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[email protected] NewsRelease BAM Presents the U.S. Production Premiere of Opera Theatre Company (OTC) of Ireland's Acclaimed Staging of Handel's Rodelinda

OTC returns to the BAM Harvey Theater following a highly praised engagement during BAM's 1997 Spring Season

Music by Libretto by Nicola Francesco Haym Conductor and harpsichordist Laurence Cummings Directed by James Conway Set and costume design by Neil Irish Lighting design by Simon Corder

With Yvonne Howard , Charles Johnston, Jonathan Peter Kenny, Iain Paton, Helen Williams

The New York Collegium

BAM Harvey Theater May 16, 17, 19 at 7:30; May 20 at 3pm Tickets: $25, 50, 75 (limited availability remains) Sung in English with surtitles

Brooklyn, April 27, 2001-Four years after making its U.S. debut at BAM with a well-received version ofHandel'sAmadigi, the Opera Theatre Company (OTC) oflreland returns to the BAM Harvey Theater with four perfonnances of the rarely presented Handel opera Rodelinda . The New York Collegium, led by conductor and harpsichordist Laurence Cummings, is joined by a roster of acclaimed soloists : soprano Helen Williams in the title role, mezzo-soprano Yvonne Howard (Edwige), baritone Charles Johnston (Garibaldo), countertenor Jonathan Peter Kenny (Bertarido), and tenor Iain Paton (Grimoaldo). The Sunday Times (U.K.) said of the production, "This is a truly unmissable staging of one of Handel's greatest operas." Four performances will take place at the BAM Harvey Theater (651 Fulton Street), May 16, 17, and 19 at 7:30pm and I May 20 at 3pm. ' Rodelinda is part of BAM's 2001 Spring Season, sponsored by Philip Morris Companies Inc . 0 Tickets, priced at $25, $50, and $75 (limited availability remains) , are available by calling BAM Ticket Services at 718.636.4100 or Ticketmaster at 212.307.4100 and through BAM's web site 0 at www .bam.org . N SpringSeason more ... Rodelinda, 2

Handel 's Rodelinda, which was first performed in 1725, is based on Paul the Deacon 's Gesta Langobardorum and also draws upon Pierre Corneille's I 652 tragedy , Perthariet , roi des Lombards. The opera , long a favorite of great Handel singers like Dame Joan Sutherland, tells the story of intrigue and power struggles in late seventh­ centur y Lombardy (now northern Italy). Through a complicated sequence of events, Rodelinda-who believes her husband Bertarido, the king of Milan , to be dead- is blackmailed into an engagement with his usurper. Although feigning complicity, Rodelinda never actually betrays Bertarido , and in the end husband and wife are happily reunited and the throne is restored. Handel often centered his operas on one strong, central theme; for Rodelinda , he chose the strength and commitment of married love. Although he never married , Handel clearly was moved by the love and loyalty of Rodelinda and Bertarido, as the beauty of their romantic duet attests.

Opera Theatre Company (OTC) , the national touring company oflreland, is based in Dublin; the company has performed in more than 100 cities , towns , and villages in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland since its first tour of Turn of the Screw in 1986. This distinctive and adventurous company was founded to create high­ quality opera productions on modest budgets that can be presented anywhere , filling in a void in the company's native country.

Artistic Director James Conway says, "OTC makes shows on tiny budgets that can tour to remote islands and even village halls. Our conviction is that standards should be high for these performances as anywhere else. For instance, our production of Kat 'a Kabanova with piano that traveled to the Aran Islands as part of a national tour in Ireland went on to be presented at Belem in Lisbon as part of Expo '98 . Our production budgets are modest, but somehow the work we do is important here, in a country that has little or no operatic tradition. Because we make no excuses for the genre and bow to nobody in choice of repertoire, I think we have really changed the way people think about opera as an art form ."

