Minnesota Opera's Hamlet Program

CELEBRATING 50 YEARS

THOMAS

HAMLET 2012 2013 SEASON

welcome have to admit it; I’m a big baseball fan.

The great thing about this time of year is that spring training starts: pitchers and catchers report. Similar to baseball, it is also the time of year when opera companies announce the new season lineup. At Minnesota Opera, our lineup for the 51st season is being led by the mvps of opera: Verdi, Puccini, Strauss, Mozart and Argento.

No other team can claim to offer such an impressive starting lineup!

However, unlike baseball, Minnesota Opera’s finances do not have the added revenue from big television deals and stadium profits. Your opera ticket price only covers a portion of the real cost of producing opera. We need you on our team to win. We’re at the bottom of the 9th and you’re up to bat. Knock it out of the park by making your tax-deductible gift today!

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Kevin Ramach President and General Director

elcome to the exciting company premiere of Ambroise Thomas’ Hamlet. This opera was a hugely popular piece that somehow faded into oblivion around the turn of the 20th century. Recently, due to the renewed interest in this melodious creation by such singers as Thomas Hampson and Natalie Dessay, Hamlet has made a return to the stages of the great opera companies around the world.

Hamlet is, of course, one of the greatest plays of the Western World and has influenced literature and film since its debut. We continue in the 21st century to be inspired by the tale of revenge, treachery and corruption. Each year brings us new works inspired by Hamlet. We only have to look at The Lion King, The Story of Edgar Sawtelle and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead to realize what a potent mix this continues to be. Hamlet became a sensation in Paris in 1827 when an English company came to give a season of Shakespeare in English. Following that, several French translations were created.

One of those translations, by Alexandre Dumas père and Paul Meurice, became the basis for the opera. Written in the French Grand Opera style of five acts, including a large-scale ballet, the opera conveyed the plot in broad brushstrokes. What emerged was a beautiful opera featuring wonderful melodies, concentrating the action on the four main characters of Hamlet, Ophelia, Claudius and Gertrude.

Thaddeus Strassberger has taken this affecting score and created a potent 21st century version of the story, placing the action in a midcentury setting that not only enhances the tale of revenge, but also puts the spotlight on a country that is struggling under the weight of a tyrant’s brutal rule.

I hope you enjoy taking this journey with us. Thank you for your continued support in our 50th anniversary year.

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Dale Johnson Artistic Director

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Synopsis Hamlet Background Notes Ambroise Thomas The Artists Minnesota Opera at 50: The Fourth Decade The 2013-2014 Season

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Tempo: The Rogue Song Up Next: Turandot Education at Minnesota Opera Minnesota Opera Board of Directors, Staff and Volunteers Minnesota Opera Annual Fund On Air – Resident Artist Cabaret: 1940s Radio Show

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synopsis by Thaddeus Strassberger In Denmark, in and around the castle of Elsinore, home of the late King Hamlet and his surviving heirs.

Shortly before the opera begins, King Hamlet has died under questionable circumstances.

SETTING

Scene one The scene opens as the court at Elsinore is celebrating the marriage of King Claudius to Gertrude, widow of the late King Hamlet. Prince Hamlet, son of Gertrude and King Hamlet, remains stunned by his mother’s hasty remarriage, merely two months after his father’s death. Ophélie, daughter of the lord chamberlain, Polonius, is in love with Prince Hamlet, but is concerned that he may leave the court due to his uneasiness with his mother’s actions. Feeling ignored

by Hamlet, Ophélie begs him for an affirmation of his love for her.

Ophélie’s brother Laërte must depart on court business, so he entrusts her care to Hamlet.

Scene two Hamlet joins his friends Horatio and Marcellus outside the castle walls. They warn the prince they have seen a ghost they believe to be Hamlet’s father. Shortly the ghost appears, charging Hamlet with avenging his father’s murder, revealing that he was poisoned by his brother Claudius. The ghost urges immediate action, but warns his son not to harm his mother, as her vengeance must be left to heaven. As the ghost vanishes, Hamlet swears to obey the command.

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Act II

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Scene one Ophélie is in distress, as the prince is shunning her. Hamlet momentarily appears, but withdraws, and she ponders the briefness of her lover’s vows. Gertrude enters, seeking to learn from Ophélie what is happening with Hamlet, and discovers Ophélie in tears. She confides to Gertrude that she believes the prince no longer loves her and requests permission to leave the court. Gertrude pleads with her to stay, hoping she can cure Hamlet of his melancholy. King Claudius then appears, and the queen asks Ophélie to withdraw. The king wonders at Hamlet’s strange behavior, and Gertrude suspects he may have learned the truth of their crime. Claudius, however, prefers to think that the prince is going mad. Hamlet enters and announces he has arranged a performance for the court that evening. The king and queen, seeking to humor him, agree to attend. Hamlet sings the praises of wine’s ability to dispel sadness and depression.

Scene two The play, The Murder of Gonzago, is presented. Hamlet narrates the story of King Gonzago, who is lured by the queen to a lonely spot, where her lover administers a lethal dose of poison to the king. At the moment in the play when the murderer places the king’s crown on his own head, Claudius nearly betrays himself.

Hamlet boldly accuses the king of murder, and the court erupts in pandemonium.

• intermission • Act III Seeking a connection with his father in the castle’s mausoleum, Hamlet is angry with himself for not having killed Claudius outright.

However, he ponders the possibility of taking his own life in order to escape the responsibility his father’s ghost has burdened him with, if only suicide were not forbidden, and a person’s fate after death could be known. Hamlet hides when Claudius enters and begins praying to the spirit of his dead brother to appease God. The king then calls for Polonius, and Hamlet learns that Ophélie’s father was an accomplice in the murder. Gertrude and Ophélie enter, and Hamlet’s mother urges her son to marry. However he again rejects his fiancé and violently turns on his mother. In a rage Hamlet reveals to Gertrude that he knows of the murder and Gertrude fears for her life. The ghost appears to Hamlet, reminding him that his mother must be spared. The queen, not seeing the specter, believes Hamlet to be mad. He exhorts her to repent and pray.

Act IV Ophélie, looking disheveled and vague, has been driven insane by Hamlet’s rejection.

Act V In the cemetery two gravediggers are preparing for a burial ceremony. Hamlet asks the men whose grave it is, but they do not know. Laërte arrives, having returned from abroad after learning of his sister’s madness. A funeral procession arrives, and it is only now that Hamlet learns of Ophélie’s passing. Hamlet finally avenges his father’s death.

Hamlet 2010 © Karin Cooper for Washington Opera

Act I

Music by Ambroise Thomas Libretto by Michael Carré and Jules Barbier after the play by William Shakespeare World premiere at the Opéra, Paris, March 9, 1868 March 2, 5, 7, 9 and 10, 2013, Ordway, Saint Paul Sung in French with English captions

cast (in order of vocal appearance)

Claudius, King of Denmark Queen Gertrude Hamlet, Prince of Denmark Ophélie, Polonius' daughter Laërte, Polonius' son Horatio, Hamlet's friend Marcellus, an officer Ghost of Hamlet's father Polonius, Lord Chamberlain Two gravediggers

Wayne Tigges Katharine Goeldner Brian Mulligan Marie-Eve Munger Jason Slayden Rodolfo Nieto John Robert Lindsey Seth Keeton Alex Ritchie Matthew Opitz, Jeffrey Hill

creative team Conductor Stage Designer Set Designer Costume Designer Lighting Designer Wig and Makeup Designer Assistant Director Assistant Conductor Répétiteurs Stage Manager English Captions

Christopher Franklin Thaddeus Strassberger Thaddeus Strassberger Mary Traylor Mark McCullough Jason Allen Daniel Ellis Aaron Breid Eric McEnaney, Sheldon Miller Alexander Farino Ward Holmquist, Ken Weiss

The Minnesota Opera season is sponsored by

Hamlet is presented by

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Flying by Foy

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Background Notes by David Sander

amlet – both title and character are replete with meaning. The quantity of commentary dedicated to William Shakespeare’s play is second only to that devoted to Jesus Christ. It is the Bard’s longest play, with nearly 4,000 lines, carefully spun into three simultaneous plots, with seven soliloquies given by the title character (and two more

by Claudius), 22 scenes and more than 600 new words that would be incorporated into the English lexicon.

Shakespeare’s brooding, existential, verbose and most human protagonist is at the very root of literary and social thought, and ingrained in our common consciousness. The play is Shakespeare’s most quoted drama and most frequently adapted. Significantly, it was chosen to open Tyrone Guthrie’s new Minneapolis theater in 1963, a venue that also first hosted then-Center Opera. It is only fitting that the operatic version is a part of the now-Minnesota Opera’s 50th anniversary season.

we learn he was a willing accomplice in the conspiracy to kill Hamlet’s father, a detail that further dampens the prince’s affections toward Ophélie.

Hamlet’s drinking song, presumably to underscore his feigned madness, was a tradition included to appeal to French audiences. Hamlet doesn’t die in the original ending, but when the production premiered at London’s Covent Garden, an alternate outcome had to be composed. English purists couldn’t see their national treasure adulterated, so Hamlet apparently expires of a broken heart from the grief he feels over Ophélie’s passing.

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However, none of this reverence was observed when the play traveled to France in the 18th century. The eight-person body count was perhaps too gruesome for French classicists (Voltaire once remarked “One would think this is the work of a drunken savage”). In 1769, JeanFrançois Ducis made considerable adjustments.

Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, Marcellus, Fortinbras and others were eliminated from the drama, and there were no players or gravediggers. The final duel was also missing, and Hamlet didn’t die, nor did Ophelia. This became the standard performance edition until an English troupe brought Hamlet to the Théâtre de l’Odéon in 1827. The city went mad for Ophelia’s flower scene, and composer Hector Berlioz was infatuated with the leading lady, Harriet Smithson. The Symphonie fantastique became a calling card for their courtship, and they eventually married, with dubious results. Also in the audience was a young Alexandre Dumas père, who later

Hamlet before the Body of Polonius (1855) Eugène Delacroix (1798–1863) Musée des Beaux-Arts (Reims, France) © DeA Picture Library/Art Resource, NY

provided his own adaptation (aided by Paul Meurice), a little truer to the source, but still lacking the Fortinbras-Norway angle (one of the subplots to be discussed below) and Hamlet’s trip to England (nor do Rosencrantz and Guildenstern perish). There is an added love scene for Ophélie and Hamlet, and the Ghost of Hamlet’s father reappears at the end to condemn each of the dying characters. Hamlet, however, lives on to become King of Denmark.

