Vivace SPRIng/SuMMeR 2014 La DeadTraviataMan Walking Le Comte Ory The Tragedy of Carmen
VIVAce | Spring/SuMMer 2014 | DeSMOineSMeTrOOpera.Org 2 3 a Look Back: WHaT Our FrienDS are Saying 5 La Traviata 7 Dead Man Walking 9 Le Comte Ory 11 2nD STageS SerieS: THe TrageDy OF CarMen 12 THe enCOre SOCieT y/ SOunD BiTeS 13 pLan yOur experienCe 14 SaV e TH e D aT e S / TiCkeT inFOrMaTiOn contents the LAuRIDSen FAMILy enDOWMent IS the 2014 SeASOn PReSentIng SPOnSOR Vivace newsletter, spring/summer 2014, is published bi-annually by des moines metro opera, inc., 106 West Boston avenue, indianola, iowa 50125-1836. Volume 2, issue 1.
Since last summer there has been much to celebrate! Our 2nd Stages Series was officially launched with our December production of Amahl and the Night Visitors at Hoyt Sherman place, bringing family audiences and new attendees together around a holiday classic. The 2nd Stages Series proudly continues this summer with Brook’s The Tragedy of Carmen (page 11). Our Opera iowa educational Touring Troupe began its annual tour in January. each year this program serves more than 60 communities in the Midwest—making it iowa’s largest and most expansive program in music education. and in February we welcomed many new friends to our annual Wine & Food Showcase at the Downtown Marriott Hotel. We take pride in our accomplishments; they are the
result of efforts by a group of remarkable individuals who share our commitment to be the very best.
Summer will be here before you know it! Single tickets are on sale now and certain dates are nearly sold out —so don’t wait to purchase yours! To those whose enthusiasm has been followed by financial support, thank you! if you have not, please consider doing so. now more than ever, financial support of the performing arts at all levels is critical to the future of this magnificent art form. i look forward to seeing you at the opera this summer and hope you will take time to say hello in the lobby of the theatre!
Michael egel, general and artistic Director
Welcome!
Welcome to this Spring/Summer issue of Vivace, Des Moines Metro Opera’s bi-annual newsletter. Very soon our Summer Festival Season will be underway. i hope the bustling enthusiasm that has invigorated our company lately is reflected within these pages and will inspire your own eager anticipation for the upcoming season. We are pleased to provide you this pre-season update thanks to Community Bank. Their sponsorship of this issue enables us to provide this beautiful newsletter to our friends and patrons in iowa and beyond.
and now we turn our attention to the upcoming season, which presents a traditional repertory work, a 21st century masterpiece and a sparkling French farce! Our 42nd Season will be a blockbuster, featuring three all-new productions: giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata, Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking, and gioachino rossini’s Le Comte Ory. By its very nature, opera is a living, breathing art form that must continue to develop and evolve if its deep roots are to remain planted in the hearts and minds of modern audiences; i am particularly pleased that this season we feature our first opera of the current century, Dead Man Walking (pages 7-8).
The 2013 Summer Festival Season was a triumph of epic proportions that was accomplished in conjunction with our customary balanced operating budget. artistic excellence and fiscal responsibility are hallmarks of our company, and our commitment to these ideals continues to demonstrate that an investment in Des Moines Metro Opera is a sound financial decision.
“ the opera that stunned me for so many reasons was Peter Grimes. A realistic plot for our day and each character was so believable. Roger honeywell was such a great actor as well as a singer that I still feel touched by his plight.”
kay Outka, Ames, IA
PeteR gRIMeS 2013
tis the season for aerial starbursts, and for my money more than a few rockets could be sent up to laud Des Moines Metro Opera. Long considered a jewel of the Midwest, the enterprising company seemed determined to break out of regional status with world-class productions.” Opera Today
MAcBeth 2010
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Patrick Byrne, kansas city, MO
“I was blown away by what I am sure will always be as near a perfect Macbeth as I shall witness.”
“DMMO's track record with American opera is exemplary, and the evening's Susannah was no exception.”
a look Back
WhAt OuR FRIenDS ARe SAyIng:
SuSAnnAh 2010
OPERA NEWS
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Opera Today
eLektRA 2013
“ the performances by the cast were outstanding. Magda was luminous and the maid stole the show, but the real star was the massive tiffany-style 'stained glass' windows. truly lovely. We may have a new favorite Puccini opera!” cathy Rickers, newton, IA
eugene OnegIn 2012
“everything about this Strauss one-acter was first rate, starting and ending with the polished sweep of a firing-on-all-cylinders orchestra; this towering achievement in the pit was balanced with a sensational cast of vocalists.”
