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Mi Terra Querida
Tuesday, July 20
7:30-8:30 p.m.
Strings Music Pavilion
Concert of Mexican Music by:

and Adam Nielsen
Mozart and Nyman
Thursday, July 22
7:30-8:30 p.m.
Steamboat Art Museum
Piano Concert of Mozart and Nyman’s Music by Brendon Shapiro

The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat
Saturday, July 24
7:30-8:30 p.m.
Strings Music Pavilion
Composer: Mychael Nyman
CONDUCTOR/DIRECTOR:

Dana Sadava
Conductor

Emily Pulley
Director
CAST:

Katy Williams
Mrs. P

Ashraf Sewailam
Dr. P

Charles Calotta
Dr. S
Keith Haynes
Video Designer
Johnmichael Bohach
Set Designer
Ann Piano
Costume Designer
Emily Maddox
Lighting Designer
The Barber of Seville
Friday, August 13
7:30-10:00 p.m.
Strings Music Pavilion
Composer: Gioachino Rossini
CONDUCTOR/DIRECTOR:

Maria Sensi Sellner
Conductor

Emily Pulley
Director
CAST:

Raven McMillon
Rosina

Sejin Park
Figaro

Javier Abreu
Count

Olivia Gronenthal
Berta

John Clayton Seesholtz
Bartolo

Ashraf Sewailam
Basilio

Darius Taylor
Fiorello
Johnmichael Bohach
Set Designer
Ann Piano
Costume Designer
Emily Maddox
Lighting Designer
La Clemenza di Tito
Friday, August 6
7:30-10:00 p.m.
Steamboat Christian Center
Composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
CONDUCTOR:

Emily Senturia
Conductor
CAST:

Omar Najmi
Tito
Jiayu Li
Vitellia
Christine Boddicker
Sesto
Jenna Clark
Annio
Amanda Densmoor
Servillia
Darius Taylor
Publio
The Magic Flute
Sunday, August 8
7:30-9:30 p.m.
Steamboat Christian Center
Composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
CONDUCTOR:

Dana Sadava
Conductor
CAST:
Patrick Conklin
Tamino
Elizabeth Mirandi
Pamina
Minju Jeong
Queen of the Night
Travis Hall
Monostatos
Samuel Macy
Sarastro
Evan Fleming
Papageno
Emma Rocheleau
Papagena
Travis Hall
Armoured man Tenor/Priest
Kevin Spooner
Armoured Man Bass/Priest
Kevin Spooner
Speaker
Ariel Andrew
Lady 1
Grace Weaver
Lady 2
Karen Kelley
Lady 3
Gliulia Costantini
Child 1
Everette Saylor
Child 2
Adia Clark Lay
Child 3
The Marriage of Figaro
Saturday, August 14
12:00-2:30 p.m.
Steamboat Christian Center
Composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
CONDUCTOR:

Kristin Ditlow
Conductor
CAST:
Sean Stanton
Count
Sabina Balsamo
Countess
Matthew Cook
Figaro
Elizabeth Bowersox
Susanna
Anne- Carine Exume
Cherubino
Mary Ryan
Marcellina
Samuel Macy
Bartolo
Charles Calotta
Basilio/Curzio
Madison Holmes
Barbarina
Kevin Spooner
Antonio
Synopsis: Man in the Hat
SYNOPSIS
- Prologue: The neurologist, Dr. S, delivers an address concerning his approach to neurology and introduces the case of Dr. P.
- The First Examination: Dr. and Mrs. P arrive at the neurologist’s clinic, having been referred by an ophthalmologist. A series of routine tests is carried out, revealing little. As he prepares to depart, P makes several alarming mistakes, and the neurologist resolves to see him again.
iii. The House Call: Baffled by his first meeting with P, the neurologist determines to observe his patient in the environment of his own home. The investigation continues as the neurologist engages P in a variety of visual exercises designed to reveal the nature of P’s condition: geometric solids / caricatures / television / photographs / rose / glove / chess game.
- Testing Visual Memory: The neurologist asks P to describe, from one end to the other, the buildings and layout of a local street they both know well.
- Paintings as Pathology? An Argument: The neurologist discovers that P is a talented amateur painter. Upon examining a portfolio of his paintings, he concludes that P’s illness is reflected in these works, which have moved from representational, figurative painting to the purely abstract. This conclusion angers Mrs. P, who is insistent that the change in her husband’s painting style is an expression of his artistic development, not of his deepening illness.
- The Prescription: As P continues enjoying his tea, Mrs. P explains to the neurologist how her husband manages, through music, to cope with daily life in spite of his perceptual problems.
vii. Epilogue: The neurologist delivers his concluding remarks on the case.
DIRECTOR’S NOTES
The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat led to an eventual diagnosis of visual agnosia, the inability of the brain to recognize or understand visual stimuli. Other aspects of visual processing and intellectual functioning remain intact, and patients can often recognize objects using their other senses. Dr. P apparently also suffered from prosopagnosia, or “face blindness,” in which the ability to recognize familiar faces, including one’s own face, is impaired. But I view this opera as more of a love story, focusing on Dr. and Mrs. P’s commitment to each other and their profound connection to music, both of which enable Dr. P to continue to function – and thrive – despite his disability. He continued to teach and sing successfully for many years, even as his condition progressed.
The New York Times has referred to Oliver Sacks, M.D. (1933 – 2015) as “the poet laureate of medicine.” He was a physician, a best-selling author, and a professor of neurology at the NYU School of Medicine. In addition to The Man who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, he is known for Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain, An Anthropologist on Mars, and Awakenings, the book that inspired the 1990 Academy Award-nominated feature film starring Robert De Niro and Robin Williams.
PROGRAM NOTE
Dr. P and his wife both have elements of the heroic, but the real hero in The Hat is surely music – the power of music to organise and integrate, to knit or re-knit a shattered world into sense.
I have said this in the case history, but it needs to be shown: ‘what can be shown cannot be said.’ And how better could it be shown – indeed how else – than by an opera? This was Michael Nyman’s brilliant inspiration. One would not have thought, on principle, that such matters of neurology or epistemology could be explored in an opera – but opera turns out to be the perfect medium: the theme seems pre-ordained for the form. Thus, The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, in a manner which first appears highly improbable, but then seems to be almost inevitable, turns into a neurological opera – the first such in the history of neurology or opera.
© Oliver Sacks
COMPOSER’S NOTE
The subject of The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, Dr. P, requires music as a lifeline, cue, clue, cure. Its treatment in the hands of Sacks, Christopher Rawlence, and Michael Morris invites a music which may exaggerate, suggest, narrate, dislocate, illustrate, allude, connect, schematicize, cite, express, analyse, structure, mechanise, differentiate, identify, compress, distance, abstract, represent, recreate, cross-refer, strip-down, denote, motivate, formalise…
