I did something in my last post that I have been trying really hard not to do in this blog: assume non-singers know about dorky singer stuff. I totally didn't explain the Met auditions, so I'm going to remedy that right now!
First of all, the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions aren't really auditions per se - it's really a competition. Unlike an audition, which singers do to try to get a job, the purpose of a competition is to encourage talented young singers with cash prizes and sometimes helpful comments on their performances by the judges, who are opera professionals. Winning competitions also adds a little prestige (or padding, depending on how you look at it), to a singer's resume.
The Met auditions are sponsored by the Metropolitan Opera National Council, which is basically a volunteer organization made up of donors and patrons of the arts. Their website states that the auditions serve to "discover promising young opera singers and assist in the development of their careers." The prizes are donated by philanthropists throughout the country, including regional opera guilds and private donors. Any singer who meets the eligibility requirements (between the ages of 20 and 30, US citizen, five arias in contrasting languages, demonstrate operatic potential, possess musical training) may compete in the district auditions.
There are forty-five districts within fifteen regions. Each district may send up to three winners to the regional level (but they do not have to send three - it is often only one or two), and one winner from each region moves on to the semi-final round in New York. Approximately ten singers are then chosen to compete in the final round, and up to five singers may be awarded grand prizes. At the district level, there are also encouragement awards and there may be various other donated awards. The amount of prize money varies greatly from district to district, and some singers decide where they want to compete based on the potential amount of prize money available.
Basically, it's just a competition, and it's nice to be able to win a little money to pay for the ever-mounting expenses of weekly voice lessons, paying a pianist several times a month for coaching and rehearsal, recording costs for audition applications, audition application fees, head shots, travel and lodging for auditions, proper clothing for auditions, music scores, and -- oh yeah -- the fee to enter the competition in the first place!
Have I skipped over something else I should have explained? Feel free to ask more questions in the comments section!
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
I won the Nebraska Met auditions!
I can't believe I haven't posted for nearly two weeks - so much has happened! Top of the news is that I'm back home in Minneapolis after winning the Nebraska district Met auditions in Lincoln on Saturday, less than 24 hours after arriving back in Omaha from an exhausting week of touring Nebraska, South Dakota, and Iowa.
Prior to touring, we performed at a couple of events for donors to the opera. On Friday night, we sang arias and songs during a silent auction/wine and scotch tasting in a large, CARPETED hotel ballroom. Oh, and with a keyboard instead of a piano. That was an interesting experience! I have sung for events like that before, but never with a keyboard or in a carpeted room. It's challenging to perform while people are mingling, but I really had to be mindful of the way I was singing this time. It's tempting to 'push' the sound over that din in a room already muffled by carpeting, especially when you aren't supported by an actual piano. It was a good event, though, and I think it was a nice benefit for the opera - there should ALWAYS be scotch tastings at benefits and fundraisers! The next evening was in a similar location, but featured a six-course dinner with wine pairings, followed by a live auction. I was seated at a table with the owner of Omaha Steaks. Fancy!
We started out that week of touring on Sunday night, the 16th, driving to a hotel in Yankton, SD, which would be our home for three days. We did two high school or college shows every day Monday through Wednesday, fortified by the grilled and fried cuisine of South Dakota, nary a vegetable or fruit in sight (sad, sad, SAD - singers do not appreciate acid reflux, even if some of them do rather enjoy the occasional onion ring or grilled ham and cheese). Happily, our hotel not only had an excercise room, but racquetball courts! Darren (the baritone, remember?) pretty much kicked my arse, but at least we worked off the pounds of grease and cheese.
On Wednesday night, we moved our home base to Sioux Center, Iowa, where we gave a concert on Thursday night and our final education outreach show (at my alma mater, Dordt College!) on Friday. It was a little sad, but our voices were pretty exhausted by that point. Then on Saturday, I sang the competition and everyone else went home!
Within the next day or two, I'll write something on what I learned from my experiences, and I plan to continue blogging about auditions, gigs, and making this opera career, so keep reading! I probably have some more pictures hanging around somewhere, too...
Prior to touring, we performed at a couple of events for donors to the opera. On Friday night, we sang arias and songs during a silent auction/wine and scotch tasting in a large, CARPETED hotel ballroom. Oh, and with a keyboard instead of a piano. That was an interesting experience! I have sung for events like that before, but never with a keyboard or in a carpeted room. It's challenging to perform while people are mingling, but I really had to be mindful of the way I was singing this time. It's tempting to 'push' the sound over that din in a room already muffled by carpeting, especially when you aren't supported by an actual piano. It was a good event, though, and I think it was a nice benefit for the opera - there should ALWAYS be scotch tastings at benefits and fundraisers! The next evening was in a similar location, but featured a six-course dinner with wine pairings, followed by a live auction. I was seated at a table with the owner of Omaha Steaks. Fancy!
We started out that week of touring on Sunday night, the 16th, driving to a hotel in Yankton, SD, which would be our home for three days. We did two high school or college shows every day Monday through Wednesday, fortified by the grilled and fried cuisine of South Dakota, nary a vegetable or fruit in sight (sad, sad, SAD - singers do not appreciate acid reflux, even if some of them do rather enjoy the occasional onion ring or grilled ham and cheese). Happily, our hotel not only had an excercise room, but racquetball courts! Darren (the baritone, remember?) pretty much kicked my arse, but at least we worked off the pounds of grease and cheese.
On Wednesday night, we moved our home base to Sioux Center, Iowa, where we gave a concert on Thursday night and our final education outreach show (at my alma mater, Dordt College!) on Friday. It was a little sad, but our voices were pretty exhausted by that point. Then on Saturday, I sang the competition and everyone else went home!
Within the next day or two, I'll write something on what I learned from my experiences, and I plan to continue blogging about auditions, gigs, and making this opera career, so keep reading! I probably have some more pictures hanging around somewhere, too...
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Touring in Nebraska, where the wind goes sweeping...oh, wrong state
Folks, we're leaving in less than an hour for two days in the heart of Nebraska - doing THREE SHOWS tomorrow and two on Friday. Actually, the second one on Friday is at a cocktail party to raise money for Opera Omaha, but the other is a school program.
At any rate, I haven't written as much as I wanted to this week, but it's been busy, and now we'll be gone! Well, when we get back this weekend, I'll share lots of thoughts and stories about hours in the OO van with three other singers, our music director/pianist, and the community programs director. Lots of card games are being planned, and beer has been already purchased! Not for the van, people, for the hotel...yeesh.