Dumas’ version, which opened at the Comédie-Française in 1847, was likely known to librettists Michel Carré and Jules Barbier. It is for this reason Ambroise Thomas’ Hamlet differs considerably from the original work.

For the purposes of dramatic necessity (as action tends to take longer when sung), minor characters and dramatic action were removed.

Polonius’ famous stabbing while spying behind the arras does not occur (though the scene will be recreated in this production). In fact,

Little is known about the composition of Thomas’ Hamlet, other than it was conceived as a French Grand Opera, in five acts with a ballet.

The proximity to Charles Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette, which premiered just one year earlier, is merely coincidental – it was not intended to compete with the younger composer’s success. The title role was, quite naturally, originally to be a tenor. Given the singer availability at the time, Thomas recast it for a talented baritone, Jean-Baptiste Faure, and he had the good fortune to have Christine Nilsson as his Ophélie – the fully staged suicidal mad scene à la Lucia di Lammermoor or Lady Macbeth became a signature piece.

The opera was enthusiastically received at its premiere in 1868 and generated more than 300 performances by the end of the century.

Shakespeare’s sources The foundations of Shakespeare’s Hamlet are as complex as the work itself. Like many of his plays, it is a drama of variation and adjustment rather than one of outright planning. The ultimate root is the 12th-century folklore tale of Amleth found in Saxo Grammaticus’ Historiae Danicae. It contains all the basic elements: Amleth’s father has defeated the King of Norway in a single combat and is murdered by

Hamlet 2010 © Karin Cooper for Washington Opera

A later French version found in the Histoires tragiques by François de Belleforest, published in 1570, follows Saxo, but introduces two new misogynist elements to the character of Geruth – she and Fengon have had an adulterous affair prior to the old king’s death, and she is duplicitous in his murder. She later switches her allegiance after a talk with Hamlet, promising not to disclose his plan and supporting his seizure of the throne. Belleforest’s lineage is apparent in two other Shakespearian works, namely Romeo and Juliet and Much Ado About Nothing, so the Bard may have known this narrative as well; however, Hamlet was not translated into English until 1608. Also, the same material may have been known to another playwright, Thomas Kyd, who could read French and who produced a revenge drama, The Spanish Tragedy, which featured a ghostly presence as well as 19 other similarities. Although knowledge of this play may have inspired Shakespeare to write his drama, it is supposed there was a companion work, referred to as the Ur-Hamlet, that may have been authored by Kyd, one of his

contemporaries or even Shakespeare himself, and may have preceded (and influenced) Kyd’s tale of vengeance. The Bard is believed to have worked off this copy, providing his First (or “Bad”) Quarto, a sort of dry run at the subject matter, written in the last decade of the 1500s.

(There is speculation that this was a pirated version of the play, possibly adapted from the memory of an actor and perhaps abridged).

He later expanded and edited his material quite extensively, yielding what is known as the Second “Good” Quarto (1604). A third edition, the First Folio was published in 1623.

Belleforest’s new feature, Gertrude’s culpability in the plot, is never fully resolved in the play, but rings true in the opera. “The lady doth protest too much, methinks” is her wellknown remark while viewing the “Mousetrap” play Hamlet has engineered to draw out her

Death of Ophelia Eugène Delacroix (1798–1863) Louvre (Paris, France) © RMN-Grand Palais/Art Resource, NY

concerned about the adultery than about his father’s death, and after delivering about 150 lines of abuse, can only be brought back to task by a second appearance of the Ghost.

There is the growing fear that Claudius may be usurped by the younger Hamlet. As in Saxo and Belleforest, Shakespeare has the prince acquire an “antic disposition,” attempting to prove he is crazy while he gathers evidence.

Though the play is more about an internal struggle rather than outward action, Hamlet is the supreme puppet master. In The Murder of Gonzago, where “the play is the thing, wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the king,” he has the nephew instead of the brother orchestrate the murder. It is a telling indication that Hamlet knows the details of the crime and of his intentions toward Claudius. The play hinges on Hamlet’s delay – why doesn’t he simply kill Claudius after the Ghost’s initial visit? There are signs in the drama that he doesn’t trust the supernatural being’s intentions. Hamlet requires “ocular proof,” which he receives with the king’s reaction to Gonzago’s poisoning.

Then he very conveniently has a chance, finding Claudius alone deep in prayer. But murdering the king while observing religious piety would guarantee his soul would be carried to heaven, and that is not where Hamlet wishes it to go.

Only after the “accidental” murder of Polonius, an act that appears to have been meant for the king himself, does justice become swift. It is clear Hamlet now has a taste for the kill, and he is quickly dispatched to England in the interest public safety. Thanks to his own wily intelligence, the prince intercepts the execution orders, and still in possession of the royal seal, is able to revise them, leading to the ultimate demise of the unwitting Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. He is “rescued” by pirates (the convenience of their chance appearance is often overlooked), and brought back, fully matured, now able to fulfill his father’s commission.

guilt as much as that of Claudius. The opera has an entire duet devoted to the conspiratorial couple. Shakespeare leaves her fate in the hands of God (at the Ghost’s request), and in the opera, the spirit consigns her to a convent.

In Belleforest, she is the daughter of the former king, and therefore the prototypes for Old Hamlet and later Claudius are royal consorts, another factor fueling the jealousy, murder and hasty “incestuous” second marriage.

Gertrude’s morality is harshly called into The original work also involves several subplots question when confronted by her son in the not fully realized in the opera. We have Polonius infamous Closet Scene. It appears he is more and his two children, Laertes and Ophelia.

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his brother Feng, who takes the widow Gerutha as his wife. Her young son Amleth pretends to be mad to avoid being eliminated (in European thought at that time, if one was to kill a lunatic, one would become a lunatic). This situation endures for many years during which time his mental capacity is tested by the courtiers. At one point he is sent a young woman (the prototype for Ophelia) to see if he will react sexually (he does, but swears her to secrecy). A councilor close to the king eavesdrops on a conversation between the queen and her son. He is killed by Amleth, chopped up, cooked and fed to the pigs. Feng sends his nephew to Britain with secret execution orders, and Amleth alters the communiqué, requesting his escorts be killed instead. Upon his return to Denmark, Amleth sequesters the courtiers as they are reveling and sets fire to the room. Feng is murdered in his own bed after the prince has exchanged weapons, rendering the king helpless, and Amleth is crowned king – a tale of noble success rather than one of horrendous tragedy.

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Hamlet 2010 © Karin Cooper for Washington Opera

background notes continued

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The former he cautions to be frugal and tame, to the latter he recommends no further love interest in Hamlet – he of royal birth and she merely a commoner, there can be no lasting future.

Laertes becomes a true foil in the tradition of the Senecan revenge drama. Rather than being thoughtful and hesitant like the title character, he is rash and decisive. When he learns his father has been killed (a parent for which he has very little regard, but the family’s honor is at stake), he organizes an uprising. Cooled by Claudius’ artful promises, he is drawn into a conspiracy to eliminate Hamlet, which will ultimately result in the death of all the principals. Sadly, the doubly poisonous dueling scene (by cup and by blade) did not make it into the opera’s finale.

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toward women, reaches its peak as he derides both Ophelia and his mother as whores, as the cloister at that time was believed to be a place of fornication in a corrupt Catholic Church (England had just recently turned Protestant).

In the original drama, Ophelia’s final scene is a distribution of flowers to members of the court.

Each has significance – rosemary for Hamlet for remembrance (he has abandoned her); pansies for Laertes denoting pensiveness and grief; fennel and columbines for Claudius, symbolic of deceit, ingratitude and faithlessness; and rue for Gertrude suggesting repentance. Even in her madness, Ophelia clearly knows what is going on. Her suicide (which occurs offstage and is reported by Gertrude) is inconclusive, but suspicious enough to deny her a proper funeral Meanwhile, Fortinbras of Norway is seeking to for she is buried in unconsecrated ground. reclaim lands lost by his father of the same name to the recently departed King of Denmark. In a Claudius is likewise enigmatic. Given to the parallel situation, his uncle is currently the ruler, sensations of power, lust and alcohol, another and as in Hamlet’s case, primogeniture has also more tender side emerges in the prayer scene. been set aside. His story rather awkwardly He obviously has some remorse, and if one fits into the main action of the play (and is takes into account the fascist “Iron Curtain” perhaps a remnant of the lost Ur-Hamlet), interpretation of this production, it is very but does draw everything full circle when, on possible Claudius eliminated King Hamlet a corpse-strewn stage, the dying Hamlet leaves because he was a cruel totalitarian, rather than to him the leadership of Denmark, acreage that a progressive ruler (there is the question of formerly belonged to his country. Like Laertes, why he is languishing in purgatory rather than Fortinbras is a man of conflict, an aggressive, a place better befitting a hero). The opening capable warrior in contrast to Hamlet’s softer of the play would indicate Claudius is capably intellectual temperament. governing Denmark when he receives a diplomatic mission from Norway in an effort Ophelia’s character must also be examined. She to maintain peace. Hamlet is a very different is the ultimate femme fragile. In Shakespeare’s tragedy from those written before or since, play, she is warned against receiving any of and Claudius is hardly as villainous as the Hamlet’s love but is then used as a pawn by purer examples of Macbeth, Edmund or Iago.

Polonius and Claudius to obtain information.

Hamlet treats her poorly, alternately affectionate In Saxo’s original story, the cause of the elder and cruel. Unlike in the opera, they never have Hamlet’s murder is openly known, and a truly romantic moment. Hamlet’s “Get thee therefore, requires no ghost. The junior Hamlet to a nunnery” speech, showing his antipathy must pretend to be to be a fool for many years.

Shakespeare has translated this into a sort of supersanity – at every juncture he is one step ahead, and he uses subtle and persistent humor, crafting a world of riddles. A revenge tragedy is conducive to introspection, and we are subjected to Hamlet’s innermost thoughts. The audience never loses its sympathy for the prince, even though he is directly or indirectly responsible for the deaths of five people. The Ghost expects his namesake to be an imprint of himself – heroic, brave and noble. But nothing could be further from the truth – while Old Hamlet displays bravado on the battlefield in a single combat with Old Fortinbras, his son achieves supremacy by using his wits, an honest version of a Machiavellian prince if ever there was one. Further dynamics between father and son become evident when viewed in light of real events. Shakespeare had a son, Hamnet, who died young in 1596; he lost his father a few years later. Both of these terrible events give the play an elegiac quality.

