Opera in Williamsburg presents:

Orfeo ed Euridice

by Christoph Willibald Gluck

An original video production Preview showing December 15-17, 2020 Orfeo ed Euridice

by : Christoph Willibald Gluck Libretto: Ranieri de' Calzabigi World premiere: Vienna, 1762

RECORDED FROM OUR HOMES TO YOUR HOME IN THIS UNUSUAL YEAR

PREVIEW SHOWING, DECEMBER 15, 2020

Music Director and Sound Design: Jorge Parodi Stage director: Benjamin Spierman Visual Design and Video Editor: Naama Zahavi-Ely Costume Design: Eric Lamp

Orfeo ...... Nicholas Tamagna, Countertenor Euridice ...... Kearstin Piper Brown, Soprano Amore ...... Laura Leon, Soprano

Ensemble Soprano ...... Kinneret Ely Ensemble Mezzo-Soprano...... Alison Cheeseman Ensemble Tenor ...... Pavel Suliandziga Ensemble Baritone ...... Suchan Kim Violin 1 ...... Simon Lapointe Violin 2 ...... Heejin Weisbrod Viola ...... Jocelyn Smith Cello ...... Peter Greydanus Double Bass ...... Ayça Katari Flute ...... Christina Hughes Oboe and English horn ...... David Garcia Bassoon ...... Matt Lano Trumpet ...... Benjamin Lostocco Horn 1 ...... Valerie Sly Horn 2 ...... Everett Burns Trombone ...... Tanner Antonetti Harpsicord ...... Jorge Parodi

Production / Stage Manager ...... Deborah Jo Knopik-Barrett Nature photography ...... Tirtza Zahavi and Naama Zahavi-Ely Producer ...... Naama Zahavi-Ely

Thank you to the pod of students from Oldenburg, Germany, who were our visual chorus. The images of the underworld are derived from Hieronymus Bosch’s 15th Century painting The Garden of Earthly Delights. JORGE PARODI (MUSIC DIRECTOR)

“The most expressive conducting hands since Stokowski” (New York Daily News) “Conducted by the exuberant and attentive Jorge Parodi” ( News) “Jorge Parodi drew a deft performance” (New York Times) “Conductor Jorge Parodi drew vivid colors from the orchestra” (Opera News) “Jorge Parodi, who led the orchestra with the right mix of restraint and exuberance” (Tampa Bay Times)

Internationally acclaimed conductor Jorge Parodi has worked extensively in North America, Latin America, Europe, and Asia. Recent credits include Bizet’s Les pêcheurs de perles, Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia, and Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro for Opera Tampa; Piazzolla’s María de Buenos Aires for New York City Opera, The Atlanta Opera, and Opera Grand Rapids; Donizetti's Lucrezia Borgia and Bellini's I Capuleti e i Montecchi for Buenos Aires Lírica (Argentina); Britten's The Turn of the Screw for the Castleton Festival in Virginia and The Banff Centre (Canada); Offenbach’s Les contes d’Hoffmann for Opera Orlando; Ravel's L'enfant et les sortilèges for The Juilliard School; and the World Premieres of Anton Coppola’s Lady Swanwhite for Opera Tampa, and John Musto’s Rhoda and the Fossil Hunt in a coproduction of On Site Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago Lyric’s Unlimited, and Pittsburgh Opera. Most recently he made his debut at Chautauqua Opera and returned to The Atlanta Opera for Rodriguez’ Frida and to Opera Tampa for Bizet’s Carmen.

Also accomplished in the concert halls, Maestro Parodi has worked with a wide range of ensembles, such as Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra, NHK Symphony, Castleton Festival Orchestra, Metamorphosis Chamber Orchestra, Ensemble Zipoli for the American Baroque, Juilliard Pre College Orchestra, Ensemble XXI, and Orquesta del Conservatorio Nacional (Argentina), among others.

Reviewed as having "the most expressive conducting hands since Stokowski" by the New York Daily News, Argentinean-born Jorge Parodi has worked with such companies as Teatro Colón in Argentina, Volgograd Opera in Russia, Encuentros Internacionales de Opera in Mexico, Tokyo International Vocal Arts Academy in Japan, and International Vocal Arts Institute in Israel. He has collaborated with such artists as Isabel Leonard, Eglise Gutiérrez, Tito Capobianco, Sherrill Milnes, Aprile Millo, and Rufus Wainwright and has assisted conductors Lorin Maazel and Julius Rudel, among others.

