A new twist on 'Tosca'
Regina Murphy
Friday, September 28, 2007
Concert opera is all about the music — no costumes, no running around the stage. It is a straightforward, yet powerful performance, devoted to the music. Now, thanks to Stanford Felix, Kansans will have the opportunity to enjoy it.
Felix, who earned a doctorate in voice performance from The University of Kansas in July, is the founder and artistic director of the Kansas Concert Opera. Its first performance, Puccini’s “Tosca,” will take place at 7:30 p.m. Friday at the Lawrence Arts Center followed by a second performance 3 p.m., Sunday at Beach Music Hall on the Emporia State University campus.
“I’ve wanted to do this for a while,” Felix said of bringing concert opera to the Midwest. “I was in New York for 13 years — it’s very popular both there and in Europe.”
Concert opera is opera without staging. Everyone is in concert dress and are accompanied only by a pianist or small orchestra. Concertized performances don’t cost a lot to produce and are easy to take on the road. This is precisely why Felix formed the new company. He said each Kansas Concert Opera production will be performed twice in a variety of Kansas towns.
Thanks to the relatively low cost of production, Felix said he can use revenue to bring in well-known, experienced regional singers to work with beginning singers from high schools and colleges around Kansas.
“What a great opportunity to show these kids that really good singing is important,” he said.
Local soprano and music director Andrea Garritano will perform the lead role of Floria Tosca.
“This is my first time singing ‘Tosca,’” said Garritano. “The Kansas Concert Opera is the ideal company for singing a role for the first time since the performances in concert version allow the voice and body to initially live in the role alone, without the added layers of costume and staging.”
KU doctoral music student Hugo Vera will perform the role of Mario Cavaradossi, Tosca’s beloved, and Felix will sing Scarpia, the villainous chief of police. Mark Ferrell, associate professor of music at KU, is the accompanist and he will be assisted on percussion by Emporia State student Nick Newhouse. Secondary roles are performed by other area musicians and there is a small chorus.
“Tosca” is one of the best known and best loved operas of all time. Famous arias include Vissi d’arte, E lucevan le stelle and Recondita armonia. This tragic love story has all the elements: love, jealousy, laughter, betrayal, joy, fear, intimidation, torture, murder and suicide.
It is one of the finest examples of “verismo,” or “realism.” This was a late 19th century movement of art depicting every day circumstances in as true and real a form as possible —- an emotional, tangible depiction of true life.
Examples of this style include “La Boheme,” “Cavalleria Rusticana” and “I Pagliacci” — these last two are scheduled to be performed by the KCO in the spring of 2008.
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