NEXT TO NORMAL

SIX FOOT SOMETHING PRODUCTIONS & THE FACTORY

STATE OPERA STUDIO

PREVIEW MAY 9, 2012

SEASON MAY 10 to 26, 2012

REHEARSALS BEGIN MARCH 26

DIRECTOR / PRODUCTION DESGINER

David Lampard

MUSICAL DIRECTOR

Peter Johns

PRODUCERS

Kate Warren, Paul Talbot & David Lampard

PRODUCTION INFORMATION

Next to Normal began development in 2002 and finally opened on Broadway in 2009. It has won many awards, including three Tony awards and three Broadway.com Audience Awards. It also received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama (2010) – one of only eight musicals to ever receive this award. Successful productions have since been performed around the world, including an extended season produced by Melbourne Theatre Company in 2011.

This premiere Adelaide version is a collaboration between award-winning theatre company Six Foot Something Productions (The Last Five Years and Elegies: A Song Cycle) and film and theatre production house The Factory. This will be a non-replica production, drawing on local talent both onstage and in production roles to create and stage a brave and original iteration of this emotionally, musically and dramatically complex modern masterpiece.

This will be a semi-professional production.

ABOUT THE SHOW

Next to normal is a rock musical that follows the life of a suburban mother dealing with a worsening bipolar disorder. The piece examines how her condition and its treatment (including psychoactive drugs and electroconvulsive therapy) affect her family as they try to take care of themselves and each other. During the course of the show many complex and emotion-laden issues are explored – including grief, suicide, drug addiction and abuse and ethics in modern psychiatry.

For more information about the show, please visit:

www.nexttonormal.com

and/or

www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Next_to_normal

PRODUCTION TEAM

Director / Production Designer: David Lampard

Musical Director: Peter Johns

Production Managers: Kate Warren & Paul Talbot

Stage Manager: Amanda Rowe

Other positions are in negotiation and will be announced shortly.

REHEARSAL & PRODUCTION DATES

Rehearsals

Music calls will begin March 26

Production calls will begin April 9

A full rehearsal schedule will be constructed according to the availability of the creative team and the final cast selected.

Week night and weekend rehearsals will be scheduled. It is hoped that some rehearsals will take place during the day on weekdays, especially during the school holiday period (April 9 to 20).

All rehearsals will take place at the G&S Shed (3 George Street, Hindmarsh).

PLEASE NOTE: Due to the brevity of the rehearsal period, all cast are required to be ‘off-book’ before attending production calls.

PERFORMANCES

Preview 9 May

Evening Performances 10, 11, 12, 13, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 23, 24, 25 & 26 May

AUDITION PROCESS

Auditions will be held on: January 21 & 22 (10am onwards on both days). Call backs will be held on January 28 & 29.

Auditionees are asked to prepare:

•A 16 bar audition piece (16 bars from an appropriate musical theatre piece that best ‘shows off’ their voice)

•An appropriate musical theatre piece for the character they are auditioning for (either from Next to Normal

or in a similar style)

Auditionees are asked to bring the following to their audition (and/or supply upon application to audition).

•A current head shot

•A current CV

•Sheet music for the audition pianist

Please note the following very carefully:

•All roles are available – no roles have or will be pre-cast

•Each auditionee will be asked to sing their 16 bar audition piece first. They may or may not be subsequently asked to sing their prepared song

•An audition pianist will be supplied for all auditionees

•Auditionees must perform their audition pieces from memory (without music in front of them)

•Auditioning with a backing track is not permitted

•All auditions will be video taped (these will not be published in any way or form and will be destroyed immediately after a cast has been chosen)

•The creative team are looking for strong actor / singers

For an audition time, please call or email Kate Warren:

0459 123 223 / kate@the-factory.net.au

David Perry has been a State Opera chorus member for 30 years! David chats with us about his experiences and influences.

How did you start your singing career?

My early musical training commenced at about 9 years of age learning a brass instrument and the piano. Many years later, through a church background, I joined the church choir and then conducted the choir for a number of years. This encouraged me to take vocal lessons and I commenced singing lessons with Norma Hunter and continued there for many years. Norma had the ability to really develop the voice and she also gave me great encouragement to audition for the Oratorio roles, many of which I performed in Adelaide with local, well-known choirs.

