My apologies for not writing sooner. The world has been "too much with [me]" lately, and not just in learning the "Mefistofele." Had a couple of great articles in my head but couldn't get them down on paper.
Caught this article on the St. Petersburg Times' website about the touring show of "Phantom of the Opera." The author offers some interesting facts about the original phantom and tech specs about the current production.
It's always interesting to see what it takes to put on a real touring show, how they do what they do the same way every city, every show. Of particular note: the amount of time it takes to set up production: a full 10 days! And 20 truckloads of trappings! I remember when I was a teenager my high school band would sell fruit for the fall. (And, yes, Farragut High School Band is still selling fruit to this day.) Most of the band (~130 people) along with parents, siblings, friends, etc., was required to unload two tractor trailers full of boxed citrus fruit. By the time evening fell, we were all pretty much exhausted. I can't imagine unloading 20 truckloads of stuff--stuff that isn't nice square rectangles, like fruit boxes.
Something else occurred to me while reading the article. You know, most of us take our guests artists at KO for granted, but they really are special people. Sure, being an opera star is glamorous and rewarding, but it's also a real pain! We see the glamorous side of things--schmoozing with the swells, partying with your costars, invitation-only dinners. What we don't see is them living out of a suitcase for up to 50 weeks a year. We also don't see them having to accustomize themselves to a new bed every six weeks or so. Nor do we see them craving the facilities to make mom's special chili instead of existing off of frou-frou party food. "Touring" means just that; you don't get home much.
Well, tomorrow night's the big gig. Hope everybody's not blowing their chords on these rehearsals. All well and fine to practice hard, but if you've got laryngitis during the performance, it amounts to nil.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Friday, October 17, 2008
Reunion '08
I've been trying since Tuesday to write a blurb about how I think most people in the KO chorus are there for the social aspect of things, but the article kept getting blown up by my ADD, so I thought I'd start afresh today.
So, yes, KO choristers do get paid (a little) to do the opera chorus thing and, yes, we are all interested in creating the best possible artistic product we can and, yes, we all get a kick out of being on stage. But the thing that keeps most choristers coming back time and again is the people in the chorus and in the KO organization, in general. They're just a terrific bunch of people! Even though the heart and soul of the chorus changes yearly, or even during each production, it still is made up of a bunch of swells that you won't find anywhere else in town. Large construction equipment salesperson? Got him. Teachers? Aplenty. Doctors? Them, too. A sub-phylum of geeks; administrators of various ilk; Protestants, Jews, Catholics, an atheist and agnostic or two, I'm pretty sure; singles, marrieds, married with spouses in the chorus, too; young, old, older than dirt, old but young at heart, young but old at heart; collegians, high school drop-outs, doctors (PhDs), masters (and mistresses). Alright. You probably get the point.
So how do we all work together without killing each other? Oh, occasionally, we'll throw a snobby soprano or two into the pit to be devoured by the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra players--which, incidentally, are people, too... even the bassoonists, who are granted special passes from the asylum on days when we have dress rehearsals or performances, are a part of our family. And we have our differences. A late, difficult rehearsal combined with a bad day at work can cloud the emotional control of anyone. We all have lives outside opera, and while we endeavor to leave them under the canopy on Depot before we enter the KO building, it's impossible not to track in a little anger or frustration from the outside world occasionally. Rest assured, though, that a smile from Big Jim or a hug from Linda is a far more potent cure for what ails you than anything in your psychiatrist's little black bag.
And, yes, while going over an entrance for the fifteenth time singing high Cs double forte can be a lot more work even than a "real" job, we do have fun. Certainly, if we had a little less fun at times our final product would improve, but you could pretty much say that about any company, right? Don, Brian, and whomever is directing give us a rather long leash in that regard, but don't hesitate to rein us in when they need to. And we know it. We know we go too far a lot... a lot!
Thanks to everybody in the company, a bad day rehearsing opera in a warehouse in a seedy part of town is better than a good day at work. Here's to keeping it that way.
So, yes, KO choristers do get paid (a little) to do the opera chorus thing and, yes, we are all interested in creating the best possible artistic product we can and, yes, we all get a kick out of being on stage. But the thing that keeps most choristers coming back time and again is the people in the chorus and in the KO organization, in general. They're just a terrific bunch of people! Even though the heart and soul of the chorus changes yearly, or even during each production, it still is made up of a bunch of swells that you won't find anywhere else in town. Large construction equipment salesperson? Got him. Teachers? Aplenty. Doctors? Them, too. A sub-phylum of geeks; administrators of various ilk; Protestants, Jews, Catholics, an atheist and agnostic or two, I'm pretty sure; singles, marrieds, married with spouses in the chorus, too; young, old, older than dirt, old but young at heart, young but old at heart; collegians, high school drop-outs, doctors (PhDs), masters (and mistresses). Alright. You probably get the point.
