a poulenc cabaret

Posted on December 26, 2011 by operamission

operamission presents -

a Poulenc Cabaret

Thursday, February 2, 8:00 PM – one show only

$20 cover, tickets at the door

Gershwin Hotel, 7 East 27th Street, just east of 5th Avenue, New York

This year, for our annual winter cabaret slot, operamission is presenting potent readings of Francis Poulenc‘s most sensual and alluring songs. We’ll cross between the vocal genres, and will feature a select offering of his most touching instrumental works, performed by outstanding soloists.

The performers:

baritone Ross Benoliel

soprano Jessica Goldring

soprano Michelle Jennings

pianist Max Midroit

tenor John Carlo Pierce

soprano Marcy Richardson

mezzo-soprano Kimberly Sogioka

countertenor Nicholas Tamagna

clarinetist Cory Tiffin

baritone Randal Turner

baritone Michael Weyandt

co-curated by Jessica Goldring and Jennifer Peterson

selections to include:

Banalités

Chansons gaillardes

La courte paille

Hommage à Edith Piaf

Les Mamelles de Tirésias (from the opera)

Sonate pour clarinette et piano

songs written for Yvonne Printemps

settings of poetry by Guillaume Apollinaire, Louis Aragon, and more…

Posted in Jennifer | Tagged apollinaire, aragon, art song, cabaret, clarinet, cory tiffin, francis poulenc, gershwin hotel, instrumental, jennifer peterson, jessica goldring, john carlo pierce, kimberly sogioka, marcy richardson, max midroit, michael weyandt, michelle jennings, nicholas tamagna, opera, operamission, piano, poulenc, randal turner, ross benoliel, vocal, voice, yvonne printemps | Leave a comment

almira, königin von castilien

Posted on December 15, 2011 by operamission

operamission will present the North American Premiere of G. F. Händel’s first opera, Almira.

This beautiful three-act opera which was written in 1704 by the talented and precocious nineteen-year-old composer, soon to take the opera world by storm, has a libretto in both German and Italian. It was premiered in Hamburg and has never before been professionally produced outside of Germany and Austria.

Three performances: Saturday May 26, Tuesday May 29, & Thursday May 31, 2012, all at 7:30 PM at the Gershwin Hotel in New York

Staged with Baroque Orchestra

Cast:

KIERA DUFFY – Almira

NELL SNAIDAS – Edilia

KRISTEN PLUMLEY – Bellante

KEITH JAMESON – Osman

MICHAEL WEYANDT – Fernando

KARIM SULAYMAN – Tabarco

MARK RISINGER – Consalvo

DAVID KRAVITZ – Raymondo

JENNIFER PETERSON – Conductor

Almira, Königin von Castilien (HWV 1)

~ complete ticket information coming soon ~

CONTRIBUTE and SHARE…

Posted in Jennifer | Tagged almira, almira königin von castilien, baroque, baroque opera, cabaret, gershwin hotel, handel, hwv 1, jennifer peterson, new york, north american premiere, opera, operamission, premiere, u.s. premiere | Leave a comment

handel alert

Posted on October 24, 2011 by operamission

Processing, planning, moving forward…

August and September of 2011 have made up a true whirlwind of operatic activity. We attacked, both in unique operamission fashion, two of the greatest operas in the repertoire – Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro and Puccini’s La Bohème. We’re thrilled to be connecting to new audiences every day. Thank you for following operamission‘s progress and supporting the vision.

Video clips of both productions are being shared on operamission’s YouTube channel, along with some fine footage of Stravinsky’s L’Histoire du Soldat from June 2011.

operamission recently received a very nice nod in the October 2011 issue of London’s Opera Now magazine. Robert Levine reports on the New York opera scene, with informative coverage of the Met and NYCO, and then spends a nice healthy page exposing what he calls “The New York Fringe.” Not available online, please take a look at this PDF version of the article, and don’t miss the giant photo of soprano Marcy Richardson by photographer Cory Weaver. Well, it’s hard to miss… Enjoy the article.

