Single Tickets On Sale for Song Cycle & Nathan Gunn Cabaret Performance

The Dallas Opera is pleased to announce the sale of one-price, single reserved seats for the world premiere of a new song cycle by composer Jake Heggie and librettist Gene Scheer commissioned for the company's much-anticipated annual Spring Gala, UNVEIL. The performance will take place on Friday, April 8, 2011 at 8:00 PM in the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House at the AT&T Performing Arts Center in Downtown Dallas and single tickets for seats located in the Mezzanine (and above) are available for $75 on a "first come, first served" best-seat-available basis.

The world premiere performance will feature renowned American baritone Nathan Gunn, accompanied by Mr. Heggie himself.

The new song cycle has been dedicated by Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer to legendary philanthropist Margaret McDermott, in honor of her visionary leadership and her support of both the Dallas Opera and the Dallas Museum of Art. The work is entitled, "A Question of Light," and consists of new music set to original poetry by Mr. Scheer. The six songs are inspired by a selection of influential and widely admired masterpieces currently on view at the Dallas Museum of Art, which has partnered with the Dallas Opera to create something new for North Texas and the world. These works of art include:

The Light of Coincidences (René Magritte, 1933, Oil on canvas)
Eccentric Flint depicting a crocodile canoe with passengers
(Maya c. A.D. 600-900, Flint)
Yellow Roses in a Vase (Gustave Caillebotte, 1882, Oil on canvas)
Place de la Concorde (Piet Mondrian, 1938-1943, Oil on canvas)
El Hombre (Rufino Tamayo, 1953, Vinyl with pigment on panel) and
Watch (Gerald Murphy, 1925, Oil on canvas)

"Gene and I have collaborated several times on song cycles inspired by works of art," explained composer Jake Heggie. "So I proposed that we create songs based on great artworks that are connected to Margaret in some way - either donated by her, or by her close friends, or in her honor.
"We toured the museum, with Bonnie Pitman, The Eugene McDermott Director of the DMA and Olivier Meslay, Senior Curator of European and American Art and the Barbara Thomas Lemmon Curator of European Art, describing many of the masterworks there. Gene and I discussed our reactions and found six pieces that set our imaginations aflame. Gene immediately set to work, finding stories that might illuminate a surprising perspective or insight.
"Moby-Dick took me to a new level in my composition - and these songs are a direct extension of that musical language and world," added Mr. Heggie. "Each part of the cycle asks who we are, and how we fit into the landscape. What a work of art says to us, and what we bring to it as we look at it, as well."

This occasion marks the first collaboration for Heggie and Scheer since last year's Dallas Opera world premiere of their critically acclaimed new opera, based on the seminal American novel by Herman Melville. It also gives music lovers a unique opportunity to experience this most personal of art forms in the intimate setting and phenomenal acoustic of the Winspear Opera House.
"It's no less thrilling than writing an opera," explains Gene Scheer. "If the moment works and you feel like you've been able to say something-and say it beautifully-it's incredibly rewarding," Scheer adds.

The other portion of the evening's program will consist of popular songs and Broadway favorites, with Mr. Gunn, recently praised in Opera News as a singer "with unmistakable star power...who truly enjoys the songs more than the sound of his own voice," being accompanied on the piano by his wife and frequent creative collaborator, Julie Jordan Gunn.

"Besides being a tremendous celebration of the work and mission of the Dallas Opera," says Dallas Opera General Director and CEO Keith Cerny, "the 2011 Gala is a vitally important fund-raiser; our chance to raise public awareness of the contributions this company makes to the civic and cultural life of Dallas and to underscore the necessity for widespread, generous support."
Adds Mr. Cerny, "There is no better way to demonstrate what the Dallas Opera adds to the local quality of life than to-once more-reunite for an exciting encore the brilliant artists who gave this region one of its latest, greatest musical successes. And, better yet, to honor the extraordinary Mrs. McDermott and to acknowledge her lifelong commitment to music and the arts, including her profound generosity and leadership at the Dallas Opera and the Dallas Museum of Art-a commitment which has had such a positive, ongoing impact on this city and generations of North Texans."

"Inspired by six of the greatest masterpieces in the Museum's collections, this song cycle is a glorious celebration of Margaret McDermott's love of beauty and the arts and her many friendships-with Nancy Hamon, Jim and Lillian Clark, Stanley Marcus, and Ruth Spence. It is also an exciting and most appropriate tribute to her more than six decades of avid dedication to enhancing the Dallas arts at the highest level of excellence," said Bonnie Pitman, The Eugene McDermott Director of the Dallas Museum of Art. "The DMA's ongoing commitment to creativity and collaboration with our community is represented in this wonderful partnership with The Dallas Opera and with Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer."