“Eugene Onegin had to be one of the best productions I have ever seen anywhere.” tom Mcklveen, San Francisco, cA
L A ROnDIne 2012
as always, Verdi’s signature beautiful melodies are on full display. in Rigoletto he had begun experimenting with the standard opera overture, eschewing the rousing concert piece in which he excelled (think of the overtures to Nabucco, La forza del destino
the L ADy OF the cAMeLLIAS
even 201 years after Verdi’s birth, opera goers are still familiar with La Traviata—many have a favorite performance, a revered recording, a certain soprano whose supremacy as Violetta they are willing to defend with their last bottle of barrel-aged grappa. So is there pressure to get it right? you bet. But the chance to prepare and perform this opera in mid-career is also a blessing, for with experience, one realizes there actually is no "right way." There is only the journey that one takes with the greatest sincerity of purpose and highest hopes, and in collaboration with a cast including audience favorite Todd Thomas, director Lillian groag, and production team, aspire to present a great and moving masterwork in all its stunning originality and beauty.
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an opera usually begins with a story that captivated a composer. in this case, the 40-year-old giuseppe Verdi, already a decade into a stellar career and fresh
off major successes such as Rigoletto and Il Trovatore, saw a staged version of alexandre Dumas fils’ novel, The Lady of the Camellias. Based on a real woman, Marie Duplessis, Dumas’ mistress and courtesan who was often hypocritically judged by society of the time as having come off the correct path—a "traviata," the story was considered scandalous at the time. However, Verdi did not care. With an emotional depth surpassing that of his previous masterworks, he daringly created the most tender and lyric of all his operas with a realism that simultaneously looks back to the very beginnings of opera and gazes forward to the verismo movement.
From bud to bloom, La Traviata has captivated audiences with its delicate boldness for over a century
By DAVID neeLy, MuSIc DIRectOR AnD PRIncIPAL cOnDuctOR
Traviata set design for Flora's salon by Robert Little.
complete cast and production information at desmoinesmetroopera.org
Dumas himself reworked his novel into the play which initially caught Verdi’s attention. That was then reworked into over 16 different versions and has inspired at least two operas, three ballets and approximately 20 movies. Duplessis has inspired some of the best work from the actresses who have embodied her, garnering Oscar nominations for greta garbo in 1936’s Camille, for ali Macgraw in 1970s' Love Story (based on a book inspired by Dumas’ novel) and for Julia roberts in 1990s' Traviata-mad Pretty Woman. The character of armand Duval, the luckless lover, has been personified by such artists as rudolph Valentino and Colin Firth.
Of course, the story of paris’ most notorious courtesan, durable as it may be, hasn’t always been fertile, creative soil. it also inspired the 1969 italian sex-farce movie Camille 2000, which roger ebert listed as one of his most hated movies he’d ever seen. While there’s no accounting for taste, there’s also no end to the wide variety of different adaptations inspired by the remarkable courtesan who launched a thousand books, plays, movies and operas.
July 4 | July 12 | July 17 7:30PM
Speaking of adaptations...
Caitlin Lynch VIOLettA Diego Silva ALFReDO
June 29 | July 20 2:00PM
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alexandre Dumas fils wrote his novel The Lady of the Camellias about real life courtesan Marie Duplessis (named Marguerite gautier in the novel and Violetta Valéry in the opera), who, based solely on the extraordinary language used to describe her, inspired quite a lot of passion. She rose from being a working girl to a position of the aristocracy of the demi-monde in paris and was well known for her beauty, taste and the affluence which she managed to maintain. The Lady of the Camellias (dubbed so for her favorite flower) was duly adored by the most brilliant men in paris— young alfredo germont in the opera was based loosely on the young alexandre Dumas himself. Her life of abandon and pleasure, however, was cut tragically short when she died of consumption at age 23.
or I vespri siciliani) in favor of a brief introduction of dramatic brass calls and dark chords that represent the curse of Monterone and foreshadow, both motivically and emotionally, what is to come. in La Traviata Verdi intensifies this technique. Here we begin with what is almost a composed silence. Veiled strings enter, hovering, languishing and then easing into a theme of exquisite, hushed elegance that we imagine could be the sighing confession of a tender heart. Three acts later we will see the beautiful Violetta dying of the consumptive illness she has carried since before we met her, and we will realize that this music is her death watch, containing all her fever-clouded memories of lost love and the loneliness she fears awaits her in her final moment. But at the beginning we do not know any of this. The music, having woven its spell, fades, cadences lightly—and then, as if the lights have suddenly been switched on, we are thrown into a buoyant party scene. Like Violetta we are living in the joyous moment, fully in the present, and it is brilliant. a journey has begun. •
greta garbo and Robert taylor in Camille, 1936.