At any rate, I haven't written as much as I wanted to this week, but it's been busy, and now we'll be gone! Well, when we get back this weekend, I'll share lots of thoughts and stories about hours in the OO van with three other singers, our music director/pianist, and the community programs director. Lots of card games are being planned, and beer has been already purchased! Not for the van, people, for the hotel...yeesh.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Why I love opera
Doing this education tour has really made me think again about why I love opera and why I want other people, especially kids, to give it a chance. There are myriad reasons, but here are the things I love most about opera:
1. There are no microphones. Singers have to train their bodies and voices intelligently in order to sing in huge theaters without any amplification other than what happens in their own throats, chests, and heads. Yes, good acoustics in these theaters helps, but without vocal training, those acoustics wouldn't matter one bit when an entire orchestra plays and the hall is filled with thousands of bodies dampening the sound. It's amazing to me what the human body and voice can do - like athletes, we train every day, and we must do so thoughtfully and with intention. It's not as easy as it looks, and it takes years of study, practice, and physical development. This is the number one reason I fell in love with opera in the first place.
2. The music is sometimes beautiful, sometimes intellectually stimulating, and sometimes so passionate and emotional and thrilling that whether you are singing it or listening to it, you feel something that you can't put words to. It is that exact transcendent feeling that is why that particular music was composed in the first place - to give voice to something that words alone cannot express.
3. It's a take on our human tradition of storytelling that involves music, drama, movement, and visual arts (sets, lighting, costumes...) - everything - all in one spectacular live event. Oh, and that brings me to...
4. It's LIVE. Anything can happen on stage. When music is recorded in a studio, or when a film or TV show is made, there are all kinds of possibilities for editing, tweaking, changing things in the studio. In the live theater, you have one chance at that high note, one chance at that scene, and one chance to give the audience an experience that will take them into a different world for an evening. Maybe, if you're lucky, you get one chance to show someone who is experiencing their very first opera all the things that you love about it, and maybe that one night will inspire their love for it, too.
5. Every time you do a show, the same exact opera and maybe even the same exact production, it's different. You get a new opportunity to see into a character, perfect or change that character based on the way you are perceiving the music that day. You get to mold and play and create and take the audience along for the ride.
These reasons are the same for me both as a performer and an audience member. No matter how many times I see La Traviata or Don Giovanni or any other opera I've seen a number of times before, it's always a new experience. The notes on the page always stay the same, but the music and the drama are different every time they're brought to life, every single performance.
We might be in a recession, but that is why we need the arts more than ever - to take us away, just for a couple of hours, into something bigger and grander, more terrible and more wonderful. Get thee to the theater, friends!
1. There are no microphones. Singers have to train their bodies and voices intelligently in order to sing in huge theaters without any amplification other than what happens in their own throats, chests, and heads. Yes, good acoustics in these theaters helps, but without vocal training, those acoustics wouldn't matter one bit when an entire orchestra plays and the hall is filled with thousands of bodies dampening the sound. It's amazing to me what the human body and voice can do - like athletes, we train every day, and we must do so thoughtfully and with intention. It's not as easy as it looks, and it takes years of study, practice, and physical development. This is the number one reason I fell in love with opera in the first place.
2. The music is sometimes beautiful, sometimes intellectually stimulating, and sometimes so passionate and emotional and thrilling that whether you are singing it or listening to it, you feel something that you can't put words to. It is that exact transcendent feeling that is why that particular music was composed in the first place - to give voice to something that words alone cannot express.
3. It's a take on our human tradition of storytelling that involves music, drama, movement, and visual arts (sets, lighting, costumes...) - everything - all in one spectacular live event. Oh, and that brings me to...
4. It's LIVE. Anything can happen on stage. When music is recorded in a studio, or when a film or TV show is made, there are all kinds of possibilities for editing, tweaking, changing things in the studio. In the live theater, you have one chance at that high note, one chance at that scene, and one chance to give the audience an experience that will take them into a different world for an evening. Maybe, if you're lucky, you get one chance to show someone who is experiencing their very first opera all the things that you love about it, and maybe that one night will inspire their love for it, too.
5. Every time you do a show, the same exact opera and maybe even the same exact production, it's different. You get a new opportunity to see into a character, perfect or change that character based on the way you are perceiving the music that day. You get to mold and play and create and take the audience along for the ride.
These reasons are the same for me both as a performer and an audience member. No matter how many times I see La Traviata or Don Giovanni or any other opera I've seen a number of times before, it's always a new experience. The notes on the page always stay the same, but the music and the drama are different every time they're brought to life, every single performance.
We might be in a recession, but that is why we need the arts more than ever - to take us away, just for a couple of hours, into something bigger and grander, more terrible and more wonderful. Get thee to the theater, friends!
Thursday, November 6, 2008
A little bit about the arts and money
Well, since the concert is over, we're back to school programs. Today we did two of our middle school program at the Joslyn Art Museum, and we'll do two more there tomorrow. Apparently, our program is one of the workshops the students can choose in a whole day of art activities at the museum. Isn't that cool? The Joslyn is working with both Opera Omaha and the Omaha Symphony for us to be there. Apparently, there are a lot of grants available for collaboration between arts organizations, and now more than ever, grant money is crucial for the survival of arts organizations. Frankly, any money is hard to come by in the current economic climate. Just this week, Opera Pacific (out of Orange County, California) announced that it was canceling the remainder of its current season due to financial problems. Essentially, the company is several million dollars in the red, and its donors have had to pull promised funding. It remains to be seen whether this is the first of many to go under.
What does this mean for performers? Well, besides the obvious (companies closing doors = fewer performances = fewer jobs), it also means that companies are no longer able to plan their seasons several years in advance. Where opera companies used to plan three or four years in advance, they are now not able to do that because they don't know where the money is coming from. Not only are donors not giving as much, but ticket buyers are buying single tickets instead of season subscriptions, so it's even harder for companies to estimate how much money to count on. This all means that performers are not being contracted many years in advance. For someone like me, who is just starting out, this could be both good and bad. I'm sure you can connect those dots.
I could write more about that, but I won't right now. There are all kinds of factors, including unions, that I don't know enough about yet, and frankly, I am super glad not to be working in arts administration (or any other nonprofit, for that matter) at this point in history. I am VERY glad to be performing, doing outreach for kids who are still totally excited to learn, and working with fantastic people while at this particular point in a singing career, about which I am really optimistic.
What does this mean for performers? Well, besides the obvious (companies closing doors = fewer performances = fewer jobs), it also means that companies are no longer able to plan their seasons several years in advance. Where opera companies used to plan three or four years in advance, they are now not able to do that because they don't know where the money is coming from. Not only are donors not giving as much, but ticket buyers are buying single tickets instead of season subscriptions, so it's even harder for companies to estimate how much money to count on. This all means that performers are not being contracted many years in advance. For someone like me, who is just starting out, this could be both good and bad. I'm sure you can connect those dots.
