Utah State University Opera Theatre Presents Double Bill

A dark forest in Germany and the fields near Bethlehem provide the settings for two operas offered by the Utah State University students who study and perform with USU’s Opera Theatre. More than 45 undergraduate students will participate in the double bill.

USU’s Opera Theatre, directed by Lynn Jemison-Keisker, is based in the Department of Music and is a part of the Caine School of the Arts in the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences.

 

The two operas, Hansel and Gretel by Englebert Humperdinck and Amahl and the Night Visitors by Gian Carlo Menotti, will be presented Nov. 15-17 at the Caine Lyric Theatre in downtown Logan, 28. W. Center Street. Curtain is 7:30 p.m. each evening, with an additional 1 p.m. matinee Nov. 17. Both operas will be presented at each performance, with a 75-minute version of Hansel and Gretel first, followed by intermission then the 50-minute Amahl.

 

Tickets are available at the theatre’s box office one hour prior to performance. Admission is $10 for general seating and $5 for senior citizens. All students, USU faculty and staff are admitted at no cost.

 

Both productions have been double cast, and in addition to the 45 USU student performers, young members from the Cache Children’s Choir are featured in Hansel and Gretel. The operas will be sung in English and English supertitles will be projected.

 

“Acclaimed as one of the most outstanding national undergraduate opera programs, Utah State University’s Opera Theatre and its young artists provide outstanding family entertainment,” Jemison-Keisker said. “These productions will be enjoyed by young audience members and those young at heart.”

 

The fall 2007 performances are appropriate for children age 6 and older and offer a great way to feel a holiday spirit throughout the year, Jemison-Keisker said.

 

Jemison-Keiser is the general director, but the productions boast a guest stage director, Pamela Hinchman, whose work as a visiting artist at USU is sponsored by the Marie Eccles Caine Foundation. Hinchman’s housing in Cache Valley is provided by the Crystal Inn of Logan. Additional support for the productions is provided by choreographer Amie Einerson, costume designer Diane Lee and set construction is headed by Steven Glaittli.

 

Hinchman has previously directed productions for USU’s Opera Theatre. She is an internationally acclaimed soprano and stage director.

 

“Ms. Hinchman is always a favorite with our students,” Jemison-Keisker said. “She brings her multi-talents and experience in staging our productions, as well as providing master classes and performing for our students.”

 

Hinchman is an associate professor of voice at Northwestern University.

 

Many are familiar with the story from Hansel and Gretel, based on the fairy tale by Ludwig Grimm. The tale was turned into an opera by Adelheid Wette, Humperdinck’s sister, who first wrote the libretto (text) for the piece and asked her brother to compose the music for what was a small, family entertainment. The work proved successful and was expanded into the full-scale work.

 

The cast includes Angela Garrett and Elizabeth Smith as Gretel, Erin Lee and Jamie Lee as Hansel, Nadia Giron and Heather Madsen as the mother, Anthony Eversole and Brandtley Henderson as the father. The witch is portrayed by Miriam Jackson and Jenete St. Clair, while Arianne Chadwick and Karlie Rhodes play the Sandman. Becky Foster and Kristina Woolley take turns as the Dew Fairy. The cast also includes 23 Gingerbread Kids and 14 angels.

 

Amahl and the Night Visitors was commissioned by NBC-TV and its opera theatre in 1951. It is a one-act opera known as a Christmas miracle story. The action takes place at Amahl’s cottage near Bethlehem and the fields outside, with a suggestion of a star.

 

Not all roles in Amahl are double cast. The opera’s performers include Mary-Jane Castleton Lee as the mother and Rebecca Rougeau as Amahl. The three kings, Kaspar, Melchior and Balthazar are double cast. Landon Smith and Jake Calderwood take on the role of Kaspar, Michael Starr and Shane Mickelson appear as Melchior and Morgan Hall and Jordon Lebaron are Balthazar. Matt Boeckmann is the Page and Becky Foster, Kim Garcia and Matthew Kennedy are the dancers. The company includes 30 singers who are seen as shepherds.

 

For more information on the performances or the USU Opera Theatre program, contact Jemison-Keisker at (435) 797-3038.

 

 

 

Contact: Lynn Jemison-Keisker (435) 797-3038, Lkeisker@hass.usu.edu
Writer: Patrick Williams (435) 797-1354