Only after Claudius tries to have him killed is Hamlet’s resolve steeled, yet Shakespeare’s final act plays out as a tragedy of circumstance rather than the execution of any actual architectural plan, resulting in the deaths of the remaining four principals instead of just one. The drama that boldly features regicide, fratricide, suicide, homicide and incest eliminates two entire families. Famously retaining its most familiar quotation, “Être ou ne pas être,” the operatic version also plainly confronts issues of life and death. Thomas and his librettists were faced with an enormous challenge, and in spite of their digressions and eliminations, they still managed to produce an effective, concise piece of theater, even if hampered by the antiquated practices of the day. If one is not expecting an exact musical interpretation of the Bard’s masterpiece, they should be fully satisfied by Thomas’ chef-d’œuvre grand opéra.

Ambroise Thomas b Metz, August 5, 1811; d Paris, February 12, 1896 early forgotten today, Ambroise (1866). To satisfy the bourgeois audience Thomas was a central figure in the midof the Opéra-Comique, the tragic ending was changed to a happy one, and Mignon to late-19th-century Parisian operatic scene. became a staple of the theater, achieving Born to a musical family, Thomas entered the Paris Conservatoire in 1828, studying some 1,200 performances by the end of piano and composition. Winning the Prix the century. As a result, Thomas was soon de Rome four years later, he triumphed afforded a prestigious premiere at the upon his return to Paris at the OpéraOpéra, an arguably loose adaptation of Comique with the one-act La double the Bard’s classic drama Hamlet. His final échelle, which achieved 247 performances. work, Françoise de Rimini (1882), based Several less-successful opéra comiques on a canto from Dante’s Inferno, was also followed, as well as a few shorter works performed at Paris’ theater of first rank.

The composer married later in for the Opéra until 1849, when the life and had no children. In 1848, he composer unveiled Le caïd, an Orientalist served in the French National Guard piece with a Rossinian flare. It was a during the February Revolution that genuine hit, generating more than 400 deposed King Louis-Philippe, and later, presentations. Le songe d’une nuit d’été (A fought in the Franco-Prussian War. In Midsummer Night’s Dream; 1850) was also 1851, Thomas was granted a seat in the popular, although it had little to do with Ambroise Thomas Académie des Beaux Arts and began to Shakespeare’s play. Raymond, ou Le secret Edmond Rinckenbach (1862–1902) teach composition at the Conservatoire. de la reine (1851) was based the French Musée d’Art et d’Histoire Metz Gianni Dagli Orti/The Art Archive at Art Resource, NY He eventually assumed the directorship legend of The Man in the Iron Mask, of the institution upon the death of recently made topical by the serialized three-part novel Le Vicomte de Bragelonne ou Dix ans plus tard by Daniel-François-Esprit Auber in 1871. It was here that the professor/ Alexandre Dumas père. Other operas from this period include La composer held court, greatly influencing and assisting the next cour de Célimène (1855; after Molière’s Le Misanthrope), Psyché (1857), generation (which included Jules Massenet) until his death in 1896.

Two years earlier, he had been awarded the Grand Croix de Légion Le carnaval de Venise (1857) and Le roman d’Elvire (1860).

Thomas would find one of his greatest triumphs on the heels of d’honneur to mark his life achievements, the first composer to receive his contemporary, Charles Gounod. Intrigued by the popularity of such a tribute. Today, Thomas is vaguely remembered for only two the younger composer’s Faust (1859), he turned to Johann Wolfgang works, yet he was an astute and flexible composer whose remarkable von Goethe’s Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre and produced Mignon legacy remains incontrovertible.

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At the same time...

In Japan the Meiji dynasty is restored after the abolishment of the shogunate. The city of Edo is renamed Tokyo.

United States President Andrew Johnson is impeached for violating the Tenure of Office Act, but is acquitted by the Senate.

King Michael iii of Serbia is assassinated.

He is succeeded by Milan iv.

A treaty is signed granting unrestricted Chinese immigration into the United States.

Arrigo Boito premieres his monumental Mefistofele in Milan.

Fyodor Dostoevsky writes The Idiot.

Badminton is introduced at the Duke of Beaufort’s Badminton Hall in Gloucestershire.

Edgar Degas paints L’orchestre de l’Opéra.

Pierre Auguste Renoir paints Skaters in the Bois de Boulogne.

Susan B. Anthony begins the publication of a weekly Suffragist journal called The Revolution.

The first patent is granted for a typewriter.

Édouard Manet paints Portrait of Émile Zola.

Ulysses S. Grant is elected president of the United States.

The 14th Amendment to the Constitution is passed.

Sioux Chief Red Cloud signs a peace treaty with General William Sherman at Fort Laramie, ending two years of fighting.

Louisa May Alcott writes Little Women.

Wyoming officially becomes a territory.

Gioachino Rossini dies. His opera Guillaume Tell achieves its 500th performance at the Paris Opéra.

An earthquake in San Francisco causes $3 million in damages.

Richard Wagner premieres Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg in Munich.

The world’s first railway dining car, invented by George Mortimer Pullman, comes into service.

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky writes his Symphony No. 1.

The skeleton of Cro-Magnon Man (successor of Neanderthal Man) from the Upper Paleolithic Age is found in France by Louis Lartet.

Edvard Grieg completes his Piano Concerto in A minor.

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A revolution in Spain deposes Queen Isabella ii, who flees to France.

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the artists Christopher Franklin

Katharine Goeldner

conductor Since having started his career in Italy, Christopher Franklin has conducted at many of the major Italian opera houses and festivals.

The houses include Teatro Regio di Torino, the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Teatro Comunale di Bologna, the Teatro Carlo Felice di Genova, the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, the Teatro Massimo di Palermo, the Teatro Piccolo alla Scala di Milano, the Teatro Comunale di Treviso, Teatro Verdi di Salerno, Teatro Pergolesi di Jesi, the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro and the Spontini Festival in Jesi.

Operatic engagements include Death in Venice with Opera de Belles Artes in Mexico City; Doubt, Così fan tutte and La Cenerentola with Minnesota Opera; Il barbiere di Siviglia in Lima, Peru; L’elisir d’amore at Teatro Carlo Felice; Une éducation manquée and La cambiale di matrimonio at the Wexford Festival; Sweeney Todd at the Teatro Comunale di Bologna; The Merry Widow at both the Teatro San Carlo di Napoli and Carlo Felice di Genova; and concerts with the Filarmonica Toscanini in Parma and the Swiss Radio Symphony Orchestra in Lugano.

gertrude With an elegant combination of warm, rich vocal tone and assured artistry, Iowa native Katharine Goeldner has established an international reputation as one of today’s finest mezzo-sopranos.

This season, Ms. Goeldner made her role debut as Brangäne in Tristan und Isolde in Salzburg and premiered The Trees of Paradise at the Concertgebouw. In the 2010–2011 season, she sang the role of Jane Seymour in the Metropolitan Opera’s Anna Bolena, appeared as Orfeo in Orfeo ed Euridice with Arizona Opera and made her Covent Garden debut in Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde. Other credits include the title role of Carmen for Lyric Opera of Chicago; Erika in Vanessa with the rso (Vienna) and with New York City Opera; Countess Geschwitz in Lulu in Graz; and the Composer in Ariadne auf Naxos in Salzburg, Madrid and Paris. She is a founding member of the chamber music trio The Prairie Song Project.

Upcoming performances include Spohr’s Die letzten Dinge with the Mozarteum Orchestra, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with Orchestra Iowa and a debut with Welsh National Opera as Jane Seymour.

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Seth Keeton

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ghost of hamlet’s father Bass-baritone Seth Keeton’s performances have been described by The New York Times as “driven” and “emotionally pointed.” He has performed roles on the stages of Minnesota Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Ft. Worth Opera, Central City Opera, Arizona Opera, Indianapolis Opera, Austin Lyric Opera, Opera Omaha, Chautauqua Opera and Theater Bremen in Germany.

A passionate recitalist and oratorio performer, Mr. Keeton has been seen in concert as the bass soloist in Mozart’s Requiem, Verdi’s Requiem, Bach’s Magnificat and St. Matthew Passion, Haydn’s Creation and Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia on Christmas Carols. He has recently sung the Fauré Requiem and Bach’s St. John Passion, and he frequently appears with the Rochester Aria Group and the St. Catherine Choral Society. This season, he will perform Bach’s cantata, “Ich habe genug,” with the Minnesota Bach Ensemble. In 2006, he was a national finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and has received awards from the Sullivan Foundation and the Eleanor McCollum Competition.

For more biographical information about these artists, visit our website at mnopera.org/season or go to get.neoreader.com on your smartphone and then snap this tag.

John Robert Lindsey marcellus Colorado native tenor John Robert Lindsey is a recent graduate of the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he earned his Master of Music in vocal performance under the tutelage of Julie Simson. Past engagements include the Tenor Soloist in Handel’s Messiah, Sam Polk in Carlisle Floyd’s Susannah, the Stage Manager in Ned Rorem’s Our Town and Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni.

Mr. Lindsey was met with numerous successes in competitions recently. He was a regional finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions for the past two years, as well as taking third place in 2010 and first place in 2011 at the prestigious Denver Lyric Opera Guild competition.

For Minnesota Opera’s 2011–2012 season, Mr. Lindsey appeared as Jonathan Dale in Silent Night, Schmidt in Werther, Normanno in Lucia di Lammermoor and Goro in Madame Butterfly.

He also sang a concert of Carmen highlights with the Mankato Symphony. This season he sings Ismaele in Nabucco, Hervey in Anna Bolena and Pang in Turandot. Next season, he returns as Edmondo in Manon Lescaut, Elemer in Arabella and Marvin Heeno in Valentino.

Jeffrey Hill second gravedigger Tenor Jeffrey Hill, according to the press, is “a born entertainer” (l.a.

Times) and “a force to be reckoned with, [a voice] that sounds effortless but absolutely commands the listener’s attention” (Oberlin Review). He has been a Young Artist with several summer festivals, most recently at Tanglewood in 2012 and Chautauqua Opera in 2011. In the summers of 2009 and 2010 he was a Gerdine Young Artist at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis and a Fellow at the Music Academy of the West. In 2009, he won the Marilyn Horne competition and made his nyc recital debut in spring 2010.

In 2011, Jeffrey sang three performances at Carnegie Hall. In January, he made his debut in recital with Warren Jones, and in March, he was featured as Sultan Soliman in Mozart’s Zaïde at Zankel Hall with acjw. In April, he performed for the Dawn Upshaw and Donnacha Dennehy Professional Training Workshop, premiering new works with “an appealing freshness” (The New York Times). This summer at Tanglewood, Jeffrey will be starring as the Mad Woman in the Mark Morris production of Britten’s Curlew River.

