroit to direct the wo rld p r emie r e in 2007.

DO NA D. V AUG HN

Stage Direc tor, The Abduction from the Seraglio

Am eri can Stage Director Dona D. Vaughn mad e h er Michi ga n Op era

Theatre debut with Die Fled ermau s/New Yea rs Ev e Gala (1993 ) For the 2007 Sp rin g Season, sh e returns to direc t The Abduction From the Seraglio. Ms. Vaughn currentl y serve s as Artistic Direc tor of PORTopera , in Portland , Maine, as well as Director of the Opera Workshop at Manhat tan School of Music and Sta ge Dire cto r/Acting Coach for the Metropolitan Operas Lindemann Young Arti st Development Progr am. Ms. Vaughn ha s d irec ted for the New York Ci ty Opera, Lin co ln Center, Kenn ed y Cen ter and Julliard , among man y other compani es and arts organizations. Sh e serve d as ass istant director for th e premiere of Ten n essee Wil li ams' Red De vil Batt ery Sign , and sub se quentl y direct ed it and the fir st public performance of Williams' Spring Stor m As a performer, Ms. Vaughn 's cr edits includ e th e original Broadway produ c tions of Company, Jesus Chri st S, lp erst ar and Seesaw. Ad diti on all y, Ms. Va u ghn freq uently adjudicates for voca l compe ti tion s, includin g the Denver Lyric Opera Vocal Competition , the Me tr opo litan Na tiona l Counc il and Fran ce's Devivre vox.

E D UARD O VILL A Calaf, Turandot (22m , 27, 29m)

Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

French Stage Direc tor Bernard Uzan has an extensive background in opera , having enjo ye d success as a stage director, general d irec tor , artistic director, de sign er and librett is t. Mr. Uzan mad e his Michigan Opera Th eatre d eb ut with Faust (1983), and ha s since di r ec ted a variety of productions for the company, including Peter Glimes, Manon and Di e Fledermaus, am on g oth ers. Most recentl y, Mr. Uzan directed the compa n y's production of Salome in 2006. Mr. Uzans productions h ave grace d stages throughout No rth Am erica, So uth America and Euro p e. Ad diti ona lly, Mr. Uzan ha s co- d es ign ed more than 75 production s, which con tinue to be seen th roughout th e world. H e is also a respect e d arts ed u cator, and has worked with both th e Young Arti sts Program of the Florida Grand Opera and the prestigious Mero la program o f th e Sa n Franc isco Opera, among others. Mr. Uzan's up comin g engagement s includ e Faust with th e Ci n cinn a ti Opera and a ne w produ ction of II Tabarro/Pagliacci, which h e will direct for Sea ttl e Opera. Mr. Uzan is also the librett ist behind www.M.ichi ganOpera.o rg

American te no r Eduardo Vill a returns to the Detroit Opera H ouse stage as Ca laf in Turandot, having debuted wit h the co mpany in Carm en , in 1996. Mr. Vill a also perform ed Riccardo in 200 3's A Mashed Ball with the company Mr. Villa has r ece ive d much acclaim for h is unusually broad reperto ire and versa tili ty He h as performed with leading companies th roug hout No rth America and Europ e, including the Opera Company of Philadelphi a, Hou ston Grand Opera, Detroit Opera Ho use

Florida Grand Opera , Vancouver Opera, Paris Opera, Finnish National Opera and Deutsche Oper Berlin, among others

A frequent guest of the Metropolitan Opera, Mr. Villa has received critical and audience acclaim for his portrayals of Don Carlo, Radames in Aida, Rodolfo in Luisa Miller, Don Jose in Carmen, Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, Turiddu in Cavalleria Rusticana and Enzo in La Gioconda with the company Mr. Villa began his musical training as a violinist , but switched to voice while studying at the University of Southern California, winning the 1982 Metropolitan Opera auditions.

P ETER VOLPE

Frere Laurent and Le Duc, Romeo and Juliet

American bass Peter Volpe makes his Michigan Opera Theatre debut as Frere Laurent and Le Duc, in Romeo and Juliet. Mr. Volpe is a respected performer with an everexpanding repertoire of more than 80 roles in six languages. He has performed with many of North America's leading companies, including the Metropolitan Opera, the Lyric Opera of Chicago and [Opera de MontreaL Mr. Volpe has also received accolades for performances on stages throughout Europe, having appeared frequently with the opera companies of Stuttgart , Strasbourg , Dusseldorf and Prague, among others. Recent engagements include Billy Budd and Maid of Orleans with Washington Opera, Faust and Aida with Palm Beach Opera and Macbeth with Portland Opera Following his appearances in Detroit, Mr. Volpe will return to Palm Beach for Turandot and Portland for Aida, before returning to Detroit to sing De Guiche in the world premiere production of Cyrano.

W I LLIE ANTHONY WATERS Conductor, Turandot

American Maestro Willie Anthony Waters debuted with Michigan Opera Theatre with II Ti'ovatore, in 1979 , and has since returned to conduct productions of Aida, Faust, Rigoletto and Tosca. For the 2007 Spring Season, Mr. Waters will lead the Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra for Turandot. Me Waters is currently the General and Artistic

Detroit Opera House

Director of the Connecticut Opera Association , and is also a frequent guest of opera companies throughout North America, Europe and Africa. Notable recent engagements include Australian Opera, Arizona Opera, Co logne Opera, Edmonton Opera and a production of Porgy and Bess in Capetown, South Africa. On the concert stage , Mr Waters has conducted the Brucknerhaus Orchestra in Linz, Austria, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Essen Phi lharmonic in Germany, and the Florida Philharmonic , among others. He has conducted recordings for Simon Estes and Shirley Varrett on Philips Records, and has also conducted numerous concerts for many of opera 's most notable artists.

STEVEN C. WHITE Conductor, The Abduction from the Seraglio

American Maestro Steven White makes his Michigan Opera Theatre debut conducting The Abduction from the Seraglio. Currently the Artistic and General Director of Opera Roanoke, Maestro White has conducted for many of North America 's most prestigious symphony orchestras and opera companies, including New York City Opera, Baltimore Opera, Indiana University Opera Theater, Florida Philharmonic and the New World Symphony Orchestra, among others. Maestro White served as Associate Conductor and Chorus Master of the Florida Grand Opera from 1993-1997, and was also the Founding Conductor and Music Director of the Southeastern Bach Choral Ensemble. Following his appearances in Detroit, Maestro White will conduct the Finale Concert for the Spoleto Festi val USA, l:Elisir d'Amour for Pittsburgh Opera and Romeo et Juliet for Baltimore Ope r a

LONEL WOODS

Prince of Persia, Turandot

Tenor Lonel Woods, a native Chicagoan, made his Michigan Opera Theatre debut in the role of Parpignol in the company's 2005 production of La ,"",""v.Mich iganOpera.org

Boheme. Mr. Woods also performed the roles of The Messenger, in the 2006 production of Aida and Mingo in Porgy and Bess.

Previous operatic performances include : Lord Cec il in Donizetti's Roberto Deveraux, and Federico in Verdi's Stiffelio, with Washington Concert Opera; and the ro les of Ati lano, in Dona Francisquita and The Second Duelsman, in Dangerous Liaisons with The Washington National Opera. Mr. Woods' recently performed Beethoven's Ninth with The Battle Creek Symphony His upcoming engagements include Beethoven's Ninth and Bach's St. Matthew Passion with Christ Church Grosse Pointe 's Chorale and Orchestra.

BARBARA GIBSON YOUNG ARTIST APPRENTICE PROGRAM

200 7 DeRoy Testam en tary Foun datio n Young A rtis t

B RAN D ON SNOOK

Benvolio, Romeo and Juliet

Brandon is thrilled to be making his debut this season with the Michigan Opera Theatre. During his graduate work at The University of Michigan, Brandon has performed Ferrando in Cosi fan tutte , Lucano in l:incoronazione di Poppea, and most recently, Rodolfo in A View from the Bridge, which was a part the University 's Arthur Mill er Theatre grand opening. Brandon has also spent two summers at the Seagle Music Colony in Upstate New York, where he performed Tamino in The Magic Flute, Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, and Gastone in La Traviata. Originally from the Dallas suburb of Richardson, Texas, Brandon holds a bachelors degree from the Un ivers ity of Kansas, and is receiving a Masters from U of M this spring. Brandon is also very excited to be performing in Romeo and Juliet alongside his voice teacher , Stephen Lusmann.

MOT's Music Department

Th e Artistic Foundation of th e Company

BY TIMOTHY PAUL LENTZ

To begin the research for this feature on Michigan Opera Theatre 's Chorus and Orchestra , I went to David DiChiera to gain his insight and perspective. After all , as General Director and Founder he has in fact been MOT's Aesthe t ic Vis i onary/Artistic Director/ Music Department Head from the very beginning I asked him to talk about the Chorus and the Orchestra. "They are the artistic foundation of the company," he exp lained, "th ey give a permanenc y; they are the commonality that allows us to produce great opera. They are the e l emental building blocks , a critical foundation for what we do. Some may not understand, they may think it's li ke the Fisher or Masonic where the who le company is on tour and moves from city to city. Th i s is not true for Michigan Opera Theatre. At MOT principle singers, directors, deS igners and conductors are booked for each individual opera. The common denominators are the Michigan Opera Thea t re Chorus and Orchestra. The streng th of these two en se mbles gives you the framework for a very strong artistic product." Dr. DiChiera has nurtured and built these two groups into wor ld-class ensembles, and is clearly very proud of thei r stature in th eir field and is very pleased t h at through MOT these wonderfu l artists ha ve an ongoing organization in which th ey are able to express their considerab le tal ent s.

By all accounts Mi c higan Opera Theatre's Chorus and Orchestra are among the finest anywhere, consistently performing wit h great distinction, garnering a terr i fic resume of reviews along the way. Th ese two ensembles can always be counted on to deliver excellence . The Orchestra is a permanent ensemble and the Chorus has more flUidity depend ing on the requireme nts of each opera. The Orchestra especially has gained through experience over the years. The y have come to know therepertoire and the cond u ctors. Ther e is a certain sense of experience that becomes a very va luab le asse t. Along with an ex tremely

high level of technica l proficiency, both the Chorus and th e Orchestra br i ng a tremendous sense of commitment , passion and pride to what they do and the results are there for everyone to enjoy an d admire.

The history of the Music Departm ent is a rich one. In the very beginning, for th e 1964 Overture to Opera program, t he Music Department was baSica ll y two peop l e , Dr. DiChiera and the d i st i nguished Lawrence LaGore as accompanist/coach. He was a wonderfu l artis t , very talented and very profeSSional. In th e summer of 1966 Dr. DiChiera first came into contact with Naomi Amos who also became an accompanisticoac h She was a brilliant pianist a n d sens i t i ve accompanist who like LaGore, seemed to be ab le to p lay everything wel l. Naomi 's husband Dean Amos soon entered into the pic t ure and b eca me one of Dr. DiChiera 's first Per so nnel Managers. As such he was in a position to he l p assemb le the first choruses and secure the artists for the Overture to Opera pe r formances. Nineteen sixty-six was also th e fi rst contact with William Byrd of the Mus i ca l Performing Arts Assoc iation in Flin t. Byrd went on to become a trusted co ll eague and friend. He conducted selected m e mbers of the DSO for Overture to Opera's first performances with an Orchestra in March , 1968. Byrd also conducted th e orchestra for the company 's first full -length opera, Th e Barber of Seville at the Detroit Ins titute of Arts in 1970. By 1972 Byrd was bringing a con t ingent of the Flint Symphony to se r ve as the orchestra for the upstart company and was a regular on t he podium. For the 1977-78 season, an important development took place, the arriva l of Mark D. Fli nt for a t enure as sta ff music director. Thus began a rela t ionship b etwee n Mark Flint and Michigan Opera Th eatre that continues to th is day, with Flint re turning to conduct and advise on a regu lar basis, including preparing the orchestration and cond u cting next fall 's world pre mi er of www.Mich

Dr. DiChiera 's opera Cyrano. It h as b een a long and fruitfu l relationship inde e d.

The time was fina lly right and for the 1978-79 season Dr. DiChiera announced the debut of the Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra. For that first year the Concertmaster was Peruz Zerounian, the personnel manager was John Dion and Mark F l int was on t he podium to conduct the orchestra's first two productions , Bizet's The Pearl Fish ers and the company 's first ma instage production of an American musica l , Show Boat b y Jerome Kern and Oscar H ammerstein II Sitting in the back row of the second violin section was Charlotte Merkerson. The exceptionally talented Ms. Merkerson very quick ly move d u p the ladder and was named Concertmaster for the 19791980 season, th u s beginning an extraordinary tenure for this highly respected artist in this vital position that continues to this day

Actually th e fact that we have our own dedicated Orchestra puts MOT into a somewhat elite ca tegory. OPERA America , th e National Service Organization for Opera, has a database that shows that only about one fourth of the 202 member companies have their own dedicated Orchestra. Approximately one half of the Orchestra is under contract. The core group is 38 and t h e rest are hired as needed. I n order to get into thi s pres tigious ensemb le there is, of co urse , an audition. It is a blind audition as the artist p lays from behind a screen and the audition committee's judgment is based solely on what they hear. If accepted there is a one-yea r proba tion period after which tenure is gr ant ed. Tenure is based on maintaining the qualit y and the integ rity of the position.

