Toledo Opera’s Touring Program Opens in Schools on March 31, 200 Toledo, OH – This spring, four of Toledo Opera’s young artists will perform the children’s opera, The New Adventures of Alice in Wonderland in area elementary schools from March 31 to May 23, 2008. The production originated with Virginia Opera and has been adapted by Opera on Wheels’ stage director, Helen Martens. In the opera a teen-age Alice travels back to enchanted Opera Land and, guided by Maestro Michelangelo, meets characters from famous operas and they invite her to learn what it takes to become a star. This comic opera includes music from masters such as Puccini, Mozart and Rossini. The production is a perfect introduction to opera. Toledo Opera’s Opera on Wheels program takes a fully staged children’s opera “on the road” each season to over 50 elementary schools throughout northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan. At the conclusion of the 40-minute performance, there is a question and answer session with the artists. The experience of seeing opera “live” and talking with the artists afterward is, in one student’s words, “awesome!” Why is there such an interest and enjoyment of opera among students? One key reason is that opera is a multimedia art form in a multimedia world. Only in the past 10 years has the Internet made us all manage the fusion of linguistic, visual and musical elements. But opera has been doing it for 400 years. Opera can easily be seen as an extension of music videos, which have been popular with young people since the advent of cable television. Music videos combine words, music and images – opera does the same thing and therefore is a natural step for young people. About the Artists The role of Alice will be played by soprano Jenny Meggitt, who made her Toledo Opera debut singing the role of Frasquita in the 2007 production of Carmen. She has studied at the Mannes College of Music, the Manhattan School of Music and Bowling Green State University. While in college, her roles included Blanche Dubois in Andre Previn's A Streetcar Named Desire, Anna Maurrant in Kurt Weill’s Street Scene, and Blanche de la Force in Poulenc’s Dialogues of the Carmelites. In 2006 Ms. Meggitt was recognized by the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in Detroit and won the Bowling Green State University Concerto Competition. She has just won a finalist place in the National Society for Arts and Letters Competition and is also a finalist in the Irma M. Cooper Opera Columbus International Vocal Competition. Mezzo-soprano Sarah Lee takes several roles, including Alice’s mother, Carmen and Cinderella. Ms. Lee earned her master of music degree from Manhattan School of Music in 2004 and her bachelor of music degree from Southern Methodist University in 2002. Originally from Dallas, she performed as a resident artist with Dicapo Opera Theatre in New York City from 2006-2007. In 2005 she premiered the role of The Physician in a production of The Emperor’s New Clothes with Casa Mañana Theatre of Fort Worth. Previously, Ms. Lee performed the role of Hippolyta in Manhattan School of Music Opera Theatre’s production of Britten’s A Midsummer Nights Dream. She also performed Ma Moss in Copland’s The Tender Land, the Duchess of Plaza Toro in Gilbert and Sullivan’s ‘The Gondoliers,’ and Mrs. Anderssen in Sondheim’s A Little Night Music with Meadows Opera Theatre at SMU. Other works include Maddalena in Rigoletto and Orfeo in Orfeo ed Euridice for the International Institute of Vocal Arts in Chiari, Italy as well as premiering the role of Amy in McLeer’s House with the Remarkable Theater Brigade of Brooklyn. The role of Maestro Michelangelo (and other opera characters) will be sung by tenor David Kaverman, a Toledoan who recently earned a Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance from Otterbein College. While at Otterbein, Mr. Kaverman appeared as Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus, Belmonte in Die Entführung aus dem Serail, and Gherardo in Gianni Schicchi. Other performances include Robert in Oscar Hammerstein’s The New Moon and Robert in Ron Grainer’s Robert and Elizabeth with The College Light Opera Company of Falmouth, MA. In 2008 he made his debut with Toledo Opera as Ruiz in Verdi’s Il Trovatore. In 2006, he was a finalist in the National Association of Teachers of Singing competition. Currently Mr. Kaverman is pursuing studies at The Cleveland Institute of Music. Community Support for Opera on Wheels For more information, contact: |