Recently, Maestro Parodi was appointed General and Artistic Director of Opera Hispánica, the only company in the U.S. focused on the Hispanic vocal repertoire and on the Latino perspective. Among many performances during his tenure as Artistic Director of Opera Hispánica, maestro Parodi performed with such artists as Eglise Gutiérrez and Metropolitan Opera star, Isabel Leonard. He conducted OH Festival’s production of Piazzolla's María de Buenos Aires, which The New York Times described as "excellent." Upcoming performances with Opera Hispánica include a recital with tenor Ricky Garcia and a coproduction with Teatro Grattacielo and the Savannah Voice Festival.

Maestro Parodi is the Music Director of the Senior Opera Theatre at the Manhattan School of Music, where he has led its productions to critical acclaim, including Schubert's Die Verschworenen – that the New York Times praised as being "superbly performed” – and the American premieres of Le Roi l’a dit by Délibes and Nina by Paisiello. His work with MSM Senior Opera Theater was featured in an interview published in the March 2018 edition of Opera News. Parodi is also the Music Director of Opera in Williamsburg (Virginia), where he has conducted Rigoletto, Il trovatore, L'elisir d’amore, Lucia di Lammermoor, La cenerentola and Così fan tutte, among other titles. The company is currently embarked in a film production of Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice, featuring internationally acclaimed countertenor Nicholas Tamagna.

Maestro Parodi has also conducted historically informed performances of Cavalli's La Calisto and Monteverdi’s L'incoronazione di Poppea, and a concert performance of Purcell's Dido and Aeneas at the Bruno Walter Auditorium in Lincoln Center that Opera News praised as "a fully convincing presentation.” Other New York credits include productions of The Beggar's Opera, La Doriclea, The Ghost of Versailles, La Vida Breve, El Amor Brujo, Riders to the Sea, Camilla, Apollo e Dafne, , Orphée aux Enfers, and La vie parisienne.

Mr. Parodi has been a faculty member at The Juilliard School for over a decade and is Vocal Coach of the premier Juilliard School’s Pre-College Division. He has recently been appointed Music Director of the International Summer Opera Festival of Morelia (Mexico), and he is the Founder and Artistic Director of the Tokyo International Vocal Arts Academy Summer Workshop, an intense program for pianists and singers in the early stages of their professional career. He also works regularly as conductor and coach at the Savannah Voice Festival, a branch of the VOICExperience that is an institution dedicated to the development of individuals in the vocal arts field under the direction of Sherrill Milnes. He was a long- time faculty member of the International Vocal Arts Institute in Tel Aviv, one of the world’s foremost summer opera training programs. With IVAI he taught at the Nagano Opera Master Class (Japan) and at the Inaugural Opera Master Class in conjunction with China National Opera (Beijing). He has also been a faculty member of Artescenica (Mexico), and the International Institute of Vocal Arts (Puerto Rico). He has offered master classes at the Instituto Superior de Arte del Teatro Colón (Buenos Aires), Manhattan School of Music (as co-teacher with opera legend Martina Arroyo), Escuela Superior de Canto (Madrid), Kunitachi Music College (Tokyo) and Senzoku Gakuen Music College (Tokyo).

A prizewinner at the Bienal de Arte of Buenos Aires, Mr. Parodi completed studies in Conducting and Piano Performance at the Conservatorio Nacional de Música of Buenos Aires. He holds a Master of Accompanying and Chamber Music from the University of Michigan as a full-scholarship student of the eminent accompanist Martin Katz. He participated in the recording of the complete edition of music for piano by Muzio Clementi with Denon Essentials and is featured in recordings for Albany Records and MSR Classics. For more information, go to: www.jorgeparodi.com.

BENJAMIN SPIERMAN (STAGE DIRECTOR)

Mr. Spierman is pleased to join Opera in Williamsburg for this exciting dive into the world of virtual opera. His most recent work was Don Giovanni with the Oswego Opera Theatre in upstate New York in which he sang the role of Leporello, directed, and wrote the English translation. That marked his seventh production in Oswego; he directed their recent performances of Die Fledermaus, The Mikado, and , while earlier productions included , A Little Night Music, and The Impresario. He has directed acclaimed productions of both familiar and unfamiliar pieces. The former is represented by productions of The Merry Widow and La fille du regiment (Indianapolis Opera) and Turandot (Dayton Opera), and the latter by New York City premiere productions of Kirke Mechem’s The Rivals and the Weber/Mahler Die Drei Pintos (both for Bronx Opera, of which he is General Director).

