AVA Opera Blog

And I was there... (part one)

As you know from the previous blog, I was planning to go to Los Angeles to attend many AVA related events in May. It was a busy week and most enjoyable seeing the resident artists and alums doing what they do best – sing!

Most of my time was spent with the Loren L. Zachary Vocal Competition events. Starting on Thursday evening, I was honored to be the host of a reception for stage director Tito Capobianco, who spoke and worked with the ten finalists from the competition. The insight he gave was invaluable to the young singers. He also worked with four of them on their arias with action tips, including AVA baritone Wes Mason. (pictured left to right - Viktor Antipenko, Tito Capobianco, Olivia Moore, Wes Mason, Chloe Moore, Scott Conner, Mackie MacLean, Nedra Zachery, Peter Huber)

Saturday was the actual competition. I had great company in the audience, including AVA Board Chairman, Mackie MacLean, AVA faculty members Bill Schuman and Thor Eckert, and AVA alums Ailyn Pérez, Stephen Costello and Alex Lawrence. All the singers did a wonderful job and AVA singers took the top prizes of first (Scott Conner, bass), second (Olivia Vote, mezzo-soprano), and third (Chloé Moore, soprano). (pictured left to right - Alex Lawrence, Scott Conner, Olivia Vote, Chloe Moore)

I attended the Judges Dinner that evening as Nedra Zahary’s guest. She is the founder  of this forty year old vocal competition. I had the pleasure of meeting so many wonderful people during the event who knew of the work AVA has been doing. In the program for the competition was a list of the past winners, and I counted twenty-four of them from AVA. (pictured - Me and Nedra Zachary)

The rest of the trip was filled with musical and AVA related adventures, but that’s for another blog!

The flowers that bloom in the spring...

Are not normally blooming indoors, unless you're at the most beautiful spot in the Philadelphia area, Longwood Gardens in Chester County. That’s where AVA held its gala, Viva la Voce! this year.

The famous Dupont Estate is now home to one of the most famous Botanical Gardens in the USA and  it happens to be in our back yard. This event is the culmination of months of planning and with the help of so many people, it was a fabulous evening.

A key part of the evening is, of course, music - and this year two spectacular alums came back to serenade the guests. Soprano Angela Meade and tenor Bryan Hymel graciously offered their voices and personalities to this event. Angela was just finishing up her performances at the Metropolitan Opera, and Bryan just ended a run of Rusalka at the Royal Opera House in London, and had a brief time before beginning rehearsals for Faust for Baltimore Lyric Opera.

It’s always a thrill for me to see the alums back on, as I say ‘home turf’. Bryan had not been back to Philly in a few years, and brought with him his most beautiful and talented wife, Irini. (Through Facebook I found out that Irini made her Royal Opera debut this season as well). It was old home week with vocal coaches Danielle Orlando, Richard Raub, David Lofton and Laurent Philippe accompanying the artists during the concert. Many of the resident artists serenaded during the dinner.

The dinner was awash in green with live flowers at the height of their beauty. During the event AVA  paid tribute to Jeannine Cowles (AVA ’50) who recently endowed the Music Director Chair in honor of Maestro Macatsoris, and to the Davis family in honor of Sally Paxson Davis, our past president and grand-daughter of the founder of AVA, Helen Corning Warden. (photo of Jeannine Cowles, seated and Maestro Macatsoris, standing)

I was lucky enough to help with both the silent and live auctions with the help of Lindsey Crane. Our live auctioneer, for the third time was TV star of Antiques Roadshow, Alasdair Nichol.

Is LA the new NYC....

Well, maybe in May it is.

Seems like Los Angeles is filled to capacity with AVA alums and resident artists during May, and I’m  loving it. There are three events happening in one weekend, two at the same time, on the same day, and I promise to be in the middle of all of them as your roving reporter!

I’ll be in LA for many AVA reasons, and all of them good ones. First of all the Zachary Vocal Competition takes place on Saturday, May 19^th. AVA has five, count em, five finalists in the competition – Chloé Moore, Olivia Vote, Viktor Antipenko, Wes Mason and Scott Conner. If you follow AVA’s email blasts, and I know you do, you know that AVA is sweeping the competition circuit. One of AVA’s favorite stage directors, Tito Capobianco, who will be returning to AVA next season, will be one of the competition judges.