Diane Bredesen has p layed cello since 1981 and has been Personnel Manager for th e Orchestra since 1993. Bredesen exudes the kind of professionalism , enthusiasm and ded ica tion that are at the heart and sou l of th i s Orchestra. She explained, "O pera is long and it is hard . It takes a certain kind of musician. "

According t o Bredesen "it r e quire s a lyric al player , a very mu sica l pla yer who mu s t be flexible and kn ows how to wa tch th e co ndu ctor. It is more comple x than in th e symphony, yo u can 't ju st plug into an opera and b e off to the races, you h ave to watch. You h ave to b e dedicated , it 's too h ard, yo u wouldn 't b e ab le to pull it off unl ess you were totally dedicated. Even the ope ra r e h ea r s al s are lon ger t han symp honic r eh ea r sa ls ; you h ave to h ave extreme conc entrat ion But it is thrilling, it 's a pa ss ion, th e succ ess is a ttributabl e to th e passion. "

One of th e most wonderful d efin ing mom ents for th e Orchestra cam e in 1999 when The Three Tenor s ca me to town. Th eir mana geme nt had expe rien ced so m e m aj or difficulti es with th e orc hestras th ey worked with in their travels and were quite relu c t an t to u se the MOT Orchestra. Th ey had ju st bee n in Toro nto and wa nt ed t o brin g the Toronto Symphony with them. Dr. DiChi er a sa id "a b solutely not " and took a bold and firm stand ; the y wou ld u se o ur orchestra or th ere would be no proj ec t. The orchestra qui ck l y pro ve d that they were very capable of wh a t was expecte d , everyone was ve r y happ y and Maestro J a mes Levine, after the first r eh ears al, went to Dr. DiChiera and report ed that h e was very pleased. There i s much mutual respect between Maestro Levine and the Orch es tra . He told The Three Tenors that " thi s orchestra is not only great, it's thrilling. " Domingo r eporte d that "thi s is a r ea l opera orc hestr a, they can do anything," and Pavarotti ca lled Charlotte Merkerson "the best Concertmaster in an opera orc h estra h e h ad ever known. " High praise ind ee d. The arti s ts trul y care, about the work and about each ot h er. Th ere is a fam il y sensibility in thi s orchestra. It is a palpable bond. There ar e a thousand wonderful and memor able s to ries; yo u cou ld write a book.

The sa m e famil y sensibility is obvio u s in the Chorus as well. Yvonn e Friday, a senior memb er of the Chorus , has b ee n involve d sin ce 198 1. She is a Pediatrician at C hildren 's H os pit a l an d yet; "I find tim e to sing because when I'm singing I fe e l best about m ys elf , and that 's w h en I'm most connected to ot her hum ans. Choristers are dedicated to the music,

th ey are musicians an d th at's w hat musicians do " Dr. Friday spea ks eloquently for th e Choristers. "One of the key r equirements is fl exibility; yo u mu s t b e fl exible and creative, es pecially in your tim e man ageme nt. You hav e to so und goo d and look goo d You mu s t b e in the am bienc e of the m oment to help the audience s uspend reality and v isit a different pl ace." It co m es from the h ea rt , trul y a labor o f lo ve.

The 1971 playbill li s t s MOT's first C h o rus Master as Ray nold Allvin. Dr. Allvin of Oakla nd U ni ve r si t y was a l ead ing authority in the field o f music e du ca tion a t th e tim e. The Chorus trul y came into its own und e r Dr. All v in 's leadership and eve n made appearances aro und th e city se par ate from their op er a assignments. In the l ate 1970 's H e nri Venanzi b ecame Choru s Master followed b y Robert Meyers in 1980. In 198 1 the Suzann e Acton era b egan.

"S uzann e i s a wonderful talent, imp ecc abl y musical ", says Dr. Di Chiera , "s h e is a t askmas te r but in such a way that the y respond and admire her g r ea tly. " According to Roberto Ma uro , Ass i s tant Arti s tic Dir ector, "s h e i s an abso lu t ely phenomenal musician an d she ha s manage d to inspir e an extremely high l evel of l oya lt y and co mm i tment."

Acco rdin g to Dr. Frida y, "the Cho ru s is great be ca u se of Suzanne, it 's just that si mple."

Suza nn e Mallare Acton ca m e to MOT in 198 1 and has b ee n go ing s tron g ever since She is a formidable artist and ca me with impr ess ive credentia l s. Sh e is a graduate of th e pre st igio u s University for Foreign Studi es in Perugia, Ital y. Sh e hold s degr ees from University of Michigan, Wayne Stat e University and the University of Illin o is as we ll as having serve d on th e faculty of Florida Sta t e University 's Opera Depart ment. She has coac h e d s in gers in New York City, at Opera Th eatre o f St. Lo ui s, Dayton Opera an d Augusta Opera as we ll as h e r e at MOT. Ms. Acton ha s se rved as Music D irector for th e Department of Com munit y Programs a nd has also con ducted many mainstage produ c ti o ns.

As Assistant Music Director s h e is invo lve d in all auditions an d , in her time , h as been in vo l ve d in a ll aspects of

musical lif e at MOT. She i s also recognized for h er work as Artistic Director/Music Dir ec tor of D e troit 's Rackham Sym phony Choir. After ove r 25 yea rs of dedicated service she rema ins a major force with the com pany today.

Th ere is no hi erarc h y in th e Choru s; it 's more of a co ll ective Every one i s important, includin g first tim e members. Everyone au diti o n s, every Jun e. Ch ori s ters are cast acco rding to th e ne ed s of each production, bas ed on their singing and the physica l requir ements of the operas The tim e co mmitm ent is, of co urs e, cons id ere d very ca refull y. When I aske d Dr. Friday what sh e thou gh t would surprise the rea ders about th e chorus she talked about t wo thin gs. Fir st, s he fel t most people don 't rea lize th e n at ure of th e tim e co mmitm en t. "Mos t people wo uld be s urpri se d by h ow mu ch rehearsal is required. The biggest surpri se wo uld b e ju st ho w much rehearsal is in vo lved with gettin g the Singers to a finished prod uct on the stage." The other thing people ma y not realize i s " that si n ge r s are athl e t es Th ere is a tr emendou s amount o f athl e ti cis m and with th a t at hl e tici sm co me work habit s, nutrition al h abits an d physical h ab it s that ha ve to b e co mbined to mak e it all work. With singing you can't fake rest; if you are not rested ther e will b e n o good sin ging. I am at my very best h ea lth wh en I am in a production."

Dr. DiChiera has al ways b een especia ll y a d ep t at surroundin g him sel f wit h outstanding profeSS ional s H e ha s built a famil y atmosphere and a positive work ing en viro nm ent and it h as inde e d b ee n th e framework for a very s tron g art is tic product. To close, th e wm ds of Roberto Mauro d escr ibing the Musi c Department; " th ey are qualit y p eo pl e, with strong co mmi tment, a lo ve for th e arts and a belief that th e arts enrich our li ves and make the quality of life in our co mmunit y better. "

Timothy Paul Lentz PhD , is Michi gan Opera Theatre's Archivist and the Administrativ e Assistant Jar the Ford Ce nt er Jar Arts and Learning.

Detroit Opera House

Administration & Staff

DAVID DICHIERA.

FOUNDER & GENERAL DIRECTOR

John Eckstrom, Vice President & Chief Finandal Officer

DEPARTMENT DIRECTORS

Karen VanderKloot DiChiera, Director of Community Programs

Carol Hal sted, Director of Dance

Roberto Mauro, Assistant Artistic Director

Dewan Mitchell , Director of Bookings & Events Management

Rock Monroe, Director of Safety & Security

Laura R. Nealsso hn , Director of Communications

David W Osborne, Director of Production

Mary Parkhill , Director of Development

ADMINISTRATION

William Austin, Executiv e Assistant to the General Director

Timothy Lentz, Archivist and Administrative Assistant at the Ford Center

COMMUNICATIONS

Kimberly A. Mogielski, Patron & Ti cket Serv ic es Manager

Michael Hau ser, Marketing Manager

RebekahJohnson, Communications Coordinator

Kimberly Gray, Ticket Services Assistant Manager

Jane Kennedy Coe, Tick et Services Assistant Manager

J enise Collins, Group Sa les Manager

Tunisia Brown , Communication & Ticket Serv ices Assodate

Chri sty Gray, Assistant Office Assodat e

Mitchell Carter, Website Coordinator

John Grigaitis, Photographer

Crys tal G. Ratledge , Account Executiv e, So lomon Friedman Advertising

Toby Faber, BRAVO Sales

Bill Carroll, Public Relations Volunteer

COMMUNITY PROGRAMS

Mark Vondrak, Associate Director & Tour Manager

Betty Lane , Operations Manager & Singing Voice SpeCialist

Dolores Tobis , Mark eting Manager

Trish Shandor, Spedal Projects Coordinator

TOURING ARTISTS OF COMMUNITY PROGRAMS

Betsy Bronson , Maria Cimare lli , Roland

Hamilton, Betty Lane, Shawn McDonald, Kim Parr, Mi chae l Parr, Madelyn Porter, David Pulice, Amanda Sabelhau s, Cyn thia

Siegle, Karl Schmidt , Chris Vaught, Mark Vond rak, Alvin Waddles, Karen White, Tamara Whitty

Detroit Op era House

COMPUTER SERVICES

John Grigaitis, Information Technology Manager

Mariela Sandoval, IAN Administrator

DANCE

Kamilah Levens, Danc e Education Coordinator

DEVELOPMENT

Kim -Lan Trinh, Assodate Director of Development, Plann ed Giving & Major Gifts

Danielle DeFauw, Boutique Manager

Michelle Deland , Corporate Campaign Manag er

H eather Hamilton , Speda l Projects Manager

Katherine Kucharski , Membership Manager and Database Consultant

Nikki Ruddy, Volunt ee r Manager

Matthew Talbot, Foundation & Government Grants Manager

J ane Westley, General Director's Circle Campaign Manager

Stephani Yates, Dan ce Patron Circle Campaign Manager

FINANCE

Derrick Lewis, Controller

Kimberly Burgess-Rivers , Rita Winters , Accountants

DETROIT OPERA HOUSE

Jason Warzecha , Manager, Detroit Opera Hou se

Dennis Wells, Faciliti es Manager

Jesse Carter, Senior Building Engin ee r

Demetrius Barnes, Building Engineer

Randy Elliott, Hous e Manager

Constance Wilson , Ev en ts Coordinator

J e ffre y Rice, Co nc essions Manager

SAFETY & SECURITY

Rashid Avant , Dondra Mainor, Pamela Sco tt , Daryl Stuckey, Derrick Sykes, Control Cen ter Officers

Leroy Banks, Richard Wedden , Dave Williams Stage Door Officers

Lorraine Monroe, Supervisor & Stage Door Officer

DETROIT OPERA HOUSE

PARKING CENTER

Robert Neil, Manager

Kristina Chaney, Office Manag er and Head Cashier

PRODUCTION

ADMINISTRATION

Elizabeth Anderson , Production Administrator

Carolyn Geck , Assistant to the Director of Produ ction

Ann Aurbach * t , Stormy Edwards * * , Dea Franck * * , J ennifer Paradise * t , Assistant Stage Managers

Nancy Krolikowski, Local Tran sportation Coordinator

Eugene Robelli, Production Volunteer

MUSIC DEPARTMENT

David DiChiera , Music Dire ctor

Suzanne Mallare Acton , Assistant Music Director & Chorus Master

Diane Bredesen, Orchestra Personnel Manage r

Jean Schne ider, Repetiteur

TECHNICAL & DESIGN STAFF

Daniel T. Brinker, Tec hnical Direc tor

Monika Essen, Property Mast er & Scenic Artist

Kendall Smith , Lighting Coordinator

Nan cy Leat, Te chnical Assistant

Dee Dorsey, Supertitle Operator

Christopher Barbe au, Fight Coordinator

Daniel Dene, Recording Engine er

Rudi Lauerrnann, Assistant Recording Engin eer

COSTUMES

Suzanne M. Hanna , Costume Director

Alice Mo ss, Wardrob e Mistress

Katie Hein , First Hand

Laura Brinker, J enny Dallas, Susan Fox , Rosemarie Tedesco, Stitchers

MAKEUP & HAIR

Elizabeth Geck, Assistant to Wig & Makeup DeSigner

Detroit Local Wig and Makeup Crew

STAGE CREW

John Kinsora, Head Carpenter

Robert Mesinar, Head Electrician

Alan Bigelow, Head Propertyman

Paul Moraites, Head Soun d

Robert Martin, Head Flyman

Gary Gilmore, Produ ction Electridan

Mary Ellen Shuffett , Head of Wardrobe

IATSE Lo cal #38, Stage Crew

IATSE Local # 786 , Wardrobe *

www.MichiganOpera.org

Photos courtesy of John Grigaitis, Dave Blackburn, Jane Westley and Dick Bowlby

Increasing Regional Philanthropy Program Update

Following th e suc cess of the Touch the Future Program to educat e attorneys, nonprofits and the general public about th e benefit of planned giving and endowment building, the Community Foundation for So uthea st Michigan announced a new philanthropic effort in Southeast Michigan in October 2005. With the Increasing Regional Philanthropy ORP) initiative, the Community Foundation offered a $11.4 million match pool for all endowm ents.

