The 1997 National Opera Festival is fast approaching and from all over Australia, publicists have been sending me information about many fine performances that will form the basis of the festival here in Canberra. With such an incredible diversity of performances, audiences are sure to find something, if not many things to enjoy during the festival. Here are some of the highlights.
The highly successful New York production of Porgy and Bess which has played world wide for over four years to rave reviews and standing ovations, will tour Australia this year and will be performing at the Canberra Theatre from 16-21 June.
Porgy and Bess is based on the highly successful novel by Du Bose Heyward about the residents of Charleston's famous Catfish Row. It later became a successful play called Porgy, written by Heyward and his wife Dorothy. This served as the inspiration and basis of the collaboration between George and Ira Gershwin and Du Bose Heyward which created America's most beloved folk opera.
The role of Porgy will be sung alternately by Alvy Powell, Brian Gibson and Stephen Finch. Bess will be played by Elizabeth Graham, Jerris Cates and La-Rose Saxon.
Film goers may remember the Columbia/Goldwyn film version of 1959 which starred Sidney Poitier, Dorothy Dandridge, Sammy Davis Jnr and Pearl Bailey.
Bookings can be made at Canberra Ticketing on 257 1077, or for groups: 243 5709.
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| Ra Khahn |
In 1968 the story of Joseph became a musical piece written for a schoolboy choir. Almost thirty years later, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is still one of the most popular musicals for theatre companies to stage and Supa Productions are doing just that. Producer Domenic Mico, Director Sue Belsham, Choreographer Katelyn Keys and Musical Director Paul Belsham bring together a cast of thirty-two singers and actors, supported by a forty-three member children's chorus.
Local rock, pop and jazz singer Ra Khahn makes his eagerly anticipated stage debut as "Joseph" and Kirrily Cornwell, who has sung and danced in numerous musicals including Les Miserable and Jesus Christ Superstar undertakes the role of "Narrator".
And what about that coat? Joseph's coat will be designed by Canberra based international designer, Maggie Shepherd.
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat plays at the Street Theatre from July 10 - 19 at 8pm, with two matinees at 2pm, July 12 and 19. Bookings at the Street Theatre on 247 1223.
Bizet's Carmen and Mozart's The Marriage Of Figaro will be presented by South Australian performance company, Co*Opera, in conjunction with Tuggeranong Community Arts, The School Of Arts Cafe and Queanbeyan City Council at the Queanbeyan Bicentennial Function Centre on 3rd, 4th (Carmen) and 5th (Figaro) of July. Directed by ex-Canberran Tessa Bremner, the two productions will be performed in English and presented in a cabaret format, the singers performing in and amongst the audience with the entire auditorium becoming the stage. Both Carmen and Figaro come to us with rave reviews from performances in other centres around the country.
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| Tessa Bremner |
For Carmen, Bremner's vision is to set it in a migrant settlement somewhere in the western world during the 1950's. Anastasio Bouyessis plays the part of Don Jose, whilst the role of the modern day temptress will be sung by Catriona Barr.
Bremner's Figaro features an instrumental ensemble sharing theatrical and musical honours and a cast of fine singers all dressed in beautiful period wardrobe with a faintly comic twist.
Bookings for this opera season can be made on 293 1443 or 297 6857. Special "two show" packages are available, as are dinner/show packages with the School Of Arts Cafe.
Alfa theatre will celebrate it's 25th anniversary with a production of one of the best loved musicals, Annie. It is also the 20th anniversary of the show itself, which hit Broadway in 1977.
The cast includes Amy Durham and Bronwyn Thompson as Annie, Rob Beaumont as Daddy Warbucks and Barbara Denham as Miss Hannigan, supported by a cast of forty-five adults and orphans, with an eighteen piece orchestra.
Opening night guests are encouraged to wear period costume and according to Alpha's spokesperson, "will be entertained with a variety of surprises in keeping with the occasion and era".
Annie opens at the ANU Arts Centre on July 4th. Booking can be made on 249 5491.
Rolf Harris comes to the Canberra Theatre for one night only on Wednesday 25th June complete with wobble board, cartoons and his hit versions of Stairway to Heaven, Smoke on the Water and Great Balls of Fire plus a whole lot more. What started out as "a bit of fun" almost two years ago when Andrew Denton invited him to appear on his program Live and Sweaty to perform the Led Zeppelin rock classic in his inimitable style, has catapulted him into the U.K. and Australian charts.
A former champion swimmer and teacher, Rolf started his showbusines career in England with childrens TV shows for the BBC, later developing his own characters, one being the famous Koala named "Coojeebear"! Later he developed a top-rating Saturday night variety show for the BBC, "The Rolf Harris Show", which was also hugely popular here in Australia in the late sixties and early seventies.
Bookings for Rolf Harris can be made through ANU Ticketing Services on 249 4684.
Operatif! is a presentation of the world's best loved operatic arias and will be presented at the ANU Arts Centre in two different concerts. Concert One is on Thursday 7th August and will feature Bizet's Pearl Fishers Duet, Delebes beautiful duet from Lakme, the trio from Puccini's Madam Butterfly and Habanera from Bizet's Carmen to name just a few highlights.