I could write more about that, but I won't right now. There are all kinds of factors, including unions, that I don't know enough about yet, and frankly, I am super glad not to be working in arts administration (or any other nonprofit, for that matter) at this point in history. I am VERY glad to be performing, doing outreach for kids who are still totally excited to learn, and working with fantastic people while at this particular point in a singing career, about which I am really optimistic.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Concert with the Omaha Symphony, and VOTE
So, this is my name on the door of my very own personal dressing room backstage:
This is the first time I've had my name on the door without having to share! It's exciting, people! The occasion for this was our Choral Collaborative Concert with the Omaha Symphony on Sunday night. This is an annual event bringing together the Omaha Symphony and members of the Opera Omaha Chorus with several area high school choirs. The choirs get to work with conductor Ernest Richardson and OO music director J. Gawf during the rehearsal process, and then they get to perform with the Symphony and the Opera Chorus in the Symphony's beautiful new concert hall, the Holland Center. The four Voices in Residence were the soloists for the concert: on the first half, I sang Poulenc's Gloria with four of the choirs, and then on the second half, all four of us sang opera excerpts and solos with the other three choirs.
The concert went extremely well, and the 2000-seat house was full. Chandler, my parents, my aunt, my sister and brother-in-law, Chandler's dad and stepmom, two of their friends, and several of my girlfriends from Des Moines and Pella all came to hear the performance. It was fantastic! And did I mention how well the concert went?
Here I am after the concert with Chandler:
It was an extremely busy weekend, and I didn't get to see any of those friends or much of the family I had visiting, because I had three hours of dress rehearsal on Saturday, then a performance in a Barnes & Noble in the afternoon, and then another four-hour dress rehearsal Sunday afternoon before the performance. Now, this is not ideal, because all that rehearsal can wear out your voice and your body - it's really exhausting before a big performance. But, it was necessary to rehearse all the choirs together with the orchestra, and that was the only time. This is when you have to be really smart about your singing and save as much energy as you can for the performance even while singing enough to check balance with the orchestra in the hall. Poor Sarah had a terrible cold and still had to do everything we had to do - THAT is when your professionalism is really tested, and she rocked it!
Of course, then we went right back into two school programs yesterday - we were a bit tired, but we have today off. I hope you have all voted and realize how blessed we are to have this right! I'm realizing that more strongly than ever today, because I've been disenfranchised: I requested my absentee ballot a month ago, it didn't come, I called about it and the MN Election board said they would send another, but that never came either. I'm lodging a complaint, because THAT is ridiculous. So, yeah, I'm glad I caucused for my candidate and donated to his campaign, but I don't even get to vote today. I think this will really impact the way I feel about the importance of voting for the rest of my life - so, to all of you who CAN, get out the vote today!
This is the first time I've had my name on the door without having to share! It's exciting, people! The occasion for this was our Choral Collaborative Concert with the Omaha Symphony on Sunday night. This is an annual event bringing together the Omaha Symphony and members of the Opera Omaha Chorus with several area high school choirs. The choirs get to work with conductor Ernest Richardson and OO music director J. Gawf during the rehearsal process, and then they get to perform with the Symphony and the Opera Chorus in the Symphony's beautiful new concert hall, the Holland Center. The four Voices in Residence were the soloists for the concert: on the first half, I sang Poulenc's Gloria with four of the choirs, and then on the second half, all four of us sang opera excerpts and solos with the other three choirs.
The concert went extremely well, and the 2000-seat house was full. Chandler, my parents, my aunt, my sister and brother-in-law, Chandler's dad and stepmom, two of their friends, and several of my girlfriends from Des Moines and Pella all came to hear the performance. It was fantastic! And did I mention how well the concert went?
Here I am after the concert with Chandler:
It was an extremely busy weekend, and I didn't get to see any of those friends or much of the family I had visiting, because I had three hours of dress rehearsal on Saturday, then a performance in a Barnes & Noble in the afternoon, and then another four-hour dress rehearsal Sunday afternoon before the performance. Now, this is not ideal, because all that rehearsal can wear out your voice and your body - it's really exhausting before a big performance. But, it was necessary to rehearse all the choirs together with the orchestra, and that was the only time. This is when you have to be really smart about your singing and save as much energy as you can for the performance even while singing enough to check balance with the orchestra in the hall. Poor Sarah had a terrible cold and still had to do everything we had to do - THAT is when your professionalism is really tested, and she rocked it!
Of course, then we went right back into two school programs yesterday - we were a bit tired, but we have today off. I hope you have all voted and realize how blessed we are to have this right! I'm realizing that more strongly than ever today, because I've been disenfranchised: I requested my absentee ballot a month ago, it didn't come, I called about it and the MN Election board said they would send another, but that never came either. I'm lodging a complaint, because THAT is ridiculous. So, yeah, I'm glad I caucused for my candidate and donated to his campaign, but I don't even get to vote today. I think this will really impact the way I feel about the importance of voting for the rest of my life - so, to all of you who CAN, get out the vote today!
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Choral Collaborative Concert this weekend!
I've been back for several days now, but the audition went well. Not great, but fairly well. There are so many variables that go into these things - but I'm not going to write about the torture that is the audition process today, because I don't want to bring you all down. Another time! I will say, however, that spending 20 out of 34 consecutive hours in airports and airplanes for a five-minute audition on your day off is saaaaad.
On the upside, I did get to eat a homemade empanada after my audition.
Anyway, for the past couple of days we have been preparing for the Choral Collaborative Concert, in addition to our education outreach schedule. This concert is an annual collaboration between several area high school choirs, the Omaha Symphony, and Opera Omaha. This year, the first half of the concert features four choirs in Poulenc's Gloria, with yours truly as the soprano soloist. I looooooove this piece of music, people - if you don't know it, it's worth looking for a recording. This is the one I own and enjoy.
The second half of the concert features three more choirs and all four of the Voices in Residence in various opera excerpts. There are a couple of things from the current Opera Omaha season (from Pirates and Boheme), as well as several familiar crowd-pleasers (the Hebrew slave chorus from Nabucco, the Pearl Fishers duet, Brindisi from Traviata, and "Sing to Love" from Fledermaus to name a few). I should also mention that twelve Opera Omaha chorus members join the high school choirs in both parts of the concert, so this is a collaboration and educational experience in many ways. The concert concludes with all the choirs and soloists singing the Easter Hymn from Cavalleria Rusticana.
I think I've said it before, but I love working with high school students because teenagers don't know yet what they should or shouldn't be able to do - they try anything, and as a group, they can be pretty fearless. It's amazing to hear how well they know this music. Of course there are things they still need to learn and changes to make during rehearsals, but they do it really quickly and well. This is going to be such a fun show! I'm going to have to keep reminding myself of that throughout the many hours of dress rehearsal on Saturday and Sunday (yes, dress rehearsal on the day of the show = insane). But the product will make it all worthwhile!
On the upside, I did get to eat a homemade empanada after my audition.