My initial conception of the opera (strictly following Oliver Sacks’ structure) was a series of diagnostic events (hat mistaking, rose describing, etc.), each self-contained, independent, yet accumulatively (rather than cumulatively) building an awareness of Dr. P’s illness – evidence increasing as musical detail decreases. The case study progresses while standing still.
© Michael Nyman
Synopsis: Barber of Seville
DIRECTOR’S NOTE
Human beings are frequently described using avian adjectives (flighty, bird-brained, cocky, etc.), and when I first began contemplating this production, the thought of Rosina resembling a songbird trapped in a cage kept popping into my head. Then I recalled Chaucer’s epic poem, wherein Nature presides over a large flock of birds who are gathered to choose their mates. And thus, the concept for Il barbi-“aerie” di Siviglia was, well, hatched. The roles seemed to naturally suggest characteristics of different types of birds, and our design team decided to heighten some of those traits, as well as evoke the image of an elaborate birdcage for our set. The goal was not to tamper with the beloved characters or storyline but simply to add another feathery layer of fun to Rossini’s timeless romantic romp. So please nestle down and enjoy our little flight of fancy!
SYNOPSIS
ACT I
Count Almaviva, disguised as a humble student, “Lindoro,” serenades his beloved Rosina at the house of her guardian, Doctor Bartolo, who takes every precaution to keep her confined there. Figaro, barber and factotum with a hand in all the local affairs, explains to Almaviva that Rosina is Bartolo’s ward and that the doctor intends to marry her for her money. Figaro devises a plan: the count will disguise himself as a drunken soldier with orders to be quartered at Bartolo’s house so that he may gain access to Rosina. Almaviva is filled with joyful anticipation, and Figaro looks forward to a sizable remuneration. Rosina reflects on the voice that has enchanted her and resolves to use her considerable wiles to meet the man to whom it belongs. Bartolo appears with Rosina’s music master, Don Basilio, who warns Bartolo that Almaviva, who has made known his admiration for Rosina, has been seen in town. Bartolo decides to marry Rosina immediately. Basilio suggests slander as the most effective means of getting rid of Almaviva. Figaro, who has overheard the plot, warns Rosina and promises to deliver a note from her to Lindoro. Bartolo suspects that Rosina has indeed written a letter and warns her not to trifle with him.
Almaviva arrives, creating a ruckus in his disguise as a drunken soldier, and secretly passes Rosina his own note. Bartolo is infuriated by the stranger’s behavior and noisily claims that he has an official exemption from billeting soldiers. Figaro announces that a crowd has gathered in the street, curious about the argument they hear coming from inside the house. The civil guard bursts in to arrest Almaviva, but when he secretly reveals his true identity to the captain, he is instantly released. Everyone except Figaro is amazed by this turn of events.
ACT II
Bartolo suspects that the “soldier” was a spy planted by Almaviva. The count returns, this time disguised as Don Alonso, a music teacher and student of Don Basilio, to give Rosina her singing lesson in place of Basilio, who is ill. “Don Alonso” then tells Bartolo that, when visiting Almaviva at his inn, he found a letter from Rosina. He offers to tell her that it was given to him by another woman, seemingly to prove that Lindoro is toying with Rosina on Almaviva’s behalf. This convinces Bartolo that “Don Alonso” is indeed a student of the scheming Basilio, and he allows him to give Rosina her lesson, dozing off as the two profess their love for each other.
Figaro arrives to give Bartolo his shave and manages to snatch the key that opens the door to Rosina’s balcony. Suddenly Basilio shows up looking perfectly healthy. Almaviva, Rosina, and Figaro convince him with a quick bribe that he is, in fact, very sick and must go home at once. While Bartolo gets his shave, Almaviva plots with Rosina to meet at her balcony that night so that they can elope. But the doctor overhears them and, realizing he has been tricked again, flies into a rage. Everyone disperses.
The maid Berta comments on the crazy household. Bartolo summons Basilio, telling him to bring a notary so Bartolo can marry Rosina that very night. Bartolo then shows Rosina her letter to Lindoro, as proof that he is in league with Almaviva. Heartbroken and convinced that she has been deceived, Rosina agrees to marry Bartolo. A thunderstorm rages, then passes. Figaro and the count climb up to Rosina’s balcony and let themselves in with the key. Rosina appears and confronts Lindoro, who finally reveals his true identity as Almaviva. Basilio shows up with the notary. Bribed and threatened, he agrees to be a witness to the marriage of Rosina and Almaviva. Bartolo arrives with soldiers, but it is too late. He accepts that all of his precautions have been in vain, and Figaro, Rosina, and the count celebrate their good fortune.
