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Professional Opera Comes to Mars Hill
by Melanie King
Dark wicker chairs, a small table, a brass mirror and a few wine jugs were sitting on the floor of the chapel. A few minutes later the audience was entwined in a 1900's French tale and the items on the floor became the furnishings of a regal castle.
The Pittsburgh Opera Center recently performed at Mars Hill College while touring to different colleges across Appalachia. Broyhill Chapel overflowed with music students, drama students, professors, and community members as the group performed "La Grande Tante," a French tale set in the 1990's.
While at the college on April 7-8, the group gave numerous workshops spanning two full days. The intent was "to give students an opportunity to experience a live opera production, and to see, first-hand, what bringing opera to life entails," said Professor of Music Julie Fortney.
Students were also given opportunities to learn more about the performers and how they became involved in opera and to gain an understanding of "La Grande Tante," the drama performed.
"Talking to the artists, watching while the opera was mounted, learning how to bring opera to the attention of diverse audiences--all of these experiences made the two days of workshop sessions a unique event for our college community," said Fortney.
In the drama, set in Brittany, France, Guy de Kerdrel returns from the army after the death of his great uncle to claim his inheritance that happens to be an estate. While there he meets the widow, his "Great Aunt Alice," who is young and beautiful, and instantly falls in love with her. The audience is introduced to Alice through her grief for the castle, which Kerdrel intends to sell. Frustration on every side keeps the audience entertained throughout the dilemma.
The Pittsburgh Opera has been in existence for over sixty years, beginning as the Pittsburgh Opera Society in the fall of 1939. Soon after its formation, the Opera became a professional performing organization. According to the Pittsburgh Opera web site, the goal of the Pittsburgh Opera is to "culturally enrich Pittsburgh and the tri-state area and to draw national and international attention to the region." The organization is committed to having high standards, being financially accessible, providing educational opportunities to young artists, and keeping the company in existence.
Pittsburgh Opera offers several programs to sustain its commitments. The Pittsburgh Opera Center provides pre-professional training to ten young artists per year, who are selected through an elite application process. Accepted artists are given a "supportive and nurturing environment where singers can experiment, learn, and grow as artists." Pittsburgh Opera also provides education and outreach programs. These programs are integrated into grades 3-12 and college grades to expose students to opera.
Sponsored by a grant from the Appalachian College Association and the Mars Hill College Visiting Artists and Lecturers Committee, the Pittsburgh Opera Center Young Artists Tour was co-hosted by Mars Hill College, Brevard College and Warren-Wilson College. Mars Hill Professors Fortney and James Brown were site hosts for the event. Along with six faculty members from the other colleges, they attended a meeting in Pittsburgh in November of last year to "learn strategies for integrating opera into school curricula."
From left to right: Janessa Schwartz, Peter Foltz, Monica Yunus
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The artists who performed for Mars Hill were Michael Borowitz, Monica Yunus, Peter Nathan Foltz, Karin Caspi, and Janessa Schwartz.
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