Anyway, for the past couple of days we have been preparing for the Choral Collaborative Concert, in addition to our education outreach schedule. This concert is an annual collaboration between several area high school choirs, the Omaha Symphony, and Opera Omaha. This year, the first half of the concert features four choirs in Poulenc's Gloria, with yours truly as the soprano soloist. I looooooove this piece of music, people - if you don't know it, it's worth looking for a recording. This is the one I own and enjoy.
The second half of the concert features three more choirs and all four of the Voices in Residence in various opera excerpts. There are a couple of things from the current Opera Omaha season (from Pirates and Boheme), as well as several familiar crowd-pleasers (the Hebrew slave chorus from Nabucco, the Pearl Fishers duet, Brindisi from Traviata, and "Sing to Love" from Fledermaus to name a few). I should also mention that twelve Opera Omaha chorus members join the high school choirs in both parts of the concert, so this is a collaboration and educational experience in many ways. The concert concludes with all the choirs and soloists singing the Easter Hymn from Cavalleria Rusticana.
I think I've said it before, but I love working with high school students because teenagers don't know yet what they should or shouldn't be able to do - they try anything, and as a group, they can be pretty fearless. It's amazing to hear how well they know this music. Of course there are things they still need to learn and changes to make during rehearsals, but they do it really quickly and well. This is going to be such a fun show! I'm going to have to keep reminding myself of that throughout the many hours of dress rehearsal on Saturday and Sunday (yes, dress rehearsal on the day of the show = insane). But the product will make it all worthwhile!
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Heading to Miami!
I have an audition for the Florida Grand Opera Young Artist program tomorrow (Monday) at 2:20 pm, so I'm flying out today. Please think of me tomorrow afternoon!
Thursday, October 23, 2008
The outreach portion of the program
Okay, so I realized today that I haven't posted since Monday - sorry! I guess this week has been a little tiring. On Tuesday, we rehearsed both of our school education shows and then presented them both to a small invited audience at the Opera Omaha offices. This was basically our dress rehearsal, and we started right off with two shows Wednesday and two more today.
The programs are both pretty cool - Program A is aimed at high school and college students and adults, and Program B is for middle-schoolers. We open both programs the same way, with an introduction from Rossini's La Cenerentola, and then we dive into asking the kids what they think of when they think of opera. We get a lot of the same answers, usually things like the lady with the horns (costumes!), loud singing or high notes (yes - and no microphones!), dramatic, and foreign languages. We take the things they say and talk about what opera is: storytelling using all art forms (composition, singing, orchestra, dancing, poetry, prose, set-building, costume design). We also sing musical examples from different operas along the way, explaining how composers use the music to tell a story. After each example, we ask the kids to tell us what they think was happening in the excerpt and why they think that, based on what they heard in the music. This is so interesting, because they usually get it right, even thought they can't understand any of the words!
After this, we have the students help us write our own opera, based on this simple text: It was a dark and rainy night. There was a knock at the door. We opened up the front door. It was the pizza delivery guy!
For each of the four sentences, we give the students a choice between two different styles. Is the rain gentle or stormy? Is the knock sneaky or dramatic? Do we open the front door in an exuberant way or a dreamy way? And finally, is the pizza delivery guy evil or the love of our life? Omaha Symphony conductor Ernest Richardson wrote the music for this little experiment, and it's super fun: he plays with melodies from famous pieces of the operatic and classical repertory, many of which the average person has probably heard on movies and TV commericals. The kids get really into this section, and I think it really demonstrates the way music can tell (or even change) a story.
Anyway, we wrap things up in our A program with quartets from Rigoletto and La Boheme. The B program is actually built around the theme of weather, so it includes a quartet from Street Scene and one from Regina, as well as an excerpt from The Blizzard Voices, a new opera that premiered in September at OO. We also tack the Boheme quartet onto the end of that program as well, since OO is doing it in the spring. The students all get vouchers for free tickets to the show, so it's a pretty sweet deal.
That's all for now. I need to go to bed!
The programs are both pretty cool - Program A is aimed at high school and college students and adults, and Program B is for middle-schoolers. We open both programs the same way, with an introduction from Rossini's La Cenerentola, and then we dive into asking the kids what they think of when they think of opera. We get a lot of the same answers, usually things like the lady with the horns (costumes!), loud singing or high notes (yes - and no microphones!), dramatic, and foreign languages. We take the things they say and talk about what opera is: storytelling using all art forms (composition, singing, orchestra, dancing, poetry, prose, set-building, costume design). We also sing musical examples from different operas along the way, explaining how composers use the music to tell a story. After each example, we ask the kids to tell us what they think was happening in the excerpt and why they think that, based on what they heard in the music. This is so interesting, because they usually get it right, even thought they can't understand any of the words!
After this, we have the students help us write our own opera, based on this simple text: It was a dark and rainy night. There was a knock at the door. We opened up the front door. It was the pizza delivery guy!
For each of the four sentences, we give the students a choice between two different styles. Is the rain gentle or stormy? Is the knock sneaky or dramatic? Do we open the front door in an exuberant way or a dreamy way? And finally, is the pizza delivery guy evil or the love of our life? Omaha Symphony conductor Ernest Richardson wrote the music for this little experiment, and it's super fun: he plays with melodies from famous pieces of the operatic and classical repertory, many of which the average person has probably heard on movies and TV commericals. The kids get really into this section, and I think it really demonstrates the way music can tell (or even change) a story.
Anyway, we wrap things up in our A program with quartets from Rigoletto and La Boheme. The B program is actually built around the theme of weather, so it includes a quartet from Street Scene and one from Regina, as well as an excerpt from The Blizzard Voices, a new opera that premiered in September at OO. We also tack the Boheme quartet onto the end of that program as well, since OO is doing it in the spring. The students all get vouchers for free tickets to the show, so it's a pretty sweet deal.
That's all for now. I need to go to bed!
Monday, October 20, 2008
Pirates is over, Chandler is gone
Well, the show is over: Wednesday, Friday, and a matinee on Sunday, and that's it. Here are some pics of the opening night cast party:
Tara, me, and Sarah.
With the incredible (and sweet!) John Davies, who sang the Sergeant of Police. He has the most beautiful voice, and we're totally setting up a fan club on Facebook!
The three of us yet again, this time with Patrick Ryan Sullivan, our sweet and fantastic Pirate King. If I told you he has sung Gaston in Beauty and the Beast on Broadway, would you be surprised? I think it's the hair...
Let's see...here we add Gene Scheer. He sang the Major General, but aside from being a performer, Gene is also an amazing songwriter and opera librettist. He's currently working on a libretto for an opera based on Moby Dick. Not my favorite book, I'll admit, but if you cut out all the chapters on how to use whale blubber, it could be a very cool opera.
Oh, and here's one more show picture - John Davies as the Sergeant.