Of the total m atc h pool amount, $ 7.9 million was reserved specifica lly for agency endowme nts .

Provide for those you love. And those whose names you'll never know.

Michigan Opera Theatre, along with 75 other agencies, is allowed to raise additional gifts up to $1 million tota l and receive additional matching fund s up to $500,000 total, b y December 31, 2008 or when the matching pool is exhausted, whichever comes fir st. The minimum gift allowed per donor is $1,000 and the maximum gift is $300,000 per do n or. All gifts are matched on a 1-fo r-2 basis . For examp le, a $ 1,000 gift will receive a mat ch o f $500 for a total of $1,500 to Michigan Opera Th ea tre. A $50,000 gift will receive a match of $25,000 for a total of $75, 000 to Michigan Opera Theatre. A maximum $300,0 00 gift will receive a match of $150,000 for a total of $45 0 ,000 to Michigan Opera Theatre. A $1 million maximum total will rece ive a match of $5 00 ,000 for a total of $ 1.5 million to Michigan Opera Theatre. To learn more about this expanded, exciting effort to bu il d charitable resources for Southeast Michigan, please visit the Community Foundation Web sit e, www.cfsem.org.

We thank a ll our donors for their generosity th at has made it possib le for us to receive a 2: 1 matching g if t from the Community Foundation, th us not on l y ensuring the stability of MOT and its many and di ve rse programs for many yea rs to come, but also allo wing Michigan Opera Th ea tr e to r eceive an n ual distributions from our endowment fund at the Community Foundation. As you know, yo ur gifts and matching funds are deposited at the Michigan Opera Theatre Endowment Fund at the Community Foundation , and will help grow this fu nd to our ultimate goal of $50 million. In additi on, as this fund grows, we w ill be able to r ece i ve l a r ge r annua l distr ibuti ons to help w ith our general operations. Consequently, yo u h e l p u s ensure the future and support the present at the same time with yo ur gifts.

Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

To date, we ha ve recei ved $3 42 ,553 including match monies. We ar e confident that , as yo u ponder a time for a special gi ft in 2007, yo u will have MOT in mind and help us to secure the matching funds that are still needed to co mplet e our goal of $ 1,000 ,000 in new gifts, with a subsequent $500,0 00 in match monies for a total of $ 1 ,5 00 ,000 b y December 31, 2008. For Detroit Opera Hou se

further information or assistance with estate planning and planned giving, please do not hesitate to call Kim-Lan Trinh, Associate Director, Planned Giving and Major Gifts, at (313) 2373408 or email her at ktrinh@motopera.org.

INCREASING REGIONAL PHILANTHROPY DONORS

Mr. and Mrs. Robert A. Allesee

Mr. and Mrs. Douglas F Allison

Bar-Levav Family FoundationlDr. Leora Bar-Levav

Mr. and Mrs. ]. Addison Bartush

Mr. W Victor Benjamin

Betty and Art Blair

Mr. Robert Bomier

Rev. Paul Chateau

Hon And Mrs. Avern L. Cohn

Minka and Douglas R. Cornelsen

Dr. Robert A. Cornette and Mr. Alan Murdock

Ms. Joanne Danto

Mr. Randal Darby

Dr. David DiChiera

Mrs. Charles M. Endicott

Mr. and Mrs. David T. Fischer

Ms. Barbara Frankel

Mr. and Mrs. Albert L. Glover

Dr. Robert A. Green

Mr. Ernest B. Gutierrez

Mr. and Mrs. Jerome Halperin

Mr. and Mrs. Preston B. Happel

Mr. Kenneth E. Hart

Mr. and Mrs. Eugene L. Hartwig

Ms. Rebecca P Hein

Mr and Mrs. Sterling C. JonesJr.

Mrs. Josephine Kessler

Barbara and Edward L. Klarman

Mr. Edward C. Levy Jr. and Ms. Linda Dresner

Mr. Hannan Lis

Ms. Lawrence LoPatin

Mr. and Mrs. Robert A. Lutz

Mr. Bruce A. Miller

Ms. Ruth F Rattner

Dr. and Mrs. David B. Rorabacher

Mr. and Mrs. Norman H. Rosenfeld

Ms. Ellen Sharp

Ms. Mary Anne Stella

Mr. and Mrs. Norman]. Tabor Jr.

Mr. and Mrs. Peter P Thurber

Salome &: Jonathan T. Walton

Mr. Andrew N. Wise

Foundations

The McGregor Fund

The Kresge Foundation

The unique and meaningful gift of life insurance!

One donor at Michigan Opera Theatre found a way to impact the future of Michigan Opera theatre and its opera, dance and educational activities without jeopardizing her own financial security.

Patricia Rodzik is a lover of music and opera and is a long-time subscriber of the Detroit Opera House. If it 's passion that differentiates the exceptional from the average, then Patricia more than qualifies as "exce ptional " . She supports causes that she belie ves in, and once she's committed to a cause, she follows through completely and wholeheartedly

In late 2002, Patricia had a conversation with Josephine Kessler, a dear friend and fellow Director and Trustee. The women discussed Patricia making a planned gift to Michigan Opera Theatre , lea v ing a legacy of cultural invol veme nt for her children and grandchi ldren

What started as a casual conversation between two friends resulted in Patricia's purchase of a sizeable life insurance policy. According to the terms of this poli cy, Michigan Opera Theatre is the beneficiary, and Patricia's premiums qualify as a charitable deduction, and the policy proceeds are exempt from estate taxes.

Life insurance has long been an essential co mponent of many families' financial planning and resources. It is traditionally recognized as a valuable tool for ensuring long-term security for the family, or as a time-honored savings plan. But how many people realize life insurance can offer a convenient, affordable way to fund meaningful charitable gifts, while meeting a variety of estate or financial planning goals?

"Patricia 's generous gift means a lot to the future of opera and dance. Her gift will ensure that our programs will continue to enrich the li ves of our children and the li ves of the people of metro Detroit , which is the very community that we serve. We are ve r y blessed to have Patricia as a friend" , said David DiChiera, General Director of Michigan Opera Theatre.

Patricia supports her community in a

variety of ways. As a member of the Board of Directors for the Chi l dren's Hospital of Michigan Foundation, she is able to witness, firsthand, how her gifts benefit the well being of children and their families. Now, w ith this contribution to Michigan Opera Theatre , Patricia 's commitment to the arts will be remembered and appreciated for years to come.

Imagl·ne

Ensuring the Future

a gift that outli ves to u ch es futur e gene r at ion s in yo ur abs en ce- to exp en en ce and enJ oy the wo rld o f op er a .

Th a t's th e goa l of th e Av anti So ciety, Mi chigan Op er a Th ea tre's Plann ed Gift Rec ogniti on Program.

Th e Ava nti Socie ty represe nts a d esign ate d group of fri end s of Mich iga n O p er a Th ea tre w h o h ave m ad e p lan s to inclu de the or gani za ti on in th eir es ta te p lan sw h e ther by wi ll , trus t , in sur an ce, or li fe inco m e arran ge m en t. Me mb ers hip in the Avant i Soc iety is op en to all.

Memb er s of the Ava nti Soc ie ty r ece ive a b ea u ti fu lly d es ign ed lapel pin , recog ni tion a t the annu al Ava nti Eve ning and in vi tati on s to sp ecial eve nt s and p erfor man ces, and ar e lis ted as m em bers in our pro gr am books throu gh out each season.

Co nfid e n t i a l R e ply: Pl ease retu rn thi s form to Kim -La n Tri nh , Mic hi gan Opera

Thea tr e, 1526 Broa dway, Detroit, MI4 8226, or e-ma il k trinh @moto pera .org Name

AN AVANTI FO R TOM ORR OW

Th e gro w th o f Michigan Op era Th ea tres pe rm an ent En dow m ent Fund en sur es the gro w th and futur e vitalit y of o n e o f th e r egion 's gr eat est cu ltural asse ts. Yo u ar e invited to cr ea te your own legacy- yo ur Ava nti- throu gh Mic hi gan Opera Th ea tre Yo u m ay u se th e att ac h ed co n fide ntia l r ep ly ca rd to indi ca te y our gift , or co n tac t Kim- Lan Trinh at (313) 237- 3 40 8 to di sc u ss gift op tions th at may benefi t yo u , yo ur h eir s an d Michigan O p era Th eatre.

THE AVANT I SOCIETY MEMB ER S

M[ Robert G. Abgalian

Mr. & Mrs. Robert A. Allesee #

Mrs. Adel Amennan' # +

Dr. Lourdes V. Andaya'

Mr & Mrs. Agustin Arbu lu'

Chester & Emelia Arnold'

Floy & Lee Barth e l &

Mr. & Mrs. J. Addison Bartush ' #

Mr &. Mrs. Bre tt Batter son*

Mr. & Mrs. Mandell Bennan

Mr. & Mrs. Art Blair'

Roy E. & lise Calcagno'

Gladys Caldroney'

Dr. & M rs. Victor]. Cervenak'

M[ Allen B. Christman

Mr. & Mrs. Robe rt C. Comstock #

Dr Robert A. Corne tte' #

Bes t time to ca ll :

D Yes, p lease send inform ation rega rd in g pl anned gifts.

D Vwe already qu ali fy for th e Ava nti Soc iety

Pl ease bri efl y describ e the estate gift tha t qua li fies yo u fo r members hip (a ll information sub mitt ed wi ll be ke pt co nfident ial) :

Mr. & Mrs. Tarik Daou d ' #

Ms. MarjO/ie Adele DeVlieg

M[ & Mrs. Robat E. Dewar' #

M[ james P Diamond

Dr. David DiChiera #

Karen Va n derKloot DiC hi era' #

Ms. Mary Jane Doerr #

Mr & Mrs. Charles H Duncan'

Mrs. Charles M. Endicott' #

Mrs. Char/aile Bush Failing

Mr. & Mrs. Herb Fisher'

Pamela R Francis*

Barbara Frankel & Ronald Micha lak'#

Mr & Mrs. Hennan Fra nkel' #

Mrs Rema Frankel' #

Mr. & Mrs. Harvey Freeman

M, Edward P Frohlich

Dr. & Mrs. Byron P Georgeson'

Priscilla A. B. Goodell

M[ Ernest Goodman

Priscilla R. Greenberg, Ph D.' #

Mr & M rs. Ste ph en Hagopian

Mr Lawrence W Ha ll *

Mr & M rs. J erome Halperi n'

Mrs. Robert M. Hamady

Mr. David Handleman* #

Mr. & Mrs. Kenneth E. Hart*

Mr. & Mrs. Eugene L. H artwig'

Ms. Nancy B. Henk & Mr Blllce Hillman

M, Gordon V Hoialmen

Dr. Cindy Hu n g'

M, Carl]. Huss

Kris tin Jaramillo'

Mr. Donald Jensen'

Ms. Helen Barbamjohnston

Mr. & Mrs. Robert Klein #

Mrs. josephine Kleiner

Mr. & Mrs. Erwin H Klo p fer' #

Mr. & Mrs. Daniel B. Ko lton

Misses PhylliS & Selma Korn*

Mr. & Mrs. Art h ur Krol ikowski '

Mr. Max Lepler & Mr. Rex Dotso n &:

M>: & Mrs. Salvador P Masca/i*

Mrs. Wade H McCree'

Ms. Jane McKee'

Mrs. Helen M. Miller

Drs. O rl ando & Doro thy Miller'

Ms. Kathleen Monroe

Mrs Ella M. Mo ntroy

Mr Rona ld K. Morriso n '

Ruth Rawlings Matt

Dr. & Mrs. Stephen Munk

M r Dale]. Pangonis'

Mary & Charles A. Parkhill

Mrs. Elizabeth Pecsenye

Clalice Odgers Percox

Mr. Thomas G. Porter

Mr Rich ard M. Raisin'

M rs. Ruth F Rattner' #

Mr. Jos h ua Rest

Margueri te & James Rigby'

Mr. Bryan L. Rives &:

Ms. Patric ia Rodzik'

Mr. Mitchell j. Romanowski

Ms. Su san Sc h ooner' D rs H einz & Alice Pla tt Schwarz*

Mrs. Frank C. Shaler'

Ms. Laura Sias &

Mrs. Marge Slezak

Ms. PhylliS Funk Snow'

Mr. Edward L Stahl

Mr. & Mrs. Ric h ard Starkwea ther*# +

Mrs Ma r k C. Stevens* #

Mr. Stanford C. Stoddard

J ona than Swift & Thomas A St. Charles'

Mr. Rona ld F. Switzer'

Ms. Mary Ellen Tappan * #

Donald & Margaret Thurber'

Mr. Edwa rd D. Tusse t

Mr. & Mrs. George Vincent' # +

M[]. Ernest Wilde

Mrs. Amelia H. Wilhelm' #

Mrs. Helen E. Wittenberg & Elizabet h & Walter P Work'

Mr. & Mrs. George M. Zeltzer'

AVANTI LOGO & PIN D ESIGN

Monica Moffat", Pat McGu ire

KEYS:

• Founding Members

# Touch the Future donors

+ Avanti Society Sponsors

Italics = deceased members & = n ew members

"OPERA EXPRESS"

HERE'S HOW IT WORKS:

• If you are a Sunday Matinee Subscriber, park or be dropped off at one of the 2 suburban pick-up/drop-off locations

• Royal Transportation coaches will pick-up 90 minutes prior to curtain time and drop you off at the Madison Avenue entrance to the Detroit Opera House.

