New York City Opera
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PhPhototoo: © 201019 RyRyaann Muiuir NEW YORK CITY OPERA We are incredibly excited to welcome performing arts back to New York City! Since March 2020 — when all our lives changed — Bryant Park has not wavered from its mission to provide a safe and stimulating public space for everyone to enjoy. Outdoor space has never been so vital, and live events have never been more necessary. I want to thank our courageous and dedicated staff who have kept Bryant Park not only open but flourishing throughout the pandemic. This season Picnic Performances celebrates the return of live music, theater and dance to Midtown and the resiliency of artists and cultural organizations throughout this difficult period. All of our cultural partners have re-imagined what it means to perform, and it is with great pleasure we share their innovative works with you. We welcome those of you seated on the lawn, as well as our new virtual audience, too. For the first time, these performances are available by livestream so viewers can enjoy no matter where they are. We extend sincere gratitude to our neighbor, Bank of America, whose support is integral to the park year-round and who make the livestreams of Picnic Performances possible. Enjoy the show! President,. Bryant Park Corporation i magine, illuminate and inspire As a major supporter of arts and culture nonprofit organizations, Bank of America believes in the power of the arts. We are proud to sponsor the livestream of the 2021 season of Bryant Park Picnic Performances. WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE THE POWER TO DO?® © 2021 Bank of America Corporation. MAP#3621959 Protocols for All Attendees Upon arrival, visitors must show proof of full vaccination or a recent negative COVID-19 test. A matching government-issued photo ID is also required. Doors open at 5:30pm. Please arrive no later than the entry time on your ticket. Bryant Park chairs are available. Please do not bring plastic tarps. All event attendees are invited to bring food and drink. Food and beverage is also available for purchase from vendors in the park. The bathroom is located at the northeast corner of the park. A wristband is required for re-entry to the event area. Protocols for Vaccinated Attendees In line with current CDC and state guidelines, attendees may remove masks at their own discretion once within the fully vaccinated areas. Bring your own blanket or use a Bryant Park chair. Within the fully vaccinated area, attendees will have ample space to distance from others at their own discretion. Protocols for Tested Attendees Masks are required unless seated in socially distant chairs. Attendees must keep six-foot distance from other parties at all times. A temperature check and COVID-19 symptom screening is required as part of the entry process. Bryant Park chairs will be placed in exact positions by event staff. Please do not move chairs. Tested attendees may not enter the fully vaccinated areas. TONIGHT’S PROGRAM Pride In The Park June 18, 2021: Bryant Park Stage 7:00 pm – 8:15 pm This performance will feature a diverse program of selections from opera and musical theater sung by a quintet of stars from City Opera’s Pride Series. We will close this performance with a special new arrangement of the finale from Stonewall, by Iain Bell and Mark Campbell, which had its world premiere at New York City Opera in 2019. Come celebrate Pride in Bryant Park with New York City Opera! Michael Capasso Master of Ceremonies Kathryn Olander Music Director and Pianist CAST Jessica Fishenfeld Lauren Hoffmeier Jordan Weatherston Pitts Brian James Myer Peter Kendall Clark La traviata Verdi Libiamo Jordan Weatherston Pitts Alfredo Jessica Fishenfeld Violetta A Little Night Music Sondheim The Miller’s Son Melanie Long Petra Carmen Bizet Gypsy song Brian James Myer Carmen Get Happy/Happy Days Are Here Again Arlen/Koehler & Ager/Yellen Peter Kendall Clark Lauren Hoffmeier Eugene Onegin Tchaikovsky Kuda, Kuda (Lensky’s Aria) Jordan Weatherston Pitts Lensky Sunset Boulevard Webber/Rice As If We Never Said Goodbye Lauren Hoffmeier Norma Desmond Falsettos Finn What Would I Do? Brian James Myer Malcom Peter Kendall Clark Ethan West Side Story Bernstein/ Sondheim Somewhere Melanie Long Consuelo Candide Bernstein/Wilbur Glitter and be Gay Jessica Fishenfeld Cunégonde Carousel Rodgers/ Hammerstein You’ll Never Walk Alone Jordan Weatherston Pitts Il Barbiere di Siviglia Rossini Largo al factotum Brian James Myer Figaro The Baker’s Wife Schwartz Meadowlark Lauren Hoffmeier Geneviève La Cage aux Folles Herman I Am What I Am Peter Kendall Clark Albin Stonewall Bell/Campbell Finale Jessica Fishenfeld Jordan Weatherston Pitts Melanie Long Brian James Myer *Encore Arlen/Harburg Over the Rainbow Ensemble UPCOMING PICNIC PERFORMANCES CARMEN July 2, 2021 7:00 pm – 8:15 pm Kathryn Olander, Music Director and Pianist CAST Carmen: Lisa Chavez Don Jose : Jason Karn Escamillo: Joshua Jeremiah Micaëla: Kristin Sampson Frasquita: Stacy Dove Mercédès: Kristee Haney Lillas Pastia: Bill Van Horn NOW THAT’S WHAT I