|
Houston Grand Opera
|
|
|
||
composer
Rachel Portman
librettist Nicholas Wright director Francesca Zambello conductor Patrick Summers/James Lowe set and costume designer Maria Bjørnson lighting designerRick Fisher associate director and choreographer Denni Sayers set realizer Adrian Linford costume realizer Sue Willmington children's chorus director Karen Reeves HGO general director David Gockley |
||
|
||
pilot
Teddy Tahu
Rhodes |
||
|
||
Rick Fishers recent opera works include Wozzeck (Royal Opera at Covent Garden), Turandot (Bolshoi Moscow and St. Petersburg), Flying Dutchman (Spoleto), La Clemenza di Tito and La Traviata (Santa Fe Opera), La Vestale (English National Opera), Gloriana and La Bohème (Opera North), and Of Mice and Men (Washington). His recent theater work included productions for Broadway, Royal Court, Royal National Theatre, and Royal Shakespeare Company, plus Disneys The Hunchback of Notre Dame in Berlin. Current theater projects include Red Demon and Peri Banez (Young Vic Theatre), Honour and Jerry Springer: The Opera (Royal National Theatre), and Intermezzo and Madame Mao (Santa Fe Opera). He is the recipient of Olivier Awards for Best Lighting Design for Lady In The Dark, Chips With Everything, and Machinal (Royal National Theatre), Moonlight (Almeida and Comedy), and Hysteria (Royal Court). He also won a Tony Award for An Inspector Calls on Broadway. He is chairman of the British Association of Lighting Designers and is also visiting professor in lighting design at the Dramatisk Institut, Stockholm.
|
||
PATRICK SUMMERS - Conductor The Little Prince is HGO Music Director Patrick Summers third world premiere with HGO. His other conducting duties this season included Lucia di Lammermoor , The Merry Widow, and La Traviata, featuring Renée Flemings long-awaited role debut as Violetta. Last season, Maestro Summers conducted HGOs season-opener Rigoletto , The Abduction from the Seraglio , and a new Francesca Zambello production of Of Mice and Men, which he conducted first in Bregenz, Austria, to international acclaim. He conducted HGOs world premieres of Carlisle Floyds Cold Sassy Tree (2000) and Tod Machovers Resurrection (1999, released on CD by Albany) and led the remountings of Daniel Catáns Florencia en el Amazonas , 2001 (just released on the Albany label) and Mark Adamos Little Women, 2000 (released on CD by Koch/Ondine and telecast nationally on PBS/WNETs Great Performances). As a conductor in great demand, Mo. Summers recently conducted Lucia di Lammermoor at the Metropolitan Opera and is the principal guest conductor of the San Francisco Opera. He conducted the European premiere of André Previns A Streetcar Named Desire with the Opéra National du Rhin and, last year, he made his United Kingdom debut conducting a new James MacDonald production of Rigoletto for the Welsh National Opera, which toured and was telecast live on BBC. Mo. Summerss recent discography includes the Grammy Award-winning Bel Canto) featuring Renée Fleming and the Orchestra of St. Luke's.
|
||
Young American artist James Lowe is currently Associate Conductor at Houston Grand Opera, where he has led performances of Carmen, The Abduction from the Seraglio , and the HGO Studio production of The Tender Land. Most recently at HGO, he conducted the workshop reading of Daniel Catáns new opera, Salsipuedes , and acted as prompter for Ariodante. As resident conductor at the Ash Lawn Opera Festival, Mr. Lowe conducted La Traviata, La Cenerentola, and Kiss Me, Kate, and he led this seasons production of Madama Butterfly. For three years, he was musical director of Blackfriars Theater in Rochester, NY, leading over a hundred performances of such productions as Funny Girl , Falsettos , and Merrily We Roll Along. As a solo pianist, Mr. Lowe has appeared with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and the University of Michigan Symphony Orchestra. He has served as a coach and accompanist at the Santa Fe Opera and Virginia Opera, and he toured Germany with the singing group Hudson Shad. Mr. Lowe holds a bachelor of music degree from the Eastman School of Music and a master of music degree from the University of Michigan. For five years, Mr. Lowe was the keyboardist, rhythm guitarist, lead singer and songwriter for the rock band Backwash, co-producing the groups compact disc Goin To The Mall) and touring the Eastern United States.