• Royal Transportation coaches will leave the Detroit Opera House (Madison Avenue doors) 30 minutes after the final curtain

• This is a great way to avoid all of the construction traffic and to meet new friends!

• Gives you time to enjoy a beverage or meal at the Cadillac Cafe in the Detroit Opera House

• Roundtrip cost is just $15 per person.

• For further information, please call the Ticket Office at (313) 237-SING.

A MAP OF YOUR PARKING LOCATION AND DEPARTURE TIME WILL BE MAILED TO YOU PRIOR TO PERFORMANCE DATE. PARKING LOCATIONS ARE SUBJECT TO CANCELLATION DUE TO INSUFFICIENT RIDERS

ROUND TRIP COACH TO DETROIT OPERA HOUSE FOR ONLY $15.00 PER PERFORMANCE

I would like to order COACH TRANSPORTATION as follows:

Sun. April 22, 2007 $ TURANDOT

Sun. MaV 13, 2007 $ THE ABDUCTION

Sun. June 3, 2007 $

ROMEO AND JULIET

Number of riders at $15 ea = $

Select your most convenient park and ride location:

DEARBORN / HENRY FORD CENTENNIAL LIBRARY On Michigan Avenue just West of Ford Performing Arts Center Park in rear of lot.

TROY / TROY PUBLIC LIBRARY Off of Big Beaver Road at 1-75, just west of Marriott Hotel Park in rear of lot.

COACHES DEPART BOTH LOCATIONS FOR DETROIT OPERA HOUSE AT 1:00 P.M.

Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

Michigan Opera Theatre will offer a transportation option to subscribers for select peiformances) at easy-to-reach locations.

Contributo rs to Michigan Opera Theatre's Campaign to Restore the Detroit Opera House

Michigan Opera Theatre exte nd s app reciat io n to t h e many donors who co ntributed so ge nerou sly to the three phases of the Detroit Opera Hou se

[und- rai sin g initiati ve. The followin g is a cum ulative listin g of gifts, of

$5,000 an d a bove, to the Ca pi tal Campaig n to Restore the Det roit Ope ra

$5, 000 ,000 +

Ford Motor Compa n y

The Kresge Foundation

$2,000,000 to $4 ,999,999

Daim lerCh r ys le r Corporation

Gen e ral Motors Corporat io n

T h e Sta te o f Mich iga n

$1,000,000 to $1,999,999

Mr. &: Mrs. Robert A. Allesee

Ano n ymous (2)

Eugene App lebaum Fam ily

Found at ion

Lee &: Fla y Barthe l

Mr. &: Mrs. Jo hn A. Boll, Sr.

H e rman &: Sharon Fra n kel

John S and James L. Knight

Found ation

The Sk illman Foun dati on

$5 00 ,000 TO $ 999 ,999

Anonymous

JPMorganChase

T h e Co h e n Family

Philan throp ic F u n d of th e Community Foun da t ion fo r Sou th east Michigan

Co meri ca

Detroit Grand Opera Association

DTE Energy Fo und ation

Mr &: Mrs. Max M. Fisher

Herman &: Barbara Fr anke l

Mr. &: Mrs. Samuel Frankel

Mr. David H an d lem an

LaSalle Bank

Lea r Corp oration

Mr. &: Mrs. H arry A. Lomaso n

McGregor Fund

Mr. &: Mrs. Roger S. Pe n s ke

Ralph L. &: Winifred E. Polk

Found ation

Mr. &: M rs. R J amison W illi ams, Sr.

$ 250 ,000 TO $499 ,999

AAA

Mr &: Mrs. D o n H. Ba rden

BASF Corporation

Mr. &: Mr s. Philip E. Benton, J r.

Ma n de ll &: Made lein e H Berman Fou nd a t ion

Blue Cross and Blue Shi e ld of Michigan

Day ton Hu dso n

FoundationlHudson's

Mr. &: Mrs. Robert E Dewar

Gha fa ri Associates, In c.

Robert &: Alice Gust a fson

Hud son-Webbe r Foundation

Mr &: Mrs. Richa rd J a nes

Kmart Corporation

Mr. &: Mrs. Paul La vin s

50 BRAVO

MASCO Corporation

Nonprofit F acilities Center

SBC

Raymond C. Sm it h Foundation Fund of the Com munity F ounda tion for South east Michigan

Mr. &: Mrs. George Stru mbos

Mr. &: Mrs. Lynn A. Townsend

TRW Fou ndati on

Mr. &: Mrs. George C. Vincent

Mr. &: Mrs Alvin Wasse rman

Mr. R. J amiso n W illiams , Jr.

$100,000 TO $249 ,999

Ms. Jane E. Agostinelli

D r. &: Mrs Don al d C. Austin

Ms. Anne Lomason Br ay

M r. &: Mrs. Ri chard A. Brodie

Vicki &: Tom Celan i

T h e H an. &: Mrs. Ave rn L. Co hn

Com au Pi ca

Da im le rC h rysler Services

Mr. &: Mrs Tarik Daoud

DeRoy Testamentary Fo unda tio n

Di c k inson Wr ig ht PLLC

Downtown Deve lopme nt Authority, City of Detro it

DTE EnergylMichCon Fou nda t ion

EI P aso Energy Foundation

Mr. &: Mrs. Roland C. Eugenio

Mr. &: Mrs. Pa u l E. Ewi ng

J enni fer &: Da vid F isc h er

Ba rb ara Frankel &: Ron Mic h alak

Mr. &: Mrs. Preston B. H appel

Mr. &: M rs. Robert Klei n

Mr. &: M rs Thom as M. Kri kor ian

Oliver Dewey Marcks Foundation

Nat io n al C it y Bank o f Michigan

Opu s O n e

Ka ren &: Drew Pes lar Foundatio n

Mr. &: Mrs Irving Rose

Mrs. Carolyn L. Ross

Mr. &: Mrs. Anthony L. Soave

Wa lbridge Aldinger Company

Mr. &: Mrs Charles L. W il son, Jr.

Wo rl d Herit age Founda tion

M r. &: Mrs. George M. Zeltzer

H ouse (1989 -1 998), t he New Century Fund Cam paign (1999 -200 1) and the Crown ing Achievement Campaign (2002-2004).

We a lso thank the many donors who have co ntribut ed gifts below $5,000 for t heir com m it m ent and bel ie f in t he Detro it O p e ra H o u se P roject.

$50,000 TO $99 ,999

Dr. &: Mrs. Ro ger M. Aj luni

Al li ed Sign a l Foun dati o n , Inc.

Dr. Lourdes V And aya

Anonymous

Dr. &: Mrs. Agust in Arbu lu

Mr. W illiam P. Baer

M r. &: Mr s. ]. Addison

Bartush

Mr. Thoma s Cohn

Co nsum ers Energy Foundation

Mr. &: Mrs. Marvi n I. D anto

Delo itt e &: Touc he LLP

The Detroi t News/Ga nn ett Foundation

Dr. Da vid DiCh ie ra

Rosa nne &: Sandy Dun can

Mrs. Charles M. Endi cott

Mr. &: Mrs. Alex Erd e ljan

M r. &: Mrs. Alfre d J Fi sher, Jr

Dr. Ma rjo ri e M. Fishe r

Anne E. F ord

Mr. &: M rs Stanley Frankel

Mr. Edward P Frohlich

The GM Card

Mr. &: Mrs. Alan L. Gornick

Mr. &: Mrs. J ohn C. Griffin

Handleman Co mpan y

David &: Rose Handl eman

Mr. &: Mrs. E. ]. H a rt ma nn

Alice Ka les Ha rtwick Fo und ation

Mrs. David B. Hermelin

Huntington Na ti onal Bank

M r. &: Mr s. Verne G. Istock

Mrs. Sybil J aques

J oh nson Contro ls F oundation

W illiam &: Ellen Kahn

C h aim, Fan n y, Lou is, Benjamin &: Anne Floren ce Kau fm an Mem oria l Trust

Mr. Gerald Knec htel

Mr. &: Mrs. Mike Kojaian

Nancy &: Bud Liebler

Mr. Alph onse S. Lucare lli

Mr. &: Mrs. Eugene A. Miller

Mill iken &: Comp an y

Ne im an Marcus

Linden D. Nelso n Fo undat ion

Mr. &: Mrs. Irving Nusbau m

Mr. &: Mrs. Gra ham A Orley

Mr &: Mrs. J osep h Orley

Mr. &: Mrs. Do nald E Peterse n

Mr. &: Mrs. Ha ro ld A. Poling

Mr. &: Mrs. David Pollack

PVS Chemica ls Inc.

Mrs. Ruth Rattne r/Ann F Kat z &: Norman D. Katz

Anto ni o &: Suzan n e Rea

Fa mil y

Mr &: Mrs Alan E. Sc h wartz

Mr. &: Mrs Dona ld E. Sc hwen demann

Mrs. Rosemary Skupny

Mr. &: Mrs. S Ki nn ie

Sm it h , J r.

Mr. Richard A. So n enklar

Mr. Sta nford C. St od dard

Thyssen Inc., N.A.

Mr. &: Mrs C. Thomas Toppin

Mr. &: Mrs. H e rb ert Tyner

Th e Sa muel L. Westerman Fou n dation

D r. &: Mrs. Clyde W u

$25,000 TO $ 49,999

Mr. &: Mrs. D oug la s F. Alliso n

Anonymous

Mr. &: Mrs. Gebran S. Anton

Mrs. J ohn V Bali an

Mrs. Loris G. Birnkrant

The Wayne Booker Charitab le Foundation

The Budd Company

Covansys Corporation

Cra in Co mmun ica tions Inc.

Julia D. Darlow &: J o hn C.

O'Meara

Lar r y &: Dodi e Da vid

Dr. &: M rs. George A. Dean

Dec is io n Co n sultan ts Inc.

Delph i Foundation

Mrs. Margaret Dema nt

De troi t International Bridge Compa n y

Eaton Cor porat ion

Ernst and Yo un g

Mr. &: Mrs H erbert Fis her

Mrs. Aaro n H. Gershenso n

An drew &: Wanda Gia n camilli

Th e Gilmo ur Fu nd

H ild a &: Joel Ham burger

Mr. &: Mrs. Kenn et h E. H a rt

Juli us &: Cynth ia Hu eb ner

Fou n dat ion

Mar io &: Jane Iacobe lli

Th e H an. &: M rs. J osep h N. Im pastato

Ken wa l Steel Co r poratio n

Mr. &: Mrs. Ron a ld C.

La mparter

Rob ert &: Victoria Liggett

Magn a Interna t iona l

Th e H an. Jack &: Dr. Be ttye Arrington -M art in

Ann &: Will ia m McCormick, J r.

Mr. &: M rs. E R. Milner

Mr. &: Mrs. E. Michael Mutchler

Mrs. J en nifer Nasse r

F rank &: Ka ren Nesi

Mr. &: Mrs. H a r ry Nosanc hu k

Mr. &: Mrs. Robert T. O'Connell

Frances H Parce ll s Memorial

Mr. &: Mrs. H ughes L. Potiker

Mr. &: Mrs. W Jame s Prowse

Mr. &: Mrs. Lloyd Reu ss

Roy &: Maureen Roberts

Mr. &: Mrs. J ack Robin son

Mr. &: Mrs. Richard H. Roge l

Mrs. Louis R. Ross

D r. Hershe l &: Lois Sa ndb erg

Mr Ri ch a rd Sande rs

The Sand y Family F ounda ti on

Mrs. Emm a L. Sc haver

M rs. Shirl ey K. Sch lafer

Dia ne &: Morton Scholnick

M r. &: Mrs Grego r y ]. Schwartz

Mr. J oseph Sc h wartz

Mr. &: Mrs. Fra nk C. Sha le r

Mr. Mickey Sha piro

Elham Shayota

Mr. &: Mrs. Richard Sloan

M r. &: Mrs. W illiam H

Smith

Mrs. Mark C. Steven s

United American H ealth Care Corp orat ion

Mr. &: Mrs. Melvin C. Vand erBrug

Mr. &: Mrs. Art Van Els lander

Mr. and Mrs. Steven I. Vic tor Neva W ill iams Arts Foun dation

Mat il da R. Wilson F und Mrs Paul Zuckerman

$ 15 ,000 TO $ 24 ,999

Alcan Al um inu m Co r porat io n

Aldoa Company

Dr. &: Mrs. Robyn ]. Arrin gton, Sr.