At the Los Angeles Opera La bohème will star three AVA alums, Ailyn Pérez (AVA ’06) as Mimi, Stephen Costello (AVA ’07) as Rodolfo and Museop Kim (AVA ’04) as Schaunard. There are 5 performances from May 12 to June 2. (photo pf AVA's production of La bohème in 2006)

Right across the street from the opera house at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Los Angeles Philharmonic performs Don Giovanni with four alums singing and covering roles. Ryan Kuster (AVA ’11) will sing the role of Masetto, a role he performed with the San Francisco Opera this season. Covering roles will be Olivia Vote, Alex Lawrence (AVA ’11) and Ben Wager (AVA ’09).

While there I hope to meet for the first time AVA alum Winnie Rickert Hiller (AVA ‘77), a voice and acting teacher to many of the best. I’ll also see my old friends Kimberly Henshaw (AVA ‘06) and her husband Jose Adan Pérez (AVA ‘08).

I’ll also be giving an operetta lecture on May 21 to The Friends of Operetta, as the Executive Director of Concert Operetta Theater,  which will be open to the public.

A Cinderella story, opera style….

Lots of buzz in Philly the past few weeks. The fairy tale begins with AVA’s “almost graduate” Michelle Johnson getting a chance-of-a-lifetime offer. While in Houston singing Leonora in Il Trovatore with Opera in the Heights she received that phone call that many want, but rarely receive. David Devan of Opera Company of Philadelphia was calling to offer her the title role in their production of Puccini’s Manon Lescaut, replacing the scheduled soprano who was ill.

She arrived back in Philadelphia to start staging the opera. With score in hand she had the job of learning and memorizing the music as well as the staging. If anyone was going to do this well, it was going to be Michelle! The amount of support and love was huge from all her friends, and coaches, and I know she appreciated it.

On the day she opened I was walking back from the post office and I ran into Michelle on the street. I asked what she was doing out and she said she just needed to walk a bit, to offset opening night jitters.

The run, so far has been a major success. The local critic said, “her singing has magnetic immediacy thanks to the clean vocal lines and word coloring that made her singing speak in beautifully formed musical sentences, similar to the young Renata Tebaldi.”

I wanted to wait to write this blog until I saw the production myself, which I did last night thanks to Dr. Marilyn Luber who had an extra ticket in the 8^th row! I sat next to AVA board member Randy Apgar by coincidence, and somehow knew I was in for a great experience. Everything positive I hard heard about the production was all true - a great cast, which included alums Daniel Mobbs, Cody Austin, John David Miles and resident artist John Viscardi, beautiful sets and stage direction and a wonderful orchestra and conductor.

What’s next for Ms. Johnson? Just the whole world of opera and music. She will perform on the AVA Farewell Concert on May 11^th with fellow graduates Olivia Vote and Scott Conner. After a very personal day in Houston - her wedding to Brian K. Major, she will star as Aida at Glimmerglass Opera, with fellow alum Noah Stewart (AVA ’08),  directed by Francesca  Zambello, July 7 – August 25.  

Hors d'ouvres, yes please...

Gala season at AVA is upon us, and there’s nothing like a great party with great singing to make the spirits soar.

Bucks County Opera Association had their Benefactor’s party a few weeks ago in the beautiful home of Jillian McGlone in the New Hope, PA area. The party was a benefit for their scholarship fund for the resident artists at AVA. The singers for the event were Sydney Mancasola, Margaret Mezzacappa, William Davenport and Nelson Ebo with José Melendéz at the piano.

The weather was spectacular, as was the food and music and I was the MC of the event. One of the reasons for the event is to promote the AVA production of L’elisir d’amore, which will play at Central Bucks High School South in Warrington, Bucks County on Saturday, May 5^th. Ms. Mancasola is singing Adina, along with Chloé Moore, and I interviewed her about this production and how much fun they are having with stage director Nic Muni.

All I can say is this is not your ordinary production. It takes place in Italy after WW II and Adina is a babe. (Need I say more?)

 In case you missed the party in Bucks County, you can still join the South Jersey Opera Association for their gala called Tenore con Amore on Sunday, May 6^th, 5:00 - 8:00 pm. AVA was honored to have tenor Bryan Hymel performed at our Gala in March. Now you have another chance to hear him, as they say, “up close and personal”.

