Maria De Buenos Aires Program

MariadeBuenosAires

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

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

E. Loren Meeker General&ArtisticDirector

Garnett Bruce ArtisticAdvisor

STAFF

Francesco Milioto

MusicDirector

Madeline Elizondo

FriendsProgram& EducationCoordinator

OSA BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Blair Labatt, Matt West, Mark Johnson, Valerie Collins, Adriana Cisneros

Chair Vice-Chair Treasurer Secretary

Dr. Sara McCamish

James McCutcheon

Olga Moucoulis

Eduardo Parra

Diana Peña

Linda Poetschke

Chan Peterson

Dr. Alan Siqueiros

Dale Tremblay

Mel Weingart, ChairEmeritus

MariaDeBuenosaires

ByAstorPiazzolla

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

ElPayador

ElDuende

Choreographer/Dancer

Dancer

Chorus

CatalinaCuervo

GustavoFeulien

BlasCanedoGonzález

JeremiasFors

ErinFennell

KevinArratia

IvyCantu

TiffanyCollazo

AlexanderMontalvo

OtonielRodriguez

KimberlySandoval

PRODUCTION

Conductor/Pianist/ChorusMaster

ProductionDirector

StageDirector

VenueDesigner

ScenicDesigner

CostumeDesigner

LightingDesigner

WigandMake-upDesigner

SoundDesigner

StageManager

WardrobeSupervisor

PropertiesMaster

TechnicalDirector

Photographer

VideoRecording

SurtitleOperator

Pre-showLecturer

PabloZinger

TomerZvulun

BrianAugust

RyanMcGettigan

ChristopherS.Dills

JoannaSchmink

MarcellaBarbeau

StephanieWilliams

AndrewHarper

KaylinStory

StacieHealy

AlisonVasquez

MathewKaplan

MartySohl

BobBohanek

EmilyRubio

Dr.JavierClavere

President&ChiefExecutiveOfficer

TechnicalDirector

DirectorofResidentCompany&

CommunityEngagement

BoxOfficeManager

EngagementCoordinator

MikeFresher

HectorGutierrez

RickFrederick

PatriciaMoreno

MandieSullivan

SPECIAL THANKS

ChrisBacon,Vinson&ElkinsLLP

LyndaBailey

BradleyMiddleSchoolBandProgram

KarlosElizondo

LabattFoodService

LabattFoodServiceMediaandITTeams

JennaJernigan

JudgeNelsonWolff

GaryMabry

MaverickCarterHouse,CarriageHouse

JoanMiller

OperaGuildofSanAntonio RadiusCenterGallery

ThomasSkrobanek

TheTobinCenterStaff

LaurelWatts

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.

ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES

CATALINA CUERVO, SOPRANO AsMaria

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

AsElPayador

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 AsElDuende

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/ChorusMaster

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 ProductionDirector

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 StageDirector

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

VenueDesigner

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.

ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES

JOANNA SCHMINK

CostumeDesigner

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 LightingDesigner

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 SoundDesigner

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

WigandMakeupDesigner

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

PaulMontalvo,ArtisticDirector

LeonardoPineda,CMIAssistantConductor

DavidDuran,CMIOperationsManager

DanielaDiaz,CMIOrchestraManager

VIOLIN I

HenryWang

VIOLIN II

SamiMerdinian

VIOLA

EdwinKaplan CELLO BASS

TitilayoAyangade

LuisPrimera

KatherineRivas

IsaacBustos

RodolfoZanetti

FLUTE GUITAR BANDONEON PERCUSSION

JosephGonzalez

KEYBOARD

WayneChing

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)

*IndicatesMonthlyDonor

OPERA ANGEL

$100,000 +

City of San Antonio

Kronkosky Charitable Foundation

Labatt Food Service

Graham M. Weston

UNDERWRITER

$50,000 - $99,999

Bexar County Commissioners Court

Drs. James E. Griffin III and Margo Denke

Russell Hill Rogers Fund for the Arts

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

SPONSOR

$25,000 - $49,999

Elizabeth Huth Coates Foundation of 1992

H-E-B Helping Here

The Labatt Foundation

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 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

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

2022-2023 SEASON DONORS

CONTRIBUTOR

$500 - $999

Anonymous

Kari Lee Butts

Dan and Marcia Goodgame

In honor of Blair and Barbara Labatt

Drs. Jayne & David Gordon

Gary Malanchuk

*Paul and Anne Comeaux

Steven A. Ewing

Lillian P. Morris

Keith and Pat Vigeon Orme

Charitable Foundation

Edward and Linda Poetschke

Toby and John Tate

SUPPORTER

$250 - $499

Vincent R. Johnson and Jill Torbert

Grace B. Labatt

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

James W. Kirkpatrick

Robert Knapp

Carl and Ann Leafstedt

Anna Lopez

In memory of Estella Guevara

Chuck and Petra McCann

Laura A. Powell

*Kevin and Laura Salfen

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

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

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.

SHOP ON AMAZON

Amazon Gives OPERA San Antonio a percentage of the purchase price on items every time you shop!

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.

3. Select OPERA San Antonio.

4. Enable AmazonSmile from the Settings menu in your Amazon app so your mobile shopping can benefit OSA as well!

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.

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.