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June 27 8:00PM
LA tRAVIAtA giuseppe Verdi
There are times in the theatre where, from the moment the curtain goes up, you know you are in expert hands. Opening night of Dead Man Walking was one such experience. The entire audience knew we were seeing an amazing piece come to life and witnessing the debut of the next great american opera composer. it was clear that Dead Man Walking would take its place in the modern opera canon.
By kRIStIne McIntyRe, StAge DIRectOR
ifirst
That Dead Man Walking is also an important opera, which deals with significant contemporary issues, is another great bonus. We talk a lot about relevancy in the performing arts, and as a director you always want your audience to have an immediate connection to the story and the characters. With a piece like Dead Man Walking, the conversation is very short and very easy. Jake and Sr. Helen have given us a great gift—a way of exploring a controversial and difficult issue from the standpoint of music and theatre. i can think of no place i’d rather be than in rehearsal with a piece like that.
met Jake Heggie in the 1990s at the San Francisco Opera. He was working in the public relations department and i was an assistant director on the staging staff. Jake was "that nice guy from marketing" who also wrote songs. i knew that Frederica von Stade liked and sang his stuff at a few events around town, but i was as surprised as anyone when the company commissioned him to compose Dead Man Walking, with a libretto by playwright Terence Mcnally.
advisory: This opera highlights the issues of capital punishment and contains brief nudity, graphic violence, and explicit language. it is not recommended for anyone under 18 years of age.
Walking in 2000, composer Jake heggie has left a significant mark on modern opera
DEAD MAN IS
DeAD MAn WALkIng Jake heggie
PRPOWeRFuLeMIeReSWiththefirstperformanceof Dead Man
it was with a mixture of excitement and a little fear that i took my seat at the world premiere of Dead Man Walking in 2000. at that time the San Francisco Opera was doing a lot of new work—Conrad Susa’s Dangerous Liaisons in 1994 and andre previn’s A Streetcar Named Desire in 1998 with renée Fleming as Blanche DuBois. The company had a good record producing new work, but could Jake write an opera?
hear, rewarding to sing and imbued with humanity and compassion for the human condition. He’s also a true man of the theatre, and Dead Man Walking is opera theatre at its best and most arresting.
WALKING
June 28 | July 8 | July 11 | July 19 7:30PM
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Doing modern opera is one of the most interesting and important things we can do for this art form, and i can’t tell you how different it is to rehearse a piece that comes with little or no performance history—to have the total freedom to create from scratch or to have the living composer or librettist as a resource. Jake cares deeply about his pieces, often traveling to wherever one is being performed (which, in the case of Dead Man Walking, keeps him really really busy), and he’s a great ambassador for opera. He writes music that is easy to
July 6 2:00PM
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Jake Heggie elise Quagliata cOMPOSeR SISteR heLen PReJeAn complete cast and production information at desmoinesmetroopera.org
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the idea of tackling the role is exhilarating, and Moore is also looking forward to getting up close to Des Moines Metro Opera’s audience at the Blank Performing Arts center. “Larger houses present the challenge of having to physicalize subtle emotions, and with this comes a wider margin of error. In more intimate situations, that margin of error is gone, but it also means you can give a more honest, intimate, realistic performance. Dead Man Walking takes a hard look at how we, as a society, deal with those whose behavior falls outside of the accepted moral code. It's an important, relevant story to tell, and having the opportunity to bring such a story to life is a dream come true for any performer.”
APRIL 27 Director’s insights 1:30pm, Levitt auditorium, Des Moines art Center stage director Kristine mcintyre (Peter Grimes, Eugene Onegin) will lead a connection and preview of the opera including its themes, the designs for dmmo’s production and musical excerpts. Free
MAy 6 Dead Man Walking–The Journey Continues: a Conversation with Sister Helen prejean 7pm, Sheslow auditorium, Drake university sister Helen Prejean, whose autobiographical novel Dead Man Walking was the inspiration for the film and opera of the same name, will give a lecture about her experience, the book and its subsequent iterations. Presented in conjunction with the drake
university President’s office and the law school. Book signing following the event. Free
cOnnectIOnSAPRIL15
event calendar subject to change. call 515-961-6221 or visit desmoinesmetroopera.org for the latest information.