Mark McCullough lighting designer Mark McCullough maintains a highly successful career with opera and theater companies in the United States and abroad. He has lit productions for the Bolshoi Theatre (The Tales of Hoffmann); the Metropolitan Opera (Le nozze di Figaro); the National Centre for the Performing Arts (ncpa) in Beijing (The Tales of Hoffmann); La Scala (Cyrano de Bergerac); Madrid’s Teatro Real (Luisa Miller); Strasbourg’s Opéra National du Rhin (The Beggar’s Opera); The Royal Opera House, Covent Garden (The Queen of Spades); Opera North (Eugene Onegin); Dallas Opera (Thérèse Raquin) as well as productions with Boston Lyric Opera, Washington National Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, New York City Opera, Seattle Opera and San Francisco Opera including the full Ring Cycle. For Broadway he has lit productions of Jesus Christ Superstar (revival); the Roundabout Theatre Company’s After Ms. Julie and Manhattan Theatre Club’s The American Plan. Upcoming engagements include La forza del destino and Show Boat at the Washington National Opera and The Flying Dutchman and a double bill: Passions and Stabat mater at Glimmerglass.

The appearances of Seth Keeton, national finalist; Jason Slayden, national semifinalist; John Robert Lindsey, regional finalist; and Marie-Eve Munger and Matthew Opitz, district finalists of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, are made possible through a Minnesota Opera Endowment Fund established for Artist Enhancement by Barbara White Bemis.

The appearances of the Resident Artists are made possible, in part, by the Virginia L. Stringer Endowment Fund for the Minnesota Opera Resident Artist Program.

the artists Marie-Eve Munger

hamlet Brian Mulligan is the 2006 winner of the International Hans Gabor Belvedere Vocal Competition, only the third American in the competition’s history to win this coveted prize. He has been praised by Opera News for his “velvety, evenly and effortlessly produced baritone and nuance-rich phrasing” and by Opera Now for his “commanding presence [and] booming sound.”

In the 2012–2013 season, Mr. Mulligan returns to San Francisco Opera as the Herald in Lohengrin, to Lyric Opera of Chicago as the Father in Hansel and Gretel, debuts with the Canadian Opera Company as Enrico in Lucia di Lammermoor and appears with the Aspen Music Festival as Balstrode in Peter Grimes.

The 2011–2012 season saw Brian return to the Metropolitan Opera as Valentin in Faust and to San Francisco Opera in the title role of Nixon in China, and debut with the Washington National Opera and Lyric Opera of Chicago as Enrico in Lucia di Lammermoor.

ophélie Recent winner of the First Prize in Opera at the International Voice Competition in Marmande, Canadian soprano Marie-Eve Munger has been hailed for her crystalline timbre, soaring range and as “graceful and virtuosic” by The New York Times. Upcoming engagements include her company debut at La Scala and in Aix-enProvence as Vierte Magde in Elektra and at the Opéra-Comique (Paris) as Isabelle in Le Pré aux clercs by Hérold. This season, she was the Fire/Nightingale in L’enfant et les sortilèges with the Aix-en-Provence Festival on tour in Morocco, the Coloratura in the awardwinning The Second Woman at the Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord (Paris) and Gilda in Rigoletto with Opera Saratoga. She recently appeared as Nannetta in Falstaff and Ophélie in Hamlet for Opéra-Théâtre de Metz, Ilia in Idomeneo with Florentine Opera, Costanza in Il sogno di Scipione with Gotham Chamber Opera and as Florice in the world premiere of Pastorale and the lead in Villa Lobos’ Magdalena at the Théâtre du Châtelet.

Mr. Mulligan’s appearance is generously sponsored

by Robert L. Lee and Mary E. Schaffner.

Ms. Munger’s appearance is generously sponsored

by Lucy Rosenberry Jones.

Matthew Opitz first gravedigger A native of Arizona, baritone Matthew Opitz recently graduated from the Indiana University School of Music with a master’s degree in voice, where he later sang Eddie Carbone as a guest artist in A View from the Bridge. Other opera credits include Professor Bhaer in Little Women, Mercutio in Roméo et Juliette, the Priest in The Light in the Piazza and Farfarello in The Love for Three Oranges.

He also appeared as a soloist in Szymanowski’s Stabat mater, Britten’s Cantata Misericordium and Don Freund’s Passion with Tropes.

Mr. Opitz completed his undergraduate degree at Northern Arizona University, where his roles included Guglielmo in Così fan tutte, Count Carl-Magnus Malcom in A Little Night Music, Bob in The Old Maid and the Thief and Dr. Falke in Die Fledermaus. Most recently, he appeared as the Imperial Commissioner in Madame Butterfly for Arizona Opera and will participate in the Marcello Giordiani Young Artist Program this summer. In his first season as a Minnesota Opera Resident Artist, Mr. Opitz sings the First Gravedigger in Hamlet and Ping in Turandot. Next season, he returns as Lescaut in Manon Lescaut.

For more biographical information about these artists, visit our website at mnopera.org/season or go to get.neoreader.com on your smartphone and then snap this tag.

Alex Ritchie polonius Baritone Alex Ritchie recently graduated from the University of Missouri – Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance, where he received his Master of Music in vocal performance, studying under Raymond Feener. His performance credits with umkc include Leporello in Don Giovanni, Il Conte in Le nozze di Figaro and Escamillo in La tragédie de Carmen.

In 2011, Mr. Ritchie was a young artist at Seagle Music Colony, performing the roles of Crespel in Les contes d’Hoffmann and the Pirate King in The Pirates of Penzance.

He joined the Minnesota Opera chorus earlier this season for Nabucco and Anna Bolena. Later this year, he will portray Pooh-bah in Skylark Opera’s production of The Mikado.

Mr. Ritchie is a native of Arkansas, where he received his Bachelor of Arts in music from Harding University while studying under Arthur Shearin. His undergraduate credits include Papageno in scenes from Die Zauberflöte, the title role in Scrooge and the baritone soloist in Fauré’s Requiem.

Rodolfo Nieto Horatio Hamlet marks bassbaritone Rodolfo Nieto’s third return to the Minnesota Opera stage since completing his two-year stint as one of the Opera’s Resident Artists. Last season, he performed the role of Johann in Werther and the Scottish Soldier in the world premiere of Silent Night. Mr. Nieto’s roles during his seasons as a Resident Artist included the Third Inquisitor and Spanish Captain in Casanova’s Homecoming, the Friend of Nottingham in Roberto Devereux, Colline in La bohème, the First Guard in Salome, and most notably, Joseph in Wuthering Heights.

Last year, Mr. Nieto performed the role of Valton in I puritani with Minnesota Concert Opera and was the bass soloist in the Messiah with Manhattan Concert Productions at Avery Fisher Hall.

Other appearances include Escamillo in Carmen (2012) with Mankato Symphony Orchestra, Guglielmo in Così fan tutte (2011) with the Green Mountain Opera Festival and Don Alfonso in Così fan tutte (2009) with Cedar Rapids Opera Theater.

Jason Slayden laërte Winner of a 2012–2013 Sullivan Career Grant, tenor Jason Slayden has been celebrated for the warmth and beauty of his voice, as well as demonstrating “considerable subtly as an actor.”

This fall, as Rodolfo in Vancouver Opera’s La bohème, he received critical praise: “His ‘Che gelida manina’ was refreshingly realistic … and was dramatically as well as musically interesting.” Later this season, he returns to Des Moines Metro Opera to premiere his first Roméo in Roméo et Juliette. He was a Filene Young Artist with Wolf Trap Opera last summer, where he performed Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni and as tenor soloist in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the National Symphony Orchestra. Future engagements include Rodolfo in La bohème with Arizona Opera.

Mr. Slayden joined the Seattle Opera as a Young Artist for the 2011–2012 season, where he sang Uldino in Verdi’s Attila, the title role in Massenet’s Werther and Ernesto in Donizetti’s Don Pasquale. Other past roles include Andres in Wozzeck and Rodolfo in La bohème at Santa Fe Opera.

Hamlet by Ambroise Thomas; edited by Hugh Macdonald and Sarah Plummer; used by arrangement with European American Music Distributors llc, sole U.S. and Canadian agent for Baerenreiter Music Corp. – Alkor Editions, publisher and copyright owner.

Coproduction by Lyric Opera of Kansas City and Washington National Opera; scenery construction and painting by Lyric Opera of Kansas City Scenic Studio and Ravenswood Scenery; costumes fabricated by Lyric Opera of Kansas City and Washington National Opera Costume Studio; original surtitles written by Ward Holmquist for Lyric Opera of Kansas City.

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Brian Mulligan

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Thaddeus Strassberger stage director and scenic designer Thaddeus Strassberger is “a young American director who manages to straddle the sometimes very different worlds of European and United States opera production seamlessly,” writes Opera Now. He was awarded the prestigious European Opera Prize in 2005 for La Cenerentola. He has staged North American premieres of Der ferne Klang and Le roi malgré lui as well as Les Huguenots (Bard Summerscape), where he soon returns to direct Taneyev’s Orseteia; Hamlet and Nabucco (Washington National Opera); and I due Foscari – with Plácido Domingo making his role debut (l.a. Opera, Palau de las Arts, Valencia). He also staged Nabucco for Minnesota Opera this past fall. Upcoming debuts include Theater an der Wien in Vienna and the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and a return to the Norwegian National Opera for a new production of Don Giovanni. Strassberger is a graduate of The Cooper Union in New York City and received a Fulbright Fellowship to complete the Corso di Specializzazione per Scenografi Realizzatori at Teatro alla Scala in Milan in 2001.

Wayne Tigges claudius Lauded by the Chicago Sun-Times for his “rich, dark tone and beautiful legato,” Wayne Tigges returns to the role of Leporello with Pittsburgh Opera in the 2012–2013 season.

He also makes a number of debuts, singing his first performances of Faraone in Mosè in Egitto with New York City Opera and Superintendent Budd in Albert Herring at the Théâtre du Capitole Toulouse. In the summer, he returns to Santa Fe Opera for Douglas in La donna del lago and then goes to San Francisco Opera to sing Joe St. George in the world premiere of Dolores Claiborne. Last season, he returned to San Francisco Opera as Sam and Ted in the world premiere of Heart of a Soldier, as Ariodate in Xerxes and as Zuniga in Carmen. He also sang Blitch in Susannah with Florentine Opera and returned to both Opera Colorado for Ferrando in Il trovatore and Santa Fe Opera for Nourabad in Les pêcheurs de perles.

Recent performances include Escamillo in Carmen at Glyndebourne and San Diego Opera, his Opéra National de Paris debut as Kolenat´y in The Makropulos Case and his Metropolitan Opera debut as Achilla in Giulio Cesare.