OTC has had national and international success with a number of baroque and early classical operas-including Monteverdi ' s O,feo ; Handel's Flavia , Amadigi , Tamerlano , and Rodelinda, Haydn's L 'Jnfedelta Delusa, II Mondo de/la Luna, and La Vera Constan z- and operas from the 20th century , including The Rake 's Progress, The Rape of Lucretia , The Lighthous e, Kat 'a Kabanova , and Jem'ifa. The inventive company's repertoire also includes works by Weill, Poulenc , Argento, and Johnson . In addition, the company has commissioned and performed nine new operas by Irish composers as well as new chamber arrangements of classics such as Carm en. Cosifan tulle, The Marria ge of Figaro, The Magic Flut e, Hansel and Gretel , I Pagliacci , L 'elisir d 'amore, Wiener Blut, as well as a number of operas for (and one performed by) children . In addition to producing and touring four new opera s each year, the company has a lively education program in schools around the country , as well as the Opera Theatre Studio, a training facility for young singers .

The performing artists of The New York Collegium are some of America 's best-known Baroque instrumental and vocal specialists , many of whom have performed together for more than 20 years . Through their collaborat ions, a uniquely American style of Baroque performance has evolved . Performing on period instruments , the Collegium seeks to combine fidelity to original sources with expression, wit, grace, rhythmic vitality, and a rich palette of tonal colors. Now in its third season , the Collegium continues to collaborate with a distinguished roster of international guest directors and soloists. The New York Collegium takes its name from the I 8th-century Leipzig Collegium Musicum that was founded by Telemann and later directed by J. S. Bach. Under the tutela ge of founding Music Director Gustav Leonhardt, the New York Collegium was established to provide American audiences with world-class performances of rarely heard Baroque masterpieces, led by the most esteemed guest directors. The Collegium was last heard at BAM in April 2001 during the sold-out, critically lauded Spring Season performances of the Jonathan Miller-directed St. Matth ew Passion, conducted by Paul Goodwin.

About the artists

James Conway (director) , director of Opera Theatre Company , has directed OTC productions of Flavia (1994) , Tamerlano ( 1995, 1997), and Amadigi ( 1996), Orfeo ( 1996), Cosi fan tutte ( 1998), Cinderella ( 1998), The Rake ·s Progress ( I 999), and L 'elisir d 'amor e (2000). He also has direct ed operas for the Canadian Opera

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Company, Muzietheater Transparant and De Vlaamse Opera in Antwerp, the Teatro Nacional Sao Joao in Oporto, and Cultergest in Lisbon. He has written libretti for three operas as well as fiction that has been published in Canada. His productions have toured to London's Covent Garden Festival, the Buxton Festival , the Opera Comique in Paris, the Melbourne Festival, Expo '98 in Lisbon , and BAM . Upcomin g productions include Cavalli ' s L 'Erismena, a revival of Tamerlano, a new CunningLittle Vixen.

Laurence Cummings ( conductor/harpsichordist) was born in Birmingham, studied music as organ scholar at Christ Church, and studied the harpsichord at the Royal College of Music. He enjoys a career both as harpsichordist and conductor, broadcasting regularly on television and radio. Cummings first performed with OTC in 1992 in Tamberlane , the company 's first production of a Handel opera, and has since returned for High Fidelity (1993), Flavia (1994), and Amadigi (1996). He plays with many leading period instrument groups including The Gabrieli Consort, The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment , The Sixteen, and Les Arts Florissants. As a soloist, Cummings has recorded the harpsichord music of Louis Couperin for the Naxos label ; his recent volume of works by Franyois Couperin (also for Naxos) was nominated as Gramophone magazine ' s Editor's Choice . Alongside an active concert schedule, Cummings was appointed head of historical performance at the Royal Academy of Music, London in 1996. Last season, he conducted Handel ' s Alceste at the Linbury Theatre, Covent Garden for the English Bach Festival. Cummings became joint musical director of the London Handel Festival in 1998 and for the 2001 festival conducted Handel's Athalia with the London Handel Orchestra and Choir and Muzio Scevola, reliving the historic performance of 1721 where Adadei , Bononcini , and Handel each wrote an act. Future conducting plans include Bach 's Mass in B minor at the London Bach Festival and the first British performance of Handel's newly discovered Gloria in Excels is.