DAVID ADAM MOORe
Because of the social and legal issues surrounding this opera, DMMO will collaborate with several metro area organizations to present educational activities leading up to the performances.
June 4 The american Death penalty as reflected in the Opera 7pm, room 206, Cartwright Hall, Drake university Law School this panel discussion and conversation will look beyond the sensational headlines and anecdotes to understand the state of capital punishment in the american legal system. moderated by david e drake, d o., a remarkable panel of death penalty experts from the region connect with artists from the production to offer unique insights on this multi-faceted issue. approved for 1.5 hours of cle credit for legal professionals. Free
“17 minutes” art exhibit and gallery Show 4pm, prairie Meadows gallery, rasmussen Center, grand View university “seventeen minutes. that’s how long it takes to decide if a man should live or die,” says Joseph de rocher in Dead Man Walking the power and intensity behind this line of text is interpreted by grand View university students in this juried exhibit, with selected works on display at the Blank Performing arts center during the dmmo summer Festival season. Free
Heggie Dead Man Walking StA g I ng
Opera/VirginiaLOFFBeDiVDa
David Adam Moore was raised in the rural town of Vidor, texas, home to country music legends george Jones, clay Walker and Billie Jo Spears. Like many of Vidor’s musicians, Moore grew up making music and is part of the fourth generation of professional performers. however, instead of singing about pickup trucks and cowboy boots, he ended up with opera arias and cadenzas in such places as Seattle Opera, Lyric Opera of chicago, Opera theatre of Saint Louis, glimmerglass Opera, Pittsburgh Opera and Arizona Opera.
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A singing actor who is known for his dramatic intensity, Moore will take inspiration from his hometown to sing the challenging role of Joseph De Rocher, the inmate on Louisiana's death row in heggie’s Dead Man Walking “It was an environment quite similar to De Rocher's— full of trailer parks, churches, thick forests, and young people without much to do," says Moore. "I knew quite a few guys like De Rocher, who grew up in troubled homes and never had a chance to develop the tools they needed to become productive, or even functional, members of society. Watching them make the journey from innocent child to aggressive, dysfunctional adult had a big impact on me.”
June 28 a Day With Dead Man Walking Composer Jake Heggie 1:30pm, Des Moines Temple Theater, The Temple for performing arts: members of dmmo’s acclaimed apprentice artist Program will present a program of opera scenes and art songs by Heggie with the composer present, followed by a Q&a connection session. Free 7:30pm, Blank performing arts Center, Simpson College Campus: dmmo presents opening night of Dead Man Walking with Heggie in attendance, one of opera’s most preeminent american composers. Ticket prices vary
a conductor who’s done a lot of rossini, i’m thrilled to have this opportunity to do Le Comte Ory at Des Moines Metro Opera. The challenge for the orchestra, cast, stage director and me will be to find the speed, lightness, and virtuosity—all while maintaining the grace, charm and elegance of one of rossini's more unconventional works.
upon moving to paris to take over management of the Théâtre-italien in 1823, rossini quickly mastered not only the language but also the musical idioms. Testing the waters with several French reworkings of his italian operas, in 1828 he launched his first new work using the comedic style that had served him so well in italy. For a libretto, he approached eugèné Scribe, known for plays with complex plot contrivances and sparkling dialogue. rossini began with a vaudeville that Scribe had written about a lecherous Count who sneaks into a convent during the Crusades with his knights and seduces the nuns. He decided to use it as the basis for the second act and asked Scribe to write a first act to expand the story.
Though its origins were a miscellany of style, story and score, Le Comte Ory ends up as a delightful mélange a trois
He then recycled parts of an opera he’d written for the coronation of Charles x Il viaggio a Reims was a sprawling pièce d'occasion for 14 voices meant to be performed only at the coronation. He’d done this before, most famously “borrowing” an overture from another opera and tacking it onto The Barber of Seville. Six selections from Il viaggio were reused; however, this presented unique challenges to both composer and librettist as 14 parts had to be reduced to seven, and French words had to replace italian in music already written. rossini excelled in this task, as the French language demanded a different type of phrasing, one that is much more flexible and irregular than italian. He was able to adjust the music and write new selections that flattered the language in a way the public would expect. even more brilliant is how rossini combined the three existing styles of parisian French opera into one.
July 13 2:00PM
Le cOMte ORy gioachino Rossini
ALight Fantastique
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Witty, bawdy, and very tongue-in-cheek, Le Comte Ory brilliantly captures the charm and insouciance of the gallic theatre. That, along with the knights hiding in drag as nuns in act Two promises an evening as light and fun as a glass of champagne!