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MINNESOTA OPERA ORCHESTRA

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CELLO

HORN

Allison Ostrander Concertmaster Julia Persitz David Mickens Judy Thon-Jones Angela Hanson Andrea Een Conor O’Brien Natalia Moiseeva Giselle Hillyer Maisie Block

Jim Jacobson Sally Dorer Rebecca Arons Thomas Austin Teresa Richardson

Matthew Wilson Charles Hodgson Timothy Bradley Lawrence Barnhart

BASS

John G. Koopmann Christopher Volpe Pamela Humphrey Craig Hara

FLUTE

TROMBONE

VIOLIN II

Michele Frisch Amy Morris

Phillip Ostrander John Tranter David Stevens

Laurie Petruconis Elizabeth Decker Stephan Orsak Melinda Marshall Margaret Humphrey Elise Parker Lydia Miller Huldah Niles

VIOLA David Auerbach Emily Hagen Laurel Browne Jenny Lind Nilsson Susan Janda James Bartsch

TRUMPET

PICCOLO

TUBA

Susie Kuniyoshi

Ralph Hepola

OBOE Mark Seerup Justin Schwartz (double English horn)

CLARINET

BASSOON

Min J. Kim Nikki Lemire

BARITONE AND ALTO SAXOPHONE

WANT TO SING WITH MINNESOTA OPERA? General/chorus auditions for Minnesota Opera’s 2013-2014 season will be held

May 1, 2, 3 and 4, 2013, at Minnesota Opera Center, 620 North First Street in Minneapolis.

No audition appointments will be taken before April 1st.

mnopera.org/OperaChorus

Matthew Abbas Nathan Bird Lisa Butcher Cecile Crozat Zawisza Steve Dahlberg John deCausmeaker Gregg Dokken Jennifer Eckes Tracey Engleman Carole Finneran Tom Glass Daniel Greco Christie Hageman Jeffrey Hill Benjamin Hills Cresta Hubert Ben Johnson Peggy Joyce Elizabeth Kohl Gary Kubert

Michelle Liebl Maggie Lofboom Elizabeth Longhurst Eric Mellum Monica Murray Tim Murray John Allen Nelson Phong Nguyen Jon Thomas Olson Janet Paone Sandra Partridge Alex Ritchie Mary-Lacey Rogers Jennifer Sylvester Mark Thomas Colyn Tvete Eryn Tvete Taylor Van DenBurgh Tricia Van Ee Dominique Wooten

PERCUSSION

HARP

Coreen Nordling Laurie Hatcher Merz

Timothy Zavadil

TIMPANI Kory Andry Matthew Barber Steve Kimball

Karrin Meffert-Nelson Nina Olsen

costume designer Mary Traylor has been designing for the Lyric Opera of Kansas City for several years. Her designs include La Cenerentola (also at Austin Lyric Opera and Sarasota Opera), John Brown’s Body, Aida, Giulio Cesare, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Così fan tutte and The Magic Flute, as well as Hamlet (also at Washington National Opera and Minnesota Opera). As resident designer for the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival, she has costumed its productions for the past 22 years. Over the past ten years she has costumed television stars such as Don Knotts, Marion Ross and Loretta Haley Mills, among many others for the New Theatre in Overland Park, Kansas.

CHORUS

VIOLIN I

John Michael Smith Constance Martin Jason C. Hagelie

Mary Traylor

SUPERNUMERARIES Kaela Bader Stephanie Bright Jesse Corder Megan Dowd Chari Eckmann Ron Elmquist Scott Herman

Joseph Johnson Thomas Lorendo Wesley McClain Derek Meyer Danielle Nelson Natalia Peterson Michael Walker

PRODUCTION MULTIMEDIA A & C Publishing, Inc. – Wendy Wagner, Director of Operations Michal Daniel – Production Photographer Aleutian Calabay – Publicity Photographer

Classical MPR – Broadcast Recording QuarterTon Productions – Publicity Video Mike Reed – Production Sketch Artist

MINNESOTA PUBLIC RADIO®

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| HAMLET

get noticed. info@artsandcustom.com www.artsandcustom.com 952.843.4603

get you noticed.

program magazines will

Advertising in Minnesota Opera

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1993–1994 Julius Caesar Diary of an African American Il trovatore The Merry Widow and the Hollywood Tycoon dale johnson is appointed artistic director.

1994–1995 Turandot The Barber of Seville Rigoletto Bok Choy Variations the first full season at the

10 ordway opens with a bold

new minnesota opera-led coproduction of turandot. the first commission since casanova’s homecoming, bok choy variations premieres. the $10 million artistic development campaign begins.

1995–1996 La bohème Don Giovanni Pelléas and Mélisande The Tales of Hoffmann elizabeth futral sings the title soprano role in pelléas and mélisande.

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first-ever opera costume “garage sale” is held with thirty-three year’s worth of costumes and clothing deaccessioned.

1996–1997 La traviata The Magic Flute The Rake’s Progress Carmen for the first time, minnesota opera tops $1 million in season ticket sales.

1997–1998 Aida Cinderella Transatlantic Tosca minneapolis hosts the annual opera america conference featuring the company’s american premiere of transatlantic, starring sherill milnes. the artistic development campaign concludes, raising $11.3 million, surpassing its goal. the resident artist program is launched. vivica genaux sings the title role in cinderella.

1998–1999 Otello Madame Butterfly The Turn of the Screw Faust in conjunction with minnesota public radio, tosca becomes the first opera broadcast online. with turnbacks, audience attendance reaches 100.6%.

1999–2000 Der Rosenkavalier Macbeth Semiramide The Marriage of Figaro minnesota opera’s bel canto philosophy is first articulated with a bold new production of semiramide starring brenda harris. james morris sings the title role in macbeth.

2000–2001 Turandot The Capulets and the Montagues Street Scene The Barber of Seville Pagliacci/Carmina burana sumi jo sings giulietta in the capulets and the montagues.

2001–2002 Lucia di Lammermoor La clemenza di Tito La bohème Little Women Don Carlos tim albery directs don carlos.

2002–2003 The Merry Widow Norma The Flying Dutchman La traviata The Handmaid’s Tale minnesota opera presents the american premiere of the handmaid’s tale by danish composer poul ruders.

The Fourth Decade

1993-2003 4

Interview with Kevin Smith

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Former President and General Director

A

t the point I arrived to the company in 1981, it was about five years into the merger with the St. Paul Opera Company. We had begun to produce more traditional repertoire in larger venues, the audience wasn’t quite sure where the company was going, finances were shaky, we just ran out of gas and were insolvent by the end of the year. We managed to make our last payroll and pay the artists, and then started over again. The next year, the Board put together a management committee. They asked me to stay on with Peter Myers, Managing Director of our touring and educational affliate, and after a summer of furlough in 1982, we helped produce the next season while the Board searched for a new General Director.

They brought in Edward Corn, under whom I became General Manager and eventually succeeded him in the 1986–1987 season as General Director.

In 1990–1991, the Minnesota Opera Center was purchased and renovated. A year after this, a governance study resulted in a complete restructuring and reconstitution of the Board. These two things were foundational in building and developing the Company.

By 1993–1994, we retired our deficit, had a bit of a cash reserve, moved into the Opera Center, had a functioning Board and a solid staff, but the work of the company was still inconsistent. There were times we could hit a home run and do something spectacular and wonderful, but the next production could be a disaster. We just didn’t have the resources to invest in our productions on a regular basis to assure we weren’t taking unreasonable risks in terms of casting, design concepts and other things. To address these issues and to elevate the quality and consistency of our work, the Artistic Development Campaign was created.

An incredibly successful campaign, it established Minnesota Opera in terms of artistic excellence, and in the public’s mind, as a company that could produce both standard repertoire and new works.

Also at this time, Dale Johnson became Artistic Director. I felt he was more passionate and more informed about opera than I was. There were a lot

PHOTOS: (1) Pagliacci (2001) (2) Don Giovanni (1996) (3) Aida (1998) (4) Don Carlos (2002) (5) Norma (2003) (6) Carmina burana (2001) (7) The Merry Widow (2002) (8) Pelléas et Mélisande (1996) (9) La clemenza di Tito (2002) (10) Der Rosenkavalier (2000) (11) Semiramide (2000) All photos these two pages: Gary Mortensen except (5) Norma, photo by Tim Rummelhoff

of things I could focus on institutionally to free him up and acknowledge his role in leading the company artistically. Between the two of us with our various skill sets, we proved to be a good team.

The 1994–1995 season opened with a very successful company premiere of Turandot and a balanced season of repertoire. All of this was made possible by the Artistic Development Campaign, which grew our season to four operas on the main stage, and eventually five in 2000–2001. Turandot also established Minnesota Opera as a co-production leader in the field (there were eight opera companies that co-produced the show).

When we restructured the Board, we established an Artistic Policy Committee. Most companies don’t articulate these things, but it served to clarify everything from the technical standards (how costuming, lighting, scenery should work) to really coming up with an overall artistic concept. What we wanted to do was take every element of our multi-disciplinary art form, realize it at the highest possible level and have a completely integrated ensemble concept, both musically and dramatically. Dale suggested the bel canto idea which, beyond having to do with a style and a period of Italian opera, has to do with the relationship between text, the voice and preparation. Rather than having every single element equal, when it comes right down to it, the voice is going to be the key communicating factor here.

The education program, for instance, was reinvented to focus on the voice rather than sticking to the earlier philosophy of showing kids only the multidisciplinary qualities of the art form.

Missions of companies do adjust over time, and I think Minnesota Opera has been very true and consistent throughout the years. At one point in the 80s, we were doing musicals, opera and experimental works. We were doing it all and defined ourselves as a musical theater company, which just wasn’t practical.

Our mantra by 1994–1995 was “We’re an opera company, dammit.” and ever since, we’ve focused on what we do best.

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MANON LESCAUT PUCCINI September 21 – 29, 2013

ARABELLA

STRAUSS November 9 – 17, 2013

The 2013-2014 Season

MACBETH

VERDI January 25 – February 2, 2014

THE E DREAM OF VALENTINO VALE VA ARGENTO ARGEN NTO March 1 – 9, 2014

THE TH E MAGIC FLUTE MOZART MOZA ART April 12 – 19, 2014

The 2013 201 13 – 2014 season is sponsored sp ponsored by:

mnopera.org

Crea Create reate yyour our o own wn 3-, 4- or 5 5opera pa ackage tod oday!

5-opera package today!

mnopera.org org 612-333-6669 612-333 3 6669 Ticket Office: Mon. – Fri. 9am – 6pm

| MINNESOTA OPERA mnopera.org

spencer stuart is proud to support minnesota opera

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We are pleased to present conductor Maestro Christopher Franklin in Minnesota Opera’s production of Hamlet.

