Maria De Buenos Aires Program

Astor Piazzolla'S

Maria de Buenos Aires February 10 & 11 th

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ALVAREZ STUDIO TOBIN CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

A MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRMAN Dear Friends, spaceWelcome to Maria de Buenos Aires. space OPERA San Antonio is now in its ninth year. Each year we do two full-scale productions of classic grand opera in the Tobin Center, complete with traditional sets and full orchestra. This season we did Pagliacci (The Clowns) in October, and will do Romeo and Juliet in April. Tonight we offer a different experiment, a smaller-scale production in an intimate venue, a venue configured not like a stage production but like a dissolute cabaret, with the audience included in the performance. space The music of Maria de Buenos Aires, written in 1968, is the tango music of the great 20th-century tango master Astor Piazzolla.

The opera uses all the passion, intensity, and suppressed pain of the tango to tell a story of debauchery and devastation in a Buenos Aires which is also hell. space This is a work that includes things the great 19th-century opera certainly never had—popular music, non-traditional instruments like the bandoneon, and surrealism. space Thank you for joining us to bring to San Antonio something contemporary and experimental. Get ready for something different!

And please come back for the beautiful music and classic story of Gounod’s Romeo and Juliet on March 30th and April 1st.

Sincerely, Blair Labatt Chairman, OPERA San Antonio

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THANK YOU OSA is grateful for the support of these major sponsors for the 2022/2023 season

Graham M. Weston

Drs. James E. Griffin III and Margo Denke

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STAFF E. Loren Meeker General & Artistic Director

Francesco Milioto Music Director

Garnett Bruce Artistic Advisor

Madeline Elizondo Friends Program & Education Coordinator

OSA BOARD OF DIRECTORS Blair Labatt, Chair Matt West, Vice-Chair Mark Johnson, Treasurer Valerie Collins, Secretary Adriana Cisneros Dr. Sara McCamish James McCutcheon

Olga Moucoulis Eduardo Parra Diana Peña Linda Poetschke Chan Peterson Dr. Alan Siqueiros Dale Tremblay

Mel Weingart, Chair Emeritus

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Maria De Buenos aires

By Astor Piazzolla

Friday, February 10, 2023 | 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, February 11, 2023 | 7:30 p.m.

Carlos Alvarez Studio Theatre | Tobin Center for the Performing Arts Length of Performance: 90 minutes

Premiere Date: May 8, 1968 Sung in Spanish with English Translations

This production of Maria de Buenos Aires is an original production of The Atlanta Opera.

English Captions by Tomer Zvulun English Captions for Maria de Buenos Aires owned by The Atlanta Opera, © 2017

Conductor/Pianist/Chorus Master, Pablo Zinger Production Director, Tomer Zvulun Stage Director, Brian August

CAST Maria El Payador El Duende Choreographer/Dancer Dancer Chorus

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Catalina Cuervo Gustavo Feulien Blas Canedo González Jeremias Fors Erin Fennell Kevin Arratia Ivy Cantu Tiffany Collazo Alexander Montalvo Otoniel Rodriguez Kimberly Sandoval

PRODUCTION Conductor/Pianist/Chorus Master Production Director Stage Director Venue Designer Scenic Designer Costume Designer Lighting Designer Wig and Make-up Designer Sound Designer Stage Manager Wardrobe Supervisor Properties Master Technical Director Photographer Video Recording Surtitle Operator Pre-show Lecturer

Pablo Zinger Tomer Zvulun Brian August Ryan McGettigan Christopher S. Dills Joanna Schmink Marcella Barbeau Stephanie Williams

Andrew Harper Kaylin Story Stacie Healy Alison Vasquez Mathew Kaplan Marty Sohl Bob Bohanek

Emily Rubio Dr. Javier Clavere

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TOBIN CENTER STAFF President & Chief Executive Officer Technical Director Director of Resident Company & Community Engagement Box Office Manager Engagement Coordinator

Mike Fresher Hector Gutierrez Rick Frederick Patricia Moreno Mandie Sullivan

SPECIAL THANKS Chris Bacon, Vinson & Elkins LLP Lynda Bailey Bradley Middle School Band Program Karlos Elizondo Labatt Food Service Labatt Food Service Media and IT Teams Jenna Jernigan Judge Nelson Wolff

Gary Mabry Maverick Carter House, Carriage House Joan Miller Opera Guild of San Antonio Radius Center Gallery Thomas Skrobanek The Tobin Center Staff Laurel Watts

SYNOPSIS The tale opens with El Duende (the Narrator) who relates the story of Maria, a prostitute born in the slums “one day when God was drunk … with a curse in her voice.” The rhythms of the tango seduce Maria and she soon becomes “the most sorcerous singer and lover” in Buenos Aires.