Other work in and around New York City has included Verdi’s , Massenet’s Cendrillon (both of which won National Opera Association prizes), and a Blackbox production of Ariadne auf Naxos for New York City’s dell’Arte Opera Ensemble (winner of the American Prize for Opera). Recent regional work includes The Barber of Seville for Geneva Light Opera; La bohème for Syracuse Opera; and Lucia di Lammermoor for Opera San Jose, hailed by Opera Today as “riveting stuff, faultless in its dramatic structure.” A sought-after dramatic coach, he has worked with singers at Queens College (CUNY), the Westchester Summer Vocal Institute (New York), and Opera Breve Vocal Intensive (Texas). He also directed a Trump-infused Mikado for Bronx Opera, the New England premiere of Odyssey by Ben Moore and Kelley Roarke (at the Walnut Hill School for the Arts in Natick, Massachusetts), and John Davies’ children’s opera Billy Goat’s Gruff (for Prelude Opera in NYC). Planned upcoming works include a virtual production of The Impresario and a live production of Smetana’s for Bronx Opera; Seymour Barab’s Little Red Riding Hood for Prelude Opera; Leonard Lehrman’s Sacco and Vanzetti on Long Island; and the world premiere of Andrew Ager’s Angel with New Opera Lyra in Ottawa, which will be Mr. Spierman’s international directing debut. He is a native and resident of , where he lives with his wife, soprano Hannah Spierman. For more information, go to his website: benjaminspierman.com.

NICHOLAS TAMAGNA (ORFEO)

Countertenor Nicholas Tamagna has garnered widespread acclaim for his commanding yet expressive vocal timbre and breathtaking musicianship as well as superb acting skills, establishing himself as a leading countertenor in his generation on many of the world’s stages.

In 2021 he returns to the Oldenburgisches Staatstheater in Händel’s Rodelinda, debuting the role of Bertarido, and reprising the role of the Refugee in Jonathan Dove’s Flight, which he first sang at Opera Omaha in 2017. He joined the Staatsoper Hannover for a special production of Händel’s Il Trionfo: Vier Letzte Nächte as Disinganno. He will also join Parnassus Arts Productions for a concert of Vivaldi’s Orlando Furioso as Ruggiero and J.A. Hasse’s Cajo Fabrizio as Turio at Theater an der Wien. Future planned productions include: Legrenzi’s Giustino as Giustino at Pinchgut Opera (, , 2022); Händel’s Giulio Cesare in Egitto as Tolomeo at Nederlandse Reisopera; and Göttingen Händelfestspiele (2022). On his schedule as well are several recordings and concert programs of rarely performed baroque with Parnassus Arts Productions.

In 2020 he joined the roster of the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, making his debut to rave reviews in the role of Narciso in Sir David McVicar’s critically-acclaimed production of Händel’s Agrippina, which also was shown as part of The Met: Live in HD programming shown internationally in movie theaters.

Highlights in 2019 included: his debut in Moscow, Russia, in Tchaikovsky Hall as Ruggiero in Vivaldi’s Orlando Furioso with Parnassus Arts Productions and later in the title role at the Megaron with Armonia Atenea in Athens, Greece. As part of the Händelfestspiele in Halle, he sang the role of Ruggiero in Händel’s Alcina with the Lautten Compagney and the role of Silvio in Händel’s Il Pastor Fido with Parnassus Arts Productions and the Orkiestra Historyczna.

Previous season highlights include: Vinci’s Gismondo (as Ermanno) at Theater an der Wien with Parnassus Arts Productions; Oberon (second cast) at the Wiener Staatsoper; Zaid Jabri’s Cities of Salt (as Hassan) at the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden; a co-production of Hasse’s Siroe (as Siroe) with the Nederlandse Reisopera and the Oldenburgisches Staatstheater; Melani’s L’Europa (as Amore) at the Palace Sanssouci as part of the Musikfestspiele Potsdam; various performances with French baroque ensemble Le Poème Harmonique at the Philharmonie de Paris, Opéra de Haute-Normandie Rouen, Opéra Royal de Versailles, and Opéra de Vichy between 2014-2016; Vivaldi’s Il Farnace as part of the Spoleto Festival USA 2017; and his European debut as part of the Händelfestspiele at the Badisches Staatstheater as Oronte in Händel’s Riccardo Primo.