"I chose to become involved with the Dallas Opera," explains UNVEIL Chair Jessica Jesse, "in order to bring a fresh perspective to the task of attracting and sustaining a new generation of opera audiences.
"I hope to underscore the intrinsic value of this opera company, as well as this extremely sophisticated art form, while making other art, music and theater lovers aware of its power to transform lives and elevate expectations. Dallas is, indeed, becoming one of those privileged places where the arts are redefining our future prospects and perspectives.

Underwriters for UNVEIL, the Dallas Opera's Gala Evening include:
Arlene and John Dayton
Jessica and Bill Jesse
The Eugene McDermott Foundation
Michael P. and Judge Barbara M. Lynn
Joyce and Harvey Mitchell
Mildred Oppenheimer
Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P.
LockheEd Martin

The Honorary Chairs of UNVEIL: The 2011 Dallas Opera Gala are dedicated Dallas Opera patrons and longtime supporters Joyce and Harvey Mitchell.
Joyce Mitchell, who currently serves on the Dallas Opera's Board of Directors, is the only woman to serve as Chairman of the company in its 54-year-history (1994-1996).
Harvey Mitchell was the Chair of the Search Committee responsible for the hiring of General Director and CEO Keith Cerny in April 2010.
Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell also served together as co-chairs for "Ovation!"-the 2009 Grand Opening Festivities (headlined by soprano Deborah Voigt) marking the inauguration of Dallas Opera performances in the new Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House-as well as the year-long 50th Anniversary Celebrations of the company, which included both a phenomenal concert performance of Bluebeard's Castle (mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves and bass Robert Lloyd) and a special 50th Anniversary Gala and concert, featuring the Dallas Opera Orchestra in performance with acclaimed trumpeter Chris Botti and opera's superstar soprano Renée Fleming.

This year's pre-performance cocktail party (which kicks-off at 7:00 PM) will be hosted by PaperCity's Brooke Hortenstine.
"We are thrilled to announce that for the first time ever, The Dallas Opera is offering a special Young Patrons Ensemble ticket," says cocktail party chairman Brooke Hortenstine. "For $125, one can mingle with the UNVEIL onstage dinner patrons at the pre-performance cocktail party and enjoy drinks, amusements and an amazing favor bag. YPE ticket holders will then take an orchestra seat to witness the outstanding cabaret performance and world premiere song cycle. "This expedited evening all happens within the timeframe of 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM-perfect for enjoying dinner someplace afterwards." says Hortenstine. "It will be a ground-breaking and luxurious night of music, cocktails, surprises and treats, all via an affordable ticket price," she adds.

Event Sponsors include Cartier (the official jeweler and watchmaker of the Dallas Opera); American Airlines (the official airline of the Dallas Opera); Grey Goose Vodka; Dreamfly Productions (Visual Intallments); PaperCity (Opera Gala Lead Media Partner); Heritage Auction Galleries (Auction Partner); Bell'Invito; Olivia Riegal; NEST and The Wine Group.

Seats for the Dallas Opera 2011 Gala, UNVEIL, including the world premiere performance, are available by contacting Special Events Manager Morgan Vaughn at 214.443.1063 or morgan.vaughn@dallasopera.org. Tickets begin at $1,000 per person for the dinner and entertainment.

Seats for the recital only are a flat $75 dollars and are available through the Dallas Opera Ticket Services Office at 214.443.1000. You may also purchase online at www.dallasopera.org/gala.

Parking onsite will be available in the Lexus Red Parking beneath the Winspear Opera House and the Lexus Silver Parking adjacent to the Wyly Theatre. Should those reach capacity, additional paid parking is available at nearby One Arts Plaza and in several surface lots. Prices range from $5 to $25 per vehicle.

Artist Bios:
Nathan Gunn
Baritone

Nathan Gunn created the roles of Clyde Griffiths in the world premiere of Tobias Picker's An American Tragedy at the Metropolitan Opera, Father Delura in Peter Eötvös' Love and Other Demons at the Glyndebourne Opera Festival, and Alec Harvey in André Previn's Brief Encounter at Houston Grand Opera. Recent roles include Malatesta in Donizetti's Don Pasquale in Dallas, Figaro in Rossini's Barber of Seville and Belcore in Donizetti's Elisir d'amore in Los Angeles, the title role in Britten's Billy Budd in Bilbao, Tarquinius in Britten's Rape of Lucretia in Philadelphia, and Papageno in Mozart's Zauberflöte at the Met. Gunn's other roles include Zurga in Bizet's Pêcheurs de perles, the title role in Thomas's Hamlet, Guglielmo in Mozart's Così fan tutte (in Dallas and elsewhere), and the Count in Mozart's Nozze di Figaro. Gunn has also sung at San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Royal Opera Covent Garden, Opéra National de Paris, Bayerische Staatsoper, and Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie, and in concerts with the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony Orchestra, and London Symphony Orchestra. Gunn has appeared at Seattle Opera in Catán's Florencia en el Amazonas as Ríobolo and in Die Zauberflöte as Papageno.