Mrs Don a ld J. Atwood

Mr. &: Mrs. Ge rald Brig h t

Be tt y &: Bill Brooks

Mr. David C h ivas

Gloria &: Fred Cla rk

Mr. &: Mrs. Pe t er D. Cumm ings

Mr. &: Mrs. Dona ld Cu tler

Mr. &: Mrs. J o hn W Day, J r.

David &: J oanne Denn

Mrs. Karen Vande rKl oot DiCh iera

Mr &: M rs. John R Edman

Mr. &: M rs. Burton D Farbman

Elaine Fontana

Mr. Ke n neth H Fox

Ann &: Larry Garbe rding

Keith &: E il een Gifford

Grea t Lak es Exteriors

NAMED GIFTS Le e &. Floy Barth e l Detroit Edi son Foundation

Richard &. Mary Lou Janes The Karen &. Drew Pes lar

We extend our gra titud e to Co stum e Centel; Ce nt er for Mez z an ine Level in Op era Thi rd Floor Lobby Al cove, Foundati o n th e fo ll owing donors to all A rts & Learnin g Hall Broadway Co-Star Dress ing Roo m BAS F Co rporation Mr. &. Mrs. Rob ert E Dew ar William &. Ellen Kahn Mr. &. Mrs. John Rako lta

three phas es of t he capita l cam paign - th e Ca mpai gn to Fl exibl e Classroom, Center Trustee Circl e Lobby, Co-S tar Dressing Room Rehearsal Studio II for Arts & Learning Restore th e Detroit Opera Madi so n Chaim , Fanny, Louis , Mr. &. Mrs. Ir ving Ros e House , the N ew Ce ntu ry Mr &. Mrs. John A. Boll Ma ry Su e &. Pau l Ew in g Benj amin &. Ann Floren ce Pa tron El ev atOl ;John R Fund Campaig n , and th e Ma rl ene Boll Hall Bro adway Box Offi ce Kaurman Mem o ri al Trust Tow er

Crowning Ac hi eve m ent Margo V Cohen Ford Motor Company G rand Lobby Si de Mrs Carol yn L. Ros s Ca mpai gn - who hav e Chandelier Dan ce Center, Center for Backstage Renovation Grand Lobby Stairca se underwritten designated Arts & Learning Broadway Lobby W alli s &. Robert M Klein Mirr or areas in th e Detroit Opera House. Come ri ca Ch a ritabl e Ce nter f or Arts & Learnin g Grand Lobby Staircas e Raymond C. Sm it h Fo u n dation Ba rbara Fra n k el &. Ro n Mir ro r Found ati on Fund or th e Gran d Dom e Michalak Delores &. Paul Lavins Communit y F o undati o n

AAA Lobby, Center for Production Patron El evator, Cent er for Grand Lobby Sid e ror South eas t Michigan

Proscenium Arch & Administrati on Prod uc tio n & Chand eli er Ray mond C. Smith Lobby

D r. &. Mrs. Roger M . Ajluni Da im ler C hrys le r Administration Grand Lobby Sta ircase Mr. &. Mrs. Lynn Townse nd

Grand Lob by Staircase Co rpora tion H ennan &. Barbara F r anke l Mir ro r 1illst ee Circl e Lobby,

Mr &. Mrs. Rob ert A. All esee Community Performan ce General Director's Ci rcle Lear Corporation Broadway

Allesee Dan ce Patron Th eat er, Cent er for Arts Lounge Tru stee Circle Level in Mr. &. Mrs. Ge orge C. Lounge

Alles ee Dan ce & Op era & Learning H e rman &. Sh a ron Fran ke l Op era Hall Rehea rsal Vincent

Daim le r C hrys ler Se r vices Parking Garage St udio I Lobby Madi so n Lobby

Re so urce Library Patron El ev ato r, Ce nter for

Th e Lomason F amil y Mr &. Mrs. Alvi n Ge n e ral Mo tors Corporatio n

Anonymou s Dono r Arts & Learning Cadillac Cafe

Grand Lobby

Th e William K & Ne va Wassenn a n

Mr. &. Mrs Tarik S D aoud Opera Pl aza Lomason Op era Lounge Box Lev el Promenad e

Anonymou s Do nor Grand Drap e Ro be rt &. Ali ce Gusta rso n Oli ve r Dewey Marcks Dr. &. Mrs. Sa m Willi am s

Bro adway Fa (a de Foundation DeRo y Tes tame nt a r y Third Fl oor Lobby Al cove, Barba ra Gib so n St airw ay

Dr. &. Mrs. Don ald C. Au stin F o undati.on Madi so n

Grand Lobby Central Conference Room , Ce nter for David Handl e man

Th ird Fl oor Pro menade Exhibit , Bro adway

Staircase Lobby to 2nd Floor, World H e rita ge Foundation

Chand eli er Production & Media St udi o, Center fo r Madison Condu ctor 's Dressing Roo m Administrati on Mi ch Co n Foundati o n Arts & Learning Gran d Lobby Bou ti que

Pension Protection Act of 2006 - IRA Rollover

We would like to share with you a recent upd ate on tax laws as you ponder a time for a spec ial gift to Michigan Ope ra Thea tre in 2007.

On August 17, 2006 ,President Bush signed th e Pen sion Protection Act of 2006, which includ es a ch aritabl e reform package and a ch aritab le givin g inc ent ives pa ckage.

The ch aritab le giving incentives package is d eSigned to encourage cha rit ab le donations and inclu des the following key ele m ents:

• Individua ls age 70 1(2 by the d ate of contributio n and olde r may tra n s fer up to $100 ,000 per year in 2006 and 2007 directly from an IRA to a qualifi ed charity, i.e. the donor m u st direct th e IRA manager to transfer funds directly to the donee which must b e a taxexempt organization. A couple may be ab le to tr ansfer as muc h as $400 ,000 to charity in 2006 and 2007 if the y both have IRAs.

Qualified charitable distrib utions may be made only from tra diti onal IRAs and Roth IRAs.

• Qualified ch aritab le distributions may not b e made from o ther forms of retirement plans such as 40l(k) , 403(b) annuities, defined benefit and contribution plans, profit sharing plans, Keoghs and employer sponsored SEPs and SIMP LE plan.

• Contribut ions to nonoperating private foundat i ons , donor-ad vised funds and supporting organizations do not qu alify. (S upp orting org anizations are organizations that provide support to another sec ti on 50 l(c)(3) organization that is not a private foundation).

• Contributions to a p lann ed gift , such as a charitable gift ann uit y or a charit able remaind er trust do no t qualify.

• Distributions are excluded from donor's gross income and wi ll count aga in st donor's minimum distribution req uirement.

• As in previous versions of IRA rollover legislation, there is no fed e ra l incom e tax deduction ava il able for these distributions in addition to their exclusion from income.

Donors to w h om th e new IRA ro ll over likely will appea l include those already giving at their 50 % deduction limi t ; those whose income level cau ses the phase-out of t h eir exemptions; tho se who do not itemize their dedu c tions; and those for whom additional income will cause more of their Social Secur ity income to be taxed.

For Michigan residents, eligib le Mich igan donors will save ta xes a t th eir highest marginal state income tax rat e (6%), for every chari tab le gift they make from their IRAs instead of from th eir checking account s

For furth e r information , pleas e call Kim-Lan Trinh, Associate Director of Development, Planned Giving and Maj or Gifts , tel (313) 237-3408 or emai l ktrinh@motopera.org.

Thank you for your gen erosity and support of Michigan Opera Theatre !

Your IRA Gift qualifies for the match fro m the Commu nity Foundation for Southeast Michigan !

www.MichiganOpera org

En d owme nt Fun d s a t Michigan Op era T h eat r e

Anonymous Don or En dowment

Mandell L. and Made lein e H. Berman Foundation

Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Blair

Jo yce H. Co hn Young Artist Apprentices hip Program

Betty, Marvin and Joanne Danto Dance Endo wment

Det ro it Grand Opera Association

Barbara Gibson Young Artist Apprenticeship Fu nd

Dr. J oel and Mrs. Hilda Hamburge r

Mr. Gordon V Hoialmen

John S. and Jam es L. Knight Foundation

Michigan Opera Theatre Endowment Fund at the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan

Ida and Conrad H. Smith Endowment for Mic higan Opera Theatre

Pea rl and George M. Zel tz er Dance Endowment

Contributors to Annual Campaigns

Michigan Opera T hea tre g r atefu ll y acknowledges th e genero u s corporate, foundation, govern m ent and individua l dono r s whose co nt r ibutions were mad e between J u ly 1 , 2005 and June 30, 2006. The ir ge n erosity plays an integral part in the company's financial s t abili ty, necessary for produc ing quali ty gra n d opera and dance , and award-Winning educa t ional activities.

CORPORATE SUPPORT OF OPERA &: DANCE

GRAND BENEFACTOR

$200 ,000+

Daim le rChrys ler Corporation Fund

Dance Seaso n Sponsor

Alvi n Ail ey Open ing Night

Ga la Sponsor

Opera Ball Platinum Sponso r

Co mmunity Progra ms

Sup port

Ford Motor Company Fund

Fa ll Opera Season Sponso r

10th Anniversary Concert & Gala Sponsor

Alvin Ailey Opening Night

Ga la Spo nso r

Opera Ball Platinum Sponsor

Ge nera l Ope rating Support

General Motors Foundatio n Spring Ope ra Seaso n Sponsor

Alvi n Ailey Performance

Spo nsor

Opera Ball Gold Sponsor' Communit y Programs Support

SIGNAL BENEFACTOR

$50,000-$199,999

JPMorganChase

The N ut cracker Production

Sponso r

Opera Ball Sil ver Spo nsor

BravoBravo Silve r Leaf

Sponso r

Co mmuni ty Program s

Sup po rt

MASCO Corporat ion Foundation

Alvin Ailey Educational Out reac h Spo nsor

The Nutcmcker Student

Ti cke t Spo nsor

Co mmunity Programs

Support

Genera l Ope ra ting Support

MAJOR BENEFACTOR

$25 ,000-$49,999

Comerica Bank

Cindere lla Performance Sponsor

Opera Ba ll Sil ve r Spo nsor

BravoBravo Go ld Sponsor

La Salle Bank

Too Hot To Handel

Production Sponsor

BENEFACTOR

$15 ,000-$24,999

AAA Michigan

Opera Ball Sil ve r Sponsor

Gol f Outing Sil ve r Sponso r

DTE Energy Founda t ion

Aida Pe rform ance Sponsor

Alvin Ail ey Ado pt-A- Sc ho ol

Sponso r

Global Hue

Alvi n Ailey Performance Sponsor

FELLOW

$10 ,000-$14,999

GMAC F inancia l Services

Alvin Ailey Performance Sponso r

Meadowbrook I nsurance

Alvin Ailey Performance

Sponsor

Vis teo n Corporation

O pera Ball Sil ver Spo nsor

SUSTAINER

$5 ,000-$9 ,999

Arvin Me ritor

Great Lak es Beverage

BravoBravo Silver Leaf Sponso r

PATRON

$2 ,500 - $4 ,999

Alix Pa rtners LLC

The Nutcracker Supp orter

Casino W indsor

Les Grand s Ba ll et Canadiens de Mont real Marketing Supp orter

Co lasanti Construction

Services, Inc

Go lf Out ing Bronze Sponsor

Farbman Group

BravoBravo Crysta l Leaf Sponsor

Grunwe ll -Cas hero Co., I nc

Go lf Outin g Bronze Sponsor

Home Title Connect

BravoBravo Crys tal Leaf

Sponso r

Ke ll y Services Foundation

The Nu tcracker Sup port er

Nesi and Associates

BravoBravo Crys tal Leaf

Sponsor

Quality 1st Lending

BravoBravo Crystal Leaf

Sponso r

Red Bull

BravoBravo Crystal Lea f Spon sor

Right Management Consu ltant s BravoBravo Crys tal Leaf

Spo nsor

Ro ck Financia l MO T Kid z TV

DONOR

$1,000-$2,499

Ash Steven s

Co mmunity Pro gra ms

Barris, Sott, Denn &: Dr iker, PLLC

Bl ue Cross Blue Shield o f

Michigan

Bra voBravo Terra Cotta

Sponsor

Commercia l Maintenance, Inc.

Golf Outi ng Tita nium

Spo nsor

Cuzzens Cre d it Bureau &: Services

Bra vo Bravo Terra Cot ta

Sponsor

Evola and Associates

BravoBravo Terra Cotta

Sponsor

IATSE - Local 38

Marin e Pollution Control

Community Program s J azz

Series Spon so r

Metropolitan Title Company, Commerc ial Division

Pepsi Bottling Company

Golf Outin g Titanium

Spon so r

Res idenc e I nn by Marrio tt

Go lf Outin g Titanium

Sponsor

Rinke Pontiac GMC, Rinke Cadillac, Rink e Toyota Scion, Hond a of Bloomfield , Toyota Scion Bloomfield, Hyundai of Wate rford

Golf Outing Titanium Sponsor

Taktix Solutions LLC

Golf Outing Titanium Sponsor

CONTRIBUTOR

$500-$999

Comerica Ins uran ces Services, Inc.