You may also enjoy this recent interview with conductor Jennifer Peterson on YAP Tracker, which is an online resource for young opera professionals.

The current exciting news happens to be the announcement of our Spring 2012 production:

operamission will present the North American Premiere of G. F. Händel’s first opera, Almira.

Three-act opera from 1704, in German & Italian, premiered in Hamburg, never before produced outside of Germany & Austria.

Three performances: Saturday May 26, Tuesday May 29, & Thursday May 31, 2012, all at 7:30 PM at the Gershwin Hotel in New York

Staged with Baroque Orchestra

Cast:

KIERA DUFFY – Almira

NELL SNAIDAS – Edilia

KRISTEN PLUMLEY – Bellante

KEITH JAMESON – Osman

MICHAEL WEYANDT – Fernando

KARIM SULAYMAN – Tabarco

MARK RISINGER – Consalvo

DAVID KRAVITZ – Raymondo

JENNIFER PETERSON – Conductor

Eager for casting and ticket information? Tweet @operamission or @gaspsiagore, visit the contact page or leave a comment below. Please support operamission, tax-deductible through our fiscal sponsor, Fractured Atlas.

Posted in Jennifer | Tagged almira, baroque, baroque music, baroque opera, classical music, gershwin hotel, handel, jennifer peterson, l'histoire, l'histoire du soldat, opera, operamission, stravinsky, yap tracker | Leave a comment

figaro al fresco

Posted on September 12, 2011 by operamission

operamission performs at the Bryant Park Fall Festival on Monday, September 19, 2011 at 12:30 PM.

After Act I of ‘Puccini’s La Bohème: Assembly Required,’ the Festival called me up and offered me 60-90 minutes of weekday noontime festivities, so we will bring them a generous and refreshing slice of Mozart, expressly catered to the occasion…

Figaro al fresco – a comic cliffhanger

Superimposing the 18th-century Viennese outdoor wind band tradition of light entertainment onto the most brilliant of comic operas, operamission presents Acts I & II of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro (‘The Marriage of Figaro’).

Staged by director Peter Kozma, a vibrant cast partners with a chamber band fit for Bryant Park’s Fall Festival Stage. Conductor Jennifer Peterson leads from the piano.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

bass CORY CLINES (Figaro) • soprano SHARIN APOSTOLOU (Susanna) • baritone MICHAEL WEYANDT (Count) • soprano INNA DUKACH (Countess)

and rounding out our cast:

countertenor TYLER WAYNE SMITH as Cherubino

bass LAWRENCE LONG as Bartolo and Antonio

mezzo-soprano JANARA KELLERMAN as Marcellina

and tenor IVÁN RIVERA as Basilio

…joined by BORIS SHPITALNIK and GROVER EDWARDS on clarinets, KEITH KREINDLER on bassoon, MIKE SAYRE and BRIAN HILL on horns, and KYLE COLINA on the double bass.

The concert is FREE, and we will be live-tweeting the synopsis at @fignyc!

operamission needs your support, now especially – tell anyone you know to send their dollars.

A ‘free concert’ is not free to produce! Spread the word of this worthy cause. Contact Jennifer Peterson if you’d like to know more.

Top image courtesy of http://adamapples.blogspot.com/ – used with permission, thank you Adam – great blog for the NY fall season!

Posted in Jennifer | Tagged bryant park, bryant park fall festival, cory clines, harmonie, harmonie ensemble, inna dukach, jennifer peterson, le nozze di figaro, marriage of figaro, michael weyandt, mozart, nozze, opera, operamission, peter kozma, sharin apostolou, wolfgang amadeus mozart | Leave a comment

act IV rescheduled due to hurricane

Posted on August 26, 2011 by operamission

Due to the NYC mass transit shutdown and partial evacuation order, this Sunday’s Act IV presentation of La Bohème: Assembly Required has been rescheduled for Sunday, September 4, 7–10pm.