Mr. Tamagna’s recordings include: “Gismondo, Re di Polonia” (Parnassus Arts Productions); “Ring Out: The Music of Jessica Meyer” (Bright Shiny Things); the Spirit in Dido and Aeneas (Outhere Music); ¡Sacabuche! (ATMA Classique); and “Son of England: Music of and Jeremiah Clarke” (Alpha Classics). For more information, go to his website: nicholastamagna.com

KEARSTIN PIPER BROWN (EURIDICE)

American soprano Kearstin Piper Brown is delighted to return to Opera in Williamsburg after her debut as Pamina in the 2019 production of The Magic Flute. Last month, she made her debut with the Gateways Music Festival in a concert dedicated to the great Jessye Norman, and recent virtual performances include appearances with the American Spiritual Ensemble and Nicole Heaston’s Purple Robe Song Series. Last season kept Ms. Brown busy with many concert and recital performances in the U.S. and Austria. Later this season Ms. Brown will premiere a new work with Syracuse Opera and plans to resume leading the cast in the world premiere of Lynn Nottage and Ricky Ian Gordon's Intimate Apparel at the Lincoln Center Theater next fall.

Ms. Brown recently made her San Francisco Opera stage debut in It's a Wonderful Life by Jake Heggie and Gene Sheer. A few other operatic highlights of her career include Musetta with Dayton Opera, Euridice in Gluck's Orfeus with Opera Memphis, Violetta with Utah Lyric Opera, Micaëla with Arbor Opera Theater, and Clara in Porgy and Bess at the Teatro di San Carlo. She has portrayed the role of Mrs. McDowell in the world premiere of Rise for Freedom: The John P. Parker Story by composer Adolphus Hailstork with Cincinnati Opera and sang with the Center for Contemporary Opera in New York City as Epiphany Proudfoot in the world premiere of Mark Scearse's Falling Angel. Ms. Brown also recently began work on Glen McClure's new work, Promised Land: An Adirondack Folk Opera.

She has performed the role of Bess worldwide with Opera Kazan, Skylight Music Theatre, Dayton Opera, Virginia Opera, Utah Festival Opera, and the Belarusian State Philharmonic Orchestra Minsk. In addition, the European Porgy and Bess tour of New York Harlem Productions brought her Bess to such prestigious venues as the Hamburgische Staatsoper, the Semperoper Dresden, the Deutsche Oper am Rhein, and the Komische Oper Berlin. Another touring production of the Gershwin classic was with Cape Town Opera, where she sang at the Edinburgh Festival, the Royal Festival Hall London, and the Israeli Opera.

Highlights of Ms. Brown’s performances as a concert soloist include an appearance at the Palais Augarten in Vienna; a gala of American music with the Moscow City Symphony Orchestra; Knoxville Summer of 1915 with the San Jose Chamber Orchestra; Handel’s Messiah with the Lebanon Symphony; Vaughan Williams’s Dona Nobis Pacem with the Rochester Oratorio Society; the Festival Classique’s Opera Under the Stars concert with the Residentie Orkest in The Hague; and the Edison Awards Gala 2010 with the Amsterdam Sinfonietta, both of which were televised LIVE in the Netherlands. She has also performed in concerts with the Pasadena Symphony and Pops, the Cedar Rapids Chorale and Symphony, the Rochester Early Music Festival, KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival, and the Hines-Lee Opera Ensemble at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

Ms. Brown starred in a gala concert Our Songs – The Music of African American Composers at the Bruno Walter Auditorium at Lincoln Center with Opera Ebony, and the year before she was heard at Jazz at Lincoln Center under the auspices of the Licia Albanese-Puccini Foundation. The versatile soprano has also toured with the 3 Mo’ Divas (sister group of the 3 Mo’ Tenors) and scored an early success as Sarah in the Light Opera Works Chicago regional premiere of Ragtime, earning her a “Best Actress in a Musical” nomination from the Black Theater Alliance in Chicago; and she made a triumphant return to the role with the Utah Festival Opera. In addition, she has appeared in theater productions in the Washington, D.C., area with the Studio Theater, Roundhouse Theatre, Arena Stage, and the Kennedy Center Theatre for Young Audiences.