Along with Bryan there will be AVA resident artists Maria Aleida, Margaret Mezzacappa and Zachary Nelson with Luke Housner at the piano to serenade you, a silent auction, and delicious food and drink. I hear that the historic house called Tabula Rasa is quite amazing and this might be your chance to see it, or consider buying it. Proceeds help the South Jersey Opera Association Fellowship, and funds AVA productions in NJ. If you’re interested in joining us for this great event, please contact Denise Stuart at dstuart@avaopera.org for an invitation.

You can see L’elisir d’amore on Sunday, May 13^th, curtain is 2:30 pm at the Gordon Theater, Rutgers/Camden.

Travels and more travels...

Taking a long weekend off from work can be fun, but taking a long weekend off to see alums perform is even better….

Many months ago I had a conversation with Othalie Graham about her performance of Minnie in Fanciulla del West with Nashville Opera. I told her that I would try to make the show (as if Nashville is close to Philadelphia!) I never knew that it would actually happen, all thanks to Stephen Costello.

The Costellos (that’s Stephen and Ailyn Pérez), moved to Chattanooga a few years ago, and I had an open invitation to visit them. With their busy schedule they haven’t spent much time at their home, but he was going to be there during the run of the opera in Nashville (which is 130 miles away), and invited me to stay with him. What a great idea, especially when I found out that Bill Schuman, their voice teacher was going to join us, I jumped at the chance. (photo: Daniel Pantano, Stephen Costello, Othalie Graham, Bill Schuman)

Bill and I met Stephen in Chattanooga on Wednesday afternoon, had great BBQ for dinner that night and got ready for Nashville the following day. Along with Othalie Graham, tenor Jeffrey Haili was also in the cast as Nick, the bartender. We were able to meet Jeff for lunch before the performance and do a little sightseeing before the opera (you must see the Opryland Hotel!)  Nashville Opera did themselves proud, and Othalie and Jeff did a great job with a standing ovation. (photo: Stephen Costello, Jeffrey Halili, Bill Schuman)

Getting back to Chattanooga at 3:30 am made for a long day, but Friday was spent relaxing and seeing some of the local sites including Lookout Mountain and Rock City (I love a good view!) Jeff joined us on his day off, we grilled at Stephen’s house and, as they say, chilled out.

 
Saturday we went the opposite direction into Atlanta to hear Ailyn Pérez make her debut with the Atlanta Symphony singing the Poulenc Gloria. An added treat on the program was violinist Gil Shaham, but Ailyn performed the closing work both artists to a standing ovation. I was so happy to see Tequila Costello, the family puppy who I baby sat for three months while her mommy and daddy were singing in Salzsburg. After a very late dinner, Stephen dropped me off at an airport hotel for a three hour nap before heading home. I was scheduled to attend the Bucks County Opera Association’s benefactor party that afternoon in New Hope, PA and I made it there with no problem. Who needs sleep when there’s music?

I can’t tell you how much fun I had with all the alums. They might be your favorite singers, but they are like family to me. Wait for my trip to Los Angeles next month. I’ll be seeing five alums, hearing two other alums, and hearing five resident artists sing a competition. Life is grand.

 

Picking up where I left off...

Sitting down and trying to write a blog after so long isn’t easy. It’s almost like trying to go back on an exercise regimen or a diet after the holidays!

With Facebook, Twitter and YouTube being the new modes of short and visual information I felt that the blog was old hat and that people didn’t want to read long posts. But recently so many people asked me to bring it back  - I just had to do it.

I’m so happy that I have AVA blogging friends on here now, and with their help, we will all try our best to give you our slant on the alums and resident artists. One of the new bloggers is Linda Ginsburg, she just loves getting the word out on the AVA artists and where they are performing. The other new blogger is Lew Loesberg who does most of his blogging for AVA on Facebook and has come incredible information, especially about radio broadcasts.

I think what scares me about blogging is possibly missing something that one of our great AVA artists are doing in the world. There are some alums whose names are on everyone’s lips, thanks to HD movies and DVDs. But there are a huge number of alums you might not know who are making their living singing all over the world. My job is to bring all of them to you for your reading pleasure.

Before going any further, our PR and Marketing Department has added a few other ways for you to follow the AVA singers..

You all know about the AVA web site, but did you know about  weekly email blasts?
You have to sign up for them on AVA’s website, but its well worth knowing all the news, all the time.