Has opera always been a passion of yours and what type of music would you listen to at home?

I have always had a preference in listening to classical music and this later developed into an appreciation of opera, so I guess you could say that I have a fairly narrow appreciation of music and my radio station of choice is ABC FM. I love  listening to German Lied and particularly the Song Cycles of Schubert, Schumann, Mahler etc. I also studied many of these privately and had the opportunity to perform some in Adelaide over previous years. The Bass Oratorio roles are also a favourite of mine and ‘sit well’ with my voice so that has also been a great source of enjoyment to perform these roles.

What is your favourite opera and why?

My favourite opera would be Puccini’s La bohème as when either listening to it or performing in it, it never fails to stir the emotions with those beautiful melodies. The Act 3 encounter between Marcello and Mimi, where they are joined later by Rudolfo and then Musetta would have to be one of the best moments in opera.

What is your biggest career highlight to date?

I guess the biggest highlight in my singing career would be the three Australian tours by Oz Opera in performing La bohème all over Australia – from Capital cities to places like the Karnak Playhouse, a rain forest sanctuary and amphitheatre in Far North Queensland, directed by the late Diane Cilento and the open-air theatre in Broome. I performed the roles of Benoit and Alcindoro and covered Schaunard over that three year period.

What is the most recent productions/roles have you been involved with in SOSA?

2011 has been a fairly full year with State Opera being involved in Magnifico – Chorus Concert, La Sonnambula, Moby Dick and Carmen. I have been actively involved in State Opera productions each year since 1981, chiefly as a chorus member but have also performed some principal roles and a number of ‘covers’.
The first opera I actually performed in was Mussorgsky’s Boris Godunov performed here in 1980 by The Australian Opera. I was a member of The Corinthian Singers and they had been asked to provide the extra chorus. This was a great introduction and experience in opera and was the catalyst for me to audition for State Opera as a chorus member.

 If you could pick the next opera to be performed at SOSA and were guaranteed any role you wanted what would it be and what role would you play?

If I had the chance to perform in a SOSA production, I think that Marcello in La bohème would be a favourite of mine even though Marcello does not get the chance to sing an aria! A close second would be the role of The Count or Figaro in The Marriage of Figaro, which I believe is almost the perfect opera. I had the opportunity to sing the roles of The Count, Marcello, Sharpless in Madame Butterfly, Silvio In Pagliacci, Germont in La Traviata with Co Opera and each role had their special demands and satisfying moments.

If you could perform any where in the world where would that be?

My favourite performance venue would have to be Covent Garden….

Who is your favourite singer and why?

My favourite singer would be Dietrich Fischer–Dieskau, one of the most famous and finest lieder singers of the post-war period. He also performed and recorded many operatic roles and in fact is the most recorded singer of all time. His voice was not big but beautiful with exceptional control.

What is the most ridiculous/outlandish costume you’ve had to wear?

One of the craziest costumes would be that of the gardener, Antonio, in The Marriage of Figaro performed with SOSA in 1997. Also the costume of one of the elders with a long white beard in Turandot, meant that not even my mother recognised me!

Have you ever had any memorable/embarrassing moments on stage?

There have been embarrassing moments on stage but one that comes to mind is when on stage during a performance of The Pearl Fishers in the 1980s and in a particularly quiet musical passage, the lower part of my costume complete with noisy metal attachments and held only by a safety pin, came crashing to the floor! Fortunately, we were due to exit the stage a short time after so I just bent down and picked up my costume and walked off!!

The first of our three 2012 subscription operas is Puccini’s masterpiece La bohème, in Gale Edwards’ critically acclaimed Opera Australia production, featuring a wonderful cast led by the lovely Australian soprano Amy Wilkinson as Mimi and delightful tenor James Egglestone as Rodolfo. This production is beautiful – a feast for the eyes and ears! And the music is just fantastic.

Our second offering is Offenbach’s hilarious Orpheus in the Underworld, in the premiere of a new version by director, performer and TV personality Jonathan Biggins. Not since 1978 has Adelaide seen a State Opera production of Orpheus.
This will be a very cheeky and funny production, and a great way to get your friends interested too! The costumes are superb and the script by Jonathan Biggins and Phil Scott is hilarious. This production features local star Adam Goodburn as Orpheus, famed Australian soprano Amelia Farrugia as Eurydice and the ever popular David Hobson in the dual role of Aristaeus and Pluto.

