Yale Opera Fall Scenes, October 28 & 29, 2022

Robert Blocker, Dean

yale opera Gerald Martin Moore, Director

Fall Opera Scenes

Friday, October 28, 2022 | 7:30 p.m. Le nozze di Figaro, Don Pasquale, Volpone, Ariadne auf Naxos

Saturday, October 29, 2022 | 7:30 p.m. Eugene Onegin, Werther, Le comte Ory

Morse Recital Hall in Sprague Memorial Hall

gerald martin moore alejandro roca music preparation & direction chuck hudson stage direction

mike demers lighting designer

soule golden costume designer

wendall k. harrington projection design supervision

Projections designed by students from the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale Projection Design program

Le nozze di Figaro

Act I Music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte

Performed in Italian with projected English translation

Musical direction by Alejandro Roca

cast (in order of vocal appearance)

Figaro Susanna Bartolo

Marcellina Cherubino Count Basilio

finn sagal, bass-baritone jillian tate, soprano sergio martínez, bass ana mora, mezzo-soprano kara morgan, mezzo-soprano korin thomas-smith, baritone ethan burck, tenor

Figaro and Susanna, servants to the Count and Countess Almaviva, are preparing for their wedding. Figaro is furious when he learns from his bride that the Count has tried to seduce her. He’s determined to have revenge on his master. Dr. Bartolo appears with his former housekeeper, Marcellina, who is equally determined to marry Figaro. She has a contract: Figaro must marry her or repay the money he borrowed from her. When Susanna returns, the two rivals exchange insults. The Count’s young page, Cherubino, rushes in, finding Susanna alone, and speaks of his love for all the women in the house, particularly the Countess. When the Count appears, again trying to seduce Susanna, Cherubino hides. The Count then conceals himself when Basilio, the music teacher, arrives. Basilio tells Susanna that everyone knows Cherubino has a crush on the Countess. Outraged, the Count steps forward, but he becomes even more enraged when he discovers Cherubino has overheard his attempts to seduce Susanna. Put on the spot, the Count is forced to bless the marriage of Figaro and Susanna. To spite them and to silence Cherubino, he orders the boy to join the army without delay. Figaro uses the opportunity to say what he wants to the Count but cannot by sarcastically sending Cherubino off into battle.

Excerpt from Act I Music by Gaetano Donizetti Libretto by Giovanni Ruffini

Don Pasquale cast (in order of vocal appearance)

Norina Dr. Malatesta

Performed in Italian with projected English translation

Musical direction by Gerald Martin Moore Projection design by David DeCarolis

jaeeun shin, soprano korin thomas-smith, baritone

Norina is a young widow in love with Don Pasquale’s nephew Ernesto. Pasquale has refused to bless their wedding because he believes Norina to be a gold-digger. Finding an old book of legends, Norina muses to herself about knowing all the tricks to win a man’s love. Malatesta arrives and reveals to Norina his plans for fooling Don Pasquale: Norina is to pretend to be Malatesta’s sister, wed the old bachelor in a fake ceremony, and then drive him so crazy with her whims and demands that he will be eager to find a way out of the unpleasant staged marriage. There is no time to tell Ernesto.

intermission

Excerpt from Acts I & II Music by John Musto

Libretto by Mark Campbell Used by arrangement with Songs of Peer, Ltd.

Volpone cast (in order of vocal appearance)

Erminella Volpone

Performed in English with projected English text

Musical direction by Alejandro Roca Projection design by John Horzen

ana mora, mezzo-soprano sergio martínez, bass

Erminella (The Ermine) is the proprietor of a brothel in Paris and has returned to Venice to find the son she left behind as an infant. He can be identified by a birthmark in the shape of a boot on his behind. Volpone (The Sly Fox) is a wealthy Venetian swindler who has been swindled himself by Mosca (The Fly), who Volpone took in as a youth and who has become the only son he has ever known. Mosca can be identified by a birthmark in the shape of a boot on his behind. The two professional swindlers meet on the street by chance, and each decides to use the other for mutual benefit.