Go lf Outing Tee Sponso r

Edgewood Elec triC, Inc.

Golf Outin g Tee Spo nsor

J M Olsen Company

BravoBravo Bricks & Mortar

Spo nso r

Kelly Law Regi s try BravoBravo Bric ks & Mortar Sponsor

Light Source

Go lf Outing Tee Sponsor

Maddin, H a user, Wartell, Roth et a l

Mo ffat McGuire, In c.

Golf Out ing Tee Spo nsor

PPG Foundation

Progressive Mechan ica l , Inc.

Golf Out in g Tee Sponso r

Reliant Pattern

Golf Outing Tee Sponsor

Safety Technology I nternat' l Inc.

Specia l Events Party Renta l Golf Outin g Tee Sponsor

WPM. , Inc.

Golf Ou ting Tee Spon so r

FOUNDATION &: GOVENRMENTSUPPORT OF OPERA &: DANCE

GOVERNMENT

Michigan Counc il for Arts and Cultural Affairs

National Endowment for t he Arts

SIGNAL BENEFACTOR

$100 ,000 +

John S. and Jam es L Knight

Found a tion

McG rego r Fund

MAJOR BENEFACTOR

$25,000 - $99 ,999

DeRo y Tes ta m e ntary

Found a tion

Young Artist Apprentice Program Spo nso r

Aida Performance Spo nso r Mat il da R. Wilson Fund

w ww.Miclu g anOpera. org

BENEFACTOR

$15,000 - $24,999

H u dson - Webber Foundation

O liver Dewey Marcks

Fo u ndation

Sage Foundation

Whitne y Fund

FELLOW

$10 ,000 - $14 ,999

The Elizabeth, Allan and Warren Shelden Fund

Lo ui s &: Nellie Sieg Foundation

Golf Ou ting Platinum Sponsor

Id a &: Conrad H. Sm ith

Endowment for th e

Michigan Opera Theatre

Cinderella Performance Sponsor

Mary Thomp so n Foundation

T he Samuel L Westerma n

Fou n datio n

Widman Fu n d of th e

Co m munity Foundation for Southeast Michigan

j. Ernest and Almena Gray

Wilde Foundat ion

SUSTAINER

$5,000 - $9 ,999

Capita l Region Commun ity Fou ndat ion

Ann and Gordon Getty

Founda t ion

J a m es &: Lynell e Hold e n F u n d

PATRON

$2,500 - $4 ,999

Frank and Gertrude Dunlap Foundation

Go lf Outing Bronz e Sponso r

Livonia Community Fo u nda tion

S1. Denys Foundation

Young Woman 's Home Association

DONOR

$1 ,000 - $2 ,499

Community Found a tion of Greater Flint

Detroit Indu s tria l Schoo l

Drusilla Farwell Foundat ion

Benard L Maa s Foundation

The Sigmund and So phi e Rohlik Fou ndation

INDMDUAL SPONSORS OPERA

GRAND BENEFACTOR

$200 ,000+

Mr. &: Mrs. Lee Barthel

Cinderella Prod uction Sponsor

Detroit Opera House Projects Gen eral Opera tin g Support

MAJOR BENEFACTOR

$25 ,000 - $49,999

Mr. &: Mrs Michael A. Chirco

Artist Sponsor - Sa lvatore Licitra In Aida

J amison W illiams

Found ation

Salome Performance Sponsor

BENEFACTOR

$15,000 - $24,999

Mr &: Mrs. Eugene App leba u m

Opera Ball Gold Spon sor

Mr. &: Mr s. J ohn A. Boll, Sr.

Opera Ball Gold Sponsor

Mr. &: Mrs. David Fische r Opera Ball Go ld Sponsor

Mr. Richard A. Sonenklar

FELLOW

$10,000 - $14 ,999

Mr. &: Mrs. Gebran An ton

Ope ra Ba ll Silver Sponsor

Mr. &: Mrs. Adria n Krame r

Opera Ball Silve r Sponsor

Mr. &: Mrs. Manuel Moroun

Opera Ball Silve r Spo nsor

SUSTAINER

$5,000 - $9,999

Dr. David DiChiera

Penske Corporation

Mr. &: Mrs. W James Pro wse

Connie &: Gera ld Ro ss

DONOR

$1 ,000 - $2,499

I rina Mishura &: William J Morris

INDMDUAL SPONSORS

DANCE

SIGNAL BENEFACTOR

$50,000 - $199,000

Marlene &:John Boll Famil y Fou n dation

The Shirley K. Sch lafer Founda t ion

MAJOR BENEFACTOR

$25,000 - $49 ,999

Mr. &: Mrs. George M. Zeltzer

Sleeping Beauty Produ cti on Sponsor

SUSTAINER

$5 ,000 - $9 ,999

Mr. &: Mrs. I rving Ro se

Alvin Ailey Student Ticket Spons or

In Memory ofJosephJohns Aviva &. Dean F ri edma n The Detro it ZOO

OJ Tom T Di ck Sco tt Dodge

Maureen H Burke Bail e Corca igh The Hill Seafoo d &. Edibles Rex Catering Dwye r &. So n s Vo lvo Subaru

Betty &. Sta n Carlso n Bea u J acks Chophouse

Ellen &.Jose p h Folz

Emagine Thea tres Edwa rd Nepi Salon

Betty &. Bill Brooks T he Rattles n ake Cl u b Lynn Fe rdin an di Ellen &. J ames Lab es

In Memory of the Recovery of Bi g Roc k Ch op h o u se The Townse n d H o tel Gem &. Ce ntur y Th eatres Fire fl y Phon es

Ann Katz

Mary Lou Zieve

Carol Lewis Day Sp a Tra cey Burn s tei n Hel ve tica Franklin Racquet Club

Centaur Wine &. Martini Bar Vicente's Cuba n Cu isin e Nico le Herdoliza Grace Thorson Des ign

Christine &. George Strumbo s

Sandy Herzog Harvey Yates , LB Office

In Memory of Dr Leonard Comerica BRAVO BRAVO! 2006 Mr &. Mrs. Andrew Howe ll Pro ducts

Lerner Como 's IN KIND SPONSORS Island H ouse H otel Hilton Garden Inn

Philip, Elizabe th &. Congre ss J acob 's C ree k JP 's Pet Grooming

Sco tt Gou tman Conn ie &.John Ahee Platinum

Rita &. Bob Lane

Mr Ne il A. Lazaroff

Jill Admoniu s Kr ystyna's Europ ean Spa

Cou rthou se Brassie re 6 Degrees Maz az in e Karmic Cafe Microsoft

Crave Res taura nt &. Sushi Bar Cra ve restau r ant + sushi ba r La Contessa Nex link Communi ca tions

Dr J ack &. Lee Lit win &.Lounge + lounge

Juli e Pinc u s

Rut h Rattner Da Ed oa rdos Fo xto wn Grill e Italmod a

Ms. Lynn K. Rosenthal

Dan Sta ll In c., T h e Au ction Levitation, In c.

Si nai Me d ical Staff Tea m

Foundation Da r lene &. Tony Soave Silver Leaf

La Zin gara Opus One/Opu s to Go

Legends of Ice, In c. Pu lse De t roit

Liquid Exp osure Resid ence Inn by Marriott

Lui gi Bruni Cape ll i Modern i Rinke Ponti ac GMC

Majestic Cafe She phe rd 's H ollow Go lf Club

Mr. &. Mrs. George M. Dani ela All ega Fuciare ll il Addiso n G ra ph ic So lution s Free Mare Simmons &. Cl ar k Jewelers

Zeltze r Archi tec tural Gol d Coloni al Party Event Rental

In Honor of Mado &. Kim lie David V Jo hn so n

Le e &. Paul B1izma n Deni se &. Bob Lu tz Crystal Leaf

Dian e &. Larry J o nes Pla nterra

In Honor of Ron Switzer &. Dodi e &. Larry David

Jim McClure D r. Lorna Thoma s Terra Cotta

Kat hl ee n Atteberry Dr. Lourdes An da ya Th e Dis play Group

Su e, Alan &. Nick Buratt o Ed mund 1. Ah ee J ewele rs Newport Furnishi ngs

In Honor of Michigan Opera

Theatre

Elmore Leo n ard So urce Aud io

Fo x &. H ou n ds

Frances &. Ken Eise nb e rg Media

J ewish Co m mu nit y Cen te r Fusc h s ia Fro g 6 Degrees

Ma rio s Nort h ern Italian Southern Hospitali ty Group

Cuisine ( 2 ) Taktix Solutio n s, L.L. C

Marshall Field's Int e ri o r Tenn is &. Golf Co mp any

Design St udi o Ticke tmaste r

Michelob Ultra / Mich e lob Tubb y's Grilled Submarines

Amber Vit amin Water

MLE Tra nsporta t ion Who le Foods Mark et

MonJ in Lau WWJ Newsrad io 950

Moo Moo's Orga ni c Bistro

Mosaic TENNIS OUTING

My Gym Doug Bu tton

N ature Nook Ed N agel o f Metropolita n Detroit

Gerychs Flowers Bella Blu e

In Memory of Mark Ordman Gl oria &. Fred Clark

MSU Trombone Studio Ill usions Sa lo n &. Spa

In Honor of Charli Podowski

Ginge r &. Arno ld Buchman

In Honor of Roger Sherman

Capital Event Produ ctions

Corner Productions

J oa nn e &. Ric h ard Brodie Detroit Synergy

Jud ie &. Roger Sherman

Jud y &. Rand y Agley

EastWest P rod uc tions

Liquid Exposure

Jul es R. Sc hubotJewellers &. Real Detroit

Ric h H o mb erg Gemo logis ts

Thought Coll ide Productions

Nes t le Waters No rth Am e ri ca Jim Fleming

N ew Port Furnishings Marimar Alonso

Oaklan d Ath let ic Club Sa ra Johnston

J esse Palter

Tenn is &. Golf Company -

Phase One Hairdresse r s Da vid Schwart z

The Parad e Company

Park We st Gall e ry MOTVA EVENTS

Post Ba r De t ro it Adel Amerman

Krispy Kreme Donut s Vision Entertainment Pulse Detroit Ali Moiin

In Honor of Nancy Shoup for Kri s tin e &. Jim Mestdagh W DI V

The Rattl esnak e Amy Jido v

Christmas La Be ll e Pro ve n ce Red Coat Tave rn April Wa gn er, Armagna c

Li ll y Sh o u p Lor a &. Se rgio Mazza BRAVO BRAVO! 2006 Red The Sa lon Ro b e rt Bomier, Rob in Marcia &. Eu ge n e Apple b aum IN KIND DONORS Roosterta il Weidinger

In Memory of Hector Ma r io's Abo ut Face

Salon Sydney Carol &. No r m Sk ru c h

Somerville Marlene &. J o hn Boll Aesth etic Den t is t ry b y Robert Toni Sch oe nith Dodie &. Larry Da vi d

Ms. Lee A. So m ervi lle Ma ry &. Ch a rli e Parkhill DiPi ll a, DDS PC Sh epherds H ollow Go lf C lub Don J ense n

In Memory of Sheldon Mar y Ann Va n Els lander Agave' Simmo n s &. Clark J ewe lers Eva Mehary, Marsh USA

Sonkin Mar y Bet h &. J ohn J agger American Coney Isla nd Slows Bar B Q Floy and Lee Barthel

Ruth Rattne r Mer yl &. Terry Podo lsk y Andonia Bricktown Stat ion Small Plate s Gail Urso, Urso Designs, I nc

Miche ll e GeorgioNintage

Andiamo Riverfront

Sports Club of West Gloria &. Fred Clark

In Honor of William K. W in e Co. Aqua Sa l on Bloomfi e ld Gloria Stonisch

Steiner for Christmas Mi c hi gan Opera T h eatre Atwate r Bl oc k Brewery Starbucks Gwen &. Richard Bowlb y

Frederick M Steiner

Moni ca Moffat &. Pat Audra Kubat Sta rTra x Event Produ ctio n s Hel en Ro we McGuire Ban g Salon West Bl oomfie ld Strawbe rr y Spirit s John Lopez - Twingos

In Memory of Joy Vallier Mosa ic Barefoo t Wine

Barbara &. Do u g las Bl oo m

Tina &. Mario Caponi

"That 80s Band " Restaurant

Motor Cit y's I ridesce n ce Bas har Sal o n T he Town Pump Ke ll y Ve rb eerst

Maria &. Dino Cidvatt i Neiman Marcus Bea n s and Co rnbread Tubby's Sou th gate Kevin Dennis &.Jeremy

Jud ith &. Raymond Grutter No ra &. Mattie Moroun Bea u J acks Food &. Spi ri ts T hought Co ll ide Pro ductio n s Zeltzer

The H on Marilyn Kell y No rth po int e Insurance

Bi g Rock Chop Ho u se Unde r Yo ur Comman d Krystynas Spa

George Martindale Opu s One Cafe Co rt ina

Mary E. McDevitt Os lo Callowa y McMa hon

Glenn Murray Pame la Appl ebaum Wyett H elicopter Services

C Paxton

Pa tricia Rod z ik

U nion Stree t Saloon, Inc. Mary Sue &. Pa ul Ewin g

Vicen tes Cuban Cuisine Nature Nook of Gro sse

Vitamin Wat e r Pointe

Canape ' Ca rt Zinc

In Honor of Richard D. Purpl e Bea r Canine to Five

Woods for Christmas

R. J amison Williams, J r. Centaur Win e &. Martini Bar

GOLF OUTING 2006

O pu s One

Osca r &. Dee Feldman

Tom Betolini

Karen Wood s Roberta &. Sheldon Toll Th e Centur y Gril le Addison GraphiC So luti ons Village To y Shop

IN KIND DONORS

Roma Ca fe

ChaudJ ea n s

Ro sanne &. Sa nd y Duncan Chicago Ope

Al Long Ford

Skillman Foundation Grant Enables The Department of Community Programs to Reach Out

Thanks to the Skillman Foundation , th e Department of Community Programs has been reaching underprivi l eged children in Detroit and H amtramck w it h Dance C l asses and "Create and Per form" - a program that encourages yo ungsters to write stories and lyrics, compose music and then perform what they have created.