CALL OPERA! August 21, 2021 7:00 pm – 8:15 pm Kamal Khan, Music Director and Pianist CAST Lisa Chavez Adam Cioffari Kristin Sampson Victor Starsky RIGOLETTO September 3, 2021 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm Constantine Orbelian, Conductor CAST Rigoletto: Michael Chioldi The Duke of Mantua: Won Whi Choi Gilda: Brandie Sutton Maddalena: Lisa Chavez Sparafucile: Kevin Short ABOUT NEW YORK CITY OPERA Since its founding in 1943 by Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia as “The People’s Opera,” New York City Opera has been a critical part of the city’s cultural life. During its history, NYCO launched the careers of dozens of major artists and presented engaging productions of both mainstream and unusual operas alongside commissions and regional premieres. The result was a uniquely American opera company of international stature. Today, New York City Opera continues its legacy at a new, state-of-the-art home at the Rose Theater at Jazz at Lincoln Center and with revitalized outreach and education programs at venues throughout the city, designed to welcome and inspire a new generation of opera audiences. City Opera’s acclaimed summer series in Bryant Park brings free performances to thousands of New Yorkers and visitors every year. Coming soon THE GARDEN OF THE FINZI-CONTINIS January 2022 World Premiere opera by Ricky Ian Gordon and Michael Korie A co-production with NATIONAL YIDDISH THEATRE FOLKSBIENE Based on Giorgio Bassani’s 1962 novel, (considered a modern classic which is also the basis for Vittorio De Sica’s 1970 film adaptation starring Dominique Sanda and Helmet Berger – a 1972 Academy Award winner for Best Foreign Language Film), THE GARDEN OF THE FINZI- CONTINIS is set on the eve of World War II and tells the story of an aristocratic Italian-Jewish family, the Finzi-Continis, who believe they will be immune to the changes happening around them. www.nycopera.com Instagram: @nycopera Facebook.com/NewYorkCityOpera Twitter: @nycityopera Baritone Peter Kendall Clark has created roles in numerous world premieres, including the title role in Ted Rosenthal’s jazz opera Dear Erich at New York City Opera, for which the New York Times praised his “gravity and earthy sound.” He has also sung leading operatic and musical theatre roles with Caramoor Opera, Anchorage Opera, Union Avenue Opera, Opera on the James, Charlottesville Opera, Hawaii Opera Theatre, Virginia Opera, St. Petersburg Opera, Chelsea Opera, Syracuse Opera and Skylight Music Theatre. Recent roles include Sweeney Todd, Older Thompson, Henry Higgins, Fredrik Eggerman, King Arthur, MacHeath, Count Almaviva and Eugene Onegin. A regular performer with New York City Opera, he was featured in Harold Prince’s production of Candide, Peter Eötvös’ Angels in America, La Fanciulla del West, and Charles Wuorinen’s Brokeback Mountain, and the premiere of Iain Bell and Mark Campbell’s Stonewall. Since May of 2020 he has given nearly 200 outdoor concerts in Brooklyn Heights in the series “Songs From The Ledge” which the New York Post has called “the hottest ticket in town.” As the “Brownstone Baritone” he has been profiled on ABC News, CBS Inside Edition, Only Good Heroes for OGTV, Voice Of America, the New York Post, Japan Public Television’s (NHK) Catch! World Top News, and WQXR’s New York in Concert. www.peterkendallclark.com www.songsfromtheledge.com Brownstone Baritone (YouTube) Instagram: @brownstonebaritone Facebook.com/PeterKendallClark Soprano and actor Jessica Fishenfeld “triumphed” (New York Observer) in her New York City Opera debut as Leah in the world premiere of Iain Bell and Mark Campbell’s Stonewall, with “clean coloratura,” (Opera News) and “spunky personality” (OperaWire); made her off-Broadway debut as Brünnhilde in Das Barbecü; and sang Gilda in an immersive Rigoletto at THE BOX Theatre just before the mass pandemic closures of 2020. She then produced and performed in Grateful: The Songs of John Bucchino, 20th Anniversary Virtual Concert, “one of the slickest, best-produced virtual concerts to come out of the last ten months” (BroadwayWorld), alongside Stephen Schwartz, Leslie Odom Jr. and Toni Tennille, among other Broadway and cabaret luminaries. She also appeared virtually with New York Festival of Song, Dallas Opera Network, OmniArts Foundation, Opera Carolina, Center for Contemporary Opera, Teatro Grattacielo, and Savannah VOICE Festival. She recently starred in world and New York premieres at Circle in the Square and National Sawdust, and won semifinalist prizes in the 2021 American Traditions Competition and 2019 Lotte Lenya Competition. Other highlights include a residency with Palm Beach Opera and soloist appearances at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall, Helena Symphony, St. Bart’s Music Festival, Orquesta Filarmonía de Xalapa, Festival de Órgano de Morelia, and Birdland Jazz Club. www.jessicafishenfeld.com Instagram: @jecafish Facebook.com/jessicafishenfeldsoprano Twitter: @jessfishenfeld Tiktok: @jecafish Lauren Hoffmeier was raised in the heart of New York City with a performance background in opera and musical theatre.