However, her “fatal passion” arouses the wrath of robbers and brothel madams who murder her and bury her in an unmarked grave. In death, Maria is pulled into a dreamlike Hell where she encounters the choral circus of psychoanalysts who dissect her to the core.

She makes a resurrection of sorts when El Duende summons her to return as a Shadow, give birth to a new Maria, and haunt the sordid streets of Buenos Aires which she once walked.

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ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES CATALINA CUERVO, SOPRANO

As Maria

OSA Debut. Recent Credits: Elisetta, Il Matrimonio Segreto, Florida Grand Opera; Title Role, Frida, Detroit Opera; Title Role, Maria de Buenos Aires, Theatro Municipal de São Paulo. Upcoming Credits: Title Role, Frida, Opera Naples; Micaëla, Carmen, Anchorage Opera.

GUSTAVO FEULIEN, BARITONE

As El Payador

OSA Debut. Past Credits: Zurga, The Pearlfishers,Teatro Colón; El Payador, Maria de Buenos Aires, Teatro Municipal Sâo Paulo, Brasil. Upcoming Credits: Scarpia, Tosca, Hearbeat Opera.

BLAS CANEDO GONZÁLEZ, BARITONE As El Duende

OSA Debut. Recent Credits: Figaro, The Barber of Seville, Houston Grand Opera (Film production for Opera to Go); The Evil Every Body, Lucinda y las Flores de Noche Buena, Glenn Falls Symphony; El Duende, Maria De Buenos Aires, Opera in the Heights. Upcoming Credits: Baritone soloist, Carmina Burana, Symphony of South East Texas.

JEREMIAS FORS Choreographer/Dancer OSA Debut. Past Credits: Dancer/Choreographer, Maria de Buenos Aires, The Atlanta Opera; Dancer/Choreographer, Eras del Tango, Tango Axis; Dancer/Choreographer, Maria de Buenos Aires, Florida Grand Opera.

Upcoming Credits: Dancer/Choreographer, Tango, Miami Tango Show; Dancer, Canefiesta, ALAS; Dancer, La Ideal Milonga, Tango Fantasy.

ERIN FENNELL Dancer OSA Debut. Past Credits: First place winner (stage tango), USA Tango Championship, New York City; Dancer, Tango Suites, Colony Theatre; Tea (Chinese dance), George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker, Miami City Ballet.

ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES PABLO ZINGER

Conductor/Pianist/Chorus Master OSA Debut. Past Credits: Pianist/Conductor/Arranger/Narrator, Luisa Fernanda & Zarzuela Selections, The Florentine Opera; Pianist/Conductor, El barbero de Sevilla (Zarzuela), New Camerata Opera; Pianist/Musical Director/Creator, Bésame Mucho-Latinas Sing Latinas, Spanish Repertory Theater. Upcoming Credits: Pianist/Musical Director Music, The Hispanic Society; Pianist/Conductor, Maria de Buenos Aires, The Florentine Opera; Musical Director, Los Entremeses de Cervantes, Teatro Círculo.

TOMER ZVULUN

Production Director

OSA Debut: Production Director, Rigoletto, 2022. Past Credits: Stage Director, Rigoletto, The Dallas Opera; Stage Director, Eugene Onegin, Seattle Opera; Stage Director, Silent Night, The Atlanta Opera. Upcoming Credits: Stage Director, The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, Utah Opera; Stage Director, Das Rheingold, Dallas Opera; Stage Director, Die Walküre, The Atlanta Opera.

BRIAN AUGUST Stage Director OSA Debut. Past Credits: Stage Manager, The Marriage of Figaro, Houston Grand Opera; Stage Manager, The Magic Flute, Houston Grand Opera; Production Stage Manager, A Thousand Acres (World Premiere), Des Moines Metro Opera. Upcoming Credits: Stage Manager, Salome, Houston Grand Opera; Stage Manager, La Traviata, Houston Grand Opera; Production Stage Manager, The Love for Three Oranges, Des Moines Metro Opera.

RYAN MCGETTIGAN Venue Designer OSA Debut. Past Credits: Scenic Designer, Cunning Little Vixen, Glimmerglass Festival; Scenic Designer, Die Fledermaus, New Orleans Opera; Scenic Designer, Lucia di Lammermoor, New Orleans Opera. Upcoming Credits: Resident Designer at Cape Rep Theatre and a company member with Prague Shakespeare and Open Dance Project.