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| HAMLET

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| MINNESOTA OPERA mnopera.org

612-333-6669 Ticket Office: M – F, 9am – 6pm

The Seattle Times

| HAMLET

mnopera.org

“An impressive and moving triumph ... Don’t miss it.”

Turandot, 2012. © Elise Bakketun for Seattle Opera.

ONE WEEK ONLY APRIL 13 – 21

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education at the opera If an aria is sung in a different language, how are we supposed to understand it?

The Supertitle Superhero will come to save the day! Photo by Eric Johnson

coOPERAtion!

Bergen Baker, Teaching Artist, has filled the classrooms in Austin Public School full of opera throughout the month of September. Highlights included every elementary school in the district enjoying performances of Through the Eyes and Students at Nevlin Elementary School in Austin, Minnesota learn about Mozart. Photo by Eric Johnson

Ears of Mozart, an interactive opera that provides students the opportunity to perform side-by-side with professional singers, and a young people’s

Additional support for artist-in-residency like this is generously supported by The Medtronic Foundation.

concert with the Austin Symphony Orchestra.

If you are interested in bringing opera to your school, please contact Bergen at bbaker@mnopera.org Limited dates are still available.

Day at the Opera

Nail your next audition!

| MINNESOTA OPERA facebook.com/minnesotaopera

Project Opera’s Dale Kruse, Music Director, and Kathy Kraulik, Accompanist works with a young tenor on breath support.

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Behind the Curtain Monday, March 25, 2013 7-8:30pm

Prepare for your next audition by attending the Day at the Opera audition master class to be held on April 3. Ideal for high school aged singers and pianists, this day-long program gives participants an opportunity to perform in a master class led by Minnesota Opera staff, learn about the “inner game” of audition preparation and get a behind-the-scenes look the world of opera. This program is ideal for teens in grades 9-12 who are preparing solos for spring contest, All-State and college auditions.

To register, email Jamie Andrews at andrews@mnopera.org.

Space is limited.

Look Behind the Curtain at Turandot with conductor Michael Christie and members of the creative team as they take you through Michael Christie the music and history of Puccini’s masterpiece and the process involved in mounting it today.

Purchase tickets at mnopera.org or call the Minnesota Opera Ticket Office at 612-333-6669. ($35/adult, $28/subscriber, $10/student).

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| MINNESOTA OPERA mnopera.org

minnesota opera staff

BOARD OF DIRECTORS OFFICERS

President and General Director | Kevin Ramach Artistic Director | Dale Johnson Music Director | Michael Christie

ARTISTIC

PRODUCTION

Artistic Administrator | Roxanne Stouffer Artist Relations and Planning Director | Floyd Anderson Dramaturg | David Sander Artistic Associate | Bill Murray Resident Artists | Aaron Breid, Daniel Ellis, Christie Hageman, John Robert Lindsey, Eric McEnaney, Sheldon Miller, Richard Ollarsaba, Matthew Opitz, Mary-Lacey Rogers, Victoria Vargas Master Coaches | Lara Bolton, Mary Jo Gothmann Resident Artist Program Instructors | Cecile Crozat Zawisza, Ana d’Archuleta, Barbara Kierig, George Smith, Ryan Taylor

Production Stage Manager | Alexander Farino Assistant Stage Managers | Shayna j. Houp, Andrew Landis Production Administrative Assistant | Katherine Cattrysse

Assistant Costume Shop Manager | Beth Sanders Wardrobe Supervisor | Emily Rosenmeier Workroom Assistant | Sarah Bahr Drapers | Chris Bur, Yancy Thrift Dyer/Painter | Marliss Jensen First Hands | Helen Ammann, Kelsey Glasener, Allison Guglielmi Stitchers | Rebecca Ballas, Ann Habermann, Catherine Manning, Rachel Skudlarek Wig/Makeup Supervisors | Sarah Bourne, Priscilla Bruce, Ashley Joyce, Dominick Velman

SCENERY Technical Director | Mike McQuiston Properties Master | Jenn Maatman Properties Assistant | Michael C. Long Lighting Coordinator | Bill Healey Assistant Lighting Coordinator | Tom Rost Production Carpenter | JC Amel Scene Shop Foreman | Rod Aird Master Carpenters | Steven Rovie, Eric Veldey Carpenters | Nate Kulenkamp, Steve Dalglish Charge Painter | Jeffery Murphey

Finance Director | Jeff Couture Operations/Systems Manager | Steve Mittelholtz HR/Accounting Manager | Jennifer Thill Director of Board Relations | Theresa Murray Finance Assistant | Michelle Gould Data Specialist | Rosalee McCready

DEVELOPMENT Director of the Annual Fund | Dawn Loven Institutional Gifts Manager | Beth Comeaux Advancement Manager | Kelly Kuczkowski Donor Events and Gala Manager | Emily Skoblik Individual Gifts Officer | Jenna Wolf

EDUCATION Community Education Director | Jamie Andrews Teaching Artist | Bergen Baker Project Opera Music Director | Dale Kruse Project Opera Accompanist | Kathy Kraulik Project Opera Program Assistant | Anna Schmidt

MARKETING/COMMUNICATIONS Marketing & Communications Director | Lani Willis Marketing Manager | Katherine Castille Communications Manager | Daniel R. Zillmann Marketing Associate | Kristin Matejcek Online Content Specialist | Adam Holisky Ticket Office Manager | Julie Behr Assistant Ticket Office Manager | Kevin Beckey Ticket Office Associate | Sarah Fowler Ticket Office Assistants | Carol Corich, Kärsten Jensen, Emma Lynn, Carrie Walker Communications Interns | Sabrina Crews, Ted Schaller, Corinne Standish, Luke Thompson

The following volunteers contribute their time and talent to support the key activities of Minnesota Opera. If you would like to learn more about volunteering please visit mnopera.org/volunteer, email volunteering@mnopera.org or call Jenna Wolf at 612-342-9569.

Kärsten Jensen Jeanie Johnston Robin Keck David Lightstone Jenny Lightstone Jerry Lillquist Joyce Lillquist

Mary McDiarmid Verne Melberg Barbara Moore Douglas Myhra Candyce Osterkamp Dan Panshin Pat Panshin

Patricia Beithon Wendy Bennett Shari Boehnen Rachelle D. Chase Jane M. Confer Jodi Dehli Sara Donaldson Chip Emery Bianca Fine Sharon Hawkins Ruth S. Huss Heinz F. Hutter James Johnson Patricia Johnson James Langdon Christine Larsen Robert Lee

Lynne E. Looney Steven Mahon David Meline Leni Moore Albin “Jim” Nelson Luis Pagan-Carlo Jose Peris Elizabeth Redleaf Connie Remele Don Romanaggi Christopher Romans Mark Schwarzmann Nadege Souvenir Simon Stevens Virginia Stringer H. Bernt von Ohlen Margaret Wurtele

EMERITI Karen Bachman John A. Blanchard, III Burton Cohen

Julia W. Dayton Mary W. Vaughan

HONORARY DIRECTORS Dominick Argento Philip Brunelle Dolly Fiterman

Norton M. Hintz Liz Kochiras Patricia H. Sheppard

LEGAL COUNSEL James A. Rubenstein, Moss & Barnett

TEMPO BOARD AND VOLUNTEERS

minnesota opera volunteers Gerald Benson Debra Brooks Jerry Cassidy Judith Duncan Jane Fuller Joan Gacki Merle Hanson

DIRECTORS

Eric Peterson Sydney Phillips Wendi Sott Barbara Willis

Minnesota Opera is a proud member of The Arts Partnership with Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and The Schubert Club.

Ryan Alberg Thomas Bakken Leslie Carey Melissa Daul Jennifer Engel Laura Green Benjamin Jones (Board Chair)

Carolina Lamas Susan N Leppke Kristin Matejcek (Staff Liaison) Megan Mehl Jamie Nieman Polina Saprygina Rhonda Skoby Lauren Viner

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COSTUMES

ADMINISTRATION

Rachelle D. Chase, Chair Kevin Ramach, President and General Director James Johnson, Vice Chair Robert Lee, Secretary Patricia Johnson, Treasurer

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annual fund | individual giving It is with deep appreciation that Minnesota Opera recognizes and thanks all of the individual donors whose annual support helps bring great opera to life. It is our pleasure to give special recognition to the following individuals whose leadership support provides the financial foundation which makes the Opera’s artistic excellence possible.

For information on making a contribution to Minnesota Opera, please call Dawn Loven, Director of the Annual Fund at 612-342-9567, or email her at dloven@mnopera.org.

bel canto circle Platinum $25,000 and above Anonymous (1) Tracy and Eric Aanenson Mary and Gus Blanchard Jane M. and Ogden W. Confer Julia W. Dayton Vicki and Chip Emery Mr. and Mrs. William Frels Ruth and John Huss Heinz Hutter Mr. and Mrs. Philip Isaacson James E. Johnson

Lucy Rosenberry Jones The Art and Martha Kaemmer Fund of HRK Foundation Elizabeth Redleaf Mrs. Mary W. Vaughan C. Angus and Margaret Wurtele

Gold $15,000–$24,999 Anonymous (1) Ellie and Tom Crosby, Jr. Cy and Paula Decosse Fund of The Minneapolis Foundation

William I. and Bianca M. Fine Charitable Trust N. Bud and Beverly Grossman Foundation Robert L. Lee and Mary E. Schaffner Moore Family Fund for the Arts Albin and Susan Nelson Mary Ingebrand Pohlad Ronning Family Foundation Bernt von Ohlen and Tom Nichol

Silver $10,000–$14,999

Karen Bachman Donald E. Benson Susan Boren Sara and Jock Donaldson Kathleen and John Junek Harvey T. McLain Kay Ness and Chris Wolohan Connie and Lew Remele Joseph Sammartino Robert and Barbara Struyk Maggie Thurer and Simon Stevens

Anonymous (2)

camerata circle Platinum $7,500–$9,999 Allegro Fund of The Saint Paul Foundation Patricia and John Beithon Shari and David Boehnen Rachelle Dockman Chase Sharon and Bill Hawkins Patricia Johnson and Kai Bjerkness Erwin and Miriam Kelen Judy Mortrude and Steven Mahon Jose Peris and Diana Gulden Lois and John Rogers Chris and Mark Schwarzmann Carolyn, Sharon and Clark Winslow

Gold $5,000–$7,499

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Anonymous (2) Martha Goldberg Aronson and Daniel Aronson Martha and Bruce Atwater Fund of The Minneapolis Foundation William Biermaier and David Hanson Kathleen Callahan Mary Lee Dayton Jodi Dehli Dolly J. Fiterman Connie Fladeland and Steve Fox