Julie Jordan Gunn
Accompanist

An associate professor of accompanying at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Dr. Gunn is a music director, vocal coach, song arranger and leader in the promotion of American arts. She designs and performs song cycles and has appeared on many prestigious series in recent years, including the Carnegie Hall Pure Voice Series, Lincoln Center Great Performers, London's Queen Elizabeth Hall, Brussels Theatre de la Monnaie, the 92nd Street Y, University of Chicago Presents, San Francisco Performances, Broad Stage in Santa Monica, Oberlin College, Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, and the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts. In 2008, she had the privilege of playing a private recital for members of the U.S. Supreme Court. Dr. Gunn has also served on the music staff of the Metropolitan Opera Young Artist Program, Wolf Trap Opera, St. Louis Opera Theatre, Southern Methodist University, Opera North and Chicago Opera Theater. She has also conducted master classes at universities and young artist programs across the U.S., including Houston Grand Opera Studio. She solicits and programs the work of emerging and established American songwriters and is proud to have been the music director of her husband Nathan Gunn's solo disc, Just Before Sunrise (Sony/BMG) which included arrangements of songs by Gene Scheer, Ben Moore, Joe Thalken, Billy Joel, Sting and Charles Ives.

Jake Heggie
Composer/Accompanist

Jake Heggie is the American composer of the operas Moby-Dick, Dead Man Walking, Three Decembers, The End of the Affair, To Hell and Back and the stage works For a Look or a Touch and At the Statue of Venus. He has also composed more than 200 art songs, as well as orchestral, choral and chamber music. His recent recording of songs and duets, PASSING BY: Songs by Jake Heggie, features performances by Isabel Bayrakdarian, Zheng Cao, Joyce DiDonato, Susan Graham, Paul Groves, Keith Phares and Frederica von Stade. Heggie is the 2010-11 guest artist-in-residence at the University of North Texas at Denton where he will compose his first symphony, based on several Ahab monologues from the novel Moby-Dick. The "Ahab" Symphony will receive its premiere in 2012 with tenor Richard Croft as soloist. Other current projects include commissions for Carnegie Hall, San Francisco Performances and Houston Grand Opera; as well as a one-act opera for chorus for the John Alexander Singers and the Pacific Chorale, and a new version of For a Look or a Touch featuring the 200-voice Seattle Men's Chorus. Heggie's operas have been performed to tremendous acclaim internationally in Australia, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Sweden, Ireland, Austria, South Africa and at more than a dozen American opera companies. He lives in San Francisco.

Gene Scheer
Lyricist

A librettist and songwriter in his own right, the work of Gene Scheer is noted for its scope and versatility. His music and lyrics have gained enthusiastic admirers among a broad audience and his outstanding libretto for the critically acclaimed Dallas Opera world premiere, Moby-Dick, was singled out for deftly reimagining Herman Melville's sprawling 19th century literary epic as a taut and genuinely compelling stage drama. In 2005, Mr. Scheer worked as librettist with Tobias Picker on "An American Tragedy" which was premiered at the Metropolitan Opera. Their first opera Thérèse Raquin, premiered at the Dallas Opera in November 2001 and was subsequently performed in Montreal (in a French translation), San Diego, and at Covent Garden. The recording, available on Chandos, was cited by Opera News as one of the ten best recordings of 2002. Since introducing his compositions just a few years ago, Mr. Scheer's songs have been performed by artists including Renée Fleming (with Christoph Eschenbach), Denyce Graves, Sylvia McNair, Stephanie Blythe, Jennifer Larmore and Nathan Gunn. Mr. Scheer collaborated with Wynton Marsalis on a piece entitled "It never goes away," featured in Mr. Marsalis' work "Congo Square." This new work was premiered in New Orleans and toured the U.S. before being performed at Lincoln Center in May 6, 2006. The distinguished documentary film maker, Ken Burns, featured Norah Jones singing Mr. Scheer's song "American Anthem" in his Emmy Award-winning World War II series entitled, "The War," which aired on PBS. "American Anthem", first performed by Ms. Graves for President and Mrs. Clinton at the Smithsonian Institute, has been recorded both by Denyce Graves (on RCA) and by Nathan Gunn (on EMI). Nathan Gunn also performed Mr. Scheer's song cycle "Voices from World War II" with the Isis Chamber orchestra after debuting the new work at London's Wigmore Hall.

 

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