Yvonne Howard (Edwige) graduated from the Royal Northern College of Music. Early operatic roles include the title role in La Cenerentola with English Touring Opera, Marcellina in Le no==edi Figa ro with both Glyndebourne Festival and Touring Opera, and Fricka and Waltraute in the highly acclaimed City of Birmingham Touring Opera's Ring cycle. For the Royal Opera Covent Garden , Howard has performed the roles of Karolka in Jenzifa, Second Lady in Die Zauberfldte, Suzuki in Madama Butterfly and, most recently, Cornelia in Guilio Cesare, Berta in II barbiere di Siviglia, Marcellina in Le no==edi Figaro, and a Flower Maiden and the Heavenly Voice in Parsifal . She has performed as Meg Page in Falstaff for English National Opera, New Israeli Opera , Tel Aviv, and Opera North, where her other roles have included Maddalena in Rigol etto, Eboli in Don Carlos, and Evadne in Troilus and Cressida. Last season Howard returned to Opera North to sing Meg Page in Falstaff, sang in The Dream ofGerontius in New York, Goffredo in Rinaldo at Grange Park Opera , and Mahler 's Lieder eines Fahrendengesellen in Gran Canaria . This season's plans include Amneris in Aida at the Royal Albert Hall and Assunta in The Saint of Bleecker Street at the Spoleto Festival. Other forthcoming engagements include Third Lady in Die Zauberfldte with , Covent Garden .

Charles Johnston (Garibaldo) studied at Durham University and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama . He has performed with many of the major opera companies in the U.K . His operatic roles have included Dandini in la Cenerentola for Welsh National Opera , Orfeo for English National Opera , Schanuard in La boheme and Astrologer in Church Parables for City of Birmingham Touring Opera, Figaro in Le 110=::edi Figaro for Pimlico Opera, Don Alfonso and Guglielmo in Cosifan tulle for English Touring Opera, Sharpless in Madama Butterfly for Mid Wales Opera, Marcello in La boheme, and Escamillo in Carmen for Castleward Opera . In 1996- 97 he sang Count in Le no==edi Figaro, the title role in Don Giovanni, and Go laud in Pe/leas et Melisande for the Atelier Lyrique du Val de Loire on tour in France. Recent engagements include Father in Hansel und Gretel and Ford in Falstaff for Palace Opera, Baldassare in L 'Arlesiana for Opera Holland Park, Falke in Die Fledermaus at the Queen Elizabeth Hall , London and the title role in Macbeth for Singapore Lyric Theatre. This summer , Charles returns to Castleward Opera to perform the Count in Le noz::e di Figaro.

Jonathan Peter Kenny (Bertarido) was born in Liverpool, studied music at Exeter University , and trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama . Best known for his Handel interpretations, he has sung with OTC in a number of previous Handel productions including the title role in Amadigi, Andronico in Tamerlano , and Guido in Flal'io. Other operatic roles include Nireno in Giulio Cesare for the Royal Opera, David in Saul for the Covent Garden Festival , and La Chaise-Dieu, Valentiniano in E=io for the Karlsruhe Handel Festival, Andronico

mor e ... \ Rodelinda, 4 in Ta,nerlano for Glimmerglass Festival, the title role ofGluck's Orfeo for Scottish Opera, and Shepherd in Monteverdi's O,feo at the Salzburg Festival and English National Opera . In 1998, Kenny performed in the premiere of Hey Persephone by Deirdre Gribbin at Aldeburgh and the Almeida Festival. He created the title role in L 'augel!ino belverde and the Poet in In Search of Angels by Jonathan Dove . Recordings include Narciso in and Spirit in with John Eliot Gardiner; and Jonathan Miller's acclaimed BBC television film and CD recording of Bach's St. Matthew Passion . Recent engagements include Hamor in Jephtha for the Nederlandse Bach Vereiniging, Arsamenes in with the Gabrieli Consort, David in Saul in Oslo, the premiere of The Music Programme by Ruxandra Panufnik in Warsaw and at the Covent Garden Festival, and Tobias and the Angel at the Almeida Festival.