Want to sit at home(or your office) and watch some great scenes from past productions?
Did you know AVA has a YouTube Channel? Just up are clips from the Pelléas et Mélisande lecture.
The link is:

Do you Tweet? We now do! Click here and sign up to get our tweets.

Gotta love FB (that’s Facebook for all of you who are not on it!)
AVA has a page you can follow. All you need to do is ‘like' us.

So now I see writing my first blog wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be!

Black, white and boo...

One of my favorite parties each Halloween season is Pearl and Chuck Mintzer’s Monster Bash at their home in New Hope, PA. Although there are many guests, the largest group present are the members of the Bucks County Opera Association, of which Pearl and Chuck are members.

I was unable to go this year, although I have made the local papers listed as “Mr. AVA” in the past.

The costumes always have a theme and this year, of course, was The Scarlet Letter. Anna Williams is elected as the costume mistress/designer and does a bang-up job with fitting everyone. Her Falstaff costumes last year were amazing. Who would be the lucky one to actually wear the scarlet A? Seems like it‘s Anna Williams hersef. Is that champagne you're carrying Hester?

So the color scheme might have been black-and-white, but I’m sure there was some colorful 21^st century fun at the event. Never were there more jolly pilgrims, and never have pilgrims before enjoyed mixed cocktails and chicken wings!

The Bucks County Opera Association will hold their annual gala, Something to Sing About, on Sunday, November 7^th at the Holly Hedge Estate in New Hope. Sit -down dinner, silent auctions, music from the resident artists, and yours truly as the live auctioneer. An event that should not be missed! Click here for contact information.

Click here to see the 2009 Haloween Blog
Click here to see the 2007 Haloween blog

 

No wonder my fingers hurt...

I’m in a sentimental mood today with the blog since I  just noticed that this entry is my 404th blog written for The Academy of Vocal Arts.

It’s not hard to find subject matter, there’s so much the AVA family of singers are doing in the world. It’s just hard at times to find the time to put everything down on paper. I ‘owe’ many singers a blog on their wonderful exploits including Adan Perez singing for the Grammy banquet in honor of Placido Domingo, to Michael Fabiano’s debut at the Met.

I also couldn’t do this without a crack team of roving reporters including Denise Stuart , John Lane and Val Starr at AVA who send me tidbits when they find them. Everyone who knows I blog for AVA send me items about their favorite singers, and the best part is that information is filled with pride and love. Not every AVA singer sends me their accomplishments, so I have to dig for them and Facebook has been a great and quick help to me for photos and reviews. You can’t hide from the blog!

I’ve I heard it said that to be a great salesman, you have to believe in your product - and when it comes to the AVA singers, I’m their biggest fan and supporter. I have known many of them from the first day they walked into AVA as a resident artist, and my heart skips a beat when I hear them singing on the opera stages of the world.

After all these blogs, do I have my favorites? No, not really. That’s kind of like favoring one family member over another. I like the ones that make people laugh. Indra Thomas told me once how much she liked my blog about her singing Aida in Austria last summer (which, but the way, she’ll be doing again this summer). She mentioned that she loved the title “Go jump in a lake” and it made her laugh.

 

Let's make a gala...

Of course we knew this was AVA’s 75th Anniversary, and we knew we knew we were going to throw a party for over 2,000 of our friends, but the rest took lots of work.

We began last spring procuring Verizon Hall for Wednesday, March 31st  for the BrAVA Philadelphia! concert and scheduling the orchestra – so far so good. A gala committee was formed to decide where the dinner would take place, and that also was a very easy decision – The Hyatt at the Bellevue with a lovely two story grand ballroom.

The hardest part of the evening is putting the concert together, and which alums are available to come to Philadelphia to perform. This job falls on Maestro Macatsoris, who chooses the singers and the repertoire. In a perfect world that would be a snap - but if you have read my blog in the past you know our wonderful alums are singing all over the world, all the time, so getting them to Philadelphia on a specific date and time isn’t always possible.

The line-up of singers this year is spectacular (would you have expected anything else?) with sopranos Eglise Gutiérrez, Angela Meade, Latonia Moore, and Indra Thomas, tenors Michael Fabiano and James Valenti, and baritone Luis Ledesma. AVA resident artists that will be featured are Michelle Johnson, Margaret Mezzacappa, Christopher Bolduc and Alex Lawrence.

I’ll be backstage that evening and I promise lots of photos next week.

So what’s left? Come see the concert!