CAST for Act IV, September 4:

Mimi – KERRI MARCINKO

Rodolfo – RYAN MacPHERSON

Marcello – ROSS BENOLIEL

Musetta – CAROLINE WORRA

Schaunard – MICHAEL WEYANDT

Colline – OREN GRADUS

HOSTS: conductor JENNIFER PETERSON, director MARC VERZATT and dramaturg NEIL EDDINGER

Photos by Neke Carson, special thanks to the Gershwin Hotel

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

puccinimission

Posted on August 1, 2011 by operamission

Puccini’s La BohèmeAssembly Required

• Cast members from — La Scala, the Met, the old New York City Opera, Teatro Colon, Glimmerglass, and all over

• Full orchestra, unrehearsed, assembled on the spot

• Hosted by — conductor Jennifer Peterson, directors Eric Einhorn (I), Jonathon Field (II, III), Marc Verzatt (IV), dramaturg Cori Ellison

• Audience encouraged to interact digitally

• Live videostreaming via Ustream

Act I – Tuesday, August 16, 7-10pm

CAST: Roseanne Ackerley, Glenn Seven Allen, David Adam Moore, Michael Weyandt, Cory Clines, Lawrence Long

HOSTS: Jennifer Peterson, Eric Einhorn, Cori Ellison

Act II – Sunday, August 21, 7-10pm

CAST: Roseanne Ackerley, Sharin Apostolou, Ryan MacPherson, Kenneth Overton, Michael Weyandt, Cory Clines, Ryan Allen

HOSTS: Jennifer Peterson, Jonathon Field, Cori Ellison

Act III – Tuesday, August 23, 7-10pm

CAST: Kerri Marcinko, Caroline Worra, Ryan MacPherson, James Bobick

HOSTS: Jennifer Peterson, Jonathon Field, Cori Ellison

Act IV – Sunday, August 28, 7-10pm RESCHEDULED TO SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 7-10pm

CAST: Kerri Marcinko, Caroline Worra, Ryan MacPherson, Ross Benoliel, Michael Weyandt, Oren Gradus

HOSTS: Jennifer Peterson, Marc Verzatt

Click to view the press release, the postcard, and the program.

Interested in playing in the orchestra? Click here to view the Call for Orchestral Players.

And click to make a donation to operamission through Fractured Atlas, our Fiscal Sponsor. $fractured atlast logo$

Posted in Jennifer | Tagged assembly required, boheme, call for orchestral players, call for players, caroline worra, cori ellison, cory clines, david adam moore, eric einhorn, gershwin hotel, glenn seven allen, gregory gerbrandt, james bobick, jennifer peterson, jonathon field, kenneth overton, kerri marcinko, kevin burdette, la boheme, lawrence long, marc verzatt, michael weyandt, opera, opera orchestra, operamission, orchestra, puccini, reading orchestra, roseanne ackerley, ryan allen, ryan macpherson, sharin apostolou, some assembly required | 5 Comments

classics

Posted on May 4, 2011 by operamission

Visit operamission‘s support page to make your tax-deductible contribution towards this riveting evening of music-making….

Visit our UStream channel to watch the concert live Saturday, June 4 at 8:00 PM EDT.

Click to view the press release and a PDF of the program.

Posted in Jennifer | Tagged cabaret, cameron smith, chamber, chamber music, classical music, cory tiffin, doug balliett, ed gonzales, gershwin hotel, indie gogo, indiegogo, jennifer berkebile, jennifer peterson, jill collura, john carlo pierce, keith chambers, l'histoire, l'histoire du soldat, maria johnson, mialtin zhezha, mike gurfield, opera, operamission, paul wolfram, pierrot, pierrot lunaire, press release, ryan allen, schoenberg, sean scot reed, soldier's tale, stravinsky, theater, theatre | Leave a comment

spring 2011

Posted on April 27, 2011 by operamission

Next up for operamission –

RECITAL & LIVE RECORDING SESSION -

SOPRANO MARCY RICHARDSON sings ‘Seconda Donna’ Arias from Handel’s Italian Operas

presented by operamission and Neke Carson at the Gershwin Hotel

Showpieces rarely heard and recorded from:

Almira, Ariodante, Deidamia, Orlando, Il Pastor Fido, Serse, and Teseo

with countertenor Bryan DeSilva and the operamission HANDEL BAND on original instruments

JENNIFER PETERSON, leading from the harpsichord

JOAN PLANA and TATIANA DAUBEK, baroque violins

AUDREY SELPH, baroque viola

BEILIANG ZHU, baroque cello

Friday, April 29, 8:00 PM

Gershwin Hotel, the Living Room

7 East 27th Street, just east of 5th Avenue

$10 cover, pay at the door, general admission

wine will be served, courtesy of Vina Robles

click to view the program

Then, in May:

The CONCORDIUM HARMONIE ENSEMBLE

in their Manhattan Debut, Inaugural All-Mozart Program

ALEX MEYER, KANG DONG – oboes

MOLLY WYRICK-FLAX, BALAZS ERDELYI – clarinets

FERENC FARKAS, JIMMY HABER – horns

DAVID A. NAGY, JOSH HODGE – bassoons

presented by operamission and Neke Carson at the Gershwin Hotel

Monday, May 16, 8:00 PM

Gershwin Hotel

7 East 27th Street, just east of 5th Avenue

$10 cover, general admission

And then, in JUNE:

SCHOENBERG and STRAVINSKY

Defining classics.

Pierrot Lunaire, 1912

L’Histoire du Soldat – The Soldier’s Tale, 1918

also at the Gershwin Hotel

Friday & Saturday, June 3 & 4, 2011.

The luminous mezzo-soprano JENNIFER BERKEBILE will be featured in the Schoenberg.

Stay tuned for our fundraising drive, or drop by operamission’s support page, as well as the impending announcement of the much-demanded August 2011 ‘Assembly Required’ adventure…. if you’re up for holding the dates, we’re looking at sometime around August 15-21.

Dozens of videos of past events are posted on operamission’s YouTube channel — ENJOY, and let us know what you love from our broad range of programming – Handel, Mozart, Schubert, Weill, Borzoni and much more to come….

Posted in Jennifer | Tagged alex meyer, aria, assembly required, balazs erdelyi, bassoon, beiliang zhu, clarinet, classics, concordium, concordium harmonie ensemble, david nagy, defining classics, ferenc farkas, gershwin hotel, handel, handel at the gershwin, handel opera, harmonie, histoire du soldat, horn, jennifer berkebile, jennifer peterson, jimmy halber, joan plana, josh hodge, kang dong, l'histoire, l'histoire du soldat, marcy richardson, molly wyrick-flax, mozart, neke carson, oboe, opera, pierrot, pierrot lunaire, schoenberg, seconda donna, some assembly required, soprano, stravinsky, wind band, woodwind | Leave a comment

kurt weill uncovered – the guests

Posted on February 8, 2011 by operamission

The guests -

February 11

bass RYAN ALLEN – Der Song von Mandelay from Happy End

soprano DORA HASTINGS – Surabaya-Johnny from Happy End

soprano MARY ANN STEWART – “Youkali”

soprano JANINAH BURNETT – “Two Hearts” from A Kingdom for a Cow

mezzo-soprano HAI-TING CHINN – Nannas Lied

mezzo-soprano SARAH NELSON CRAFT – “Speak low” from One Touch of Venus

tenor GLENN SEVEN ALLEN – “Wooden Wedding” from One Touch of Venus

baritone DENNIS BLACKWELL – “I got a marble and a star” from Street Scene

bass-baritone KEVIN BURDETTE – “Let things be like they always was” from Street Scene

tenor TOMMY WAZELLE – “Lonely House” from Street Scene

soprano LAUREN WORSHAM – “Mr. Right” from Love Life

baritone JORELL WILLIAMS – “Lost in the Stars”