Ariadne auf Naxos

Prologue Music by Richard Strauss

Libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal

Performed in German with projected English translation

Musical direction by Alejandro Roca Piano accompaniment by Curtis Serafin

cast (in order of vocal appearance)

Music Master

Major-Domo Lackey Officer Composer Tenor Wig Maker Zerbinetta Prima Donna Dance Master Harlekin

alex smith, baritone korin thomas-smith, baritone finn sagal, bass-baritone daniel espinal, tenor elana bell, mezzo-soprano ethan burck, tenor samuel kidd, baritone amalia crevani, soprano anneliese klenetsky, soprano seiyoung kim, tenor sergio martínez, bass

In the home of the “richest man in Vienna” two performing groups are preparing for their respective productions which are to play immediately following the gentleman’s dinner. One is a group of Opera singers employed to perform a new work based on Greek Mythology entitled Ariadne auf Naxos. The other is a group of actors in a Commedia dell’Arte Troupe engaged to perform an Italian Comedy. The Major-domo of the manor arrives to announce the line-up of events: the opera will play first, then the comedy, and then fireworks in the garden precisely at nine o’clock. Protests are made by the opera’s Music Master, but the Major-domo is unmoved. The young Composer of the opera becomes outraged when he learns the news, the Tenor shouts insults at the Wig Master, and the opera’s Prima Donna complains about performing on the same stage as Zerbinetta, the leading lady of the Commedia Troupe. To add to the tumultuous circumstances, the Major-domo returns to announce that since the dinner is running long, both Opera and Commedia are to be performed simultaneously so that the fireworks display may begin on time.

Eugene Onegin

Excerpt from Act I Music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Libretto by Tchaikovsky & Konstantin Shilovsky, based on Alexander Pushkin’s novel in verse

Performed in Russian with projected English translation

Musical preparation by Alejandro Roca & Anna Smigelskaya Piano accompaniment by Anna Smigelskaya Projection design by Sam Skynner

cast (in order of vocal appearance)

Tatiana

Olga

Larina Filipyevna Lenski

Onegin

anneliese klenetsky, soprano allison fahey, mezzo-soprano elana bell, mezzo-soprano ana mora, mezzo-soprano ethan burck, tenor samuel kidd, baritone

In the garden of her country estate, Madame Larina and her servant Filipyevna reminisce of their youth after hearing Larina’s two daughters, Tatiana and Olga, singing on the balcony of the house. Olga teases Tatiana for reading her romance novels instead of dancing. Lenski arrives and introduces his friend Eugene Onegin. Tatiana falls in love with Onegin at first sight, but Onegin is unimpressed with her lack of sophistication and style. Lenski professes his love to Olga while Onegin and Tatiana meander through the garden talking about life.

Act III

Music by Jules Massenet

Libretto by Édouard Blau, Paul Milliet & Georges Hartmann

Performed in French with projected English translation

Musical direction by Gerald Martin Moore Projection design by Graham Zellers

cast (in order of vocal appearance)

Charlotte Sophie Werther Albert

kara morgan, mezzo-soprano amalia crevani, soprano daniel espinal, tenor alex smith, baritone

Christmas Eve—the day Charlotte said Werther may return from the exile she imposed on him to keep her marriage to Albert intact. Charlotte obsessively re-reads Werther’s letters, admitting to herself that she still loves him as much as he loves her. Sophie arrives and tries to cheer her up, but Charlotte gives in to her despair. Suddenly Werther appears, utterly desolate. Together they evoke tender memories of playing the piano and reading poetry together. Werther tells her that he’s still in love with her and that she must admit that she loves him. He becomes increasingly wild and she becomes fearful, torn between giving in to him and escaping from him. She panics and runs from the room, telling him they will never meet again. Left without hope, Werther declares she has delivered a sentence of death and leaves. Albert returns, knowing that Werther has come back. He questions Charlotte and discovers a note from Werther: he is going on a long journey and asks to borrow Albert’s pistols. Albert orders his wife to hand them over. As soon as Albert leaves the room, Charlotte rushes off to save Werther.

intermission

Excerpt from Act III Music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Libretto by Tchaikovsky & Konstantin Shilovsky, based on Alexander Pushkin’s novel in verse

Eugene Onegin cast (in order of vocal appearance)

Tatiana Onegin

Performed in Russian with projected English translation Musical preparation by Alejandro Roca & Anna Smigelskaya Piano accompaniment by Anna Smigelskaya

anneliese klenetsky, soprano samuel kidd, baritone

Years after Onegin callously spurned Tatiana’s love, he sees her again at a ball. No longer a shy, bookish country girl, she’s now a glamorous princess married to the wealthy Prince Gremin. Onegin is immediately overcome with passion for Tatiana. Onegin confesses his love for her. Cynically, Tatiana wonders if he is truly in love with her or just her new social standing. He swears that his love for her is genuine, but she does not give in. She reflects how close they were to happiness. Tatiana admits that while she still loves him they could never be together. She will remain faithful to her husband, leaving the frantic Onegin to wallow in despair.