|
||
DENNI SAYERS - Associate Director/Choreographer Denni Sayerss directorial credits include her recently acclaimed production of West Side Story for the Habima Theatre, Israel; The BFG and The Snowman for the Lyric Theatre (Belfast); YoHo for the Leicester Haymarket; Virtual Reality at the London International Opera Festival; and Takeaway with Cambridge Theatre Company. She also re-directed Carmen for Londons Royal Opera on tour in the Jerusalem Festival. Ms. Sayers choreographed Medea for Opera North, Maria Stuarda for Scottish Opera, and Orfeo ed Euridice for New Israeli Opera. She choreographed Paul Bunyan and The Bartered Bride at the Royal Opera at Covent Garden, Boris Godunov at English National Opera, Arshak 11 in San Francisco, Peter Grimes in Amsterdam, War and Peace at the Bastille and Of Mice and Men in Bregenz, all with Francesca Zambello, and Parsifal at English National Opera, San Francisco and Chicago, Henzes Boulevard Solitude at the Royal Opera house at Covent Garden and The Bartered Wife at Glyndebourne. Current and future engagements include Boris Godunov at Opéra National de Paris and a new production of Tosca with the Canadian Opera Company in Toronto.
|
||
KAREN REEVES - Childrens Chorus Director Since 1991, native Texan Karen Reeves has been HGOs Childrens Chorus Director. The Little Prince marks her nineteenth production preparing the Childrens Chorus or child soloists for Houston Grand Opera. In addition to The Little Prince, other operas she has prepared for HGO featuring only a childrens chorus without a complementary adult chorus are A Midsummer Nights Dream and Hansel and Gretel. As a part of HGOs Education and Outreach Department, Ms. Reeves also directs the HGO High School Voice Studio, a one-year training program for high school seniors preparing for a collegiate music career. The studio is in its fourth year and has sent students on to the best conservatories in the country. Additionally, she directs HGOs summer opera camps for children and teenagers. Ms. Reeves began singing with the HGO Chorus in 1990. She earned her bachelor and master of music in vocal performance from Southwestern University and Rice University, respectively; she pursued other graduate studies at Carnegie Mellon.
|
||
DAVID
GOCKLEY - General Director, Houston Grand Opera "...Mr.
Gockley's influence transcends his company. In ways seldom
|
||
TEDDY TAHU RHODES - The Pilot Baritone Teddy Tahu Rhodes made his Opera Australia debut in 1998 as Dandini (La Cenerentola) and, in 1999, he represented his home country of New Zealand in the Cardiff Singer of the World competition and sang Sharpless in Madama Butterfly with Canterbury Opera and Marcello in La Bohéme and Silvio in Pagliacci for Opera New Zealand. In 2000, he returned to Opera Australia as the Count in The Marriage of Figaro and Demetrius in A Midsummer Nights Dream and made his debut with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and Queensland Symphony Orchestra. That same year, Mr. Rhodes made a highly successful American debut with San Francisco Opera in performances of the role of Joe de Rocher in the world premiere of Jake Heggies Dead Man Walking. In 2001, he joined Opera Australia as a resident principal artist, performing the roles of Guglielmo (Così fan tutte), Belcore (L'Elisir d'amore), and Demetrius and Harlekin (Ariadne auf Naxos). Recently, Mr. Rhodes sang Belcore in Philadelphia and Stanley (A Streetcar Named Desire) with Austin Lyric Opera.
|
||
NATHANIAL IRVIN - The Little Prince Eleven-year-old Nathaniel Irvin of Maple Grove, Minnesota, sang with the Minnesota Orchestra in September and December of 2002 and is currently a soloist with Basilica of Saint Mary Choristers, Cantabile Chorus of the Minnesota Boychoir and Osseo District 279 Select Chorus. He recently appeared in Park Center High Schools production of the Will Rogers Follies and The Guthrie Labs Merrily We Roll Along. He created and starred in neighborhood productions of The Wizard of Oz, which raised funds for a local food pantry; Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, for the benefit of Guillaine-Barre Syndrome; and Oliver, which raised money for music scholarships. Mr. Irvin recently participated in the initial auditions for NBCs new reality series The Search For The Most Talented Kid In America. He enjoys baseball, basketball, movies, swimming, bowling and reading.