Our final main-stage offering is Beethoven’s magnificent classic Fidelio in a production featuring a fine cast led by European based, former State Opera young artist Miriam Gordon-Stewart as Leonore, and the exciting American tenor Richard Crawley as Florestan. This is grand opera on a big scale, with Beethoven’s brilliant music sung and played by the best performers around, and it looks amazing. A great cast, led by the highly regarded conductor and ABC Classic FM broadcaster Graham Abbott, leading the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and the State Opera Chorus.

In addition to these operas, we are presenting Leonard Bernstein’s Mass in partnership with the Adelaide Festival; a number of smaller specialist works at the Opera Studio; two concerts presented at the Adelaide Town Hall and the Festival Theatre; a joint State Opera/OzOpera South Australian regional tour, and a special event in Goolwa.

To make it easier to get you involved, we’ve made some of our subscriptions even cheaper this year (as little as $120 in C reserve – that’s only $40 per opera!). What a great Christmas present!

For your free copy of our 2012 Season Brochure, please call 08 8226 4790, or email your name, address and telephone number to reception@saopera.sa.gov.au

For more information regarding dates and ticket prices, please visit our website at www.saopera.sa.gov.au

Here is a chance to participate in a production on the FESTIVAL THEATRE Stage with one of Australia’s leading performing art companies!!!

State Opera of South Australia  is producing a new opera Moby Dick which opens at the Festival Theatre on 27th August 2011.

For this production,  which premiered in DallasUSAin April 2010,  there is a requirement for some Rock Climbing supernumeraries.

The set consists of  (in main)  a sloping wall which is fitted with handles which are used as supports to assist performers (mainly the supernumeraries/rock climbers), so that the wall can be climbed.

Contact us for the rehearsal dates and times and performance times. Of course  there is payment for these services.

Unfortunately  we  need to stipulate that all applying need to be male as you may realise, if you are familiar with the story of Moby Dick all but one character are male.

We are seeking a total of 6 climbers.

For more information please contact Deb Pahl  (dpahl@saopera.sa.gov.au)  or  08 - 82264790 or Dave McLean  (davidanthonymclean@gmail.com)  or 0413481523.

Timothy has had a close association with State Opera of SA for the past 20 years as Music Administrator, Singer, Chorus Master and Conductor. His innovative work with SOSA has included numerous collaborations with Leigh Warren and Dancers and other performing arts companies on such projects as the Philip Glass Trilogy (Akhnaten, Satyagraha and Einstein on the Beach), Klinghoffer and most recently  Maria de Buenos Aires, which will feature in the 2011 Brisbane Festival.

In 2001 he founded the Adelaide Art Orchestra comprising the top professional freelance musicians inAdelaide. His varied career has encompassed public speaking (including SOSA’s pre concert talks), conducting and performing, radio broadcasting for the ABC and music composition – notably for children’s theatre and vocal works. Timothy is a proud South Australian and his contribution to music in this State was recognised in 2008 with the Premier’s Ruby Award for Sustained Contribution to the Arts by an Individual, and in 2009 as the SA Great South Australian of the Year – Arts Category.

Chair of SOSA, Elizabeth Raupach said, “We are thrilled that Tim is taking on the role of Head of SOSA. He has proven his ability to balance new and innovative projects with well-loved and popular operas. He will be able to build on the specialist programming that has given this unique Company its status in the Australian Performing Arts scene.)

Timothy Sexton said, “I am really looking forward to contributing to the excellent work of SOSA, while establishing new and exciting paths, directions and collaborations to meet the challenges the company will face in the future”.

12^th & 13^th February 2011

Adelaide Showground

www.carnevale-adelaide.com

Italian Opera at its Best!

Get on down to the air-conditioned comfort of the Adelaide Showground on Saturday and Sunday, 12^th and 13^th February and hear all your favourite   Italian opera numbers, all at once! Members of Co-Opera join together to present a program of duets, trio and quartets from La Traviata, Tosca, La Bohème, Così fan tutte, Don Pasquale, The Barber of Seville plus more.  

