Villains Steal The Spotlight In Florida Grand Opera's Inaugural SongFest Concert

Rogues, rascals, and rats slink center stage when the Florida Grand Opera Studio Artists present Scandals and Scoundrels: Opera's Contemptible Characters and Sordid Situations. The first concert in FGO's three-part SongFest Series explores opera's deliciously dark side.

There are two performances: Friday, November 17, 2023, at 7:30 p.m. in Miami and Sunday, November 19, 2023, at 3:00 p.m. in Fort Lauderdale. Tickets are $15; free to donors and subscribers. Tickets are available at fgo.org, or by calling 800.741.1010.

The Florida Grand Opera Studio Artists are soprano Sara Kennedy, mezzo-soprano Taylor-Alexis DuPont, tenor Joseph McBrayer, baritone Joseph Canuto Leon, and bass-baritone Keith Klein. These early-career artists come from all over the nation to serve as the face of opera in Miami and Fort Lauderdale. They appear in both leading and supporting roles in mainstage performances and tour Miami-Dade and Broward counties in a wide variety of appearances. In 2024, the Studio Artists will embark on a special new initiative, the Zip CODE (Community Opera Delivered Equitably) Tour, designed to bring vibrant opera performances to nontraditional venues in zip codes throughout Miami-Dade and Broward Counties. Other appearances include a variety of community engagement events, including a popular Zarzuela concert, Opera and Reggae at the Miami Bandstand, and the SongFest Series.

The Scandals and Scoundrels concerts feature villains and their roguish repertoire including the womanizing Duke of Mantua with “La donna e mobile” and the famous Quartet from Rigoletto; Carmen's Seguidilla and seduction of the murderous Don José; “Vous qui faites l'endormie,” Mefistofele' satanic serenade from Faust; Tosca's “Vissi d'arte” as she faces the cruel Scarpia; and a preview of the upcoming I pagliacci with a duet in which the creepy Tonio hits on his boss's unfaithful wife.

“As a bass-baritone, I've played my share of villains, so SongFest:Scandals and Scoundrels is a program I could really sink my teeth into planning,” says Samuel M. Townsend Studio Artist Program Manager Neil Nelson. “It was a lot of fun to program, a lot of fun to rehearse; it's a lot of fun to sing. Most of all, it's a lot of fun to hear. I can't wait for our South Florida audience to hear our Studio Artists in this repertoire. They will be blown away.”

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