|
||
JOHN KOLBET - Snake/Vain Man Mr. Kolbet has become a specialist in the character tenor repertoire; roles this season include his debut with New York City Opera as Second Jew in Salome and Camp Williams in Carlisle Floyds Cold Sassy Tree with Opera Carolina. Last year, he sang Don Curzio in Le nozze di Figaro with Dallas Opera, Spoletta in Tosca with Lyric Opera of Kansas City, and both the title role in The Impresario and Vespone in La Serva Padrona with Connecticut Grand Opera and Orchestra. Previous appearances include the four character roles in Les Contes dHoffmann with Fort Worth Opera, Oreste in La Belle Hélène with Portland Opera, Dr. Caius in Falstaff with Florentine Opera, Goro in Madama Butterfly with Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Tybalt in Roméo et Juliette and Pong in Turandot with Opera Carolina, and other appearances with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Opera Pacific, Minnesota Opera, Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre, El Paso Opera, the San Antonio Symphony, the Colorado Opera Festival, and Mississippi Opera.
|
||
SCOTT SCULLY - Lamplighter/Drunkard American tenor and Houston native Scott Scully spent three years in the Houston Grand Opera Studio, performing many roles for HGOs mainstage, including Pedrillo in The Abduction from the Seraglio, the Ballad Singer in Of Mice and Men, Remendado in Carmen, the Royal Herald in Don Carlo, Yeroshka in Prince Igor, Abdallo in Nabucco, the Shepherd in Tristan and Isolde and the Messenger in Aida. This summer, Mr. Scully made his debut with the San Francisco Opera Center's Merola Program as Rodolfo in La Bohème and repeated the role on the Western Opera Theatre Tour. Last season, he debuted at Palm Beach Opera as Cassio in Verdis Otello and also sang the Chevalier in Dialogues of the Carmelites at Aspen Opera Theatre Center. A three-time recipient of the MacAllister Opera Award, he made his Arizona Opera debut as Nemorino in L'Elisir d'amore in February 2003. Mr. Scully has worked with such conductors as Christoph Eschenbach, Roberto Abbado, Anton Guadagno, Alain Lombard, James Conlon, Julius Rudel, and Patrick Summers.
|
||
MARIE LENORMAND - The Fox French mezzo-soprano Marie Lenormand was a member of the Houston Grand Opera Studio from 1999 to 2001. As a Studio member, Ms. Lenormand performed in various roles, including Mercédès in Carmen, Tebaldo in Don Carlo, the Page in Rigoletto, and Thelma Predmore in the world premiere of Carlisle Floyds Cold Sassy Tree; additionally, she sang in the alternate casts of Così fan tutte (Dorabella) and The Coronation of Poppea (title role). At Glimmerglass Opera, she performed in the world premiere of Central Park, which was later telecast on PBSs Great Performances. She has also sung Cherubino at Fort Worth Opera, as well as Stéphano and the title role in Carmen at the Oberlin Opera Theater. Ms. Lenormand was the alto soloist in Haydns Lord Nelson Mass under Robert Shaw and received the prestigious Lavoisier Scholarship from the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She spent a summer at Wolf Trap Opera where she performed in a recital with Steven Blier and in concert with the National Symphony. Ms. Lenormand has performed numerous times in broadcasts of NPRs World of Opera. Recent and upcoming engagements include Dorabella at the Opéra de Bordeaux, Zerlina in Don Giovanni at New York City Opera, and Cherubino in Marriage of Figaro at the Opéra de Marseille.