Ms. Brown is a prize-winner in several international competitions, including the Montserrat Caballé International Competition, the William Matheus Sullivan Foundation, the Gerda Lissner Foundation Vocal Competition, and the Licia Albanese-Puccini Foundation International Vocal Competition. A native of Alexandria, Virginia, Ms. Brown is a graduate of both Spelman College and Northwestern University. For more information, go to: www.kearstinpiperbrown.com.

LAURA LEÓN (AMORE)

Cuban soprano Laura León is quickly becoming a rising star on the operatic stages with a voice that “sparkles, seduces and languishes.” Laura made her dèbut as Queen of the Night in Die Zauberflöte with Orchestra Miami under the baton of Elaine Rinaldi as well as a Florida Grand Opera dèbut as Frasquita in Carmen and Mother of Peasant in Before Night Falls. Last season, Ms. León joined Opera in Williamsburg for their production of Les pêcheurs de perles. Most recently, Ms. León performed the role of Queen of the Night in Die Zauberflöte with Opera in Williamsburg, Susana in Figaro 90210! with Chautauqua Opera, the Four Heroines in Les contes d'Hoffmann with Opera Orlando, Norina in Don Pasquale with Gulf Shore Opera, and First Calavera in Frida with Florida Grand Opera.

Operatic engagements include Pamina in Die Zauberflöte with Opera Lousiane, Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos with Opera Fusion, Lucia in excerpts from Lucia di Lammermoor with Magic City Opera, La Princesse Laoula in Chabrier’s L’étoile, Marguerita Fiorentino in Weill’s Street Scene, Musetta in La bohème, and Lola in Dueling Divas. Laura’s musical theater credits include Maria in West Side Story, Lady Larken in Once Upon a Mattress, Woman 1 in I Love You, and Lulu in Cabaret.

On the concert stages, Laura has performed as a soloist in Gounod’s St. Cecilia Mass, Orff’s Carmina Burana, Beethoven’s Choral Fantasia and Egmont, Handel’s Messiah, Mozart’s Missa Solemnis, Rutter’s Requiem, Al Borde de la Esperanza with University of Miami, and in the Ernesto Lecuona International Festival with Alba Productions.

Laura was a Jensen Foundation Competition finalist in 2019 and 2018 and a Giulio Gary Competition Finalist in 2019; 2nd place winner in the Deborah Voigt Rising Stars Competition with Vero Beach Opera; 1st place winner of the Metropolitan National Council Competition for the District of Florida in 2018, 2nd place winner in the St. Petersburg Opera Competition in 2019 and 2018; and 1st place winner in the NSAL district competition in 2018. She also won 1st place in the Zarzuela de las Americas Competition in 2015 and 1st place in the Concerto Competition at Florida International University in 2015.

Laura has a Master of Music in Voice Performance from Florida International University, a Bachelor of Arts in Voice Performance from Nyack College, and an Associate in Arts in Music Education from Miami Dade College; she teaches at New World School of the Arts and Area Stage Company.

ERIC LAMP (COSTUME DESIGNER)

Eric Lamp adds this exciting new virtual adventure of Orfeo ed Euridice to his growing list of Opera in Williamsburg productions, which have included The Pearl Fishers, The Magic Flute, La Traviata, Carmen, Barber of Seville, The Marriage of Figaro, and Rigoletto. In New York City, his designs have graced the stages of Bronx Opera (The Mikado), Vital Opera (Four Hands of Bridge), and Middle Church (Amahl and the Night Visitors). As Vice President and Resident Designer of Utopia Opera, he lists 22 productions that include Musical Theater (Assassins, Passion), Operetta (Iolanthe, Princess Ida, Patience, Grand Duke), and Opera (Cendrillon, L'enfant, Der Freischütz, Don Quichotte, Dido and Aeneas, Martha, The Ballad of Baby Doe) as well as the work of modern composers (Hydrogen Jukebox, Harriet Tubman, Some Light Emerges). Mr. Lamp also has a busy career as a tenor and performer, having made his Opera in Williamsburg debut in Lucia di Lammermoor, with subsequent vocal appearances in Figaro, Barber, Carmen, and Traviata as well as debut performances at the Metropolitan Opera (Parade), Broadway's Palace Theater (La Cage aux Folles, original cast), Bronx Opera (Sir John in Love), two World Tours of Glass/Wilson's Einstein on the Beach, and 12 operas with the Bard Summerscape Festival. He looks forward to Opera in Williamsburg’s return to the Kimball Theatre, where he will design La Bohème and The Elixir of Love.