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ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES JOANNA SCHMINK

Costume Designer

OSA Debut. Recent Credits: Costume Designer, Deadman Walking, Atlanta Opera; Costume Designer, Dido and Aeneas, GA State University; Costume Designer, The Turn of the Screw, GA Theatre Ensemble.

MARCELLA BARBEAU Lighting Designer OSA Debut. Past Credits: Lighting Designer, As One, The Atlanta Opera; Lighting Designer, Sky on Swings, Opera Saratoga; Co-Lighting Designer, The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, Austin Opera. Upcoming Credits: Lighting Designer, Maria de Buenos Aires, Opera Columbus; Lighting Designer, Ainadamar, University of Houston; Lighting Designer, Rigoletto, Opera Columbus.

ANDREW HARPER Sound Designer OSA Debut. Past Credits: Sound Designer, Written in Stone, Washington National Opera; Sound Designer, Songbird, The Glimmerglass Festival; Sound Designer, El Milagro del Recuerdo (World Premiere), Houston Grand Opera. Upcoming Credits: Sound Designer, Another City, Houston Grand Opera; Sound Designer, Rent, Theatre Under the Stars; Sound Designer, Ainadamar, UH Moore's School of Music.

STEPHANIE WILLIAMS Wig and Makeup Designer OSA Debut: Wig & Makeup Designer, The Fantastic Mr. Fox, 2014. Recent Credits: Wig & Makeup Designer, Rigoletto, Don Giovanni, Lucia di Lammermoor, OPERA San Antonio.

Upcoming Credits: Wig & Makeup Designer, Romeo and Juliet, OPERA San Antonio; Wig Constructor for Broadway; owns and operates two companies: One Love Beauty and Captivated Photography and Design.

CMI ORCHESTRA CMI STAFF

Paul Montalvo, Artistic Director Leonardo Pineda, CMI Assistant Conductor David Duran, CMI Operations Manager Daniela Diaz, CMI Orchestra Manager VIOLIN I

FLUTE

Henry Wang

Katherine Rivas

VIOLIN II

GUITAR

Sami Merdinian

Isaac Bustos

VIOLA

BANDONEON

Edwin Kaplan

Rodolfo Zanetti

CELLO

PERCUSSION

Titilayo Ayangade

Joseph Gonzalez

BASS

KEYBOARD

Luis Primera

Wayne Ching

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2022-2023 SEASON DONORS The Board of Directors, artists, and staff of OPERA San Antonio gratefully acknowledge the generous support of our donors.

(Donations from July 1, 2021 - January 13, 2023)

* Indicates Monthly Donor

OPERA ANGEL $100,000 +

City of San Antonio Kronkosky Charitable Foundation Labatt Food Service Graham M. Weston

UNDERWRITER

SPONSOR

$50,000 - $99,999

$25,000 - $49,999

Bexar County Commissioners Court

Elizabeth Huth Coates Foundation of 1992

Drs. James E. Griffin III and Margo Denke

H-E-B Helping Here

Russell Hill Rogers Fund for the Arts

The Labatt Foundation

This performance is made possible in part by a generous grant from the Russell Hill Rogers Fund for the Arts.

Semmes Foundation Fund of the San Antonio Area Foundation The Tobin Endowment The Martha-Ellen Tye Foundation

GRAND PATRON $10,000 - $24,999

Valerie Collins Comprehensive Home Health & Hospice Laura and Sam Dawson The Ewing Halsell Foundation FASTSIGNS Northeast, FASTSIGNS Downtown Frost Bank Charitable Foundation C.H. Guenther & Son LLC Impact San Antonio Impact San Antonio is a women’s collective giving, grant-making nonprofit organization serving the

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greater San Antonio area.

Juris Medicus Greg & Bekki Kowalski Luther King Capital Management Dr. Sara McCamish & Dr. Edward Briggs Katherine and James McAllen/ Amy E. Stieren National Endowment for the Arts This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.

John L. Nau, III Tracy and David Pope Texas Capital Bank

2022-2023 SEASON DONORS CONTINUED GRAND BENEFACTOR $5,000 - $9,999

Able City / Parra & Co Milton Babbitt Emma & Toby Calvert, Richard Calvert, Karen Calvert Frost Mr. and Mrs. Robert R. Lende In honor of Blair Labatt

James E. McCutcheon In memoriam B. Letitia Rogers

The Meeker Family Tim and Kathy Musgrave

Phil Muth The Ann and John Newman Family Fund In honor of Barbara and Blair Labatt

Pulmonary Consultants of San Antonio Louis H. and Mary Patricia Stumberg Foundation Texas Commission on the Arts Barbara B. Wood Worth & Associates