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From grand opera, he used orchestra in the recitatives and interspersed elaborate choral scenes throughout. From the opéra comique. he adapted a lightness of tone, plot contrivances, importance of text, and tuneful melodies. and from his own Théâtre-italien he used opera buffa tricks of fast patter arias, elaborate coloratura, graceful bel canto melodies and the ubiquitous temporale or storm scene. He even inserted the storm into the middle of a complex double chorus of men and women’s voices and soloists at the top of act Two.
July 5 | July 15 | July 18 7:30PM
The orchestras in paris were much more skilled than those he had in italy (hard to believe when you look at how difficult the italian comedy scores are to play!). He took advantage of the parisian musicians by incorporating colorful orchestration. particularly noteworthy is his creative use of the woodwinds and upper strings—so much so that even a master orchestrator like Berlioz had to begrudgingly admit rossini’s brilliance.
complete cast and production information at desmoinesmetroopera.org
By DeAn WILLIAMSOn, cOnDuctOR
SyDney MAncASOLA, comtesse Adèle
The grammy-nominated mezzo-soprano returned to the Metropolitan Opera for the 2013-14 season as the Countess in Andrea Chénier, the Third Lady in The Magic Flute, and in the world premiere of nico Muhly’s Two Boys. She also performed Wagner’s Wesendonck Lieder at the Library of Congress in honor of the 200th anniversary of the composer’s birth.
recent appearances for baritone Steven LaBrie include Carmen with the Dallas Opera, the Secret police agent in Menotti’s The Consul with Seattle Opera, Schaunard in La Bohème with new Orleans Opera, Don alvaro in Il Viaggio a Reims with Wolf Trap Opera and appeared as a model for MaC Cosmetics last fall. Future projects include a debut at the Washington national Opera and a return to Dallas Opera.
composed a year before he prematurely retired from opera writing in 1829, Le Comte Ory features some of the Rossini’s most challenging singing roles in a more sophisticated composition. Des Moines Metro Opera has assembled a stellar cast to perform some of the most gorgeous and vocally dazzling music in the operatic repertoire.
Meet the Artists
MARgARet LAttIMORe, Ragonde
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Color, wit and life abound in Rossini’s Le comte Ory, the first great French-language comic opera. Sensuous, witty and exquisitely crafted, the opera has always been something of a connoisseur's piece. It’s a comic tale of disguise, seduction, and the victory of virtue so wardrobe plays a key role! New costumes are being created for Des Moines Metro Opera’s upcoming production by designer Howard Tsvi Kaplan who shares his inspiration and some of his sketches:
"During our initial conversations last December, Michael egel, Louis nosko (the Opera Department Manager for Malabar Limited) and I discussed the concept for Le Comte Ory. We agreed we wanted an 18th century silhouette and approach to the medieval costumes the libretto was asking for, then together we brainstormed on what chorus costumes could be pulled from stock. A pinch of Otello, a splash of The Elixir of Love, a sprinkle of Don Giovanni, a dash of La Cenerentola later and we were set to go!"
The Dubuque, iowa, native recently created the role of Joe St. george in the world premiere of Tobias picker’s Dolores Claiborne at the San Francisco Opera and made his debut in the Ongaku-juku Festival in Japan as Figaro in The Marriage of Figaro. Future engagements include his debuts with the Teatro Municipal de Santiago, Opera philadelphia and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.
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Since his debut at Des Moines Metro Opera as ernesto in Don Pasquale, Taylor Stayton has made debuts as Don ramiro in La Cenerentola at the glyndebourne Festival, almaviva in The Barber of Seville at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, and as percy in Anna Bolena at the Metropolitan Opera. He returns to the Met to sing a performance of elvino in La Sonnambula before coming to DMMO this summer.
StePhAnIe LAuRIceLLA, Isolier recent engagements for our mezzo-soprano include a return to the grand Théâtre de genève for Wellgunde in Das Rheingold and Wellgunde in Götterdämmerung, and her first komponist in Ariadne auf Naxos with Virginia Opera. Future engagements include rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia and Hänsel in Hänsel und Gretel with the Deutsche Oper Berlin and Minnesota Opera.