So how do we all work together without killing each other? Oh, occasionally, we'll throw a snobby soprano or two into the pit to be devoured by the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra players--which, incidentally, are people, too... even the bassoonists, who are granted special passes from the asylum on days when we have dress rehearsals or performances, are a part of our family. And we have our differences. A late, difficult rehearsal combined with a bad day at work can cloud the emotional control of anyone. We all have lives outside opera, and while we endeavor to leave them under the canopy on Depot before we enter the KO building, it's impossible not to track in a little anger or frustration from the outside world occasionally. Rest assured, though, that a smile from Big Jim or a hug from Linda is a far more potent cure for what ails you than anything in your psychiatrist's little black bag.
And, yes, while going over an entrance for the fifteenth time singing high Cs double forte can be a lot more work even than a "real" job, we do have fun. Certainly, if we had a little less fun at times our final product would improve, but you could pretty much say that about any company, right? Don, Brian, and whomever is directing give us a rather long leash in that regard, but don't hesitate to rein us in when they need to. And we know it. We know we go too far a lot... a lot!
Thanks to everybody in the company, a bad day rehearsing opera in a warehouse in a seedy part of town is better than a good day at work. Here's to keeping it that way.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Disney Releases Costa's "Sleeping Beauty" on hi-def
During production for Oktoberfest last week, I noted that Disney is releasing a new anniversary DVD & Blu-Ray (i.e., hi def) set of its classic cartoon "Sleeping Beauty" which stars Knoxville's (and Knoxville Opera's) own Mary Costa. I wondered how much hoopla they would make of it (other than the constant marketing, that is). Turns out they are. I spotted this bio of Costa (far superior to the one on Wikipedia) that was publicly released by Disney. I knew that Costa had done the voiceover and singing for Aurora, but I didn't realize that Disney had actually patterned Costa's likeness for her character.
"Sleeping Beauty" was one of my all-time favorite Disney movies when I was a kid, partly because I had fallen hopelessly in love with Aurora on the screen. (The evil Queen, and the dragon she turns into at the end of the movie, however, to this day is probably still capable of giving me nightmares.) I haven't seen the movie in over 30 years, though, largely because, as a single, childless guy, I would die of embarrassment renting a Disney cartoon at Blockbuster. (Yeah, I know: The dweebs at the Blockbuster store don't know I'm single and childless. Doesn't matter. I do! Oddly enough, though, I only have the slightest twinge of guilt renting animé. This dichotomy could be several therapy sessions, right there.)
Pity the KO didn't simultaneously schedule a production of Tschaikovsky's "Sleeping Beauty" to try to ride the wave of hype, though.
 Aurora |  Costa |
"Sleeping Beauty" was one of my all-time favorite Disney movies when I was a kid, partly because I had fallen hopelessly in love with Aurora on the screen. (The evil Queen, and the dragon she turns into at the end of the movie, however, to this day is probably still capable of giving me nightmares.) I haven't seen the movie in over 30 years, though, largely because, as a single, childless guy, I would die of embarrassment renting a Disney cartoon at Blockbuster. (Yeah, I know: The dweebs at the Blockbuster store don't know I'm single and childless. Doesn't matter. I do! Oddly enough, though, I only have the slightest twinge of guilt renting animé. This dichotomy could be several therapy sessions, right there.)
Pity the KO didn't simultaneously schedule a production of Tschaikovsky's "Sleeping Beauty" to try to ride the wave of hype, though.
New Template
In looking around on the web, I noticed that this particular blog template is quite popular, so I decided to change mine to match. The old black template I was using looked cool and all, but in terms of readability, this template is much better
Report: KO's Oktoberfest
I have been quite remiss in my duties of reporting on Knoxville Opera productions.
Alas! There hasn't been that much to talk about, really. Last Friday's "Oktoberfest" dinner theater was basically a repeat of last year's celebration, only this year some selections from Romberg's "The New Moon" were added to the program. In trying to Google up some additional information on this year's production, I realized that there wasn't any. Hmm... Do we not have a full-time staff at the opera company now? Especially people dedicated to publicity? Reports on Oktoberfest? None. Reviews? None. Articles about the artists appearing? None. Articles previewing the event? None. I included in this search not only Google but local searches of the Knoxville News Sentinel and even the Knoxville Opera website which, if you're interested, contains plenty of information about last year's productions. (To be fair, a small note does mention that the website is currently undergoing a transition to its new form.)