Carnevale has something for everyone with entertainment, fashion, youth stage, kids activities, amusements and rides, regional cuisine, wine, bocce, car displays, forums, exhibitions, cooking demonstrations with Adam Swanson, Carnevale Cup, Lagotto dogs, fireworks and more! 

Adults $12, Family Pass (2 adults/2 children) $25, Children (5-15 yrs) $5, Children under 5 yrs Free, Pensioners/Seniors/Unemployed/Students $8.

Companion Card Welcome. Saturday 12^th Feb 9am-1pm HALF PRICE on all tickets, SUN 13^th Feb 9am-11am FREE before sung Mass at 11am.  

The production is based on the play of the same name written by six Australian artists (and dads) Liam Amor, Michael Fry, Matt Green, Colin James, David Lander and Geoff Paine in 1999.
Adelaide musician Matthew Carey is the composer of the piece and David Lampard, director of Six Foot Something/SINGular Productions ‘Elegies: A Song Cycle’ will direct this piece.

The show features a group of five dads who come together to build a playground for a local working bee. It’s a fast-paced series of vignettes, with monologues, sketches and songs. It’s a Dad Thing examines parenthood from a strictly male perspective; this can result in some serious and often hysterical role-playing. The show illustrates that nothing can prepare a father for the sensory impact, the burden and the responsibility of a child. These young dads are searching in the dark for the rules of being a good dad.

Feedback from the preview performances was extremely positive:
“…the result is a heart-warming show with some memorable numbers that every dad and supportive mum should see together.” Matt Byrne – Sunday Mail
“And what a great ensemble it is!” Matt Byrne – Sunday Mail

Season Dates 2011:
Night performances – February 11th, 12th, 18th, 19th at 7pm
Matinees – February 12th and 19th at 2pm

Venue: The Opera Studio, 216 Marion Rd, Netley

CAST INCLUDES:
Nicholas Cannon
Adam Goodburn
Kent Green
Rodney Hutton
PJ Oaten

TICKET PRICES (Booking fee will apply when booking through FRINGETIX)
$27/$22
Special group price (6 or more): $22 each

Venue: The Opera Studio, State Opera of SA, 216 Marion Rd, Netley
Bookings can be made through: FringeTIX sales online: www.adelaidefringe.com.au

or

The State Opera of South Australia
(phone: 8226 4790 )

OR, save up to 20% on the cost of purchasing individual tickets by subscribing to all three productions.  Excellent seats still available on subscription.  Call BASS opera subscriptions on 08-8205 2200.

Here at the blog we are interested in sharing links to articles, books or essays that have something interesting to say about opera.

It seems apt in lieu of our holiday break (State Opera closes its office today from 18 Dec until 4 Jan 2010) to direct you to a book for your perusal over the festive season called Midsummer Nights. Edited by celebrated novelist Jeanette Winterson, with a foreword from Ralph Fiennes this book has bought together some of today’s best loved and critically acclaimed authors to pen short stories inspired by operas:

Alexander McCall Smith on Cosi fan Tutte;

Ali Smith on Fidelio;

Andrew Motion on Peter Grimes;

Andrew O’Hagan on Eugene Onegin;

Ann Enright on Rusalka;

Colm Toibin on Pearl Fishers;

Jackie Kay on The Makropulos Case;

Joanna Trollope on L’Elisir d’Amore;

John Mortimer on Cosi fan Tutte;

Julie Myerson on The Crowning of Poppaea;

Kate Atkinson on La Traviata;

Kate Mosse on Pelleas et Melisande;

Lynne Truss on The Turn of the Screw;

Marina Warner on Dido and Aeneas;

Posy Simmonds double page of ‘Glyndebourne Midsummer Night’;

Ruth Rendell on Theodora;

Sebastian Barry on Natoma;

and, Toby Litt on Don Giovanni.

Midsummer Nights is published by Quercus and is available at most good book stores.

If you have discovered an interesting narrative or link to literature on opera that you’d like to share please submit your suggestion to reception@saopera.sa.gov.au and we may just share it on line. (Dont forget to name your sources and send any online links).

Here’s a link to a review on the book by Times Online

If you read this book and have an opinion for our readers leave a comment.