SteVen LABRIe, Raimbaud
WAyne tIggeS, the tutor
DeSIgneR nOteS
Currently in her final year at the academy of Vocal arts, Mancasola most recently sang the title role in Manon. She was a grand prize Winner of the 2013 Metropolitan Opera national Council auditions, the Top prize Winner in the gerda Lissner Foundation Competition, 2nd prize and audience Favorite at the Houston grand Opera eleanor McCollum Competition, and numerous awards from many other prestigious competitions.
tAyLOR StAytOn, Le comte Ory
Peter Brook himself once described his hope for a unique theatrical experience in the following quote: "the most rewarding aspect of all theatre is when, in an extraordinary way, the audience also becomes more sensitive than it has been when it’s in the foyer or the street. that is what, to me, the whole of the theatre process is about. In big buildings, in small buildings, in the open air, in cellars—no matter where—it is about giving everyone who is together at the moment when there’s a performance, a taste of being finer in their feelings, clearer in their way of seeing things, deeper in their understanding than in their everyday isolation and solitude.that’s all the theatre has to offer. If it happens, it’s a great deal.”
Why another Carmen? Tragedy was never meant to be a substitute for the full Bizet opera, but was fashioned to provide an intimate and intensely played view of Bizet’s central characters and conflicts. gone are the large choruses, parades, and several secondary characters. What is preserved onstage are the opera’s four principal roles (carmen, Don José, Micaela and escamillo) combined with four non-singing roles that harken back to the plot’s original source material, the novella Carmen by Prosper Mérimée. All of Bizet’s most popular arias and duets are contained in Tragedy, along with an extremely thoughtful and poignant counterpoint of carmen’s “card Aria” with Micaela’s “Je dis que rien ne m’épouvante” that has become one of the “revised” score’s highlights. In addition, new characters are introduced from Mérimée’s original novel that add starkness and surprise to the intimate storytelling. the entire opera is contained in a tight, intermissionless 90 minutes!
the tRAgeDy OF cARMen Peter Brook/georges Bizet July 10 7:00PM | 9:00PM July 19 1:00PM
The Tragedy of Carmen (La tragédie de Carmen) is the brainchild of visionary British director Peter Brook who, in collaboration with composer Marius constant and playwright Jean-claude carrière, conceived an alternative version of perhaps the most popular opera in the international repertoire. the creation followed Brook’s desire to strip away the trappings of operatic spectacle and focus on the raw, central, emotional tale of the stage world’s most famous gypsy heroine. he would later provide similar treatments for Pelléas et Melisande and The Magic Flute
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complete cast and production information at desmoinesmetroopera.org
DeSMOineSMeTrOOpera.OrgJuLy
10 & 19, 2014 BizeT/BrOOk
peabody Southwell patrick O'Halloran cARMen DOn JOSé
this summer’s version will combine a talented, attractive cast with an evocative chamber orchestra in an exciting new physical setting that promises to be a significant hit with audiences. Join us for this exhilarating, 21st century take on one of opera’s best-loved classics! –Dugg McDOnOugh •
The Tragedy of Carmen
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earlier this year Des Moines Metro Opera welcomed eLLen DIehL as our new Director of Advancement & Operations. her previous experience includes the Mercy Foundation, where she was the Director of the Annual giving; a tenure at Friendship haven; and serving as executive Director of the Fort Dodge Area chamber of commerce for over ten years. She and her husband Jim reside in Ankeny and have attended DMMO productions regularly over the last ten years. ellen’s daughter, Sarah hatten, was also our chief wig and make-up designer for the past eight years.
this summer will mark the 20th year of association with the company for general and Artistic Director MIchAeL egeL, who began as a festival intern in 1994. Recently Michael was also selected as a member of the greater Des Moines committee, which is comprised of central Iowa's highest ranking business leaders, in February and named the Distinguished Alumnus of the theta Lambda chapter of Lambda chi Alpha Fraternity in March.
cLIPSunSD •
Rthe encore SOcIety
the story of an ames couple’s passion for des moines metro opera—and creating a legacy
it’s that feeling of ownership and community that led roger and kay to leave a lasting legacy to Des Moines Metro Opera in the form of a planned gift. “We were fortunate,” roger says. “We decided that we had the means to share some of our money with our family, but also with organizations we love. We want Des Moines Metro Opera to go on—to see it last throughout our lifetime and beyond." He adds, "DMMO is something that drives positive attention to the state. i figure there are a few things special here in iowa besides the corn and the hogs and the soybeans. Des Moines Metro Opera is one of them and it's something to be proud of.”
