8
September 2018
Valley Voice
Opera Steamboat PRESENTS
OUR VOICES WILL BE HEARD
F R I D AY
Sept 21 7:00 pm An evening of music in support of Advocates
STRINGS MUSIC PAVILION 900 STRINGS RD
TICKETS AT operasteamboat.org
879-6092
Mon.- Fri. 9-6 Sat. 9-5 Sun. 11-3
In Central Park Plaza
Musical Advocacy By Melissa Hampton - Trustee, Opera Steamboat I was noodling around on Pinterest recently and came across t-shirts with this quotation: “When words fail, music speaks.” This sentiment seemed like a good introduction to an unusual musical event coming up on Friday, September 21, at Strings Music Pavilion. ‘Our Voices Will Be Heard’ is a one-night-only collaboration between Opera Steamboat and Advocates, in recognition of Domestic Violence Awareness month in October. Every fall, organizations around the country focus on this critical problem, providing opportunities to educate the community on the pattern of abusive behaviors that impact the lives of too many of our neighbors, friends and family. Even here in beautiful Routt County, we have a problem with domestic violence. According to Lisel Petis, Executive Director of Advocates, the reported incidents of women in abusive domestic situations are on the rise. “This year so far, we have had 170 client contacts with victims and survivors via emergency shelters, crisis support lines, and advocacy services,” says Petis, “whereas last year, for this same time period, we had just 126.” Since 1985, Advocates, a Routt County nonprofit, has provided crisis services, residential shelter, advocacy and community awareness for victims and survivors of domestic abuse and sexual violence. Beyond our own county, intimate partner violence, sexual violence, stalking, and family violence crimes have reached a national epidemic. And, then, says Petis, there are the misconceptions. “An important goal of our outreach program is to re-frame the definition of abuse. People often think abuse refers to exclusively to physical violence: beating, hitting, shoving and strangling. But just as destructive are the more subtle behaviors of withholding access to money, name-calling, belittling, or threatening to take away the children. It’s so important that our community understands all the ways that domestic violence can manifest.” To get the message across, Advocates is constantly seeking new channels for reaching out to the community. One of those new ways is to partner with other community organizations. Thus, Advocates and Opera Steamboat are teaming up to bring attention to domestic violence problems and gender inequality through music. Two short operas by American composer Jake Heggie will be staged on September 21, at Strings Music Pavilion. The production costs of the operas have been underwritten by local donors, so all the proceeds from ticket sales will go to support Advocates.
To Hell and Back is a dialogue between two women, a mother-in-law and her daughter-in-law. The mother-in-law struggles to hold painfully opposing ideas in her head: that the son she loves is an abuser.
879.5929
Into The Fire is the story of the 19th century French sculptor Camille Claudel, a talented artist who suffered a misfortune all too familiar to talented women: living in a
905 Weiss Drive - across HWY 40 from the Holiday Inn For those who live here and for those who wish they did.
time, place or relationship where female talent is not supported. It is the story of Claudel’s struggle to find creative recognition while living under the shadow of her more famous mentor Auguste Rodin, and the ultimate toll it took on her life.
D
“I chose these works for our September production for twoS reasons,” says Opera Steamboat Artistic Director Andres T Cladera. “First, October is Domestic Violence Awareness t Month and we wanted to support that. The other reason is r that I wanted to counter-balance the story of our main- o stage opera in August, Don Giovanni.” o Opera fans will recall that Don Giovanni, an 18th century opera by Mozart, is the story of a serial womanizer who callously seduces and discards women. “I wanted to make it clear that, while we wouldn’t re-write Mozart’s story, we will take a strong stand on supporting gender equality and condemning violent and abusive behavior.” So why don’t women in domestic violence situations just leave? “That is the question that so many people ask,” says Lisel Petis. “And this is the question Advocates would like to turn on its head. We need to stop blaming the victim and start holding the abuser accountable. We should be asking, ‘Why is he beating her?’ ‘Why won’t he stop the abuse?’ We want to get to the point where our community is not OK with any kind of violence or control in intimate partnerships.’’ One of the keys to changing perceptions is to identify the often hidden roots of abusive behavior. Seemingly innocent phrases like “when a boy hits you it means he likes you” or “boys will be boys” are just two examples of socially condoned behaviors that give permission for male aggression against females. Says Petis, “In addition to our support for women in crisis through our advocacy work and crisis lines, community outreach is our best chance to disrupt the systems that allow domestic and sexual violence to continue in Routt County.” “Opera Steamboat is proud to serve our community by putting a spotlight on this critical issue,” says Cladera. “It is an honor to collaborate with Advocates to raise money for them and build awareness. And we’re doing it through the powerful medium of music.” You can see these two short operas and support Advocates on one night only, Friday, September 21, 7pm, at Strings Music Pavilion. Tickets are available at operasteamboat. org. For more information about Advocates, see steamboatadvocates.com