Le Comte Ory

Excerpt from Act I Music by Gioachino Rossini Libretto by Eugène Scribe & Charles-Gaspard Delestre-Poirson

Performed in French with projected English translation

Musical direction by Gerald Martin Moore Projection design by Graham Zellers

cast (in order of vocal appearance)

Countess Adele Isolier Count Ory Tutor Raimbaud Alice Ragonde Ensemble

jaeeun shin, soprano elana bell, mezzo-soprano seiyoung kim, tenor finn sagal, bass-baritone alex smith, baritone jillian tate, soprano allison fahey, mezzo-soprano amalia crevani, ana mora, kara morgan, ethan burck, daniel espinal, korin thomas-smith, sergio martínez

Faced with a castle full of women whose husbands and brothers are away on a Crusade, the young Count Ory disguises himself as a hermit to try and win the hand of the beautiful Countess Adele. The women gladly welcome the hermit and his friend Raimbaud amongst them, unaware it is Count Ory in disguise.

Everything is going to plan until the Count’s Tutor and page, Isolier, arrive in the village. Isolier is also in love with the Countess and seeks advice from the hermit, with no idea he is telling the Count all his deepest secrets. The Count returns to the Countess, advising her that she should seek a lover to cure her melancholy, but to avoid the dangerous Isolier. When the Tutor is finally permitted into the castle, he recognizes both Raimbaud and Ory and reveals their identities to the ladies. At the same moment, a letter arrives from the Countess’s brother: the husbands and brothers are returning in two days.

Gerald Martin Moore

Director of Yale Opera, music direction & piano

Gerald Martin Moore is an internationally renowned singing teacher and a vocal consultant. He has worked in such houses as Covent Garden, La Scala, the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco, and Opera de Bastille in Paris, as well as the Aix-en-Provence, Edinburgh, and Glyndebourne Festivals.

Since moving to New York City in 2008, he has been on the teaching faculty of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program and Curtis Institute of Music. He regularly gives masterclasses at Glyndebourne, Merola, and Washington National Opera, and is on the regular teaching faculty at Music Academy of the West, Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Ryan Opera Center, and Ravinia’s Steans Music Institute.

A frequent recitalist, most notably with Renée Fleming, he has performed before such dignitaries as President Obama, President Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, HRH Prince Charles, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. Gerald was recently featured accompanying Renée Fleming in the soundtrack for the movie Bel Canto and also coached Julianne Moore, who plays the role of Roxanne.

Mr. Moore may currently be heard as a regular host of the Metropolitan Opera Quiz, and is a frequent judge for prestigious vocal competitions, including the Metropolitan Opera National Council auditions.

Chuck Hudson stage direction

Chuck Hudson has directed opera productions at Cape Town, Cincinnati, Florida Grand, Minnesota, Arizona, Atlanta, Pittsburgh, Austin, Hawaii, and Seattle Opera, among others. He has directed award winning theatre productions in New York and regionally. Chuck’s work as a director was featured in the January 2011 Edition of American Theatre and the October 2018 Edition of Classical Singer magazines.

Chuck also works often with young professional artists in the US, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. He was a co-creator of Seattle Opera’s Young Artist Program and has been an annual Master Teacher at San Francisco Opera’s Merola and Adler Programs for almost two decades presenting his specialized instruction on acting and movement skills for singers and coaching audition arias. Chuck recently launched his hybrid Certificate Training Program for Opera Stage Directors at Ithaca College.

Chuck’s specialty in movement comes from a background in gymnastics, as well as being one of three Americans to have received a diploma from the Marcel Marceau International School of Mime-drama in Paris; he is also the only American to be appointed to teach at Marceau’s School. Chuck performed with Marceau on his 1991 European Tour and in Klaus Kinski’s film Paganini. Chuck also studied at the Paris School for Theatrical Fencing and was awarded an Honorary Diploma from the French Academy of Arms.

chdirector.com

Alejandro Roca music direction & piano

Opera coach and conductor Alejandro Roca’s recent engagements include performances of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro at Liceu Conservatory in Barcelona, new productions of Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi, and Falla’s Master Peter’s Puppet Show, and debuts with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra and the Orchestra of the Cláudio Santoro National Theater in Brasilia, Brazil. Roca has collaborated with such renowned conductors as Rinaldo Alessandrini, Gustavo Dudamel, Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Josep Caballé Domenech, and Hilary Griffiths, among others, and has appeared in recital with numerous vocalists around the world and has recorded music by several Latin American composers. Since 2006, Roca has served as a conductor and pianist at the Opera of Colombia, in Bogotá, and his repertoire includes more than 70 fullyprepared operas and zarzuelas.