PEOPLE'S COMMUNITY SERVICES

This is th e second year tha t Karen D i Chiera , Michigan Opera Theatr e 's Director of Community Programs, ha s present e d workshops in improvisation and creativity for People 's Community Services at the centers located in Hamtram ck and th e Del Ra y section of Detroit. The Sk ill man Foundation grant has made it possib le to sta rt a collection of percussion instruments at both centers to a i d in teaching mu s ic co mposition , improvi sa tion and performance.

DEL RAY

I n the bea u tiful new De l Ra y Community Ce nt er, students cr ea ted two compositions th at were performed for a Christma s party attended b y people from all segments of the community, includin g hundreds of children After the performance, the new percussion instruments

were mad e available for the children to tr y out. Also, Sa nt a was prese nt to hand out gifts, purchas ed through the generosity of Daimler- Chrys ler, and a feast of food from many e thnic gro u ps was e njoye d b y people of all ages.

HAMTRAMCK

Last seaso n , students at th e Peop les Co m munit y Se r v i ces Center in Hamtram ck created Hamtram ck in Mot ion, a "Creat e Opera " piece ba sed on the ne w mura l p aint ed on the great room walls by artist D e nni s Orlowsky. D e pict ing th e history of the city, youngsters pla ye d the ro les of famous H am t ramck citizens as they performed the history of their city.

This spring, a new proj ec t will begin in Hamtramck. It is always fun to disco ve r through th e Create Op e ra process , what the next group of s tu dents will think Up l

FRANKLIN WRIGHT SETTLEMENT HOUSE

Having also receive d a grant from th e Sk ill man Foundation, Michigan Opera T h eatre 's Depart m ent of Com mun ity Program s i s working with teenagers at Franklin Wright Settlement House on Detro i t 's Ea st side. Th e s tud ent s recei ve instruction in dance classes and Creat e and Perform with Karen DiChiera.

We thank the Skillman Foundation for providing th e funding to offer the arts to th ese deserving chil dren.

TOURING PROGRAMS NANABUSH

The Artists of Community Programs contin u e to tour grea t shows to schools and communities all over Michigan and n eighboring states. For 2007, the group is p leased to pr ese nt N anabush , a short opera ba se d on ancient stor ies that are favorites of the Na tive American Indian population of the Great Lak es Region. The opera was composed b y Karen DiChiera to a libretto by the late Bill Kirk.

Kirk and DiChiera p oured over stories of the trickster and god , Nanabush, and chose four that teach values such as tell ing the tru th , ove rcoming fears and lea rning from na tu re. The m u sic is written for percu ss ion inst r uments actually played by th e singers.

Victor Ki shi go, owner and founder of Indian Hill s Ga ll e ry was of great assistance in the creation and refinemen t of Nanabush. We sad ly learned of his premature dea t h due to complications from pneumonia. We are dedicating our tour of Na nabush to his m emory.

LET FREEDOM RIN G

A new re v ue has been created by Community Programs ' soprano, Bett y Lane, and actress, Made lyn Porter. Let Freedom Ring is an ebu ll ient celebration of African American creativity and histo r y. The Ha rl em Re naissance po e try, the art songs and operatic selec tions , and th e fine piano inte rl ud es b y Roland Hamilton and master pianis t Alvin Waddle s - will leave audiences of all ages shouting for morel

To b r ing either of thes e or other ex citing Community Progr ams offerings to yo ur community, please contact Dolores Tobis , Marketing Manager at dtobis@motop e ra.orgor (313) 237 -3429.

TIME OUT FOR OPERA

The Department 's awa r d winning cab le television series is completing 14 new s hows for yo ur pleasure. This series includes local and internation ally-known

2 006 Ope re tt a Works h op pe rformance of Gibert & Sulli van's The Sorcerer.

2006 Opera Camp/Opera Workshop

opera singers, emerging artists and children. Hosted and produced by Educator, jonathan Swift, Contra lt o/ Opera Camp Director, Candace de Lattre and Karen DiChiera the series will also feature Wallace Peace, MOT pre-opera lecturer and Ms. de Lattre with members of the Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra performing Viennese Chamber Music.

Filmed and aired over Bloomfield Commun it y Tele vision on Channels 15 and 18, Time Out for Opera is seen four times a week in Bloomfield Hills, Birmingham Bingham Farms, Be ve rly Hills and Franklin. If you would like to have Time Out for Opera shown over your cable station, contact Leslie Helwig , Station Manager, at (248) 433-7780.

LEARNING AT THE OPERA HOUSE

Our popular Summer Programs will take place during july and August. Young people can enjoy Operetta Workshop, featuring works by Gilbert and Su lli van; Create and Perform for future writers and composers and the Chi ldr en's Writing Workshops for young poets.

Young college-bound or college students who hope for a career in opera may attend an intensive two-week Opera Camp meeting from 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM every day. These gifted students are chosen through audition and have a program of master classes, historic dance, Alexander Technique , coaching in opera roles and dramatic r ead in g. This summer will a l so concentrate on Opera in an Electronic age , including computer and internet use and web design.

We will return with our writing and poetry classes for adults and interested young people. (Browse the online catalog and register for classe s at www.michigan-

Detroit Opera House

opera.org or call 313-237-3270 for information.) As always, we wi ll have a series of in-depth lectures about the operas in the up-coming opera season. Of special inter est this year will be the world premiere of the new opera, Cyrano .

A WORLD PREMIERE

Cyrano, by composer David DiChiera and libretti st Bernard Uzan. Mr. Uzan ha s had a long interest in creating an opera on Cyrano and approached Dr. DiChiera abou t composing the music. After many years and two workshops, the new piece is a reality. The teams first grand opera will open the 2007 season with orchestrator Mark Flint conducting Da vid DiChiera 's music to the opera Cyrano, wri tt en and

staged by Bernard Uzan.

Originally written as a play in 1897 by Edmond Rostand, Cyrano is about a soldier, cavalier, and poet whose selfconscious attitude about his large proboscis prevents him from follOwing his heart to his true love Roxane. Instead, he recites and then writes love ve rses for Christian, his riva l for Roxane 's hand in marriage.

David DiChiera has composed chamber music, art songs, a piano concerto, piano sonatas and a children 's opera, Rumpelstiltskln, co-co mposed with Karen V DiChiera and writt en by libr ettis t , joan Hill

Dr. DiChiera will lecture on the new opera during the yearly spring classes for Central Michigan University 's Masters in Humanities Program at the Detroit Opera House. He will also l ecture during Learning at the Opera Hou se.

In addition, Learning at the Opera House w ill present scholars in fascinating l ectures on the original pla y a nd playwright, the Court of Loui s XlV, and Les Precieuses, the wome n 's society to which Cyrano's love , Roxane, belonged. join us in learning the fascinating history of the characters , French life of the 17th century court of Louis XlV - and learn about the real Cyrano, a true historic figure!

Central Michigan University Master of Humanities Opera Class taught at the Detroit Opera House by Karen VanderKloot DiChiera and Steve Henrikson.

ALICE JOHNSTON

Alice Jo hn sto n will always b e remembere d by those of u s wh o knew h e r as a generous, charismat ic wo m an - tru ly b eautifu l in side and out.

For 50 yea rs, she was a lea d er in the commu n ity, not onl y on th e socia l ci rcuit , b u t also th ro u gh h er vo l untee r and phil a n t h rop ic act iviti es for m any hea lth, social wel fare an d cu ltur al o rgani za ti ons Mich igan Opera Th eatre was fort un ate to have be en on e of the reci pi en ts of h er largesse.

Alice was ch arming and el ega nt , wit h a Joie d e vive tha t en d eared her to everyo n e, espec iall y our art ists. Over th e years, Ali ce held m an y parties and ga th erings for visitin g o p era sin ge r s fro m all ove r the world. Sh e loved to h ea r them tell s tor ies abo ut th eir careers and enj oyed showing them a good time w h en th ey visit ed Det roit.

A me m ber of the Boa rd of Directors, Ali ce was also a seaso n ticket h old er and gene r ous do n o r to Mich igan Opera Thea tr e's a n nual a n d ca pit al campa igns.

In th e 1977 - 78 Season, a n ew pro du cti on of Faust was made p ossibl e by a generous gift from Ali ce in memory o f h er h usba n d Dr W ill ia m E. J ohn sto n The p rod u cti on was revived in fu t ure seaso n s an d was also see n in seve r al Ame ri ca n cities. Sh e was given the MO T Figaro Award in recogniti on of her generosity

Genero u s, ch arming, elegant - she was all o f th ose things. But, mos t imp ortan tly she was genUi nely ki n d an d de li gh tfuL

We celeb rate he r li fe

Volunteers

D ear Op era and Danc e Lov ers

, M

ichi ga n O p er a T hea tre Vo lunt eer Assoc i a ti o n me mb e r s h ave a sta rring role in t he cont inu ed su ccess of Michigan O p era Th eatre and th e Detroi t O p er a H ou se. Since 1993, th e m issio n of MOTVA h as b een tw o - fo ld: t o provi de fi nancia l supp o rt fo r Mich i g an O p e ra Th e atre p rodu ctio n s a n d co mmuni ty p rog r ams, and t o c ulti va t e p u bli c awareness o f and inte res t in o p er a and dance as art form s

MO TVA m em bers p arti cip a t e in meaningful ac tivi ties that includ e sponsoring fun d r ais in g eve nt s, presenting soc ial a n d e du cat i o n a l p r ograms, wo rkin g be hind t h e sce n es to p rovi d e ad vocacy a n d a ud ie n ce d evelopme n t a n d mu ch n eede d admini st r a tive se rvices. Memb e r benefi ts in clud e wo nd e rful op p ortunit ies t o m ake n ew fr ien d s w hil e co ntrib u ti n g to a pres tigio u s community asse t.

from more than 40 of Detroit's best bars and restaurants.

tastes , sounds and people of Detroit.

magnificent Detroit Opera House

Most im p o rt a ntly, yo u w ill kn ow that your vo lunteeri sm hel ps b rin g t he ve r y fi nest ope r a an d d a n ce p rodu ctions to the s tages o f the D e troit O p era H o u se, p rovi di ng th e m os t exc i tin g an d glamoro u s th eate r expe ri ences avai lab le in ou r community

Yo ur tax-de du c tib le m emb er sh ip all ows you to particip ate in as many of t h e individua l vo lu nteer gro u ps and ac ti vities as yo u wish. Sim p ly fill in th e me m be r sh ip fo rm and re turn it with yo ur d ues. We l oo k forwa rd to welcom ing yo u to th e Mich iga n Opera Th eatr e family th ro u gh your m e mb ers hip in th e M i c hi ga n Opera Th ea tre Vo lun tee r Associa ti o n .

Most Sin ce rely,

J udi th Slo tki n Pres id ent MO TVA

Michigan

Opera Theatre and the Detroit Opera Hou se present one of the fin es t and most di ve rse opera and dance series in the co untry The theatrical exp eri en ces encompass voca l and orc h es tr al music , dance, drama , cos tumes, sets and lighting. The achieve ment of this mu ltiplicity re quires many voices and many willing hands. Th e talented , givin g hands of our Opera League, Ushers , Dance Council , Encore! , Ambassa dors, office , edu catio n and Boutique workers, Mo ve r and Super vo lunt ee r s h ave a significant impact on the overa ll operation of the co mp any.