PRINCIPAL BENEFACTOR $2,500 - $4,999

A. John and Belinda F. Andersen Donna Barrow In memory of Sue Storm

Cynthia & Charles Huey Family Fund of the Southwest Community Foundation

Bruce & Anne Johnson Opera Guild of San Antonio Alice and Sergio Viroslav

BENEFACTOR $1,000 - $2,499

Margaret Corning Boldrick Tony & Carla Canty Jim and Frances Garner Sharon M. Kocurek Mary L. Marino Taddy McAllister Becky McEuen & Chan Peterson Paul Montalvo Cynthia O'Connor

The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar Polly and George Spencer In honor of Blair and Barbara Labatt

Sterling Foods TEAM Group, Ltd. Brig. Gen. Sue E.Turner Marshall and Elizabeth White In honor of Bronwyn White

The Williamson Foundation

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2022-2023 SEASON DONORS CONTINUED

CONTRIBUTOR $500 - $999

Anonymous Kari Lee Butts Dan and Marcia Goodgame

Lillian P. Morris Keith and Pat Vigeon Orme Charitable Foundation Edward and Linda Poetschke Toby and John Tate

In honor of Blair and Barbara Labatt

Drs. Jayne & David Gordon Gary Malanchuk

SUPPORTER $250 - $499

*Paul and Anne Comeaux Steven A. Ewing Vincent R. Johnson and Jill Torbert Grace B. Labatt

Chuck and Petra McCann Laura A. Powell *Kevin and Laura Salfen

In honor of the Blair Labatt Family

FRIEND

$100 - $249

Harry Akin *Jorge Alonzo *Anonymous Marie Barrett Argie S. Bonduris Katherine P. Brooks Richard Butler Maura Conron The Elizondo Family John Greiner Janna Hartman Dr. & Mrs. Edward T. Herbold A. Ryland Howard In memory of Edith A. Boulware

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James W. Kirkpatrick Robert Knapp Carl and Ann Leafstedt Anna Lopez In memory of Estella Guevara

Veronica S. Lopez In honor of E. Loren Meeker and Madeline Elizondo

Joe Manci, COL USAF (RET) In memory of Col. Yale "Buzz" Trustin

Zelime G. Matthews Roger and Suzanne Meeker *Andrea Melcher In honor of Caroline Melcher

Sandy & Art Nicholson Bianca Ramos Elva Ruiz Linda Seeligson Margaret King Stanley William R. Sutton Al and Joan Thaggard Joe Tiemann In memory of Kathy Chapman

Mr. & Mrs. Jose Luis Heredia Villagomez

2022-2023 SEASON DONORS CONTINUED SUSTAINER up to $99

Emily Becher Dr. Kenneth Bloom & Dr. Sheila Swartzman Matthew Charles Brockway Mr. & Mrs. David Burgess Andrew Kunau Fabiola Luevano Dr. David Maize Joaquin G. Mira Stephanie Key and David Mollenauer

Victor Moya G.J. Peña, Jr - Laredo, TX David Allen Solis Rabbi Samuel and Lynn Stahl Martha Vasquez In honor of Jean Walker

Michael Wark Michael Wurth Elizabeth Wymer

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SUPPORT OSA YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. OPERA San Antonio depends on continued community support in order to bring you stellar productions at the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts.

Ticket sales cover less than a third of what it costs to offer these operatic masterpieces and to maintain our community and education programs.

Donate today to give all people in the greater San Antonio area a chance to hear music that can speak to them in a new, even life-changing way.

Scan this QR code to go directly to our donation page and make an immediate impact on our community.

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1. Sign in to smile.amazon.com on your desktop or mobile phone browser. (not www.amazon.com or the mobile app) 2. Go to Your Account from the navigation at the top of any page, and then select the option to Change your Charity.

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LET'S CONNECT If you have enjoyed your time with us tonight, let us know by filling out our OSA Contact Form with this QR code. One of our staff members will get in touch with you after the performance to hear your thoughts.

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UPCOMING THIS SEASON

For years their families have been at war, yet at first sight, Romeo and Juliet fall deeply in love. OPERA San Antonio presents Gounod’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s tragedy, Romeo and Juliet. As their romance blooms so does the hatred between their houses, which compels these star-crossed young lovers to choose between their love for each other and love for their families.

TICKETS ON SALE NOW www.OperaSA.org

ENTER TO WIN TICKETS! Look for our survey email after the performances of Maria de Buenos Aires and tell us about your experience.

Complete the survey and you will be automatically entered to win complimentary tickets to our production of Romeo and Juliet in March of 2023.

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P.O. Box 2641 San Antonio, TX 78299

Office: 210-673-7270 Email: info@operasa.org www.OperaSA.org