Iain Paton (Grimoaldo) was born in Scotland and studied at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama . He is the recipient of the first Eric Vertier Award at Glyndebourne. This is his fifth production for OTC, having previously appeared as Gomatz in Zaide, Nemorino in The Love Potion, Tom Rakewell in The Rake's Progress, and Grigoryevich in Kat 'a Kabanova. Paton has sung many leading roles with Scottish Opera including Ferrando in Casi.fan tutte, Pedrillo in Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail, Janek in The Makropulos Case, the Novice in Bil~v Budd, Vanya in Kat 'a Kabanova, and Tamino in The Magic Flute . For Opera North, he has performed Almaviva in The Barber of Seville, Vasek in The Bartered Bride and, most recently, Lensky in this season's production of Eugene Onegin. He has also worked with the City ofBirmingham Touring Opera and internationally with the Flanders Opera, Finnish National Opera, Opera Bastille, and at the Innsbruck and Gottingen Festivals. His recordings include King Arthur and Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail with William Christie and Les Arts Florissants, with which he toured the U.S. in 1999. Later this year, he performs the title role in The Rake 's Progress in Berlin.

Helen Williams (Rodelinda) began her career as a clarinetist before studying singing at the Royal Northern College of Music. During the 1980s, she sang regularly for Glyndebourne Festival Opera . Her roles there included Sahka in Osbourne's The Electrification of the Soviet Union and Emmie in Albert Herring on Glyndebourne Festival Opera's tour to Rome. After a three-year career break, during which her two children were born, Helen recommenced her operatic career singing the role of Second Niece in Richard Hickox's St. Endellion Festival performances of Peter Grimes . Since then, she has worked regularly with English National Opera, making her house debut in 1996 as Ensemble Soprano in Monteverdi's Orfeo and, more recently, as Dalinda in and Amor in Orpheus and Eurydice . Other recent appearances include Naiad in Ariadne au/ Naxos and First Lady in The Magic Flute for Scottish Opera, Yvette in La Rondine and 2nd Niece in Peter Grimes with the Royal Opera, Covent Garden, and Flaminia in fl Mondo della Luna with Opera Zuid in Holland. Last season's appearances include First Flowermaiden in Parsifal with Scottish Opera and Polissena in Radamisto at Opera North. Future plans include Yvette in La Rondine at the Royal Opera House, Frasquita at the Royal Albert Hall, a new recording of Carlo di Bogogna for Opera Rara, Eurydice in Orpheus and Eurydice at English National Opera, Micaela in Carmen for Glyndebourne Touring Opera, and I st Niece in Peter Grimes with Netherlands Opera .

Credits

BAM's 2001 Spring Season is sponsored by Philip Morris Companies Inc. Programming in the BAM Harvey Theater is supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. Leadership support for the BAM presentation of Rodelinda is provided by The Peter Jay Sharp Foundation and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Opera Theatre Company of Ireland is supported by The Cultural Relations Committee, Department of Foreign Affairs, Ireland. BAM's official broadcast sponsor is Bloomberg Radio AMI 130. The official hotel is New York Marriott Brooklyn.

The BAM facility is owned by the City ofNew York and its operation is made possible, in part, with public funds provided through the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs with support from the Brooklyn Delegation of the New York City Council and Brooklyn Borough President Howard Golden.

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General information

BAM Howard Gilman Opera House, BAM Rose Cinemas, BAMcafe, and Shakespeare & Co. BAMshop are located in the main building at 30 Lafayette Avenue (Lafayette and Ashland ) in the Fort Greene neighborhood of Brooklyn. BAM Harvey Theater is located at 651 Fulton Street in Fort Greene , Brooklyn. BAM Rose Cinemas is Brooklyn's only movie house dedicated to first-run independent and foreign film and repertory programming . Food and beverages are available at BAMcafe , which features an eclectic mix of spoken word and live music on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights as well as Sounds of Praise (live gospel music with a soul-food buffet) on selected Sundays . A package including dinner in BAMcafe and a movie ticket to BAM Rose Cinemas is available for only $30 (at the box office only).

Subway: 2, 3, 4, 5, D, Q to Atlantic Avenue 8, M, N, R to Pacific Street; G to Fulton Street, C to Lafayette Avenue Train: Long Island Railroad to Flatbush A venue BAMbus: Departs from Whitney Museum at Philip Morris, 120 Park Avenue at 42nd Street, one hour prior to most performances. Car : Commercial parking lots are located adjacent to BAM.

For ticket and BAMbus information, call BAM Ticket Services at 718.636.4100, or visit www.bam.org. Tickets are also available through Ticketmaster at 212 .307.4100 .

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