James Wright on VO's 2012-2013 Season
We have just announced our season for 2012/13 and I am very excited about the variety of great works we will present.
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| La Bohème |
It is not unusual for an opera company to present La Bohème: it is a perennial favourite, a great opera for introducing young people and those new to the art form to the emotional peaks that opera provides.
I’m especially pleased with the vocal and dramatic abilities of the singers who have been carefully chosen to represent Puccini’s beautiful vocal lines as well as the vibrant youth depicted in bohemian Paris of the 19th century. More about this production and its creative team in a later posting.
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| The Pirates of Penzance |
I am excited and pleased to be presenting the great satirical comedy The Pirates of Penzance and to be giving Vancouver audiences a rare opportunity to luxuriate in the talents of Christopher Gaze, Judith Forst and Jonathan Darlington!
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| Tea: A Mirror of Soul |
A much different opera and exciting to me for very different reasons, is Tan Dun’s evocative and magical Tea: A Mirror of Soul.
Utilizing both “Western” and Chinese traditional instruments and sporting spectacular and fantastical costumes, Tea: A Mirror of Soul tells the tale of a prince-cum-monk suffering "bitter love" involving a princess, of passion so tainted by jealousy that it ends in death, and of fierce struggles over an ancient book of wisdom.
Tan Dun gives us lush Italianate opera, rich orchestration, and the organic sounds of nature — water, paper, and stones. Jonathan Darlington conducts this extraordinary work in its Canadian premiere, bringing his exemplary musical skills and knowledge of Tan Dun’s work to the Queen Elizabeth Theatre.
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| The Magic Flute |
Many of you will recall our Coast Salish Magic Flutepresented in January 2007. That special and highly-praised production is returning in early 2013, promising to captivate new audiences and re-inspire those who saw it previously.
The original creative team is working with our friends at First Peoples’ Heritage, Language, and Culture Council to both re-create the work and bring fresh new insights and theatricality; if you saw it before, you will want to see it again! I will be talking and writing much more about this work in the months ahead.
This is my overview of our 2012/13 season; I look forward to visiting more about each of these special works and having a conversation with our subscribers, donors, single ticket buyers, and all who have an interest in Vancouver Opera.
- James Wright
General Director, Vancouver Opera
@jwwright61
General Director, Vancouver Opera
@jwwright61