Physicists sometimes infer data from sub-atomic collision experiments by seeing which particles are conspicuously absent from an event. We might borrow this technique to infer data about Oktoberfest. Since there appears to have been little or no publicity for the event, short of that mentioned in the direct-mailings sent out to former opera patrons, one might infer that attendance suffered... and one would be right. Rumor had it that over 100 plates were unsold. One hundred missing patrons doesn't seem that big a deal for a regular two-run production in the 1500-seat Tennessee Theater with ticket prices starting about $22; however, for single-performance dinner theater in the smallish Foundry at $100 a plate, that's $10K that's going to be missed in the KO's coffers!
In defense of the KO staff, Oktoberfest really wasn't really meant to be a public event anyway. It was a night of fun for current patrons, a kickoff of this season, a reason for all the opera-ites in the Knoxville area to get together and party with good food and libations, with a few laughs and an aria or two along the way. Consequently, in this sense, Oktoberfest was a great success! From the initial downbeat of Student Prince, event-goers came alive and participated lustily in the production, pounding their tables and/or beer steins in time with the music, giving a loud hurrah for the men's chorus and their antics, and heartily applauding the arias, duets, etc. The event was also a showcase for some of our new opera apprentices at UT to shine; certainly, also in that respect, the night was a success. (This author can remember harder times where apprentice classes weren't as first-rate as those we seem to be gathering together these days.)
As far as the chorus, I think I speak for all concerned when I say we had a good time, though not quite as good a time as we would have had if we'd had the women's division of the chorus with us. Though we have a plethora of male "characters" in the men's chorus, there is an equivalent and unique number in the women's chorus that, when blended in, take things to new heights. Fortunately, full chorus rehearsals for Nov. 1's "Glitterville" gala at the Tennessee Theater start tomorrow night, so we won't have to sit on our hands long to see them.
Which reminds me... I need to start learning some music.
Alas! There hasn't been that much to talk about, really. Last Friday's "Oktoberfest" dinner theater was basically a repeat of last year's celebration, only this year some selections from Romberg's "The New Moon" were added to the program. In trying to Google up some additional information on this year's production, I realized that there wasn't any. Hmm... Do we not have a full-time staff at the opera company now? Especially people dedicated to publicity? Reports on Oktoberfest? None. Reviews? None. Articles about the artists appearing? None. Articles previewing the event? None. I included in this search not only Google but local searches of the Knoxville News Sentinel and even the Knoxville Opera website which, if you're interested, contains plenty of information about last year's productions. (To be fair, a small note does mention that the website is currently undergoing a transition to its new form.)
Physicists sometimes infer data from sub-atomic collision experiments by seeing which particles are conspicuously absent from an event. We might borrow this technique to infer data about Oktoberfest. Since there appears to have been little or no publicity for the event, short of that mentioned in the direct-mailings sent out to former opera patrons, one might infer that attendance suffered... and one would be right. Rumor had it that over 100 plates were unsold. One hundred missing patrons doesn't seem that big a deal for a regular two-run production in the 1500-seat Tennessee Theater with ticket prices starting about $22; however, for single-performance dinner theater in the smallish Foundry at $100 a plate, that's $10K that's going to be missed in the KO's coffers!
In defense of the KO staff, Oktoberfest really wasn't really meant to be a public event anyway. It was a night of fun for current patrons, a kickoff of this season, a reason for all the opera-ites in the Knoxville area to get together and party with good food and libations, with a few laughs and an aria or two along the way. Consequently, in this sense, Oktoberfest was a great success! From the initial downbeat of Student Prince, event-goers came alive and participated lustily in the production, pounding their tables and/or beer steins in time with the music, giving a loud hurrah for the men's chorus and their antics, and heartily applauding the arias, duets, etc. The event was also a showcase for some of our new opera apprentices at UT to shine; certainly, also in that respect, the night was a success. (This author can remember harder times where apprentice classes weren't as first-rate as those we seem to be gathering together these days.)
As far as the chorus, I think I speak for all concerned when I say we had a good time, though not quite as good a time as we would have had if we'd had the women's division of the chorus with us. Though we have a plethora of male "characters" in the men's chorus, there is an equivalent and unique number in the women's chorus that, when blended in, take things to new heights. Fortunately, full chorus rehearsals for Nov. 1's "Glitterville" gala at the Tennessee Theater start tomorrow night, so we won't have to sit on our hands long to see them.
Which reminds me... I need to start learning some music.
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