Can opera conquer Vermont?: Barn Opera’s Josh Collier is betting it can
https://www.rutlandherald.com/features/vermont_arts/can-opera-conquer-vermont-barn-opera-s-josh-collier-is-betting-it-can/article_6b3440c5-502b-5c11-ab6d-12b41bd9a18f.html
Brandon’s Barn Opera is beginning to take over Vermont — at least operatically — as Opera Vermont.
“The goal for this expansion of Barn Opera is to, ideally, within three years, provide an opportunity for each Vermonter, within each calendar year, to be within 30 minutes of a live opera performance, as well as to provide educational opportunities to students across Vermont,” explains Josh Collier, founder and artistic director of Barn Opera and Opera Vermont.
“To achieve this goal, Barn Opera is seeking venue partners from around the state to join Opera Vermont.”
Opera Vermont is opening its first season by introducing itself with two concerts of selections from opera and musical theater — Thursday at the Highland Center for the Arts in Greensboro and Friday at the Southern Vermont Arts Center in Manchester. A meet-and-greet with the artists will immediately follow both concerts.
Selections will be heard from Mozart’s “Cosí fan tutte,” Verdi’s “La Traviata” and “Rigoletto,” Puccini’s “Tosca” and “La Bohème,” and Bizet’s “Carmen,” among others. Musical theater includes the Boublil-Schonberg “Les Miserables,” and “West Side Story” and “Candide” by Leonard Bernstein.
Performing will be artistic, music and associate directors of Opera Vermont — Collier, a tenor, Cailin Marcel Manson and Nicholas Tocci, both baritones — as well as Vermont-based soprano Kyra Miller-Himmelbaum. Newcomer to the Opera Vermont family is soprano Kathleen Echols Crumbacher. All five vocalists will be joined by Barn Opera’s principal pianist, Claire Black.
Beginning in February, Opera Vermont will celebrate the centennial of Giacomo Puccini’s death with the work that inaugurated the Barn Opera House in Brandon in 2021. There will be two performances of “Tosca,” Feb. 16 and 17, fully staged with orchestra and supertitles, at the Highland Center for the Arts.
On May 10 and 11, Opera Vermont will produce the Verdi masterpiece “Rigoletto” at the Southern Vermont Arts Center, also fully staged with orchestra and supertitles. Italian soprano Scilla Cristiano will make her American debut as the tragic heroine Gilda and baritone Tocci will make his role debut as her father, the court jester, Rigoletto.
Barn Opera’s fall season in Brandon will begin with Rossini’s “Cinderella (La Cenerentola)” Oct. 13 and 14. Barn Opera’s “Amahl & the Night Visitors” by Gian Carlo Menotti returns to Salisbury Congregational Church in the beginning of December, and the year closes with the annual New Year’s Eve Gala at the Barn Opera House.
In September 2024, Opera Vermont will begin its celebration of the centennial of Puccini’s death with a black-tie gala evening featuring arias and scenes from his most famous operas. Closing out the season will be the world-premiere performance of William Zeffiro’s “Truman and Nancy.” Based on the graphic novel “Capote in Kansas” by Marvel comic artist Ande Parks, the opera considers Truman Capote’s process of creating the masterpiece “In Cold Blood.”
“Barn Opera has primarily kept its operations in the Rutland County area for the past five years, but with this expansion,” Collier said, “Opera Vermont is looking for dedicated opera lovers around the state to join the cause and help bring opera to the people with potential show and season sponsors, board members, hospitality volunteers, and folks who want to spread the good news about Opera Vermont.”
All donations to Opera Vermont and Barn Opera are tax-deductible. Email Tricia Welch, executive director at welch@barnopera.com to learn more about Opera Vermont and Barn Opera.