|
||
KRISTIN REIERSEN - The Rose Soprano Kristin Reiersen joined the Houston Grand Opera Studio for the 2001-2002 season, where her roles included Blonde in The Abduction from the Seraglio and Kristina in The Makropulos Case. This season, her roles included Musetta in the La Bohème alternate cast, Sylviane in The Merry Widow and Pousette in Manon. In the spring of 2001, Ms. Reiersen was a Young Artist with Opera Theatre of St. Louis; she returned there last spring to perform the roles of the Elizabeth Morrow/A Reporter in Loss of Eden and to cover the title role in Lucia di Lammermoor. In the summer of 2001, she performed le Feu in Ravels LEnfant et les Sortilèges and Galatea in Acis and Galatea at the Chautauqua Voice Institute. A native New Yorker, Ms. Reiersen is a graduate of Manhattan School of Music where she received her bachelor and master of music degrees; her roles there included Violetta in La Traviata, Elisetta in Cimarosas Il Matrimonio Segreto and Alice in Rossinis Le Comte Ory. She created the role of Eonone in the world premiere of Philip Haggemanns Paris and Eonone.
|
||
LAQUITEA MITCHELL - The Water Soprano Laquita Mitchell, a first-year artist in the HGO Studio, was the first place winner in last years Eleanor McCollum Competition for Young Singers, and she also won the Audience Choice Award. She received a bachelor of music degree from Westminster Choir College and completed her master of music and the professional studies program at the Manhattan School of Music, where sang Violetta in La Traviata, Rosalinda in Die Fledermaus and Female Chorus in Britten's The Rape of Lucretia, conducted by Julius Rudel. Other roles include Micaela in Carmen, Vitellia in La Clemenza di Tito and Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte. This summer, she was a member of San Francisco Opera's Merola Program where she sang the role of Mimì in La Bohème. Ms. Mitchell is the recipient of the Hugh Ross Award and the 2000 Panasonic Harmony Award. She made her Alice Tully Hall debut and has performed in recital in Italy. A native of New York, Ms. Mitchell made her Houston Grand Opera debut this season as Valencienne in The Merry Widow.
|
||
JOSHUA WINOGRADE - The King This is American bass Joshua Winogrades third year with the HGO Studio, during which time he has sung Colline in the La Bohème alternate cast, Doctor Grenvil in La Traviata, Osmin in The Abduction from the Seraglio, Abimelech in Samson and Delilah, The Friar in Don Carlo, Grandpa Moss in The Tender Land, and Skula in Prince Igor, plus roles in The Merry Widow, The Makropulos Case, Eugene Onegin, Tannhäuser, Rigoletto, and The Coronation of Poppea. Last summer at the Aspen Opera Theater, he sang the title role in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro. In the summers of 2000 and 2001 at Wolf Trap Opera, he sang Mamma Agata in Donizettis Viva La Mamma, Bottom in A Midsummer Nights Dream, Haly in LItaliana in Algeri, and Commendatore in Don Giovanni. At Glimmerglass Opera in the summer of 1999, he originated the roles of the Rabbi and the Painter in the televised world premiere of Central Park. His awards include a 2000 Sara Tucker Study Grant from the Richard Tucker Music Foundation and second place in the 2000 Eleanor McCollum Competition for Young Singers. Mr. Winograde received his bachelor and master of music degrees from The Juilliard School.
|
||
ETHAN WATERMEIER - Geographer
|
||
AARON JUDISCH - Businessman Baritone Aaron Judisch joined the Houston Grand Opera Studio in the 2001-2002 season; his roles at Houston Grand Opera have included Marullo in Rigoletto, Captain in Eugene Onegin, and Second Philistine in Samson and Delilah in addition to covering the title role of Eugene Onegin and Wolfram in Tannhäuser. Mr. Judisch graduated with honors from Luther College with a bachelor of arts degree and master of music from Northwestern University. He has been the recipient of various awards including the Union League Civic and Arts Foundation scholarship, and he was second place winner in the Palm Beach Opera Competition. In the summer of 2001, he was a studio artist in the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation Artists Training Program at Central City Opera. Mr. Judischs roles this season at Houston Grand Opera have included Cascada in The Merry Widow, Commissioner/Floras Servant in La Traviata and Innkeeper in Manon.
|