Synopsis: La Clemeza
ACT I
Rome, first century AD. The Roman emperor Tito is in love with Berenice, daughter of the king of Judea. Vitellia, the former emperor’s daughter, feels that she should hold the throne herself and asks her young admirer Sesto to assassinate Tito. Though he is a close friend of the emperor, Sesto will do anything to please Vitellia, so he agrees. When Sesto’s friend Annio tells him that Tito, for reasons of state, will not marry Berenice, Vitellia becomes hopeful again and asks Sesto to put off the assassination plot. Annio reminds Sesto of his own wish to marry Sesto’s sister Servilia. The two men affirm their friendship.
At the forum, the Romans praise Tito. The emperor tells Annio and Sesto that since he has to take a Roman wife he intends to marry Servilia. Diplomatically, Annio assures Tito that he welcomes his decision. Tito declares that the only joy of power lies in the opportunity to help others. When Annio tells Servilia of the emperor’s intentions, she assures him of her love.
In the imperial palace, Tito explains his philosophy of forgiveness to Publio, the captain of the guard. Servilia enters and confesses to the emperor that she has already agreed to marry Annio. Tito thanks her for her honesty and says he will not marry her against her wishes. Vitellia, unaware that Tito has changed his mind, furiously insults Servilia and asks Sesto to kill the emperor at once. He assures her that her wish is his command. After he has left, Publio and Annio tell Vitellia that Tito has decided to choose her as his wife. Vitellia desperately tries to stop Sesto but realizes it is too late.
Sesto has launched the conspiracy and set fire to the Capitol. Full of shame, he runs into Annio, evades his questions and rushes off. Servilia appears, then Publio, and finally Vitellia. They are all searching for Sesto and believe that Tito has died. Sesto returns, looking for a place to hide. He is about to confess his crime but is silenced by Vitellia.
ACT II
In the palace, Annio tells Sesto that the emperor is still alive. When Sesto confesses his assassination attempt but refuses to give any reason, Annio advises him to admit everything to Tito and hope for forgiveness. Vitellia rushes in, begging Sesto to flee, but she is too late: a fellow conspirator has betrayed him, and Publio enters with soldiers to arrest him. Sesto asks Vitellia to remember his love.
The Roman people are thankful that the emperor has survived. Tito struggles to understand the conspirators’ motives and doubts Sesto’s disloyalty. Publio warns him against being too trusting. When it is announced that Sesto has confessed and been sentenced to death by the Senate, Annio asks Tito to consider the case compassionately. The emperor will not sign the death decree until he has had the chance to question Sesto himself. Alone with Tito, Sesto assures him that he did not want the throne for himself, but he hesitates to implicate Vitellia. Tito, not satisfied with this explanation, dismisses him. Sesto asks Tito to remember their friendship and is led off. The emperor signs the decree, then tears it up: he cannot become a tyrant and execute a friend. He cries out to the gods, saying that if they want a cruel ruler, they have to take away his human heart. Servilia and Annio beg Vitellia to help save Sesto. She realizes that she must confess her crime rather than accept the throne at the price of Sesto’s life.
In a public square, Tito is about to pronounce Sesto’s sentence, when Vitellia appears and admits that she alone is responsible for the assassination attempt. The bewildered emperor explains that his intention was to forgive Sesto anyway. He finally decides to pardon all the conspirators. The Roman people praise Tito for his kindness and ask the gods to grant him a long life.
Synopsis: The Magic Flute
A mythical land between the sun and the moon. Three ladies in the service of the Queen of the Night save Prince Tamino from a serpent. When they leave to tell the queen, the birdcatcher Papageno appears. He boasts to Tamino that it was he who scared the creature away. The ladies return to give Tamino a portrait of the queen’s daughter, Pamina, who they say has been captured by the evil Sarastro. Tamino immediately falls in love with the girl’s picture. The queen, appearing in a burst of thunder, tells Tamino about the loss of her daughter and commands him to rescue her. The ladies give a magic flute to Tamino and silver bells to Papageno to ensure their safety on the journey and appoint three spirits to guide them.