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Alfred and Ingrid Lenz Harrison Margaret and Andrew Houlton Cynthia and Jay Ihlenfeld Patricia Johnson and Kai Bjerkness Debra and James Lakin Chris Larsen and Scott Peterson Mary and Barry Lazarus Ilo and Peggy Leppik Lynne Looney Mr. and Mrs. Donald Lucker Mr. and Mrs. Reid MacDonald Barbara and David Meline Kendrick B. Melrose Family Foundation Diana and Joe Murphy Bill and Barbara Pearce Shawn and Brad Pleimann Stephanie Prem and Tom Owens Sergio Rial Patricia and Don Romanaggi Jennifer and Chris Romans Susan and Barry Snyder Nadege Souvenir Virginia L. and Edward C. Stringer Dr. and Mrs. Andrew J. Thomas Lori and Herbert Ward

Silver $2,500–$4,999 Anonymous (4) Nina and John Archabal Annette Atkins and Tom Joyce

Alexandra O. Bjorklund Ken and Peggy Bonneville Dr. Lee Borah, Jr. Margee and Will Bracken Conley Brooks Family Juliet Bryan and Jack Timm Christopher J. Burns Ann and Glen Butterman Mr. and Mrs. Richard A. Carlson Darlene J. and Richard P. Carroll Nicky B. Carpenter Rusty and Burt Cohen Gisela Corbett Page and Jay Cowles Thomas and Mary Lou Detwiler Mona and Patrick Dewane Ralph D. Ebbott Nancy and Rolf Engh Rondi Erickson and Sandy Lewis Gail Fiskewold Patricia R. Freeburg Meg and Wayne Gisslen Mrs. Myrtle Grette Michele Harris and Peter Tanghe Dorothy Horns and James Richardson Dr. and Mrs. Arthur Horowitz Bill and Hella Mears Hueg Dale A. Johnson Robert and Susan Josselson Warren and Patricia Kelly

Lyndel and Blaine King Robert Kriel and Linda Krach David MacMillan and Judy Krow Helen L. Kuehn James and Kate Langdon Roy and Dorothy Mayeske Mary Bigelow McMillan Karla Miller Dr. and Mrs. Alfred Moore Sandy and Bob Morris Nancy and Richard Nicholson Mr. and Mrs. Rolf Peters Marge and Dwight Peterson Mrs. William Phillips Sara and Kevin Ramach Rhoda and Paul Redleaf Mary and Paul Reyelts Nina and Ken Rothchild James A. Rubenstein, Moss & Barnett Kay Savik and Joe Tashjian Mary H. and Christian G. Schrock Gloria and Fred Sewell Drs. Joseph and Kristina Shaffer Lynda and Frank Sharbrough Stephanie Simon and Craig Bentdahl Stephanie C. Van D'Elden William Voedisch and Laurie Carlson Dr. Craig and Stephanie Walvatne Nancy and Ted Weyerhaeuser Woessner Freeman Family Foundation

Mr. and Mrs. R. James Gesell Heidi and Howard Gilbert Stanley and Luella Goldberg Sima and Clark Griffith Bruce and Jean Grussing Ms. Susanne Haas and Mr. Ross Formell Mr. and Mrs. Roger Hale Elizabeth and Jule Hannaford Hackensack Fund of The Saint Paul Foundation Don Helgeson and Sue Shepard Karen and John Himle Andrew Holly and Svea Forsberg-Holly Jean McGough Holten Thomas Hunt and John Wheelihan Ekdahl Hutchinson Family Fund of The Minneapolis Foundation Teresa and Chuck Jakway Barbara Jenkins Margaret and Philip Johnson Wadad Kadi Stan and Jeanne Kagin Nancy and Donald Kapps Thomas A. Keller, iii E. Robert and Margaret V. Kinney Fund of The Minneapolis Foundation

Hugh Klein and Judy Lebedoff Gerard Knight Mrs. James S. Kochiras Kyle Kossol and Tom Becker Constance and Daniel Kunin Mark and Elaine Landergan Christl and Andrew Larson Stefanie Lenway and Tom Murtha Mr. and Mrs. Seymour Levy Joyce and Jerry Lillquist Diane and David Lilly, Jr. Bill Long Helen and Ben Liu Dawn M. Loven Dr. Caliann Lum Margery Martin and Dan Feidt Barbara McBurney Laura McCarten Helen and Charles McCrossan Sheila McNally Deb and Jon McTaggart Judith and James Mellinger Velia R. Melrose David and LaVonne Middleton Barbara and Edward Mills Judy and David Myers

artist circle $1,000–$2,499 Anonymous (4) Mary and Charles Anderson Kim A. Anderson Lowell Anderson and Kathy Welte Jamie Andrews and Jane Kolp-Andrews Ruth and Dale Bachman In memory of Kent Bales Ann and Thomas Bagnoli Mr. and Mrs. Judson Bemis, Jr. Patricia and Martin Blumenreich Mrs. Paul G. Boening Allan Bradley Ellen and Jan Breyer Rita and Kenneth Britton Juliet Bryan and Jack Timm Scott Cabalka Elwood and Florence Caldwell Joan and George Carlson Mr. and Mrs. Richard A. Carlson Alexis and Michael Christie Wanda and David Cline Rusty and Burt Cohen In Memory of Kathy Coleman Barb and Jeff Couture Susan and Richard Crockett

Mrs. Thomas M. Crosby, Sr. Helen and John Crosson Jeff and Wendy Dankey Mary and Kevin Date Fran Davis Judson Dayton Ruth and Bruce Dayton The Denny Fund of The Minneapolis Foundation Rebecca and Jay Debertin Margaret DiBlasio Elise Donohue Joe Dowling and Siobhan Cleary Joan Duddingston Joyce and Hugh Edmondson Ann Fankhanel Ester and John Fesler Joyce and Hal Field Melanie and Bruce Flessner Salvatore Silvestri Franco Emil and Robert Fredericksen Kris and Kristina Fredrick Bradley Fuller and Elizabeth Lincoln Christine and Jon Galloway Christine and Michael Garner Katy Gaynor

annual fund | individual giving artist circle (continued) Elizabeth B. Myers Kaye and Terry Myhre Louis Newell Joan and Richard Newmark Pat and Dan Panshin Derrill M. Pankow Paula Patineau Sally and Tom Patterson Suzanne and William Payne Suzanne and Rick Pepin Susan and David Plimpton

Mary and Robert Price Kari and Dan Rasmus Tom Rassieur and Chichi Steiner Mr. and Mrs. Winthrop Rockwell John and Sandra Roe Foundation Thomas D. and Nancy J. Rohde Chris and Jeff Rotsch Kim and Peter Rue Kristine and Roger Ruckert Terry Saario and Lee Lynch Sampson Family Charitable Foundation

Dr. and Mrs. Richard J. Schindler Peter and Bonnie Sipkins Kevin and Lynn Smith Ardath and Glenn Solsrud Matthew Spanjers Julie and Bruce Steiner Donna Stephenson Kendall and Mitchell Stover Dana and Stephen Strand Michael Symeonides and Mary Pierce Dr. Norrie Thomas

Schelly and Bryn Vaaler Cindy and Steven Vilks Mr. and Mrs. Philip Von Blon Bryan Walker and Christine Kunewa-Walker James and Sharon Weinel Sonja and Jerry Wenger Frances and Frank Wilkinson Lani Willis and Joel Spoonheim Julie and Charlie Zelle

Scott D. Bjelde Dianne Brooke Allen Brookins-Brown Dr. Hannelore Brucker Thomas and Joyce Bruckner Joann Cierniak J.P. Collins Norma Danielson Eileen Dauer Amos and Sue Deinard Mary Elise Dennis Joshua A. Dorothy Holli Egerstrom C.D.F. Foundation Terence Fruth and Mary McEvoy Family Fund of The Minneapolis Foundation Jane Fuller Joan and William Gacki David and Terry Gilberstadt Dr. Richard Gregory Jennifer Gross and Jerry LeFavre Roger L. Hale and Nor Hall Chris and David Hansen Ernest Harper Blanche and Thane Hawkins Frederick J. Hey, Jr. Norton and Mary Hintz Diane and Paul Jacobson

Barbara Jenkins Drs. Charles and Sally Jorgensen Markle Karlen Carole and Joseph Killpatrick Scott and Karla Lalim Chris and Marion Levy Ruth W. Lyons Mahley Family Foundation Dusty Mairs Tom and Marsha Mann Carolyn and Charles Mayo Katherine Merrill Ellen Michelson Anne W. Miller Steven J. Mittelholtz Jack and Jane Moran Jill Mortensen and S. Kay Phillips Ann and John O’Leary Dennis R. Olson Ruth and Ahmad Orandi Jim Pagliarini and Elizabeth Raymond James A. Payne Lana K. Pemberton Eric Peterson and Jenna Wolf Dwight and Christina Porter Carroll and Barbara Rasch Dennis M. Ready Debra Rectenwald

Lawrence M. Redmond George Reid Bryan Roberts and Marcy Jefferson Richard T. and Liane A. Rosel Enrique and Clara Rotstein Kathleen and Mike Ruhland John and Jan Sargent Doris Jean Seely Cherie and Robert Shreck Stanislaw Skrowaczewski Dr. Leslie W. Smith Clifford C. and Virginia G. Sorensen Charitable Trust of The Saint Paul Foundation Kristi and Mark Specker Jon Spoerri and Debra Christgau Chichi Steiner Judith Stone Roxanne Stouffer Dr. Anthony Thein Jill and John Thompson Jean Thomson and John Sandbo Emily Anne and Gedney Tuttle David L. Ward Mary Weinberger Howard and Jo Weiner Barbara and Carl White Barbara and James Willis

Steve Knudson Kathleen Kraulik John Krenzke and Michelle Davis Dale Kruse and Tim Sneer Maureen Kucera-Walsh Kelly and Adam Kuczkowski Robert and Venetia Kudrle Alexandra Kulijewicz Beatrice H. Langford Kenyon S. Latham William Lough and Barbara Pinaire Dr. Joan E. Madden Donald and Rhoda Mains Kristin and Jim Matejcek David Mayo Rosalee McCready Barbara McGraw Fund of The Minneapolis Foundation Malcolm and Wendy McLean Laurie and Dave Mech Robert Messner Jane and Joseph Micallef Virginia Miller Michael J. and Judith Mollerus Anne Mollerus Brad Momsen and Rick Buchholz Theresa and Jim Murray William Murray Virginia Dudley and William Myers Sarah Nagle Merritt C. Nequette Lucia Newell Lowell and Sonja Noteboom Dr. Dorothy Novak Kathleen Nye-Reiling Patricia A. O’Gorman

Donna and Marvin Ortquist Scott J. Pakudaitis Julia and Brian Palmer John and Margaret Perry Carol Peterson Walter Pickhardt and Sandra Resnick Joan M. Prairie Dr. Hanan J. Rosenstein Daniel Roth Trish and Steve Rowley David M. Sandoz Mary Savina Jon L. Schasker Deborah and Allan Schneider Paul L. Schroeder Mrs. Donald Sell Mr. and Mrs. Morris Sherman Debra Sit and Peter Berge Emily Skoblik Daniel J. Spiegel Family Foundation Thomas and Sharon Stoffel Delroy and Doris Thomas Katharine E. Thomas Ryan Traversari Mark Traynor and Jennifer Peterson Susan Truman Arnold Walker Elaine B. Walker Don and Holly Weinkauf David Wendt John and Sandra White Wendy Wildung David and Rachelle Willey John M. Williams Daniel Richard Zillmann

patron circle Gold $750–$999 Barbara S. Belk Gerald and Phyllis Benson Debra Brooks and James Meunier Bryce and Paula Johnson J. Michael Pickle A.M. Rock, M.D. David E. Sander Harriet Spencer Warren Stortroen John W. Windhorst Jr.