Roca serves as Lecturer in Music/Opera Coach at the Yale School of Music. He previously served as Opera Coach and Director of the Opera Workshop at Central University, in Bogotá, and at Scuola Italia’s summer program for young opera singers in Sant’Angelo in Vado, Italy, and has served as Director of the Cartagena International Music Festival’s academic program. Roca’s pedagogical experience includes the presentation of master classes at Indiana University and the University of Michigan in the United States, Nayang Academy of Fine Arts in Singapore, and Capela di Santa Maria in Curitiba, Brazil, among other institutions in South America.

Mike Demers lighting design

Mike Demers enjoys lighting up live performances, golf courses, and the occasional cigar.

If you had been looking for Mike this past year, the best place to begin would be UConn’s Department of Dramatic Arts where Mike mentors students in the practical applications and technologies associated with lighting live performances.

If he wasn’t there, you may have had luck going to Old Saybrook where he spent time lighting concerts at the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center. Still no luck, he might have been in Detroit getting the lights ready at Movement Festival or preparing for Mercedes Formula One VIP events at this year’s Miami Grand Prix.

If after all of this still nothing, the golf course is a solid next attempt. He might have been on the lesson tee providing good golf lessons while telling poor dad jokes, enjoying a round of golf, or preparing for the summer golf camp for kids.

No matter where you find him, he will be glad you did.

Soule Golden costume design

Soule Golden holds a Master of Fine Arts degree in design from the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale and a Bachelor’s degree in Textiles and Apparel Design from Cornell University, and began her career as an apprentice at Santa Fe Opera and in costume production at The Joffrey Ballet. She is interested in sustainability, dance, new voices, and re-imagined classics.

Some credits include Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill at Playhouse on Park, A Sign of the Times at Ars Nova, King John at Shakespeare on the Sound, On the Floor with The Dance Cartel, Hedda Gabler at David Geffen School of Drama at Yale, and Caucasian Chalk Circle at Yale Repertory Theater. Thank you Fraser, Uma, and Helen for constant love and support.

soulegolden.com

Curtis Serafin

collaborative piano fellow

Curtis Serafin is currently a first-year collaborative piano fellow at the Yale School of Music. This engagement followed his fourth season as a member of the music staff at Sarasota Opera, where he played and assisted productions of Tosca, Attila, La Scala di Seta, and Dido & Aeneas Recent summer seasons have included professional fellowships at the Tanglewood Institute, Fall Island Vocal Arts Seminar, Manchester Music Festival, and Hawaii Performing Arts Festival. While at Tanglewood, Curtis was fortunate to coach programs with artists such as Margo Garrett, Alan Smith, and Dawn Upshaw; he was also an active part of the musical preparation for the U.S. premier of The Cricket Recovers by Richard Ayres, which was presented under the baton of Sir Thomas Adès. Curtis is a graduate of Warren Jones’s studio at the Manhattan School of Music; this was preceded by undergraduate studies at Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music.

profiles • student profiles a collaborative piano fellow and vocal coach with Yale Opera. Recent engagements have included the Merola Opera Program, Music Academy of the West, and Renée Fleming’s Song Studio. She has formerly held music staff positions at both the Manhattan School of Music and the Moores School of Music at the University of Houston. Ms. Smigelskaya began her collegiate education in her native city of St. Petersburg at the Rimsky–Korsakov Music College. She subsequently earned her solo piano degrees from Sam Houston State University (Bachelor of Music) and University of Houston (Master of Music). As a student at the Manhattan School of Music, Ms. Smigelskaya completed her second Master of Music degree under the tutelage of Warren Jones.

