Student
review
Opera offers world class fun
JESSICA FLIPPEN
Earlier
this semester, I attended Youth Night at the Opera, a special performance
sponsored by The Community Enrichment Program administered by the Fresno
Arts Council and the Bonner Family Foundation.
I accompanied Yosemite High School's band and choral students to the
William Saroyan Theatre where we watched the Fresno Grand Opera's performance
The Marriage of Figaro, Mozart's sequel to The Barber of Seville.
When we arrived at the theatre, we were given tickets with letters and
three-digit numbers that determined our seating. As I entered the building,
past its tapestried walls, I faintly remembered attending the Nutcracker
Suite several years before.
Climbing up the stairs to the balcony, I viewed the stage. I saw at
the top of the heavy velvet curtains a thin screen with computerized
subtitles. When the curtain opened I saw the actors in authentic costume,
Figaro making measurements for his bridal bed, his fiance trying on
her wedding veil.
Having never attended an opera, I waited anxiously for the singing to
begin. I was astonished to find that the quality and beauty of the voices
on stage were not affected by the singers' projected volume. The opera
was sung in Italian with English subscripts. Though the computerized
screen aided my understanding of the opera's plot-line, it distracted
me from the action on stage.
The actors' exaggerated gestures brought emphasis to the meaning of
the lyrics, and added an element of humor. My favorite character was
Cheru-bino, a youthful page who was amorous towards the women of the
Count's estate.
Cherubino was played by a female with a tremulous, beautiful voice that
moved me in spite of the character's pitiful nature. Constantly wrapped
in the schemes and whims of the ladies of the court, he is forced into
awkward situations. Once he dressed as a flower girl of the country
peasantry.
Kirsten Gunlogson, the woman playing his role, did an excellent portrayal
of the adolescent's awkwardness and timidity, stumbling as she curtsied
and hiding her face with a bouquet of flowers.
During the show's 10 minute breaks, my friends and I made our way down
to the orchestra pit. Each music stand had a small microphone attached.
At the heart of the orchestra was a small, wooden harpsichord. Most
harpsichords, unlike pianos, have black keys for major notes and white
for minor.
There, by the pit, I watched as cranes lifted the heavy, wooden sets
and replaced them with a spectacular courtyard. The most magical of
all the sets was saved for the last, a garden dimly lit at twilight.
The performance was a worthwhile experience and was inexpensive, costing
only $5 a ticket for the dress-rehearsal. I strongly recommend attendance
to the next performance, an Egyptian wonder tilted Aida which will be
showing in May.
Ask Tony Mowrer, choral instructor, about purchasing tickets to experience
world class artists, world-class performances and world class fun.
|