The Canadian Opera Company's Glencore Ensemble Studio School Tour Presents THE BREMEN TOWN MUSICIANS and THE SCORPION'S STING, 11/3-30
By: BWW News Desk Oct. 15, 2014
The Canadian Opera Company'sGlencore Ensemble Studio School Tourreturns to elementary and middle schools across Ontario from November 3 - 30, 2014. Two engaging and entertaining operas by Canadian composer Dean Burry headline the tour for 2014: The Bremen Town Musicians and The Scorpions' Sting: An Egyptian Myth. These child-friendly operas expect to reach 16,000 students from Kindergarten to grade eight over the course of the tour.
"We are delighted to once again bring opera directly to its youngest audiences through theGlencore Ensemble Studio School Tour," says COC General Director Alexander Neef. "For many of the students, the school tour is their first opportunity to experience any kind of live performance. We hope that by making the art form accessible to children, it will help pave the way for a life-long love of opera and the performing arts."
Each of the Glencore Ensemble Studio School Tour's operas featured this year were composed for young audiences, and draw from classic fairy tales and ancient mythology in their respective stories. Ideal for students in Kindergarten to grade six, The Bremen Town Musicians, based on a tale by the Grimm Brothers, is a new COC production created especially for the tour. This year, the opera also travels to schools in Sudbury for a special week of performances. Meanwhile, The Scorpions' Sting: An Egyptian Myth, a school tour favourite, is suitable for audiences in Kindergarten to grade eight. In addition to the school tour performances, members of the public will have the rare opportunity to see The Scorpions' Sting: An Egyptian Myth in an exclusive performance at the Royal Ontario Museum's Signy & Cléophée Eaton Theatre on Saturday, November 29. Entry is free with museum admission.
Both The Bremen Town Musicians and The Scorpions' Sting: An Egyptian Myth are 45 minutes in length and performed in English, making them easily accessible for younger audiences. Each performance concludes with a 15-minute question-and-answer period with the cast and crew. These annual touring productions feature the rising young stars of the COC's Ensemble Studio, Canada's premier training program for young opera professionals.
A complete 2014 Glencore Ensemble Studio School Tour schedule is available upon request. The COC welcomes media coverage of school performances. Photographers and writers must advise the COC's media relations team 48 hours before the performance of their attendance at the in-school presentation. The COC must advise the school before any media can attend. This is a legal requirement.
THE BREMEN TOWN MUSICIANS BY DEAN BURRY
The Bremen Town Musicians was originally commissioned by Ottawa's Opera Lyra in 2009. Based on a fairy tale by the famous Brothers Grimm, the opera tells the story of a donkey, a dog, a cat and a rooster who embark on a journey to find freedom and start a new life after being mistreated by their owners. This all-new production, from directorAshlie Corcoran, was commissioned by the COC for this year's Glencore Ensemble Studio School Tour, with sets and costumes created by multi-Dora Award-winning designer Camellia Koo.
Creative Team
Director: Ashlie Corcoran
Music Director: Jenna Douglas
Set & Costume Designer: Camellia Koo
Stage Manager: Michael Barrs
Donkey: Iain MacNeil
Dog: Charlotte Burrage
Cat: Aviva Fortunata
Rooster: Andrew Haji
Robber (and others): Gordon Bintner
THE SCORPIONS' STING: AN EGYPTIAN MYTH BY DEAN BURRY
The Scorpions' Sting: An Egyptian Myth was commissioned by the COC for the school tour in 2006 (under its original title Isis and the Seven Scorpions). Set in the midst of an Egyptian sandstorm, the opera follows the time-travelling adventures of Professor Hornsby and his students. When Professor Hornsby is stung by a poisonous scorpion, his students must find the cure hidden in ancient hieroglyphics in the Lost Temple of Isis. In an effort to save their professor, the students use Isis' ancient wisdom and learn the power of forgiveness. The Scorpions' Sting: An Egyptian Myth was last performed as part of theGlencore Ensemble Studio School Tour in 2011.
Creative Team
Director: Joel Ivany
Music Director: Jennifer Szeto
Set & Costume Designer: Brent Krysa
Stage Manager: Michael Lewandowski
Professor Hornsby/Set: Jean-Philippe Fortier-Lazure/Owen McCausland
Sally Smith/Isis: Karine Boucher
David Sands/Osiris/Scorpions: Clarence Frazer
Molly Brown/Nephthys/Tahemet: Erica Iris
ABOUT DEAN BURRY
Acclaimed Canadian composer Dean Burry graduated from music programs at Mount Allison University and the University of Toronto. He developed the COC's After School Opera Program in 1997 and currently leads sessions at four of the program's five locations. He has also composed many original operas and musicals for both children and adults. A long-time artist educator with the COC, he was commissioned to write the children's opera The Brothers Grimm in 1999 for the COC's annual school tour. The work has become the most performed Canadian opera in history. In addition to The Scorpions' Sting and The Bremen Town Musicians, major works by Burry include Under the Night, The Heart That Knows andHome and Away (Live Bait Theatre); Songs of the Island (Charlottetown Festival); The Hobbit and The Secret World of OG (Canadian Children's Opera Company); Pandora's Locker (The Glenn Gould School); A Creature of Habit (Rising Tide Theatre), The Mummers' Masque (Toronto Masque Theatre); Baby Kintyre (CBC Radio); and Angela and Her Sisters(University of Manitoba).
ABOUT THE CANADIAN OPERA COMPANY
Based in Toronto, the Canadian Opera Company is the largest producer of opera in Canada and one of the largest in North America. The COC enjoys a loyal audience support-base and one of the highest attendance and subscription rates in North America. Under its leadership team of General Director Alexander Neef and Music Director Johannes Debus, the COC is increasingly capturing the opera world's attention. The COC maintains its international reputation for artistic excellence and creative innovation by creating new productions within its diverse repertoire, collaborating with leading opera companies and festivals, and attracting the world's foremost Canadian and international artists. The COC performs in its own opera house, the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, hailed internationally as one of the finest in the world. Designed by Diamond Schmitt Architects, the Four Seasons Centre opened in 2006, and is also the performance venue for The National Ballet of Canada. For more information on the COC, visit its award-winning website, coc.ca.
Photo Credit: Anand Maharaj
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