Season Tickets Now On Sale For Opera Santa Barbara

Single tickets are on sale now for Opera Santa Barbara's 2016-17 season, which will open November 4 and 6 with Georges Bizet's timeless drama Carmen, followed by productions of Leoš Janá?ek's imaginative The Cunning Little Vixen on March 3 and 5, and Giacomo Puccini's richly melodic La Rondine on April 28 and 30. Ranging in price from $29 to $204, tickets can be purchased at www.granadasb.org or by calling 805-899-2222. Performances will take place at the historic Granada Theatre, 1214 State Street in downtown Santa Barbara.

Opera Santa Barbara's 23rd season is the first to be planned in its entirety by Kostis Protopapas, who was named the company's artistic director in July 2015.

"It's my happy challenge as artistic director to assemble a season that gives some sense of what this amazing art form has to offer in terms of entertainment, feeling, and meaning," he said. "We look forward to sharing these works with you, in productions painstakingly prepared by our production staff, orchestra, and chorus, and featuring some of the finest young American singers working today."

Mr. Protopapas will make his company conducting debut for the season-opening production of Carmen, Bizet's ever-popular tale of love and jealousy set amid the vibrant, unruly streets of 19th century Seville. The drama about a strong-willed gypsy seductress, a charismatic bullfighter, and a hapless soldier scandalized Paris upon its premiere in 1875, but has since become one of the world's most frequently staged operas, beloved for its irresistible melodies and captivating dances.

Directed by Octavio Cardenas, Opera Santa Barbara's production will feature some of the region's best-known Flamenco dancers, and will mark the inaugural appearance of the company's new Youth Opera chorus for singers ages 8 to 18.

Mezzo-soprano Leann Sandel-Pantaleo will make her company debut in the title role. Lauded by the Portland Press Herald for her "glorious voice," she has sung Carmen with both Opera Omaha and Tulsa Opera, and last season performed as Amneris inAida with Sarasota Opera. Other recent roles include Tamara in the world premiere of Enemies, A Love Story with Palm Beach Opera, Ursule in Béatrice et Bénédict with Houston Grand Opera, and Siegrune in Die Walküre with the Metropolitan Opera. Ms. Sandel-Pantaleo also has sung Siegrune at the Berlin State Opera, Teatro alla Scala in Milan, and the BBC Proms in London. This season she will appear as the Old Prioress in Dialogues of the Carmelites with Sarasota Opera.

Critically acclaimed tenor Harold Meers will sing the role of Don Jose, the soldier whose consuming obsession turns deadly. Since his professional debut with Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Mr. Meers has frequented the principal lyric venues of North America, including appearances with San Francisco Opera, San Diego Opera, Baltimore Opera, New Orleans Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, and Minnesota Opera, among many others. He sang the role of the Duke in Opera Santa Barbara's 2007 production of Rigoletto. Rounding out the cast will be baritone Keith Phares as the flamboyant bullfighter Escamillo and Trinidadian soprano Jeanine De Bique as Micaela. Opera News has hailed Mr. Phares' Grammy Award-winning recording ofElmer Gantry with Florentine Opera as "a strong contender for iconographic recognition." An alumnus of the Music Academy of the West, he also has performed with Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Seattle Opera, Houston Grand Opera, and numerous others. Ms. De Bique boasts many international awards and credits, and will be among the soloists for the Santa Barbara Symphony's season-opening performance of Beethoven's stirring Symphony No. 9 in October.

Opera Santa Barbara's production of Carmen will be presented at 7:30 pm on Friday, November 4, and at 2:30 pm on Sunday, November 6, in the Granada Theatre. Performances will be sung in French with English surtitles.

Superstar soprano - and UC Santa Barbara faculty member - Isabel Bayrakdarian will headline the cast of The Cunning Little Vixen, Janá?ek's humorous and tender allegory about the connections between people and animals, and the cyclical nature of life and death. Directed by Crystal Manich and designed by Francois-Pierre Couture, the new production will appeal to both children and adults, and will be performed in English with English surtitles. Baritone David Kravitz will portray the Forester, and mezzo-soprano Lauren McNeese will make her company debut as the Fox. Hailed as an "electrifying" performer by The New York Times, Ms. Bayrakdarian has captivated opera and concert audiences the world over. Mr. Kravitz and Ms. McNeese are increasingly sought after by opera companies throughout the nation.

The season will conclude with Opera Santa Barbara's premiere production of La Rondine, Puccini's elegant and poignant operetta about a worldly woman who falls in love with a naïve younger man, who causes her to question the cost of her glittering existence. Soprano Karin Wolverton will make her company debut as Magda, tenor Adam Diegel will sing the role of Ruggiero, and baritone Zeffin Quinn Hollis will perform as Rambaldo. Tara Faircloth will direct. Mr. Diegel's extensive credits include appearances with the Metropolitan Opera, while Ms. Wolverton and Mr. Hollis continue to earn plaudits for their versatility as performers.

Complete artist biographies are available at www.operasb.org.

To place a season subscription order, visit www.operasb.org or call 805-898-3890.

Subscribers can purchase season tickets for their children ages 17 and under for just $42. These discounted tickets allow for seating with parents in all sections of the Granada except the loge and boxes.

Related Programming

The November 4 performance of Carmen will be preceded by an opening-night dinner in the McCune Founders Room of the Granada Theatre beginning at 5 pm. Participants will enjoy valet parking, a sumptuous dinner, private intermission, and a post-performance reception. Tickets cost $250. For tickets or additional information, call 805-893-3890.

Opera Santa Barbara will offer a series of free noontime concerts at public libraries throughout the region beginning October 10. Featuring participants in the company's Mosher Studio Artists Program performing arias and duets with piano accompaniment, the concerts will take place at libraries in Ojai, Santa Barbara, Santa Maria, Thousand Oaks, and Ventura. A performance schedule is available online at www.operasb.org/freeconcerts.php.

Open to all ticket holders, free informative talks will take place 45 minutes before each Opera Santa Barbara performance at the Granada Theatre.

For more information, visit www.operasb.org or call 805-898-3890.

About Opera Santa Barbara

Founded in 1994 by Marilyn Gilbert and Nathan Rundlett, Opera Santa Barbara is committed to presenting productions and educational programs of the highest quality. Over more than two decades the company has staged some 50 operas and devoted thousands of hours to community outreach. The organization remains dedicated to the core passions that animated its founding: celebrating and championing the breadth and beauty of opera, and contributing to the cultural enrichment of the Santa Barbara community. Additional information is available at www.operasb.org.

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