Concert Two will be held on Friday 8th August with a matinee on Saturday 9th August. Subtitled Vienna, City of Dreams, the concert will feature the beautiful melodies of Strauss, Lehar and Kalman with such delights as You Are My Heart's Delight, Vilia, The Merry Widow Waltz, and Girls Were Made To Love and Kiss.
Operatif! will be engaging such singers as soprano Jennifer Parish, mezzo Kirsti Whitlocke, tenor George Gilmore and baritone Stewart Cameron, with piano accompaniment from Regis Danillon.
Bookings at ANU Ticketing on 249 5491.
Also performing musical highlights and showstoppers is performance group Intermezzo, presenting their show When Opera Meets Cabaret which explores the many facets of music ranging from Grand Opera to Jazz, Music Theatre and Pop. Presented in a cabaret style the show also boasts, according to its spokesperson, "intelligent" sketches, plenty of laughs and above all "jaw dropping vocal abilities".
When Opera Meets Cabaret plays at the Albert Hall on 27th and 28th June, and on 18th and 19th July the group will return with Mozart's one act comic opera, The Impressario.
Verdi's Requiem will be performed by the Llewellyn Choir and the Canberra School Of Music Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Richard McIntyre OAM with soloists, CSM graduate Sara Hills, head of voice department Anthia Moller, tenor Tupe Tam Yam and baritone Terence den Dulk, who has just been offered a scholarship to study at Covent Garden.
The work combines the passionate language of the Mass with the drama of Opera "creating a work charged with the same emotive power as Verdi's finest works for stage". It will be performed at the Llewellyn Hall on 21st June. Bookings through Ticketing Services on 249 5491.
The Hotel Kurrajong is the place to be if you want to catch Hec McMillan presenting two historical overviews of opera and its artists in Australia. The first series, which runs on July 13th and August 3rd is titled Opera Companies that visited Australia between 1901 and 1939 and will include recordings of such artists as tenor Carlo Dani, Dame Nellie Melba, John McCormack, Toti dal Monte, Apollo Granforte and many others.
Series two runs on 20th July and 10th August and is titled Famous Opera stars who have sung at the Albert Hall. From its opening in 1928 to its eclipse by the Canberra Theatre Centre in 1965, the Albert hall boasted singers including Ezio Pinza, Elizabeth Rethberg, Florence Austral, Joan Hammond, Elizabeth Schwarzkopf, Richard Tauber, Marjorie Lawence and Browning Mummery, recordings of whom will be featured in this presentation. Plenty of fond memories for those that were there, plus a feast for those that weren't!
Australian Touring Opera makes its Canberra debut with an updated production of Mozart's Cosi Fan Tutti at the Canberra Theatre Centre. Directed by Trevor Alexander and sung in English, this production is set in a New York apartment during the height of the Vietnam War. The cast includes coloratura soprano Anita Paul who has appeared with the Australian and Victoria State Opera. Cosi plays on Friday 25th and Saturday 26th July at 7.30pm.
The Woden Valley Youth Choir under the direction of Alpha Gregory, features in two concerts during the festival. The first, at Llewellyn Hall on July 19th at 8pm showcases four choirs - Portland Symphonic Choir (Oregon, USA), Geelong Children's Choir, Australian Voices (Queensland) and Woden Valley Youth Choir.
The second sees the choir supporting a recital by Australian tenor Stephen Ibbotson and accompanist Helen Osborne at the Fairfax Theatre, National Gallery of Australia on 15th August, with proceeds supporting Rotary Scholarships to the Outward Bound Program for young disadvantaged people.
Michael Martin, John Brunato, Donna-Maree Dunlop, Fiona Maconaghie and Rebecca Collins are some of the past winners of the National Aria (formally the Shell Aria), part of the Australian National Eisteddfod Society. This year's National Aria Heat will take place on Friday 27th June at 1.30pm in the National Gallery Theatre, with the final being held in the Llewellyn Hall on Saturday 28th June at 8pm.
Opera Australia will present a recital featuring six of their leading artists performing selections from operas written by Australian composers including The Golem by Larry Sitsky, The Eighth Wonder by Alan John and Dennis Watkins, The Violins of Saint-Jacques by Malcolm Williamson, Voss by Richard Meale, Lake Host by Felix Meagher and The Undead by David Stanhope.
This recital will be held at the National Gallery of Australia Theatre on Saturday 21st June. Bookings through Ticketek on 248 7588.
Finally, The National Opera Festival will close with a Gala Awards night to be held on 16th August at the specially created Cafe La Boheme, recreating the Cafe Momas scene from La Boheme, with sets and theming designed so that guests will feel they are part of the opera performance.
Performing artists will include China's outstanding tenor Ding Yi, Russia's Badri Maisuradze and Canberra's Stopera. Awards will be given for the "Most Significant Contribution to Opera in Each State of Australia."
- Tony Magee
Originally published in Muse Magazine (Canberra), June 1997