 |
     |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Two for One: Five College Opera Cast for Unique February Production of La Liberazione di Ruggiero and L'Enfant et les Sortileges Shepherds, enchanted plants, a clock, a teapot, and a fauteuil (armchair) represent just a few of the fanciful roles cast recently for a February production being presented by the Five College Opera Project. Sponsored by the chairs of the Five College music departments in collaboration with the Smith College Department of Theater, the performance will feature a largely undergraduate cast in a production that brings together the plots of two very different operas written in two different periods: La Liberazione di Ruggiero, written in 1626 by Francesca Caccini, and Maurice Ravel's L'Enfant et les Sortileges, composed in 1925. Auditions were held during the first week of October. The cast of 21 includes two students from Mount Holyoke College, five from Smith College, and eleven from UMass Amherst, including four graduate students. "Combining the two pieces has most assuredly never been done before," says Drew Minter of Vassar College, guest director for the Five College opera project. Minter, who translated the libretto for the Caccini piece into English, is also responsible for the unique way in which it is being joined with Ravel's L'Enfant et les Sortileges. Widely regarded as one of the world's finest countertenors, Minter has also earned credits as an acclaimed stage director. He currently teaches voice at Vassar. The two-in-one opera, he says, results in a "uniquely entertaining production" ideally suited to young voices and young spirits. Minter is working with two members of the Five College music faculty: Robert Eisenstein of Mount Holyoke College, who directs the Five College Early Music Program, is musical director for Caccini's opera about the knight Ruggiero. Stephen Radcliffe of the University of Massachusetts Amherst department of music and dance is serving as musical director for Ravel's "L'Enfant." According to Eisenstein, the opera project represents a multi-layered collaboration among the departments of music. The idea of bringing the two operas together, he says, initially grew out of conversations among the music chairs but gradually spilled over to include many members of the music faculties. Those serving on the task force for the Opera Project include members of the faculties in music and theater as well as costume and production staff (see list attached). In this version of the combined operas, a young boy, L'Enfant, is so captivated by the figure of the knight Ruggiero and so taken by the sorceress Alcina that he does not complete his homework. Annoyed, his mother leaves him alone to finish his assignments. The boy promptly succumbs to a temper tantrum that, according to Minter, "stirs up far more than the boy could ever have imagined." The students recently cast for roles in the production include Amanda Popp (UM '07) as L'Enfant, Lindsay Pope (MHC '07) as Melissa the good sorceress, and Emily Spura (Smith '03) as the mother. The opera will have three performances in the Mendenhall Center for the Performing Arts, Theatre 14 at Smith College: Friday, February 3 and Saturday, February 4 at 8:00 p.m. and a matinee performance on Sunday, February 5 at 3:00 p.m. Tickets are $7 for the general public and $5 for students and are now available by calling the Smith College Theater Box Office at (413)585-ARTS. Support for the Five College Opera Project comes from the Music Chairs and from the Smith College Theater Department as well as from the music departments, from the Five College Deans of Faculty, and Five Colleges, Incorporated. The Cast List for La Liberazione di Ruggiero and L”Enfant et les Sortileges Key: AC = Amherst College; HC = Hampshire College; MHC = Mount Holyoke College; SC = Smith College; UM = UMass Amherst Ruggiero
L'enfant
Five College Opera Task Force Amherst College
Mount Holyoke College
Smith CollegeFaculty
Production Staff
Publicity
UMass Amherst Faculty
Publicity
*co-chairs, Five College Opera Project Originally posted 11/15/05
Home
| About
Us |
Academic
Programs |
Administrative
Programs ©2003
Five Colleges, Inc. | 97 Spring Street, Amherst MA 01002 | 413.256.8316 |