However, here is my favorite person of the entire weekend:
Chandler! He had to go back to Minneapolis today, but my sweet hubby got here in time for the show on Friday, stayed the whole weekend, and saw the show again on Sunday. My aunt came with him from Minneapolis, and the rest of my family was here for the Sunday show as well. Today was my day off, my "Sunday," if you will (and you will), and I'm exhausted. We jump right into our education outreach tomorrow, and I feel like I need another day to recover, but, here we go - five weeks of touring!
Tara, me, and Sarah.
With the incredible (and sweet!) John Davies, who sang the Sergeant of Police. He has the most beautiful voice, and we're totally setting up a fan club on Facebook!
The three of us yet again, this time with Patrick Ryan Sullivan, our sweet and fantastic Pirate King. If I told you he has sung Gaston in Beauty and the Beast on Broadway, would you be surprised? I think it's the hair...
Let's see...here we add Gene Scheer. He sang the Major General, but aside from being a performer, Gene is also an amazing songwriter and opera librettist. He's currently working on a libretto for an opera based on Moby Dick. Not my favorite book, I'll admit, but if you cut out all the chapters on how to use whale blubber, it could be a very cool opera.
Oh, and here's one more show picture - John Davies as the Sergeant.
However, here is my favorite person of the entire weekend:
Chandler! He had to go back to Minneapolis today, but my sweet hubby got here in time for the show on Friday, stayed the whole weekend, and saw the show again on Sunday. My aunt came with him from Minneapolis, and the rest of my family was here for the Sunday show as well. Today was my day off, my "Sunday," if you will (and you will), and I'm exhausted. We jump right into our education outreach tomorrow, and I feel like I need another day to recover, but, here we go - five weeks of touring!
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Pictures!
Okay, folks, here are just a few pics of opening night:
Sarah Lawrence (the other soprano in the Voices in Residence), me, and Tara Cowherd (my friend from college who works for Opera Omaha as the Community Programs Coordinator and sings in the Opera chorus). Aren't these costumes so pretty?
With the other voices in residence: Darren Perry (as Sam) and Joe Palarca (as another pirate).
With the Pirate King, Patrick Ryan Sullivan.
With the gorgeous Maureen Francis, who plays the ingenue, Mabel. We're trying to show off our bustles here.
Stage director Francis Cullinan and conductor Joe Illick, both so lovely! Really, this experience was so wonderful, in no small part to these two men.
And the lovely ladies of the chorus! Francis says that when we walk out on stage, we look like a bunch of beautiful bon bons. I don't know about bon bons, but they really are gorgeous costumes. I'll try to get more pirate photos tomorrow!
Sarah Lawrence (the other soprano in the Voices in Residence), me, and Tara Cowherd (my friend from college who works for Opera Omaha as the Community Programs Coordinator and sings in the Opera chorus). Aren't these costumes so pretty?
With the other voices in residence: Darren Perry (as Sam) and Joe Palarca (as another pirate).
With the Pirate King, Patrick Ryan Sullivan.
With the gorgeous Maureen Francis, who plays the ingenue, Mabel. We're trying to show off our bustles here.
Stage director Francis Cullinan and conductor Joe Illick, both so lovely! Really, this experience was so wonderful, in no small part to these two men.
And the lovely ladies of the chorus! Francis says that when we walk out on stage, we look like a bunch of beautiful bon bons. I don't know about bon bons, but they really are gorgeous costumes. I'll try to get more pirate photos tomorrow!
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Opening night!
Pictures will definitely come tomorrow. I tried to take some at our final dress rehearsal on Monday, but they weren't great. Tonight is the night!
Dress rehearsal went super well, by the way. The whole cast is really at the stage of needing an audience. We did have a small invited audience on Monday, but they didn't seem to feel allowed to clap or laugh or respond, so it felt really flat. Advice to audiences: ALWAYS clap or laugh when you feel you want to. The performers need it, and will continue on even more energized! Tonight will be different, though, because it's opening night, and I'm told it's always very well attended in Omaha. Whee!
Okay, so yesterday was our "day off" for the week. I put that in quotations because it did not feel like a day off AT ALL. But, you all know how that goes in real life - weekends are always full of errands and work parties, right? Right? Yes. Okay, then.
Meanwhile, here is something funny: the music world is full of cheek kisses, which cracks me up, coming from my straight-laced Midwestern small town full of extra straight-laced Dutch people where nobody would ever kiss an acquaintance on the cheek, much less a coworker of three weeks. But EVERY goodbye with these people, particularly the ones who have been in the business for a long time, involves a cheek kiss and a hug. Ah, performers - boundaries disappear quickly. It's nice, actually, because we do spend a lot of hours together in a short span of time.
I'm drinking coffee right now and need to get back to learning some music for the short rehearsal I have with the other Voices in Residence before our call at the theater, so I'll wrap things up with this promise: pictures next time!
Dress rehearsal went super well, by the way. The whole cast is really at the stage of needing an audience. We did have a small invited audience on Monday, but they didn't seem to feel allowed to clap or laugh or respond, so it felt really flat. Advice to audiences: ALWAYS clap or laugh when you feel you want to. The performers need it, and will continue on even more energized! Tonight will be different, though, because it's opening night, and I'm told it's always very well attended in Omaha. Whee!
Okay, so yesterday was our "day off" for the week. I put that in quotations because it did not feel like a day off AT ALL. But, you all know how that goes in real life - weekends are always full of errands and work parties, right? Right? Yes. Okay, then.
Meanwhile, here is something funny: the music world is full of cheek kisses, which cracks me up, coming from my straight-laced Midwestern small town full of extra straight-laced Dutch people where nobody would ever kiss an acquaintance on the cheek, much less a coworker of three weeks. But EVERY goodbye with these people, particularly the ones who have been in the business for a long time, involves a cheek kiss and a hug. Ah, performers - boundaries disappear quickly. It's nice, actually, because we do spend a lot of hours together in a short span of time.
I'm drinking coffee right now and need to get back to learning some music for the short rehearsal I have with the other Voices in Residence before our call at the theater, so I'll wrap things up with this promise: pictures next time!
Friday, October 10, 2008
Final stretch for Pirates!
Well, I've been busy for the last couple of days with music rehearsals for the Voices in Residence, to get ready for our first staging rehearsal tomorrow, but we are also in the final couple of days of rehearsal for Pirates before we open on Wednesday the 15th. That's soon! I can't believe how quickly this show has been put together - the pace in a professional company is so much faster than the pace of a grad school production! We spent months putting together a show when I was in school, but this we will have done in under three weeks! To be fair, not all shows can be done in that amount of time (this one is under two hours long), but it's still pretty fast.
We have been rehearsing in the Orpheum theater on the finished set since Tuesday. It's a bit of a luxury to be in so early! Last night we had the first work-through of the entire show, and then tomorrow night is our first dress rehearsal. That one will be with piano, while Sunday and Monday nights we do the whole thing over again with orchestra. Then Tuesday is off, and we open Wednesday!