NAAMA ZAHAVI-ELY (PRODUCER, VISUAL DESIGN AND VIDEO EDITOR)

Naama Zahavi-Ely is a music-lover who founded Opera in Williamsburg in 2012 as one more place where excellent opera productions could be performed and enjoyed. The company’s policy is to put people first, and to search for and engage outstanding performers and creative team without compromise. Naama enjoys opera and classical music wherever she travels. She taught Biblical Hebrew at the College of William and Mary for over a decade before retiring to her birth country, Israel. Naama loves sharing opera with her many Williamsburg friends, and sharing the beautiful city of Williamsburg with her many friends in the opera world. She believes that the city, and the Kimball Theatre in particular, are uniquely positioned for creating intimate opera classics.

Please support Opera in Williamsburg! You can donate via Paypal here https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=ALAG5V2D5BJ9S , or on our website www.operainwilliamsburg.org, or mail a check made out to “Opera in Williamsburg, Inc.” to PO Box 2041, Williamsburg, VA 23187. Thank you so much! ABOUT THIS PRODUCTION When it became apparent that a performance on stage in Williamsburg would not be possible in this unusual year, Naama Zahavi-Ely and Maestro Jorge Parodi decided to undertake instead a project that could be carried out safely even in conditions of strict closure: recording from each artist’s home, and putting the opera together by editing. Maestro Parodi undertook the musical leadership of the opera: musically as Music Director, as well as technical guidance on recording under home conditions, without artistic compromise. Maestro Parodi took on the mammoth task of editing the soundtracks together from individual recordings. Naama used video technology to create a visual world that was lush, detailed, and colorful, harking back to the style of opera designers like Otto Schenk (with very different technology). The source material used came from personal nature photographs taken over years, as well as Hieronymus Bosch’s painting The Garden of Earthly Delights from the late 15th Century. We applaud the singers, who video-recorded superb dramatic performances at their homes using greenscreen technology and the edited soundtrack, and stage director Benjamin Spierman who envisioned detailed actions and interactions in this visual world. The video was put together and edited by Naama using Adobe Premiere Pro. At this time, the soundtrack is final. The video recordings, which could only be made once the soundtrack was finalized, may undergo more fine-tuning. We look forward to releasing this beautiful production officially in early 2021, and we are thrilled to share it with you in its present form in this holiday period.

ABOUT GLUCK’S ORFEO ED EURIDICE Orfeo ed Euridice is based on the myth of Orpheus – a myth that forms the basis for many operas, from the earliest surviving operas by Peri and Monteverdi to our own days. Gluck’s opera was revolutionary in its time, aiming for and achieving "noble simplicity" in both music and drama. Gluck achieves unusually effective word-painting even within the constraints of formal 18th-Century music: one can hear a bird singing, the babbling of a brook, the beating of a heart. The story of Orpheus– Orfeo in Italian – and his descent into the underworld to bring his beloved wife Euridice back to life is most well known in the versions of Virgil and Ovid. In these versions of the story, Euridice does not speak at all – she is not visible as a person. The challenge for Orpheus is to believe that she is actually following him silently back to the living world. He can’t restrain himself and looks back – only to see her behind him, disappearing again into the underworld. In Gluck’s version, Euridice is a character in her own right. She resides in the beautiful, restful Elysian Fields with the blessed spirits. Returning with her husband to the living world means leaving this paradise and going back to a condition of dependence as a married woman – a point that is made explicitly in the 18th-Century libretto. Her anguish when in doubt of Orfeo’s feelings for her is real and valid: if he does not care for her any more – as his actions seem to indicate – what would her life be like under his authority? Both Orfeo and Euridice are portrayed by Gluck as real, believable characters with true personalities and emotions.

Our profound thanks to our many supporters, volunteers, and friends in Williamsburg, Virginia, and elsewhere, whose generosity enabled us to undertake this project and engage superb artists in this unusual year.

