The Westmont College theater and music departments, which won three national awards for the 2013 co-production of Pirates of Penzance, combine forces for “An Evening of One-Act Opera Classics” at 7 p.m. Jan. 30-31 and at 3 p.m. Feb. 1, all in the Porter Theatre.
Tickets, which cost $15 for general admission and $10 for students/seniors/children, can be purchased by calling 805.565.7140 or online by clicking here.
John Blondell, Westmont professor of theater, stages the operas that are directed by Celeste Tavera, adjunct professor and Music Drama Workshop teacher.
The evening includes La Serva Padrona (The Servant Turned Mistress), an opera buffa by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, a libretto by Gennaro Antonio Federico composed in 1733 and The Old Maid and the Thief. A Grotesque Opera in One Act, composed by Italian-American composer Gian Carlo Menotti to his own libretto in 1939.
The operas feature singers Wendy Kent, Robert Huff and Matthew Maler in “La Serva;” and Emmalee Wetzel, Serena Lee, McKenna Kleinmeier and Walter Dyer in “Old Maid.” “The singers have beautiful voices,” says Tavera, a Metropolitan Opera National Council winner who has taught voice at Westmont for nine years.
Two separate, live orchestras, conducted by Michael Shasberger, Adams professor of music and worship, accompany the singers. Designers include Westmont professors Yuri Okahana (scenery), Miller James (costumes) and Jonathan Hicks (lighting).
“The operas couldn’t be more different,” Blondell said. “Where La Serva is bright, comic and whimsical, Old Maid is more overtly psychological, and emotionally and musically demanding.
“We have worked hard to present the rich detail of each opera, and to unify them in such a way that creates a vivid and compelling evening of great music theater.
“The student performers are doing a fantastic job, and the theater and music faculty hope that this will be just the beginning for an exciting tradition of opera at Westmont.”
— Scott Craig is the media relations manager for Westmont College.