“My mother sang,” kay says. “She was a soprano so i’ve known opera all my life.” They had already seen operas in Santa Fe and The Metropolitan Opera tour when they discovered Des Moines Metro Opera, attending The Magic Flute in 1975. “We missed the first two years of the opera. We moved here in 1972 and the opera started in 1973 so we were a little slow to catch on.” Once they did catch on, they caught on completely. roger and kay praise not only the intimacy of the stage, but also DMMO itself. “it is a center of excellence. it is so intimate! During intermissions you can talk to the leadership of the company.”
the popular opera blog “Barihunks” (barihunks.blogspot.com) features the vocal ability (and physiques) of today’s leading baritones, but lately it seems to be about DMMO singers. Some of Barihunks' favorites are MIchAeL MAyeS (The Marriage of Figaro, Don Giovanni), cRAIg VeRM (pictured right, Peter Grimes), SteVen LABRIe (Raimbaud in this summer’s Le Comte Ory), DAVID ADAM MOORe (Joseph De Rocher in this summer’s Dead Man Walking), and countless Apprentice Artists. the blog has also picked up on the recent trend of singers hitting the gym while spending summers with us, noting: “Des Moines Metro Opera seems to be where a lot of singers get in shape.”
roger and kay Berger moved to iowa just about the same time Des Moines Metro Opera began. roger was offered a position as a professor at iowa State university in ames in 1972. kay later became a psychiatric social worker at McFarland Clinic. Though both are now retired, there’s one thing they keep constant—their presence at Des Moines Metro Opera’s Summer Festival. The Bergers will celebrate their 40th season of regular attendance this summer.
FReD AnD chARLOtte huBBeLL were presented with the Bravo Award at Bravo greater Des Moines’ awards gala on February 1 at hy-Vee hall in downtown Des Moines. the Bravo Award recognizes a company, individual or family that has made a significant contribution to arts and culture in greater Des Moines. charlotte served on the DMMO Board of Directors from 1982-1988, including a year as President of the Board. She is currently an honorary Board Member.
The Bergers have invested a part of their lives with DMMO in the decades they’ve been visiting our theatre and serving as members of the ames Chapter of the guild. Their planned gift allows them to invest in the future of the company—one they think is artistically bright. now, thanks in part to their generosity and others like them, DMMO’s financial future is brighter as well.
For information on how you can make a planned gift, please contact ellen Diehl at 515-961-6221 or ediehl@dmmo.org. •
13 VIVAce | Spring/SuMMer 2014 | DeSMOineSMeTrOOpera.Org Visit on your own or explore with a group. the tropical and temperate gardens make the Des Moines Botanical garden an oasis in the heart of Des Moines. Admission $3-$5. blankparkzoo.comchildrenAdmissionspecieswhichacrestpricesforadults,domethatthecreativeeworldfoodprize.orgtoursminutesandonopenbuilding,Locateddmbotanicalgarden.cominarestoredcentury-oldthehallofLaureatesistothepublicforfreetourstuesdaysat9AM,10:30AM12noon(pleasearrive10-15early),andself-guidedonSaturdaysfrom9AM-1PM.xperiencethis110,000square-footlifelonglearningcenterinheartofDowntownDesMoinesalsofeaturesasix-storyIMAXtheater.Admissionis$11for$10forseniors(65+)and$7children2-12yearsold.IMAXvary.sciowa.orgheyear-roundBlankParkZoois22ofanimalexhibitsandfacilitieshouse104differentanimaland1,484animalspecimens.$11foradults,$6for3-12yearsold. PLAn yOuR eXPeRIence WORLD FOOD PRIZe hALL OF LAuReAteS ScIence centeR OF IOWA BLAnk PARk ZOO
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Following selected opera performances, get in on the behind-the-scenes action as the production director and staff show how the evening’s production came to the stage, then how they "strike" the set to prepare for the next day’s performance. Backstage tours included. Admission is $20 and reservations are required.
DeS MOIneS BOtAnIcAL gARDen
Members of the music staff introduce the background and highlights of the evening’s opera in a free educational and informal presentation 45 minutes prior to each
PRe-ShOW DInIng gourmet dining at its finest returns this season! enjoy menus catered by the embassy club and gateway Market and themed for each opera in the secluded air-conditioned comfort of the theatre lobby.
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Weekend 2 7/4 | 7/5 | 7/6 $220 $185 $160 $110
(Students k-college) July 8, 15, 17 $39 $33 $29 $23
Build-your-Own $245 $205 $175 $120
June 2 - Drawing date
For TickeTs
VIVAce | Spring/SuMMer 2014 | DeSMOineSMeTrOOpera.Org 14
APPRentIce ARtISt SceneS PROgRAM Free
SuBScRIPtIOn SeRIeS
June 14 thReADS & tRILLS cOStuMe ShOW AnD LuncheOn Wakonda country club, 12:00noon $40/person get a sneak peek at the costumes from the festival season and be treated to an excellent meal while enjoying arias and duets sung by principal artists.