Tonight we have the Sitzprobe, which is our first sing-through the show with orchestra. Sitzprobe literally means "seat-rehearse" in German. We won't actually be sitting, though, because our Maestro, Joe Illick, thinks we would be better served making tonight a Wandelprobe. That translates as "change-rehearse" - we will be walking through our staging (changing or shifting, you could say) as we sing, so that the Maestro can make sure everything sounds as it should from the location the singer happens to be in during a specific musical moment.
I love the Sitzprobe (or Wandelprobe, as the case may be!), because it's the first chance to sing the show with orchestra instead of piano. You finally get to hear all the colors of the instrumentation in the theater, which is exciting after rehearsing for these eleven or twelve days with piano.
Meanwhile, I'm sitting here blogging from the theater after my wig-fitting. Wouldn't you know it, the wig I'm wearing is exactly the color of my actual hair? But the wig will be styled and ready to go every day without me having to sit in a chair for an hour having it done (and can you imagine how that would work with two makeup/hair people for fourteen women?).
Ooh! One more thing for today: The Omaha Opera Guild runs a little canteen backstage in the dressing room area during the times we rehearse in the theater. It's really pretty great: they have sandwiches, drinks, frozen fruit cups, carrot sticks, cake and bars, and even deviled eggs. Seriously - the deviled eggs cost a quarter, and the sandwiches are only two bucks. They even let you run a tab! (Mine is up to seventy-five cents right now, in case you wondered.) I hate to use this word one more time, but it's super cute, and actually really handy. Speaking of which, I hope they show up soon...
We have been rehearsing in the Orpheum theater on the finished set since Tuesday. It's a bit of a luxury to be in so early! Last night we had the first work-through of the entire show, and then tomorrow night is our first dress rehearsal. That one will be with piano, while Sunday and Monday nights we do the whole thing over again with orchestra. Then Tuesday is off, and we open Wednesday!
Tonight we have the Sitzprobe, which is our first sing-through the show with orchestra. Sitzprobe literally means "seat-rehearse" in German. We won't actually be sitting, though, because our Maestro, Joe Illick, thinks we would be better served making tonight a Wandelprobe. That translates as "change-rehearse" - we will be walking through our staging (changing or shifting, you could say) as we sing, so that the Maestro can make sure everything sounds as it should from the location the singer happens to be in during a specific musical moment.
I love the Sitzprobe (or Wandelprobe, as the case may be!), because it's the first chance to sing the show with orchestra instead of piano. You finally get to hear all the colors of the instrumentation in the theater, which is exciting after rehearsing for these eleven or twelve days with piano.
Meanwhile, I'm sitting here blogging from the theater after my wig-fitting. Wouldn't you know it, the wig I'm wearing is exactly the color of my actual hair? But the wig will be styled and ready to go every day without me having to sit in a chair for an hour having it done (and can you imagine how that would work with two makeup/hair people for fourteen women?).
Ooh! One more thing for today: The Omaha Opera Guild runs a little canteen backstage in the dressing room area during the times we rehearse in the theater. It's really pretty great: they have sandwiches, drinks, frozen fruit cups, carrot sticks, cake and bars, and even deviled eggs. Seriously - the deviled eggs cost a quarter, and the sandwiches are only two bucks. They even let you run a tab! (Mine is up to seventy-five cents right now, in case you wondered.) I hate to use this word one more time, but it's super cute, and actually really handy. Speaking of which, I hope they show up soon...
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
More about rehearsal, and a little name-dropping
I'm getting a late start today, so this probably won't be long, but I wanted to write something!
Yesterday was full and BUSY! The four Voices in Residence had to go help rehearse one of the high school choirs for our Choral Collaborative Concert with Omaha Symphony conductor Ernest Richardson. We worked a bit on Poulenc's Gloria, in which I'm singing the soprano solo. We didn't get even halfway through, though, because the class period was too short. The kids worked hard and seemed excited, so I think the next rehearsal will be great. I forget how light adolescent voices are, but how quickly teenagers can learn difficult music. I really do like working with that age group - they don't have that self-doubt about learning that adults can have, probably because that's all they're doing every day in school.
We then had our first rehearsal of music for our education tours, which went surprisingly well (good thing, because we start staging this weekend already!) and then a looooong staging rehearsal for Pirates. This one involved the entire cast, so there was a lot of standing while our director staged - even a short eight measures can take a long time to stage when you have so many people to move around - so my feet were very sad by the end of the evening. Standing all day is one thing; standing half of it in horrible character shoes is another. I cannot understand why character shoes can't be made to be more comfortable!
I also discovered, once again, what a small world it is in the classical music business: our Major-General, the amazing Gene Scheer, knows my friend KrisAnne from a show they both did in Central City. Also, our stage director, Francis Cullinan, and Pirate King, Patrick Ryan Sullivan, know the father of a Dordt College friend of mine (Jim Van Ry, father of Rochelle) from Creede Repertory Theater in Colorado. I really do love those connections!
I really have to get some pictures up here. Soon!
Yesterday was full and BUSY! The four Voices in Residence had to go help rehearse one of the high school choirs for our Choral Collaborative Concert with Omaha Symphony conductor Ernest Richardson. We worked a bit on Poulenc's Gloria, in which I'm singing the soprano solo. We didn't get even halfway through, though, because the class period was too short. The kids worked hard and seemed excited, so I think the next rehearsal will be great. I forget how light adolescent voices are, but how quickly teenagers can learn difficult music. I really do like working with that age group - they don't have that self-doubt about learning that adults can have, probably because that's all they're doing every day in school.
We then had our first rehearsal of music for our education tours, which went surprisingly well (good thing, because we start staging this weekend already!) and then a looooong staging rehearsal for Pirates. This one involved the entire cast, so there was a lot of standing while our director staged - even a short eight measures can take a long time to stage when you have so many people to move around - so my feet were very sad by the end of the evening. Standing all day is one thing; standing half of it in horrible character shoes is another. I cannot understand why character shoes can't be made to be more comfortable!
I also discovered, once again, what a small world it is in the classical music business: our Major-General, the amazing Gene Scheer, knows my friend KrisAnne from a show they both did in Central City. Also, our stage director, Francis Cullinan, and Pirate King, Patrick Ryan Sullivan, know the father of a Dordt College friend of mine (Jim Van Ry, father of Rochelle) from Creede Repertory Theater in Colorado. I really do love those connections!
I really have to get some pictures up here. Soon!
Monday, October 6, 2008
A day off!
Well, it's Monday, and we have finally been given a day off. Our weekend was very busy with lots of work: rehearsals, meetings, costume fittings, and more rehearsal. Tomorrow we will start rehearsing in the theater (the Orpheum, if you know Omaha). So far, our rehearsals have been split between the OO offices and a large space in the Scottish Rite Temple, which is a block or two away.