MOTVA Executive Committee

Judith Slotkin , President

Na ncy Moore, Sec re tary

John McMullin, Treasurer

Be tt y Brooks, Past Pre sid ent

Glo ria Clark, Past Presid ent

Dodie Davi d , Past Presid en t

Board of Directors and Committee Chairs

Melinda Anderson , Bravo Bra vo Liaison

H elen Arno ldi-Rowe, Di vaslDivos

Gwen Bow lby, Publicity

Gloria Cla rk &. Dodi e David , Opera Leagu e

Daniell e DeFau w, Boutique

Kevin Denni s, Tec hnolo gy

Ma rianne Endi co tt , Co mmunity Program s

Gail Urso, Dan ce Co u ncil

Don Jen sen, Bo ard Member

Am y Jido v, Memb ership

Vittoria Katanski , Encore I

Nan cy Krolik owski, Mo ve rs

Helen Millen , Ambassadors

Ali Moiin , Sup ers

Wallace Peace, Volunteer Education

Terry Sh ea, Board Memb er

Derek Smiertka, Footlights

Roberta Starkweather, OV I Rep. Board Memb er

2006 OPERAtors:

Margaret All esee

Hel en Arno ldi- Rowe

Glori a Clark

Jo an n e Danto

Dodie Da vid

Mariann e Endicott

Ala n Israel

Amy Jido v

Mr . &. Mrs . Ri chard Partrich

Kate y Sz uma

Please indicate volunteer groups of i nterest:

o Ambassadors

Learn tbe bistory of tbe Opera H ollse alld shareY Oll r k lloJ pledge 0 guidiNg tOl/rs.

o Boutique

Sell opera. alfd dallce merchandise dllrillg peiforlllflllces at th e Opera HOllse BOllfiqllc.

o Community Programs

Please indicate the type of membership:

o Indiv idual

o Co upl e

o Patron: O P E RAtor

o Senior/Us h er

o S tud e nt

$3 5.00

$60.00

$ 100.00

$25 .00

$10.00

(Membersbip is validJor omyear, and is reJletpable OIL the aNJliversary date.)

Total:

o My check t o Mic higan O pera 111e a tre i s enclosed

o Ple ase c h arge m y credi t card in the amount of $_- -

o Visa 0 MC 0 AMEX 0 Di scover

Account N umb er _______________

Exp. ____

Sign ature__

Promote alld inspire pmtidpatioll in ollfreach alld edllcatioNalprogmllls.

o Dance Council

B roaden the alldienceJar daNce ",ilh events wbicb bighligbt aJld SJlpport prodllctiolls ill the daNce series.

o Divas / Divos

Ilrodllce visiting artists 10 Detroil, alld belp to make tb eir stay lIlore ell/OJ'able

0 E ncore!

NehJlor k 1}lithJ01l11gprofessiollals fwd mise fllnds for the contiNlI ed preservation of the Detroit Opera Home.

o Footlights

Foster LBGT Jlllity ill SllppOrt of MichigaJl Opera Tbeatre alld its programs.

o Movers

Assist lJIith the trallS/orla/ioll of J)isitillg artists alld digllitaries.

o Office Volunteers

Assist }pith office dllties alld other tasks ",hic!; help kep Michigall Opera

____ Theatre's ((wheels" hl",illg

_______________________ --1 0 Opera League

Name

Plan op eHillg liight festivities alld oth er evellts SlIppOrtillg opera pl.dllctioJls.

o Supers

PeifortJ' silellt roles lJJhich add atlllosphere fllld dilllelisioll to opera prodllctiolls.

o Ushers

Take tickets fllld seat patrolls fit Detroit Opera HOllse evellts.

o Volunteer Educa tion

P rolJ1ote opera alid dallce )}lith ilyorlllatin talks.

Who can fix a broke n chair, stuff an enve lope, or paint a face better than the Michigan Opera Th eatre Vol unt ee r Association?

Volunteer of th e Year Melinda Anderson is honored by Dodi e Da vid and Da vid DiChi era at the MOTVA Annua l Meeting.

De troit Opera House

General Information

PHOTOGRAPHY, RECORDING & COMMUNICATIONS DEVICES

Unauthorized cameras and recording devices are not allowed inside the lobby or th eater at any tim e. The taking of photographs of th e theater or any performance is strictly prohibited. As a courtesy to our guests, we ask that all paging devices, cellular telephones and alarm watches be switched to silent mode prior to the start of all performances.

IN CASE OF EMERGENCY

Doctors and parents are advised to leave their seat location (located on ti cket) and our emergency number, (313) 237-3257, with the service or sitter in case of an emergency Please observe the light ed exit signs located throughout the theat er. In event of fire or similar emergency, please r emain ca lm and wa lk - do not run - to the nearest exit. Our ushers are trained to lead you out of the building safely. A trained Emerge n cy Medical Techni cian (EMT) is onsite during most events. Please see an usher or sta ff member to contact the EMT.

RESTROOMS

Ladies ' restrooms are located off the Ford Lobb y (Broadway Street entrance), down the stairs and also on the third floor (Madison Street entrance) - please press "3R" on the elevator to reach this facility Gentlemen 's restrooms are located under th e Grand Staircase and also in the third floor (Broadway Street side) - please press "3" on the elevator to reach this facility Please note: All third floor restrooms are wheelchair accessible A unisex, wheelchair accessible restroom is l ocated in the Cadillac Opera Cafe.

NO SMOKING

The Detroit Opera House is a smoke-free facility Ash receptacles are provided on the exterior of all entry doors for those who wish to smoke.

USHERS

Ushers are sta tion ed at the top of each aisle. If you have a question or concern , please inform an usher , and they w ill contact management. If you are interested in becoming a volunteer usher, please call the usher hotline at (313) 237-3253.

LATE SEATING

Latecomers will be seated only during an appropriate pause in the program. Late

seating policies are at the discretion of the production , not opera house management.

LOST & FOUND

Lost and Found is located in the Safe ty and Security Department. Please see an usher if yo u have misplaced an article , or ca ll (313) 961-3500 if you have already left the theater. Items w ill be held in Lost and Found for 30 days.

PARKING

The Detroit Opera House Parking Center, loca ted next to the Detroit Opera Hou se, is now open. This new state-of-the-a rt facility is reserved specifically for Detroit Opera House patrons during regularly-scheduled performances. Entrances and ex its are located on both John R. Street and Grand River Ave. for added convenience. Prepaid parking is availab le. Call (313) 237 -SING (7464) for more information.

ACCESSIBILITY

Accessible seating locations for patrons in wheelchairs are loca ted in all price ranges on the orchestra level. When inquiring about tickets, please ask about these locations if you require special accommodations.

Assisted Listening Devices are available on a first-come, first -served basis. Please see an usher to request thi s service, or visit the Guest Services desk located in the Vincent Lobby (Ma dison Street entrance). Althou gh this is a complimentary service, we will request to hold a piece of personal identification whi le you are using the device. Please contact the ticket office at (313) 237-SING (7 464 ), shou ld yo u desire special consideratio n.

CHILDREN

Children are welcome However, all guests , regardless of age, are required to hold a ticket. Babes in arms are not permitted.

ATM

A National City ATM is avai l ab l e 2417 inside the Parking Center.

SERVICES

Concessions stan ds are located on all levels. Please note that food and drinks are not allowed in the auditorium at any time . Coat Check is located at the Guest Services desk, in the Vincent Lobb y (Madiso n Street side) Cost is $2.00 p er coat. Please note that the Detroit Opera H ouse does not accept responsibility for any pe r sonal articl es that are not checked at the coat

check. A Public Pay Phone is located near the third floor ladies' restroom Take the eleva tor to "3 R" and turn to the left. This pay phone is wheelchair accessible.

CONCEALED WEAPONS

Be advised that, for purposes of Michigan Compiled Laws, Section 2842500)(0, this is an entertainment facility which has a seating capacity of more than 2,500 individuals. It is therefore against the law to carry a concealed weapon on the premises.

RENTAL INFORMATION

The Detroit Opera Hou se is avai lab le for rent by your organiza tion. Please ca ll (313) 961-35 00 , and ask to be directed to the Specia l Events Department.

TICKET INFORMATION

The Detroi t Opera Hou se ticket office hours are as follows: Non-performance weeks - Monday-Friday 10:00 a m. to 5:30 p.m. Performance da ys -10:00 a.m. through the first intermission of the even ing 's performance, except Saturdays and Su nd ays, when the ticket o ffic e will open two hours prior to curtain time. Tickets for all public events at the Detroit Opera Hou se are also available through all TicketMaster out le ts, b y phone at (2 48 ) 645-6666, or at wwwTicketMaster.com.

DETROIT OPERA HOUSE TOURS

Come join the Opera Hou se Ambassa dors for a backstage tour of the Detroit Opera House. Learn abo ut th e history of the Opera House and its restoration. Meet the people b ehind the scenes, tour the stage and see how it operates . Tours are $10. 00 per person. For more information, please ca ll (313) 237-3407 , or visit www.MichiganOpera.org.

IMPORTANT TELEPHONE NUMBERS

EMERGENCIES (313) 237-3257

Michigan Opera Theatre (313) 961-3500

General Inform ation.. (313) 961-3500

Lost and Found. ..(313) 961-3500

Ticket Office.(313) 237-SING (7464)

Usher Hotline .. .(313) 237-3253

Theater Rental Information (313) 96 1-3500

Detroit Opera House Fax (313) 237-3412

Press and Public Relations (313) 237-3 403

Detroit Opera House

Parking Center (313) 965-4052

Website www.MichiganOpera.org Detroit Opera House Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

ADDITIONAL PRODUCTION CREDITS

Assista nt Lighting De signer

Andrew Griffin

Orchestra

David Ammer - Trumpet

Dancers

Sarah Boik, Step hani e Buer, Amber Densmore , Dominiqu e Densmore , Jo ye ll e Fobbs , Denita Gregory

SUPERNUMERARIES

Guards

Car l F ontana, Ian Gallagher, Ira Harris, George Manning, Don Pieti , Paul Plamondon , J oseph Welch

Executio n er Assistan ts

Johnny Benavides , Bruce Davis, Reuben E ll man, Noah Fields, J e rem y Girard , Frank Kong , Garrett Papow, Paul Snyder

Executioner

Matt E manuelsen

Prin ce of Persia

Jo shu a C lark

Priests

Ann E manuelson , Stephanie Fields, Storm Ho lme s, Delphine Kozlowski, Raine Lilly , Rose Marie Pos lu szny, Deja Reese, Jan Sn y der, Dionne So lomon , G loria Tonelli

Turandot Double

Ro se Stolk

Correction

Children's Chorus - Nata li e Gratsch

Local Wig and Make-up Crew

Su za nne Batmanghhelichi , Kinsha Bigham , Susan Fox , Tammy Graebert , Myranda Jennings, Raceine McDonald, Son ya Reese , Donna Robertson , Jessy Trudell Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

Jl6buction from tfje §eragrio

Additional Cast

Jolm Biedenbach - Pasha Selim

American art ist Jo lm Biedenbach returns to Michigan Opera Theatre for the second time thi s seaso n since debuting as Detective in the company ' s 1998 production of Porgy and Bess He reprised this role in the 2006 - 07 production of Porgy and Bess. Mr. Biedenbach has perfOlmed wit h many Detroit-area theatres , includin g Plowshares, Jet, Attic, Detroit Repertory and Meadowbrook T he atre.

Stag e Manager

Matt J ackson

Orche stra

Brooke Hop lamazian - Violin

Dan DeSena - Percussion

Supernumeraries

Datmy Bradley

Joshua C lark

Reuben E llm a n

Matt Ema nu e lsen

James S lowik

Dennis Zabe l

Local Wig and Ma ke-up Crew

Jennifer Aus m an

Tammy Graebert

Sandy Lise nb ee

So n ya Reese

Tecot'a Rogers

Jessy Tr ud e ll

J.M Rebudal

Choreographer

A Honolulu, Hawaii, native, 1M. makes his debut with Michigan Opera Theatre in Romeo & Juliet. His previous opera credits include L ' Etoile for Cincinnati Opera, Opera de Montreal, New York City Opera, and its premiere at Glimmerglass Opera in 2001. J.M. is an Assistant Professor of Dance at Wayne State University.

Orchestra

Brooke Hoplamazian (violin), Carol Lebovic (violin), Charles Roth (violin), Lynne Marie Flegg (oboe), Dan DeSena (percussion)

Chorus

Chery 1 Kaski

Fire Breather and Fight Captain

David Melcher

Supernumeraries

Joshua Clark, Kyle Cronin, Amber Densmore, Dominique Densmore, Erik Dwyer, Reuben Ellman, Berl Faulbaum, Casey Konkel, John Rattray, Lauren Shafer, Leslie Tse, Dan Watson, Joseph WeIch

Local Wig and Make-up Crew

Kinsha Bigham, Katie Clark, Kristine Clifton, Myranda Jennings Marquita Reese, Donna Robertson

IN MEMORIAM

Michigan Opera Theatre is saddened to report the death of principal horn player Kyle Mills. Mr. Mills was recently killed, along with his fiancee and three others, when the small plane they were in crashed near Kalispell, Montana. "Kyle was a talented young musician, with a great deal of potential," said David DiChiera. "The entire MOT family is shocked, and mourns this tragic loss ." Mr. Mills had been MOT's principal horn player since 2002, and Romeo & Juliet was to be his final production with the company after accepting a position with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra.

Copyright 2010, Michigan Opera Theatre

Kyle Mills with fiancee

Jennifer Sengpiel