June 27, 28, 29; July 8, 15, 17 $78 $66 $58 $46
July 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20 $92 $77 $66 $49
June 27 OPenIng nIght gALA DInneR hubbell hall, Simpson college, 5:00pm $125/person Join us for the La Traviata opening night, pre-opera gala dinner, live auction and post-opera celebration with the Max Wellman Jazz Trio at the principal Financial group Black Box Theater. Black tie optional. Opera tickets sold separately.
SIngLe tIcketS
July 16 StARS OF tOMORROW Sheslow Auditorium, Drake university, 7:00pm $25/adults, $10/students apprentice artists and Festival Orchestra members present duets and ensembles. Tickets include a dessert reception following the concert. always a popular event and an insider's favorite!
Whether you're purchasing a raffle ticket for yourself or as a special surprise for someone else, don’t wait too long—there will only be 200 chances in this drawing which ends on June 2, 2014. Winner will be notified by either phone or email.
Members of the acclaimed apprentice artist program prepare and perform more than 40 scenes and opera excerpts drawn from all corners of the operatic repertory—featuring works from all eras, styles and languages.
Weekend 4 7/18 | 7/19 | 7/20 $220 $185 $160 $110
May 31 DeAth By ARIA
beforeperformingMoinesInsong?maestrowonderedAreBStAR-SPAngLeDAnneRRAFFLeyouatheatreseatconductor?everwhatitwouldbeliketobeforanevening—evenforjustoneWellyoumightjustgetthatchance!honorofourcountry’sbirthdaytheDesMetroOperaOrchestrawillbe"theStarSpangledBanner"theJuly4performanceof
save DaTesheT 2014
Sunday 6/29 or 7/20 | 7/6 | 7/13 $245 $205 $175 $120
La Traviata, and one lucky audience member will get to wave the baton for it from the orchestra pit! the company will be selling raffle tickets for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity which can be purchased for only $50 each through our office at 515-961-6221 or online at desmoinesmetroopera.org. the winner will also receive 4 tickets to the performance, along with a commemorative photo of the big debut.
June 13, 21, July 5, 10, 12, 18 Lekberg hall, Simpson college, 1:30pm June 28 temple for the Performing Arts theatre, 1:30pm
Weekend 3 7/11 | 7/12 | 7/13 $220 $185 $160 $110
Tragedy of Carmen July 10, 19 $40 (limited seating)
times and dates are subject to change. call 515-961-6221 or visit desmoinesmetroopera.org for more information or to order tickets.
The 40 aspiring singers selected as 2014 apprentice artists open the season in the theatre lobby with their signature aria. Come early, leave if you must, but enjoy all (or a portion of) the evening's music!
Opening night 6/27 | 6/28 | 7/5 $245 $205 $175 $120
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June 19 & 21 PeAnut ButteR & PuccInI Blank Performing Arts center, 11:00am $10/person Our annual family opera adventure includes a kid-friendly opera, a peanut butter sack lunch and a backstage tour of the theatre.
BLAnk PeRFORMIng ARtS centeR, located on Simpson college campus, Indianola, IA
Friday 6/27 or 7/4 | 7/11 | 7/18 $240 $195 $170 $112
Weeknight 7/8 | 7/15 | 7/17 $220 $185 $160 $110
Blank Performing Arts center, 6:30pm Free
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Purchase online at desmoinesmetroopera.org or call 515-961-6221 and use code: VIVAceSS42
Saturday 6/28 or 7/19 | 7/5 | 7/12 $245 $205 $175 $120
Des Moines Metro Opera, Inc. 106 West Boston Avenue Indianola, IA 50125-1836 Return Service Requested Visit: Follow:Like:Watch:desmoinesmetroopera.orgyoutube.com/user/DesMoinesMetroOperafacebook.com/DesMoinesMetroOperatwitter.com/dmopera Verdi La Traviata Heggie (mature audiences) Dead Man Walking rossini Le Comte Ory June 27-July 20, 2014 42nd Festival Season JuLy 10 & 19, 2014 BizeT/BrOOk The Tragedy of Carmen SIngLe tIcketS On SALe desmoinesmetroopera.orgnOWor515-961-6221theLAuRIDSenFAMILyenDOWMent IS the 2014 SeASOn PReSentIng SPOnSOR “essential unexpected u.S. Summer Opera Venue” – Opera News 2013