Anna Smigelskaya

collaborative piano fellow

Following a successful first season as a member of the music staff at The Santa Fe Opera, Anna Smigelskaya is currently in her second year as

Elana Bell mezzo-soprano Hometown: Baltimore, MD; B.M. & B.A. Oberlin Conservatory & College; M.M. University of Cincinnati CollegeConservatory of Music; Young Artist Programs: Des Moines Metro Opera, Music Academy of the West, Tanglewood Music Center

Ethan Burck tenor Hometown: Aurora, IL; B.M. Baldwin Wallace Conservatory; M.M. Curtis Institute of Music; Young Artist Program: Santa Fe Opera

Amalia Crevani soprano Hometown: Milford, NJ; B.M. DePauw University; Young Artist Program: Aspen Opera

Daniel Espinal tenor

Hometown: Sarasota, FL; B.M. Manhattan School of Music; Young Artist Program:Merola Opera

Allison Fahey mezzo-soprano Hometown: Sebastian, FL; B.M. Stetson Unversity; Young Artist Programs: Seagle Festival, Chautauqua Opera Conservatory

Samuel Kidd baritone

Hometown: Ann Arbor, MI; B.M. The University of Michigan; M.M. University of Cincinnati CollegeConservatory of Music; young Artist Programs: Wolf Trap Opera, Music Academy of the West, Houston Grand Opera Young Artists’ Vocal Academy

Seiyoung Kim baritone

Hometown: Seoul, South Korea; B.M. The Juilliard School; M.M. New England Conservatory; Young Artist Programs: Santa Fe Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, Houston Grand Opera Young Artists’ Vocal Academy

Anneliese Klenetsky soprano

Hometown: Edison, NJ; M.M. & B.M. The Juilliard School; Young Artist Programs: Ravinia’s Steans Music Institute, Music Academy of the West, Chautauqua Voice Program

Sergio Martínez Salazar bass

Hometown: Bogotá, Colombia; B.M. Juan N. Corpas University (Bogotá, Colombia); M.M. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Young Artist Program: Glimmerglass Opera

Ana Mora mezzo-soprano Hometown: Venezuela; B.M. Pontificia Universidad Javeriana (Bogotá, Colombia) M.M. & G.D. New England Conservatory Young Artist Program: Santa Fe Opera

Kara Morgan mezzo-soprano Hometown: Andover, MN; B.M. Drake University; Young Artist Programs: Santa Fe Opera, Sarasota Opera

Finn Sagal bass-baritone

Hometown: La Cañada, CA; B.M. University of California, Los Angeles; Young Artist Programs: Aspen Music Festival, Curtis Summerfest

Jaeeun Shin soprano Hometown: Seoul, South Korea; B.M. Korea National University of Arts; M.M. & G.D. New England Conservatory

Alex Smith baritone Hometown: Kalamazoo, MI; B.M. Oberlin Conservatory of Music; Young Artist Programs: SongFest, Oberlin in Italy

Jillian Tate soprano Hometown: Fairfax, VA;

B.M. University of Maryland, College Park

Korin Thomas-Smith baritone Hometown: Toronto, Canada; B.M. & M.M. University of Toronto; Young Artist Programs: Music Academy of the West, Aspen Music Festival, Ravinia’s Steans Music Institute

chuck hudson Stage Director

mike demers Lighting Designer & Master Electrician

soule golden Costume Designer

henry rodriguez & hannah tran Projection Programmers

doaa oaf Projection Operator

curtis serafin & anna smigelskaya Surtitle Operators

production staff

erika niemi Yale Opera Manager

regina carson Stage Manager

lauren elise fisher Assistant Stage Manager

nicole rozanski Properties Manager

lorry polizzi & kat duffner Costume & Wardrobe Assistants

sergio martínez Student Assistant

special thanks

Shawn Boyle Rich Burkam Wendall K. Harrington Chris Melillo JJ Penna Adriana Zabala

David Geffen School of Drama at Yale Southern Connecticut State University

Yale Opera Upcoming Events

dec Russian Liederabend

5 7:30 p.m. | Morse Recital Hall

The singers of Yale Opera perform an evening of Russian song with pianist Emily Olin. Free admission

dec Winter Gala Concert with Yale Philharmonia

17 7:30 p.m. | Woolsey Hall

Yale Opera students perform music from across the operatic repertoire with the Yale Philharmonia under the baton of guest conductor Louis Lohraseb. Tickets start at $12, Students start at $5

feb Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia

15–18 Legacy Theatre, Stony Creek, CT Candace Evans directs a fully-staged production of Britten’s heart-wrenching opera performed with chamber ensemble. Tickets on sale in January 2023 at legacytheatre.org

may Rossini’s Le Comte Ory

5 & 7 Fri 7:30 p.m. & Sun 2:00 p.m. | Morse Recital Hall

Pat Diamond directs Rossini’s hilarious romp in a new production with musical direction by Gerald Martin Moore.

Tickets start at $12, Students start at $5

yale school of music box office

Sprague Memorial Hall, 470 College Street, New Haven, CT 06511

203 432–4158 | music-tickets.yale.edu

If

the exit doors.