Silver $500–$749 Anonymous (4) Arlene and Tom Alm Alvaro Alonso August J. Aquila and Emily Haliziw Dr. and Mrs. Orn Arnar Suzanne Asher Dan Avchen and David Johnson Jo and Gordon Bailey Family Fund of the Catholic Community Foundation Rebecca Arons and Thomas Basting, Jr. Donald and Naren Bauer Carl and Joan Behr Estelle T. Bennett

$250–$499 Anonymous (2) Paul and Val Ackerman Thomas O. Allen Quentin and Mary Anderson Katherine Anderson Linda Z. Andrews Jerry Artz Marcia J. Aubineau Eric S. Anderson and Janalee R. Aurelia Dan Avchen Ronald and Kay Bach Thomas Bailey James and Gail Bakkom Bishu and Irina Bandyopadhyay Laird Barber Kevin Beckey Bill Bertram Judith and Arnold Brier Philip and Carolyn Brunelle Stephen Bubul Keith Campbell Renee Campion and David Walsh Jerome and Linda Carlson Katherine L. Castille In Memory of Kathy Coleman Sandy and Doug Coleman Brenda Colwill Kay Constantine Jeanne E. Corwin Barb Davis Barry Divine Neal Doughty and Darya Gemmel Tracy Elftmann Herbert and Betty Fantle Charles and Anne Ferrell

Brian M. Finstad Christine Fleming Melanie and Bruce Flessner Susan E. Flint and Michael Leirdahl David and Margene Fox Judith Garcia Galiana and Alberto Galiana Greta and Paul Garmers Lois and Larry Gibson Father Joseph P. Gillespie Earl and Mary Gloeckner Richard and Marsha Gould Hunt Greene and Jane Piccard William and Aimee Guidera Margaret Gunther Russell and Priscilla Hankins Bonita Hanson Douglas and Doris Happe Peter and Rebecca Hawthorne Jill A. Heath Wendy Heck Stefan and Lonnie Helgeson Sharon and Cliff Hill Andrew Holey and Gary Whitford Reverend and Mrs. Henry H. Hoover Worth L. Hudspeth Margaret F. Humphrey Ray Jacobsen Christina and Nicholas Jermihov Sharon and Fredrik Johnson Kurt Johnston Dr. and Mrs. Eric Jolly Erika and Herb Kahler Jim and Kathleen Karges Kathryn Keefer Janice Kimes

These lists are current as of February 12, 2013, and include donors who gave a gift of $250 or more during Minnesota Opera’s Annual Fund Campaign.

If your name is not listed appropriately, please accept our apologies and contact Jenna Wolf, Individual Gifts Officer, at 612-342-9569.

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associate circle

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annual fund | individual giving legacy circle Minnesota Opera thanks the following donors who, through their foresight and generosity, have included the Opera in their wills or estate plans. We invite you to join other opera-lovers by leaving a legacy gift to Minnesota Opera. If you have already made such a provision, we encourage you to notify us so that we may appropriately recognize your generosity.

Anonymous (5) Valerie and Paul Ackerman Thomas O. Allen Mr. and Mrs. Rolf Andreassen Mary A. Andres Karen Bachman Randolph G. Baier* Mark and Pat Bauer Mrs. Harvey O. Beek * Barbara and Sandy Bemis * C. T. Bundy, II Joan and George Carlson Darlene J. and Richard P. Carroll Julia and Dan Cross Judy and Kenneth * Dayton Mrs. George Doty Rudolph Driscoll * Anne P. Ducharme Sally Economon *

Ester and John Fesler Paul Froeschl Katy Gaynor Robert and Ellen Green Ieva Grundmanis * Julia Hanna* Ruth Hanold * Fredrick J. Hey, Jr. Norton M. Hintz Jean McGough Holten Charles Hudgins * Dale and Pat Johnson Drs. Sally and Charles Jorgensen Robert and Susan Josselson Charlotte * and Markle Karlen Mary Keithahn Patty and Warren Kelly Margaret Kilroe Trust * Blaine and Lyndel King

Gretchen Klein * Bill and Sally Kling Gisela Knoblauch * Mr. and Mrs. James Krezowski Robert Kriel and Linda Krach Venetia and Robert Kudrle Robert Lawser, Jr. Jean Lemberg * Gerald and Joyce Lillquist David Mayo Barbara and Thomas * McBurney Mildred McGonagle * Beth McGuire Mary Bigelow McMillan Margaret L. and Walter S. * Meyers John L. Michel and H. Berit Midelfort Susan Molder * Edith Mueller * Kay Ness

Joan and Richard Newark Philip Oxman and Harvey Zuckman Scott Pakudaitis Sydney and William* Phillips Richard G. * and Liane A. Rosel Mrs. Berneen Rudolph Mary Savina Frank and Lynda Sharbrough Drew Stewart James and Susan Sullivan Gregory C. Swinehart Stephanie Van D’Elden Mary Vaughan Dale and Sandra Wick * In Remembrance

For more information on gift arrangements, please contact Dawn Loven, Director of the Annual Fund at 612-342-9567.

Your attorney or financial advisor can then help determine which methods are most appropriate for you.

We Can Cabaret!

ON AIR - RESIDENT ARTIST CABARET: 1940S RADIO SHOW Minnesota Opera’s Resident Artists will transport you to the 1940s as they delight with crowd-pleasing favorites from the height of the “live radio hour” era. Stay for the Summit After Party, enjoy some beer and dance the night away!

Friday, March 15, 2013 – Minnesota Opera Scene Shop 6pm Dinner and Staged Radio Show Performance

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DINING - DANCING - SILENT AUCTION $150/person Cabaret and Summit After Party ($75 is tax-deductible) Reserved Table for 8: $1,500 ($900 is tax-deductible) $25/person Summit After Party only (9pm-11pm: Small Bites and Hosted Summit Beer) ‘Cabaret’ – 2013 © Corinne Standish for Minnesota Opera

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9pm Summit After Party

1940S ATTIRE ADMIRED BUT NOT REQUIRED RSVP by Monday, March 11 to Emily at 612-342-9553 or eskoblik@mnopera.org.

Visit mnopera.org/Cabaret for more information.

This special night of fundraising, hosted by the Donor Events Committee, will celebrate the world-class artistry of Minnesota Opera and benefit its artistic and education programs.

annual fund | institutional giving minnesota opera sponsors Season Sponsor

Gala Sponsors

Ascent Private Capital Management of U.S. Bank

Target, Premier Sponsor 3M Ascent Private Capital Management of U.S. Bank Medtronic Spencer Stuart

Production Sponsors

Nabucco Ascent Private Capital Management of U.S. Bank Doubt National Endowment for the Arts The Aaron Copland Fund for Music, Inc. Hamlet Target

Minnesota Opera gratefully acknowledges its major institutional supporters: $100,000+

Production Innovation System General Mills

Resident Artist Program Wenger Foundation

Conductor Appearances Spencer Stuart

Tempo After Parties Sakura

Camerata Dinners Abbot Downing

Opera Insights Comcast

Media Sponsor

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

Minnesota Public Radio

$50,000–$99,999

corporations, foundations and government 3M Foundation Ameriprise Financial, Inc. General Mills Foundation The McKnight Foundation The Medtronic Foundation The Michelson Family Foundation Minnesota State Arts Board National Endowment for the Arts Target U.S. Bancorp Foundation U.S. Bank UnitedHealth Group The Wallace Foundation

Harlan Boss Foundation for the Arts R. C. Lilly Foundation Mayo Clinic Pentair Foundation The Carl and Eloise Pohlad Family Foundation PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP Rahr Foundation RBC Wealth Management Schwegman, Lundberg & Woessner, p.a.

Securian Foundation Thomson Reuters Twin Cities Opera Guild

Platinum $10,000–$24,999

Silver $2,500–$4,999

The Aaron Copland Fund for Music, Inc. Abbot Downing Fred C. and Katherine B. Andersen Foundation Best Buy Children’s Foundation Cargill Foundation Comcast Dorsey & Whitney Foundation Ecolab Foundation Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation Anna M. Heilmaier Charitable Foundation MAHADH Fund of HRK Foundation Spencer Stuart Travelers Foundation Valspar Foundation Wells Fargo Foundation Minnesota Wenger Foundation Xcel Energy Foundation

Cleveland Foundation Dellwood Foundation Faegre Baker Daniels Hutter Family Foundation Le Jeune Family Foundation The Elizabeth C. Quinlan Foundation Margaret Rivers Fund Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi Summit Brewing Company Tennant Foundation

Gold $5,000–$9,999 Accenture Boss Foundation Briggs & Morgan, P.A. Edward R. Bazinet Foundation

$25,000–$49,999

$10,000–$24,999

Bronze $250–$2,499 Bobby & Steve’s Auto World Youth Foundation The Curtis L. Carlson Family Foundation Enterprise Holdings Foundation Hammel, Green and Abrahamson, Inc. McVay Foundation Onan Family Foundation Peravid Foundation Sewell Family Foundation Sit Investment Foundation Wells Fargo Insurance Services

For information on making a corporate or foundation contribution to Minnesota Opera, please contact the Institutional Gifts Manager Beth Comeaux at 612-342-9566 or email her at bcomeaux@mnopera.org.

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Sponsors $25,000+

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