Dallas Opera to Simulcast Mark Adamo's BECOMING SANTA CLAUS at Lincoln Center, 12/6

DALLAS, TX, NOVEMBER 23, 2015 - The Dallas Opera is proud to announce that the gift of Christmas will come early this year for opera lovers in New York City! The Texas opera company's world premiere production of Mark Adamo's Becoming Santa Claus will be simulcast-live-to 150 lucky music lovers in the David Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center, located at 61 West 62nd Street, NY, NY 10023.

The one-time-only simulcast originating from the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House at the AT&T Performing Arts Center in Dallas, Texas, will take place on Sunday, December 6, 2015 at 3:00 p.m.(Eastern Standard Time).

Seating for this special event is on a "first come, first served" basis. All seats will be FREE. Although Adamo's new work will be sung in English, English language supertitles will be provided on screen, as well.

Underwriting support for Becoming Santa Claus and the New York City Simulcast has been generously provided by presenting sponsor, The Moody Foundation, with additional support from Dr. and Mrs. Tom Mayer, Maile and Charles Shea, and The Twelve Months of Kindness Committee.

"Dallas Opera simulcasts are not only expanding our reach and attracting new audiences outside the traditional opera house setting," explains General Director and CEO Keith Cerny, "they are allowing us to bring the excellence and artistry of notable productions like Becoming Santa Claus to interested music lovers in other cities, states, and countries."

"We are thrilled to be able to present this delightful world premiere to an audience in New York City, the place Mark Adamo calls 'home,' and to share his remarkable vision with the cultural capital of the country.

"Becoming Santa Claus started with an intriguing idea-followed by a brilliant libretto and a glittering score. It may one day come to be regarded as his very best work," Cerny predicts.

This new opera, from the composer of Little Women, is about the imagined origins of that holiday icon, Santa Claus. Both music and book for this family-friendly opera were created by Mark Adamo and commissioned by The Dallas Opera.

Becoming Santa Claus stars mezzo-soprano Jennifer Rivera as Queen Sophine in her Dallas Opera debut, tenor Jonathan Blalock (the Charron and Peter Denker Rising Star for the 2015-2016 Season) portrays the troubled Prince Claus, bass Matt Boehler sings the dual roles of Donkey/Messenger, while the elves are portrayed by Grammy-winning soprano Hila Plitmann (Yan), mezzo-soprano Lucy Schaufer (Ib), tenor Keith Jameson (Yab) and bass Kevin Burdette (Ob).

Set in an Elven kingdom in the far, far north, BECOMING SANTA CLAUS will be conducted by Music Director Emmanuel Villaume (The Mrs. Eugene McDermott Music Director), now in his third season with The Dallas Opera. Maestro Villaume recently assumed the position of Music Director and Chief Conductor of the PKF - Prague Philharmonia (in addition to his duties in Dallas), and he continues to conduct and record critically acclaimed performances with the most important artists of our day, from Anna Netrebko to Bryan Hymel.

Guest engagements in the U.S. this season include Roméo et Juliette at the Lyric Opera of Chicago as well as his return to Santa Fe Opera in the summer of 2016.

Following his triumph in Manon at London's Royal Opera House in 2014, Villaume returns to Covent Garden for performances of Tosca. Manon was also the vehicle of Maestro Villaume's return to the Metropolitan Opera in January 2015, about which the New York Times proclaimed, "It is the most vivid, exciting take on Manon at the Met in many years, and sets the bar high, early on, for the company's spring season."

Emmanuel Villaume returns to the Royal Opera House, Muscat in December 2015 for a concert with the PKF and guest soprano Sondra Radvanovsky.

"It's a thrilling responsibility, at any time, to conduct a world premiere," explains Music Director Emmanuel Villaume. "However, my excitement about Becoming Santa Claus stems from the piece itself, which contains Mark's witty, playful dialogue; heartfelt sentiment; and absolutely beautiful music.

"Becoming Santa Claus-which has been an amazing experience for everyone involved," Villaume added, "may prove to be an extraordinary experience for patrons of all ages."

Maestro Villaume's contract to serve as Music Director for The Dallas Opera has just been extended through June of 2022.

The world premiere of Mark Adamo's fourth full-length opera will be staged by Director Paul Curran, who also serves as the choreographer for this production, in his company debut. Mr. Curran, the James R. Seitz, Jr. Stage Director in honor of John Gage, was the artistic director of the Norwegian National Opera for several years and has been instrumental in creating landmark opera productions including La donna del lago for the Metropolitan Opera and Santa Fe Opera, The Tsar's Bride for Covent Garden, Tannhäuser for La Scala, Peter Grimes for the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and many more.

The Glasgow native has translated plays by Chekhov and Molière and works on opera, musicals and dramas around the world.

Mezzo-soprano Jennifer Rivera (Queen Sophine), a former New York City Opera "Debut Artist of the Year," has earned accolades on both sides of the Atlantic for her extraordinary vocalism and versatility, prompting Opera News to write of her "ravishing mezzo bloom from top to bottom."

Tenor Jonathan Blalock, winner of the 2014 Agnes Varis Prize for Bel Canto from the Opera Orchestra of New York, made a lasting impression in Paul's Case at The Prototype Festival, which Alex Ross of The New Yorker called one of the top ten musical events of the year. Steve Smith of The New York Times wrote: "Blalock is riveting in the title role; his voice sweet and true, his thin smile telegraphing Paul's honeyed contempt for his working class surroundings."

Mr. Blalock's Dallas Opera debut is made possible with support from the Charron and Peter Denker Rising Stars Endowment Fund.

Bass Matt Boehler appears in the dual roles of Donkey/Messenger. His voice, wrote Madison.com, "has fantastic dexterity and power."

Set and Costume Designer Gary McCann is one of a phenomenal production team that includes Lighting Designer Paul Hackenmueller and Driscoll Otto, designing projections for this world premiere production.

Mr. McCann, originally from Northern Ireland and now based in London has worked on Broadway, the West End, at the National Theatre (U.K.) and in major opera houses and theaters throughout the world. His design work was on display last summer in the MAKE/BELIEVE exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Paul Hackenmueller has designed lighting for Broadway productions including Disgraced, Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill, Superfly, Fela!, Desire Under the Elms, A Bronx Tale, Mauritius, The Frogs and Martin Guerre. He has also designed concert lighting for the likes of Norah Jones, Beyoncé, John Legend, Taylor Swift, Justin Timberlake, Garth Brooks, Tony Bennett, Gloria Estefan and many more.

Driscoll Otto's projection projects include The Urban Dictionary Plays and The Netflix Plays with Arts Nova; The Steadfast with Slant Theater Project; Long Day's Journey with York Shakespeare Company; numerous productions for the New York Musical Theatre Festival. At the regional level, Otto has designed for Dallas Theater Center, Trinity Repertory Theatre, Shakespeare Dallas and many more.

For additional information about The Dallas Opera's Lincoln Center Simulcast of Mark Adamo's Becoming Santa Claus, contact 212-721-6500.

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