February 18

soprano KATE MANGIAMELI – Das Lied von den braunen Inseln from Petroleuminseln

soprano CHARLOTTE COHN – Surabaya-Johnny from Happy End

tenor KARIM SULAYMAN – Lotterieagents Tango from Der Silbersee

soprano LISA WILLIAMSON – “Es regnet”

soprano KERRI MARCINKO – “In diesem Leben” from Der Kuhhandel

mezzo-soprano ANNIE ROSEN – “Je ne t’aime pas”

soprano AMY VAN ROEKEL – “The river is so blue” from The River is Blue

bass-baritone STEPHEN BRYANT – September Song from Knickerbocker Holiday

baritone ROSS BENOLIEL - “Unforgettable”

soprano BEVERLY O’REGAN THIELE – “Somehow I never could believe” from Street Scene

soprano SHARIN APOSTOLOU – “What good would the moon be?” from Street Scene

baritone LIAM BONNER – “Lost in the Stars”

Marcy & Ian are taking care of everything else…

We will be streaming live at Ustream, feel free to share the link with anyone who can’t be in NYC for the shows: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/kurt-weill-uncovered. The link is also active after the show is over, saved as a video. Just scroll down the page below the slide-show, and enjoy.

Here’s the program for 2/11 and some translations.

And for 2/18: program and translations.

Please scroll down or go to winter-spring 2011 for access to the complete details.

It’s going to be a fantastic show.

Posted in Jennifer | Tagged amy van roekel, annie rosen, beverly o'regan thiele, beverly thiele, cabaret, caroline worra, charlotte cohn, classical music, dennis blackwell, dora hastings, gershwin hotel, glenn allen, glenn seven allen, hai-ting chinn, jennifer peterson, jorell williams, karim sulayman, kate mangiameli, kerri marcinko, kevin burdette, kurt weill, kurt weill uncovered, lauren worsham, liam bonner, lisa williamson, mary ann stewart, opera, operamission, ross benoliel, ryan allen, sarah craft, sarah nelson craft, sharin apostolou, stephen bryant, tommy wazelle, vocal music, weill | Leave a comment

winter-spring 2011

Posted on January 7, 2011 by operamission

Coming next – we’re heatedly planning an evening of Kurt Weill. Soprano Marcy Richardson and baritone Ian Greenlaw will join me and a wonderful handful of additional artists to bring New York audiences a cabaret chronology for two toasty Friday evenings in the Gershwin Hotel next month.

kurt weill uncovered: in cabaret

Two Fridays, February 11 and 18, 2011, both at 8pm, please join us. Check back here for more details on the repertoire as we flesh out the program. The postcard is here, and the press release, if you’d like to share them.

Still in the planning stages is the third in the series ‘HANDEL at the Gershwin,’ as well as an evening which will take a slice of an exciting opera-in-progress which operamission has commissioned and is developing, Antinous and Hadrian by Clint Borzoni, libretto by Edward Ficklin. If you’re curious about exactly what it takes to create a new opera, this is your chance. We will split open the process for you and show you each stage of this most complex of collaborations, while presenting a sneak preview of the music and libretto in its current state.

And fourthly, all this to roll us into a much-demanded return of the ‘Some Assembly Required’ fiasco. Who wants to guess which opera will be attempted? We’re thinking August of 2011…

Do stay tuned, obviously…

Happy New Year, and thank you for supporting operamission!

Posted in Jennifer | Tagged american, antinous, antinous and hadrian, art song, baritone, borzoni, cabaret, chanson, chronology, clint borzoni, edward ficklin, ficklin, gershwin hotel, handel, handel at the gershwin, history, ian greenlaw, kurt weill, lied, lieder, marcy richardson, music, opera, operamission, some assembly required, song, soprano, voice, weill | 1 Comment