Our costumes are beautiful! We are wearing brand new costumes for this show, which also means that they were built to our exact measurements. Our wonderful director, Francis Cullinan, decided to move the action forward 20 years from when this show is usually set, so the women will be wearing Gibson Girl type outfits circa 1900. We all have big puffy shoulders and lace and bustles and cameos and big hats and parasols - I'll definitely post some photos once we get into dress rehearsals! The pirates' costumes have lots of gold braid and buttons and burgundy velvet and big hats - basically, what you might imagine for pirates, but probably quite a bit nicer.
So far the rehearsal process has been painless. Our cast is full of wonderful people, and the stage director and conductor get along extremely well (this is definitely not always the case between conductors and stage directors!). I'm totally impressed with the chorus and how quickly they are picking up the very precise staging.
For my day off, I'm trying to be quiet this morning, as yesterday was full of talking and singing. After rehearsal, we had a meet-and-greet with members of the OO board, and then dinner and a little party with the cast. It's been great getting to know all these wonderful people, but I have plenty of other music to learn (and laundry and email and grocery shopping to catch up with!) today. If you're reading this, please leave some comments, or send me an email or message on Facebook! I miss hearing the news from each of your lives!
Our costumes are beautiful! We are wearing brand new costumes for this show, which also means that they were built to our exact measurements. Our wonderful director, Francis Cullinan, decided to move the action forward 20 years from when this show is usually set, so the women will be wearing Gibson Girl type outfits circa 1900. We all have big puffy shoulders and lace and bustles and cameos and big hats and parasols - I'll definitely post some photos once we get into dress rehearsals! The pirates' costumes have lots of gold braid and buttons and burgundy velvet and big hats - basically, what you might imagine for pirates, but probably quite a bit nicer.
So far the rehearsal process has been painless. Our cast is full of wonderful people, and the stage director and conductor get along extremely well (this is definitely not always the case between conductors and stage directors!). I'm totally impressed with the chorus and how quickly they are picking up the very precise staging.
For my day off, I'm trying to be quiet this morning, as yesterday was full of talking and singing. After rehearsal, we had a meet-and-greet with members of the OO board, and then dinner and a little party with the cast. It's been great getting to know all these wonderful people, but I have plenty of other music to learn (and laundry and email and grocery shopping to catch up with!) today. If you're reading this, please leave some comments, or send me an email or message on Facebook! I miss hearing the news from each of your lives!
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Opera and Operetta
I've mentioned that the mainstage show in which I'm appearing at OO as part of my Voice in Residence gig is The Pirates of Penzance. Even if you've never seen Pirates, you have probably heard of it. The music and libretto were written by the famous Gilbert & Sullivan, whose other famous operettas include HMS Pinafore, The Mikado, and plenty more. I'm singing a very small role (you could call it a supporting role, or in opera, we call it a comprimario role), Kate, one of the sisters of the lead soprano character, Mabel. Gilbert & Sullivan's operettas involve lots of chorus, so I'm a part of that, too.
So, what's operetta? Well, you probably have some idea of what opera is, and operetta is related to both opera and musical theater, and the lines are often blurred. Operetta usually involves a lighter, comical story and light, sometimes comical music. The music is still of high caliber, and the lyrics are usually very clever, sometimes more so than in some operas, but overall, operetta just feels lighter than opera. (Though, opera can be funny, too: Verdi's Falstaff, Puccini's Gianni Schicchi, and Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro and Cosi fan tutte are examples of comedic operas.) Some other famous operetta composers are Johann Strauss, Jr. (Die Fledermaus) and Jacques Offenbach (La belle Helene). Leonard Bernstein's Candide is generally considered an operetta, as well. You could say that operetta was the precursor to modern musical comedies you might see on Broadway. Oh, and there is generally some spoken dialogue in operetta, though the amount really varies from show to show and composer to composer.
So, there's my little summary. Pirates of Penzance at OO is going to be a fantastic show, because the caliber of singing and acting is really high, and the musical preparation and stage direction is (so far) pretty impressive for a small-ish company (with a mostly volunteer chorus!). I haven't seen the set or costumes yet, but I have a feeling they'll be beautiful!
So, what's operetta? Well, you probably have some idea of what opera is, and operetta is related to both opera and musical theater, and the lines are often blurred. Operetta usually involves a lighter, comical story and light, sometimes comical music. The music is still of high caliber, and the lyrics are usually very clever, sometimes more so than in some operas, but overall, operetta just feels lighter than opera. (Though, opera can be funny, too: Verdi's Falstaff, Puccini's Gianni Schicchi, and Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro and Cosi fan tutte are examples of comedic operas.) Some other famous operetta composers are Johann Strauss, Jr. (Die Fledermaus) and Jacques Offenbach (La belle Helene). Leonard Bernstein's Candide is generally considered an operetta, as well. You could say that operetta was the precursor to modern musical comedies you might see on Broadway. Oh, and there is generally some spoken dialogue in operetta, though the amount really varies from show to show and composer to composer.
So, there's my little summary. Pirates of Penzance at OO is going to be a fantastic show, because the caliber of singing and acting is really high, and the musical preparation and stage direction is (so far) pretty impressive for a small-ish company (with a mostly volunteer chorus!). I haven't seen the set or costumes yet, but I have a feeling they'll be beautiful!
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Internet is finally up!
I've been here for three days already without internet, and it was driving me a little bit crazy. It's amazing how dependent we get on technology! My roommate and I thought it was supposed to be set up yesterday, but we had to wait until first thing this morning. But I'm here now, ready to blog!
I left Minneapolis on Sunday around 10:30 or 11. The other soprano in Opera Omaha's Voices in Residence, Sarah, happens to live in Duluth and picked me up on her way. We arrived in Omaha shortly before 5, in plenty of time for our rehearsal at 6. The tenor, Joe, and the bass-baritone, Darren, flew in Saturday, so they were already settled by the time we got there. Our rehearsal that evening was with the OO (Opera Omaha, got it?) chorus and the music director, J. Although they had only been working on the Pirates music for a little over a week, the chorus sounded fantastic - there are larger opera companies who could learn a thing or two from this small volunteer chorus!
After the chorus rehearsal, J. and Tara, the Community Programs Coordinator, met with the four Voices in Residence about the music we'll be singing on the education tour. There is a LOT of music, people. Seriously, it would have felt like a lot even if we had it in hand before we arrived, but as it is, it feels a bit overwhelming. The schools have a choice of three programs, and although they use much of the same music, the longest one has something like 70 minutes of music. We start staging these at the end of next week already! Additionally, we start rehearsing the music for the Choral Collaborative Concert soon as well - this is the Nov. 2 concert that many of you are attending.
A word about Tara, the Community Programs Coordinator at OO - this is Tara Cowherd, a very good friend of mine from Dordt College. We have known each other for 10 years, since I was a freshman at Dordt and this nice upperclassman started talking to me at a vocal competition. One of Tara's three sisters, Laura, was one of my roommates a couple years later, by which time Tara was already working in the music business at the Omaha Symphony and singing in the OO chorus.
