St. Louis Opera Kicks Off Summer 2014 Season

"Inch by inch, step by step," as they say, St. Louis has been rising toward the top of the list of American cities that produce opera. This year's numbers are not yet in, of course, but it's almost a cinch that in total performances St. Louis will now be number five in the nation (after the much larger New York, San Francisco, Chicago and Houston). In total performances per thousand population St. Louis will be second-after little Sarasota, Florida.[1]

The 2014 season in St. Louis is exciting:

OPERA THEATRE OF ST. LOUIS' 39th Festival Season.

http://www.opera-stl.org/http://www.opera-stl.org/

This is St. Louis' prized centerpiece of opera, with a world-wide reputation. It is famous for its superb productions. The company's home is the beautiful and comfortable 763-seat Browning Theatre at Webster University. Gourmet picnic suppers may be enjoyed before the show on the lovely grounds of the theatre. All operas are performed in English with super-titles.

The OTSL season consists of:

The Magic Flute (Mozart) May 24 - June 28

This, the fourth most popular opera world-wide, will be directed by the multi-faceted Isaac Mizrahi -a prominent New York fashion designer turned opera director. For this production Mizrahi is not only stage director, but scene and costume designer as well. We can expect the unexpected from this most imaginative man. Jane Glover, the renowned Mozart expert, is conductor. The cast features several brilliant young rising stars: Sean Panikkar will play Tamino; Elizabeth Zharoff is Pamina; Claire de Sévigné is Queen of the Night; Levi Hernandez is Papageno; Matthew Anchel is Sarastro; and Matthew DiBattista is Monostatos. There will be ten performances.

The Elixir of Love (Donizetti) May 31 - June 25

Under conductor Stephen Lord and stage director Jose Maria Condemi, the cast of this magical comic gem will include René Barbera as Nemorino. (Barbera is winner of Plácido Domingo's Operalia world opera competition.) Adina will be sung by Susannah Biller, Belcore by Tim Mix, and Dr. Dulcamara by Patrick Carfizzi.

There will be seven performances.

27 (Ricky Ian Gordon and Royce Vavrek) June 14 - 29

This work was commissioned by OTSL as part of its New Works, Bold Voices series. The production will be OTSL's twenty-fourth world premiere.

Paris roared in the 1920s, inspiring the art and literature of a Lost Generation of expatriates. At the epicenter of this creative explosion was Gertrude Stein, whose salon at 27 Rue de Fleurus became a second home for such luminaries as Fitzgerald, Hemingway, and Picasso. International sensation Stephanie Blythe? makes her OTSL debut as Stein, with Elizabeth Futral joining her as Alice B. Toklas. Michael Christie is conductor and James Robinson stage director.

There will be six performances.

Dialogues of the Carmelites (Poulenc) June 18 - 28

Some of the company's most highly regarded singers from past seasons will share the stage. Kelly Kaduce will sing Blanche; Ashley Emerson is Sr. Constance; Meredith Arwady is Mme. de Croissy; Troy Cook is the Marquis de la Force. Daveda Karanas makes her OTSL debut as Mother Marie.

But of course the headliner is Christine Brewer, who is returning to the stage on which she began her opera career. BBC Music has named Miss Brewer one of the top twenty sopranos of the twentieth century. She'll receive a huge welcome at OTSL after an absence of over two decades.

Ward Stare is conductor and Robin Guarino is stage director.

There will be five performances.

UNION AVENUE OPERA (20th season)

http://unionavenueopera.org/

This remarkable small company has built a reputation for excellence. Its home in the nave of the Union Avenue Christian Church is a venue that is acoustically lovely. It offers you perhaps the most intimate opera experience you can find anywhere. Under the artistic direction of Scott Schoonover the company has steadily grown. Their artistic work is reliably fine. All operas are sung in the original language with supertitles.

Their 2014 season consists of:

La Traviata (Verdi) July 11 - 19

La Traviata, one of the most beloved tragedies in opera. The cast includes Zulimar López-Hernándes as Violetta, Riccardo Iannello as Alfredo, and Robert Garner as Giorgio. Scott Schoonover is conductor and Tim Ocel is director. There will be four performances.

A Streetcar Named Desire (Previn) August 1 - 9

If ever there was a play that deserved to be an opera this is it. The cast for this opera based on Tennessee Williams iconic play includes Lacy Sauter as Blanche, Bernardo Bermudez as Stanley, Katherine Giaquinto as Stella and Anthony Webb as Mitch. Christopher Limber directs; Kostis Protopapis conducts. There will be four performances.

Siegfried (Wagner) August 22 - 30

This Siegfried is reduced and adapted by English composer Jonathan Dove. His masterful cuts condense the opera in length to under three hours and will be enhanced by video projections befitting the magnificent grandeur of the Ring cycle. This is the third Ring Cycle work the company has produced in as many years. Scott Schoonover conducts and Karen Coe Miller directs. The cast includes Clay Hilley as Siegfried, Marc Schapman as Mime, David Dillard as the Wanderer, Alexandra LoBianco as Brunnhilde, Nathan Whitson as Fafner, and Jordan Shanahan as Alberich. There will be four performances.

WINTER OPERA (7th season)

http://www.winteroperastl.org

As its name implies St. Louis' youngest professional opera company has no summer season. They will open Le Nozze de Figaro in November, L'Amico Fritz in January, and Otello next March. But artists from Winter Opera will offer some special summer evenings for opera lovers. These will be at Dominic's Restaurant on "The Hill," St. Louis' historic Italian neighborhood.

• May 25: Comic Opera-An evening of comedic opera, operetta and musical theatre
• June 25: Italian Serenade-Neapolitan songs, Italian art songs and classic serenades
• July 30: Broadway Night-songs from Broadway's Golden Age.
• August 27: Diner's Choice-Request your favorite arias, art songs or songs from musical theatre. (Submit requests by August 1.)

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