Supporters of Opera in Williamsburg in 2019 and 2020

Season Sponsors ($10,000 and up) David and Linda Graham Karen, Vince, and the late Dorothy Norako Brenda Snow and Oliver Portmann Williamsburg Area Arts Commission

Production Sponsors ($5,000-$9,999) Linda and the late Donald Baker Danny and Leigh Mcdaniel Robert and Kathleen Pacek Paul Try and Linda Kligman

Foundation Builders ($2,000-$4,999) The Caterpillar Foundation Frank and Marie Knuettel Janet G. Kosidlak Robert and Diane Petterson Linda Collins Reilly Williamsburg Community Foundation York County Arts Commission

Major Benefactors ($1,000-$1,999) Susan and David Baime Bonnie and Greg Krochmal Lynn Clark Charles Melton Stan and Patricia Ecton Marc and Wilma Sharp Dorothy Enslein Lois and Bill Shevlin Ellen Jaronczyk Patricia Volp Ken Krantz Steadfast Supporters ($500-$999) Bertram Aaron Paul and Carolyn Maramaldi Bonefish Grill Brenda and Ken Mitchell Catherine and Douglas Barron Maureen and Denis Orton Cornelius Griffin Sylvia and Robert Scholnick Clyde Haulman Diana Scott Ruth and Ed Jones Barbara Watkinson Meche Kroop and Hans von Baeyer Ronald and Barb Landa Deborah Jane Wells Maurice Lynch

Sustaining Friends ($200-$499) Teryl Backus Leonard Lambert Jayne Barnard Jesse Lanehart Lianne and Douglas Boller Mary Anne Miller Nanci Bond David and Alice Nicholas Howard Browne Frank and Kathleen Ober Cheryl Connors Scott Orr Robin Curtis Michael Pedretti and Nancy Hill Richard and Miriam Edwards Thomas Phelps Melvin Ely Taylor and Helen Reveley Harvey Friedman Ronald and Joan Ruszkowski Archibald and Jean Fripp Elizabeth Saenz Mary Haas Clyde W. Spence Jr Dorothy J. Higbee Katherine Webster Pat Hubbard Tim Weidman Ken and the late Sarah Knorr Vince Norako

Significant Donors ($100-$199) Anthony and Karen Annoni Nuala C. Galbari Anonymous Micou Glazener Lynn and Francis Bagli Helen Hamilton Carol Ball Barbara Haynes Clement Brown Debra Hill and Camilla Buchanan Ingrid Brown Robert and Gail Johnson Laura Brown Marge Jones Carolyn and Russell Campbell Martha Jones Cary Carson Hiroshi and Aiko Kitamura Mary Cole (in memory of Dorothy Norako) Allen Cooke Lynda Lee Page and Virginia Cranford Pamela Lee Smith (in honor of Brenda Mitchell) Joseph Leinenbach Data Union Consulting, LLC Eileen Lowery Paul Dauphinais Everett Lunsford Suzanne Douglas Stephen and Marie Mamikonian Joan Emerson Barbara Mathews Andra English Ronald and Carolyn Munro Jill Nagel Suzanne Stern Marion Reef Harley Stewart Beth Rossheim Logan Thompson Patricia Rublein (in memory of Richard Glabere) Pamela Rudder-Eastman Valerie Scura Trovato Catherine and David Schatten B. Eric Van Chantfort Mary and Donald Schilling Allen Whitaker Rosalind Siegel Turit Wilroy Barbara Starkweather

Allies (to $99) Sally Adler Eveline Loporcaro Anonymous Laurie Lorig Robert Austin Thomas Mahone David Bass Susan E. Mason Katherine E. Black Joyce Mckeever Nancy Bolash Blanton McLean Marla Boren Arthur Menoche Nancy Bowles Kelly Monteith Shawn Buck Wayne Moyer Mary V Burke Therese Mundo Virginia Carrington Rebecca Myers Angela Cingale Fred Noe Alice Clay Robert Osmon Francesca Constantino Claire Partlow Donna and Ernest D'Amato Denise Pearson (in memory of Dorothy Norako) Ellen Peters Lydia Dolvin Sarah Redlhammer Jack Dotterer Barbara Ricketts Konstantin Fotiadis Kathleen Rose Maria Frid David Ross Chiara Genovese Mary Ruth Linda and Bill Hansell Harriet Simmons Lisa Harrell Kenneth Stacey Kathleen Henderson David Stanford Deborah Horner John Strode Robin Howe Kendra Swann Richard Johnson M. Eve Turner Kim Kirby-Saunders Michael Villaggio Robert Leek and Deanna Rote Barbara and Pete Vollmer Deidre Lenderking William Wemple Janice Leslie Janis Wood

Many thanks to Linda Baker for copy-editing the biographies for this program, and to Michael Bryant for his work on the donors’ list.

Opera in Williamsburg, Virginia, PO Box 2041, Williamsburg, VA 23187 www.operainwilliamsburg.org (757) 544-9461