Speaking of singing, it's probably time for me to get back to learning music. While we were very busy on Monday with rehearsals, Sarah and I actually had yesterday off (although the men had a staging rehearsal). I spent much of the day getting myself organized and learning music, as well as nursing a bit of a cold I picked up right before I left Minneapolis. Today I don't have rehearsal until the evening, so it's back to the music scores for now! This is the great thing about living as a singer instead of working a day job while trying to sing - while I have rehearsals in the evening, I can spend my days learning music. I haven't been able to do this since grad school (and then I was doing coursework, too)!
I left Minneapolis on Sunday around 10:30 or 11. The other soprano in Opera Omaha's Voices in Residence, Sarah, happens to live in Duluth and picked me up on her way. We arrived in Omaha shortly before 5, in plenty of time for our rehearsal at 6. The tenor, Joe, and the bass-baritone, Darren, flew in Saturday, so they were already settled by the time we got there. Our rehearsal that evening was with the OO (Opera Omaha, got it?) chorus and the music director, J. Although they had only been working on the Pirates music for a little over a week, the chorus sounded fantastic - there are larger opera companies who could learn a thing or two from this small volunteer chorus!
After the chorus rehearsal, J. and Tara, the Community Programs Coordinator, met with the four Voices in Residence about the music we'll be singing on the education tour. There is a LOT of music, people. Seriously, it would have felt like a lot even if we had it in hand before we arrived, but as it is, it feels a bit overwhelming. The schools have a choice of three programs, and although they use much of the same music, the longest one has something like 70 minutes of music. We start staging these at the end of next week already! Additionally, we start rehearsing the music for the Choral Collaborative Concert soon as well - this is the Nov. 2 concert that many of you are attending.
A word about Tara, the Community Programs Coordinator at OO - this is Tara Cowherd, a very good friend of mine from Dordt College. We have known each other for 10 years, since I was a freshman at Dordt and this nice upperclassman started talking to me at a vocal competition. One of Tara's three sisters, Laura, was one of my roommates a couple years later, by which time Tara was already working in the music business at the Omaha Symphony and singing in the OO chorus.
Speaking of singing, it's probably time for me to get back to learning music. While we were very busy on Monday with rehearsals, Sarah and I actually had yesterday off (although the men had a staging rehearsal). I spent much of the day getting myself organized and learning music, as well as nursing a bit of a cold I picked up right before I left Minneapolis. Today I don't have rehearsal until the evening, so it's back to the music scores for now! This is the great thing about living as a singer instead of working a day job while trying to sing - while I have rehearsals in the evening, I can spend my days learning music. I haven't been able to do this since grad school (and then I was doing coursework, too)!
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Four days out
I leave on Sunday, and I have not started packing yet. I'm not really the type who packs this early anyway, in no small part because we don't have room for a giant suitcase sitting out for days on end in our little apartment. I am the type, however, who makes lists.
Why is it that big a deal? Well, besides regular clothes and things for eight weeks (yes, I'll have access to laundry - yay!), here are some items I can't forget:
1) One or two gowns for performance
2) Jewelry and shoes to accessorize those gowns
3) A cocktail dress or two (probably for donor events? That's my guess, anyway.) (Also, I don't think I own a cocktail dress, so I'm going to have to be creative.)
4) Stage makeup and stage shoes
5) Musical scores
6) Hot rollers! Curling irons! These are important beautification tools for sopranos!
7) An overnight bag for our education tour (besides the giant suitcase I'm packing with all of the above).
Okay, so technically I don't have to pack that last thing - I can pack more things in it.
Have I told you about this education tour yet? I don't know much about it yet, really, other than we will be singing for school children. I am actually kind of excited about this, because kids ask really funny questions. I still remember when some singers from Opera Iowa came to my school when I was in third or fourth grade: one of the kids asked the soprano how high she could sing, which I'm guessing is a pretty regular question. Frankly, most adults want to know that, too. What else will the kids want to know about opera, do you think?
Why is it that big a deal? Well, besides regular clothes and things for eight weeks (yes, I'll have access to laundry - yay!), here are some items I can't forget:
1) One or two gowns for performance
2) Jewelry and shoes to accessorize those gowns
3) A cocktail dress or two (probably for donor events? That's my guess, anyway.) (Also, I don't think I own a cocktail dress, so I'm going to have to be creative.)
4) Stage makeup and stage shoes
5) Musical scores
6) Hot rollers! Curling irons! These are important beautification tools for sopranos!
7) An overnight bag for our education tour (besides the giant suitcase I'm packing with all of the above).
Okay, so technically I don't have to pack that last thing - I can pack more things in it.
Have I told you about this education tour yet? I don't know much about it yet, really, other than we will be singing for school children. I am actually kind of excited about this, because kids ask really funny questions. I still remember when some singers from Opera Iowa came to my school when I was in third or fourth grade: one of the kids asked the soprano how high she could sing, which I'm guessing is a pretty regular question. Frankly, most adults want to know that, too. What else will the kids want to know about opera, do you think?
Friday, September 19, 2008
A little introduction
I've decided to start this blog for the purpose of updating my family and friends on what is happening in my performance career. Specifically, I'm leaving for my first long-term (well, relatively long-term) gig in a few days, and I don't know if I'll be able to email all of you very often (not that I do anyway...) with details about what exactly it is I'm doing.
Okay, let me try that again: I'm leaving for an eight-week gig at Opera Omaha soon, and this blog exists for these purposes:
1) Documenting what I'm doing at Opera Omaha, and giving you all an idea of what this job looks like from day-to-day,
2) Explaining a little bit more to opera novices about opera, singing as a career, and other tidbits that might help you understand exactly what the heck Chandler and I (and so many of our friends) do, and
3) Keeping in touch with all of you! Please feel free to ask questions in the comments section, or to email me - I might have a lot more time for email than I think.
A note for opera friends: I think much of this blog might be an introduction to our job for a lot of my family and non-singer friends, just to let you know.
And now, I just have to let you all know that this exists!
Okay, let me try that again: I'm leaving for an eight-week gig at Opera Omaha soon, and this blog exists for these purposes:
1) Documenting what I'm doing at Opera Omaha, and giving you all an idea of what this job looks like from day-to-day,
2) Explaining a little bit more to opera novices about opera, singing as a career, and other tidbits that might help you understand exactly what the heck Chandler and I (and so many of our friends) do, and
3) Keeping in touch with all of you! Please feel free to ask questions in the comments section, or to email me - I might have a lot more time for email than I think.
A note for opera friends: I think much of this blog might be an introduction to our job for a lot of my family and non-singer friends, just to let you know.
And now, I just have to let you all know that this exists!
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