Sarastro’s slave Monostatos pursues Pamina but is frightened away by Papageno. The birdcatcher tells Pamina that Tamino loves her and is on his way to save her. Led by the three spirits to the temple of Sarastro, Tamino learns from a high priest that it is the Queen, not Sarastro, who is evil. Hearing that Pamina is safe, Tamino charms the wild animals with his flute, then rushes off to follow the sound of Papageno’s pipes. Monostatos and his men chase Papageno and Pamina but are left helpless when Papageno plays his magic bells. Sarastro enters in great ceremony. He punishes Monostatos and promises Pamina that he will eventually set her free. Pamina catches a glimpse of Tamino, who is led into the temple with Papageno.
Sarastro tells the priests that Tamino will undergo initiation rites. Monostatos tries to kiss the sleeping Pamina but is surprised by the appearance of the Queen of the Night. The Queen gives her daughter a dagger and orders her to murder Sarastro.
Sarastro finds the desperate Pamina and consoles her, explaining that he is not interested in vengeance. Tamino and Papageno are told by a priest that they must remain silent and are not allowed to eat, a vow that Papageno immediately breaks when he takes a glass of water from a flirtatious old lady. When he asks her name, the old lady vanishes. The three spirits appear to guide Tamino through the rest of his journey and to tell Papageno to be quiet. Tamino remains silent even when Pamina appears. Misunderstanding his vow for coldness, she is heartbroken.
The priests inform Tamino that he has only two more trials to complete his initiation. Papageno, who has given up on entering the brotherhood, longs for a wife instead. He eventually settles for the old lady. When he promises to be faithful, she turns into a beautiful young Papagena but immediately disappears.
Pamina and Tamino are reunited and face the ordeals of water and fire together, protected by the magic flute. Papageno is not happy any longer but is saved by the three spirits, who remind him that if he uses his magic bells he will find true happiness. When he plays the bells, Papagena appears and the two start making family plans. The Queen of the Night, her three ladies, and Monostatos attack the temple but are defeated and banished. Sarastro blesses Pamina and Tamino as all join in hailing the triumph of courage, virtue, and wisdom.
Synopsis: Marriage of Figaro
ACT I
A manor house near Seville, the 1930s. In a storeroom that they have been allocated, Figaro and Susanna, servants to the Count and Countess Almaviva, are preparing for their wedding. Figaro is furious when he learns from his bride that the Count has tried to seduce her. He’s determined to have revenge on his master. Dr. Bartolo appears with his former housekeeper, Marcellina, who is equally determined to marry Figaro. She has a contract: Figaro must marry her or repay the money he borrowed from her. When Marcellina runs into Susanna, the two rivals exchange insults. Susanna returns to her room, and the Count’s young page Cherubino rushes in. Finding Susanna alone, he speaks of his love for all the women in the house, particularly the Countess. When the Count appears, again trying to seduce Susanna, Cherubino hides. The Count then conceals himself when Basilio, the music teacher, approaches. Basilio tells Susanna that everyone knows Cherubino has a crush on the Countess. Outraged, the Count steps forward, but he becomes even more enraged when he discovers Cherubino and realizes that the boy has overheard his attempts to seduce Susanna. He chases Cherubino into the great hall, encountering Figaro, who has assembled the entire household to sing the praises of their master. Put on the spot, the Count is forced to bless the marriage of Figaro and Susanna. To spite them and to silence Cherubino, he orders the boy to join the army without delay. Figaro sarcastically sends Cherubino off into battle.
ACT II
In her bedroom, Rosina, the Countess, mourns the loss of love in her life. Encouraged by Figaro and Susanna, she agrees to set a trap for her husband: They will send Cherubino, disguised as Susanna, to a rendezvous with the Count that night. At the same time, Figaro will send the Count an anonymous note suggesting that the Countess is having an assignation with another man. Cherubino arrives, and the two women lock the door before dressing him in women’s clothes. When Susanna steps into an adjoining room, the Count knocks and is annoyed to find the door locked. Cherubino hides himself in the dressing room, and the Countess lets her husband in. When there’s a sudden noise from behind the door, the Count is skeptical of his wife’s story that Susanna is in there. Taking his wife with him, he leaves to get tools to force the door. Meanwhile, Susanna, who has reentered the room unseen and observed everything, helps Cherubino escape through the window before taking his place in the dressing room. When the Count and Countess return, both are astonished when Susanna emerges from the room. Figaro arrives to begin the wedding festivities, but the Count questions him about the note he received. Figaro successfully eludes questioning until the gardener, Antonio, bursts in, complaining that someone has jumped from the window. Figaro improvises quickly, feigning a limp and pretending that it was he who jumped. As soon as Antonio leaves, Bartolo, Marcellina, and Basilio appear, putting their case to the Count and holding the contract that obliges Figaro to marry Marcellina. Delighted, the Count declares that Figaro must honor his agreement and that his wedding to Susanna will be postponed.
ACT III
Later that day in the great hall, Susanna leads on the Count with promises of a rendezvous that night. He is overjoyed but then overhears Susanna conspiring with Figaro. In a rage, he declares that he will have revenge. The Countess, alone, recalls her past happiness. Marcellina, accompanied by a lawyer, Don Curzio, demands that Figaro pay his debt or marry her at once. Figaro replies that he can’t marry without the consent of his parents for whom he’s been searching for years, having been abducted as a baby. When he reveals a birthmark on his arm, Marcellina realizes that he is her long-lost son, fathered by Bartolo. Arriving to see Figaro and Marcellina embracing, Susanna thinks her fiancé has betrayed her, but she is pacified when she learns the truth. The Countess is determined to go through with the conspiracy against her husband, and she and Susanna compose a letter to him confirming the meeting with Susanna that evening in the garden. Cherubino, now dressed as a girl, appears with his sweetheart, Barbarina, the daughter of Antonio. Antonio, who has found Cherubino’s cap, also arrives and reveals the young man. The Count is furious to discover that Cherubino has disobeyed him and is still in the house. Barbarina punctures his anger, explaining that the Count, when he attempted to seduce her, promised her anything she desired. Now, she wants to marry Cherubino, and the Count reluctantly agrees. The household assembles for Figaro and Susanna’s wedding. While dancing with the Count, Susanna hands him the note, sealed with a pin, confirming their tryst that evening.
ACT IV
At night in the garden, Barbarina despairs that she has lost the pin the Count has asked her to take back to Susanna as a sign that he’s received her letter. When Figaro and Marcellina appear, Barbarina tells them about the planned rendezvous between the Count and Susanna. Thinking that his bride is unfaithful, Figaro curses all women. He hides when Susanna and the Countess arrive, dressed in each other’s clothes. Alone, Susanna sings of love. She knows that Figaro is listening and enjoys making him think that she’s about to betray him with the Count. She then conceals herself—in time to see Cherubino try to seduce the disguised Countess. When the Count arrives looking for Susanna, he chases the boy away. Figaro, by now realizing what is going on, joins in the joke and declares his passion for Susanna in her Countess disguise. The Count returns to discover Figaro with his wife, or so he thinks, and explodes with rage. At that moment, the real Countess steps forward and reveals her identity. Ashamed, the Count asks her pardon. Ultimately, she forgives him, and the entire household celebrates the day’s happy ending.
Synopsis: Mi Tierra
COMING SOON
Synopsis: Mozart and Nyman – July 22, 2021
Recommended Age For Opera
Opera Steamboat suggests that our Main Stage performances are best enjoyed by ages 8 and older, depending on the production. We occasionally have adult-content programs so please check the description ahead of time.
For Families: We produce one family friendly opera each season. We love having large audiences of small people attend!
How do I know if the opera is suitable for children?
Not every opera is suitable for children. Many contain adult subject matter and often depict violent themes. Since these are stage productions, it is probable that what your children would see on the stage during an opera performance is far less graphic than most video games that they play.
Song to the Moon, Opera Steamboat
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