Edition 2 | 2019-2020
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insidewhat’s 2019-2020 SEASON Letter from Chairman 9 Children’s Chorus 43 Board of Directors 10 Palm Beach Opera Orchestra 44 General Director’s Welcome 11 Production Staff 45 Co-Producer Society & Palm Beach Opera Staff 46 Program Sponsors 12 Bailey Apprentice Artists 48 Turandot 26 Benenson Young Artists 49 Cast of Characters 27 PBO Young Friends 52 Synopsis 28 Palm Beach Opera Studio 53 The Background 29 Education & Community Chief Conductors Note 30 Engagement Programs 56 Director’s Notes 31 Community Events & Production Team 32 Adult Engagement 57 Artists 34 Palm Beach Opera Guild 59 Creative Team 40 Supporters 61 Palm Beach Opera Chorus 42 Orpheus Legacy Society 68 ADVERTISING This program is published in association with Onstage Publications Onstage Publications, 1612 Prosser Avenue, Kettering, OH 45409. This program may not be 937-424-0529 | 866-503-1966 reproduced in whole or in part without written e-mail: [email protected] permission from the publisher. JBI Publishing is a www.onstagepublications.com division of Onstage Publications, Inc. Contents © 2020. All rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A. PALM BEACH OPERA 7 LETTER FROM THE CHAIRMAN DEAR PALM BEACH OPERA PATRONS, Welcome to our first mainstage production of the 19-20 season at the Kravis Center! We are grateful to you for choosing to spend the evening with us at the opera. Your patronage and support allows us to expand our education and community engagement programs, to continuously improve our artist training programs, and to bring exciting productions and acclaimed artists from around the world to South Florida. This season, the Board of Directors will focus on the needs of our steadily growing company, as well as cultivating relationships within our community to grow our board family. Coupled with General Director David Walker’s ideas for the future, Palm Beach Opera is poised for continued growth, financial stability, and long-lasting impact. As always, your belief in our mission is what drives us to continue this important work, and we invite you to join us in discussions about Palm Beach Opera’s exciting future. There are many ways to support Palm Beach Opera, and to help provide the magic of opera to our community. We hope you consider joining our Board of Directors, Co-Producer Society, Guild, or PBO Young Friends. Tonight, you will experience Puccini’s final masterpiece,Turandot , in an otherworldly production that is sure to transport you to another time and place. Matched with the powerful voices on stage and the timeless score brought to life by our Chief Conductor David Stern, tonight’s performance will be a treat for the senses. Thank you for joining us, and enjoy the opera! Dennis Williams Chairman PAST CHAIRS Marc S. Solomon (2008-2012) William D. Chalek (1977-1979) James W. Beasley, Jr. (2005-2008) Dr. Warner Earle Fusselle (1976) Robert M. Montgomery (1986-2005) James Nemec (1973-1975) Shannon Ginn (1984-1985) Mrs. Carleton R. Dodge (1973) Herb Benn (1982-1983) William K. de Veer (1972) Dr. Elwood Groves (1977-1979) PALM BEACH OPERA 9 BOARD OF DIRECTORS OFFICERS DIRECTORS EMERITI Dennis K. Williams Sanford M. Baklor Hans D. Baumann Chairman Dr. Robert Biscup Dr. Elizabeth Bowden Nathan Leventhal David Brodsky Claire Chasanoff* President Annette Y. Friedland Rita Denerstein Ann Fromer John A. Domenico Jeffrey H. Alderton Paul A. Goldner Leon Fassler* Vice President Gray W. Hampton III Arlette Gordon Gladys Benenson* Ronnie Isenberg Robert Gordon* Vice President Florence Kaufman Chuck Hardwick William G. Brown Judith Kaufman Dr. David I. Kosowsky* Vice President Ingrid Kosowsky Howard Lester* Dr. Peter McCombs Virginia Longo Sanford Fisher John J. Pohanka Charlotte Miller Vice President Marc S. Solomon Sunny Miller David Genser Ed Streim Mary M. Montgomery Vice President Robert M. Montgomery* LEGAL COUNSEL Helen K. Persson* Charles Gottesman Vice President Jeffrey I. Pheterson M. Mac Schwebel* Muriel Shapiro* Peter A. Hoffman Reneé Silvester* Vice President Dr. John Strasswimmer Dr. Marsha Laufer Barbara Weimer Vice President Sy Ziv* Ari Rifkin Vice President Marc E. Wise *In Memoriam Secretary & Treasurer LIFETIME GIVING CONTRIBUTORS With special thanks to the following individuals who have made cumulative contributions to Palm Beach Opera of $1,000,000 or more. Mrs. Cornelia T. Bailey*, Mrs. Gladys Benenson*, Mr. Robert* & The Glenn W. and The Edward H. Benenson Mrs. Mary Montgomery Cornelia T. Bailey Foundation, Inc. Palm Beach Opera Guild Charitable Foundation, Mrs. Lorraine Friedman Mrs. Helen K. Persson* in loving memory of Mr. Eugene* & Mrs. Lois B. Pope Cornelia T. Bailey Mrs. Ronnie Isenberg Mr. M. Mac Schwebel* *In Memoriam PALM BEACH OPERA 10 GENERAL DIRECTOR’S WELCOME DEAR PALM BEACH OPERA FRIENDS, It is my pleasure to welcome you to the first mainstage opera of Palm Beach Opera’s 19-20 season. Whether you’re here for the first time, or have been a member of our opera family for years, I want to thank you for joining us today, and experiencing the transformative power of live opera. We are thrilled to present you with Giacomo Puccini’s Turandot, featuring an adventurous and beloved musical score, a fantastical set, and one of the most iconic opera arias of all time, “Nessun Dorma.” We hope you will be as mesmerized as we are by the incredible artistry on stage, the all-encompassing Palm Beach Opera Orchestra — now in © Coastal Click Photography its 26th season — and this sweeping story of passion, peril, and sacrifice. The remaining performances of our 19-20 season include Gioachino Rossini’s comedic masterpiece Il barbiere di Siviglia, Children’s Performance: The Barber of Seville — which will also feature interactive activities for children before the show, and Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s lush, poetic opera Eugene Onegin. Throughout the year, our Education & Community Engagement team will also continue to travel across South Florida communities to bring the magic of live opera to learners of all ages. By the end of this season, we expect to reach nearly 20,000 individuals directly from our free education and community engagement programs. Your support allows us to impact our community in such a meaningful way, and we are most grateful to you for helping us make these important arts programs possible. As the new General Director of Palm Beach Opera, I look forward to getting to know you personally as our 19-20 season continues to unfold, and building on Palm Beach Opera’s incredible momentum as a leading arts institution in our community. Thanks to your support, we can continue to fulfill our mission of presenting extraordinary performances, impacting thousands in our community, and inspiring life-long interest in the arts. Thank you for joining us, and for being a part of our opera family! David Walker General Director PALM BEACH OPERA 11 CO-PRODUCER Palm Beach Opera acknowledges with gratitude and appreciation the generous Co-Producers whose designated contributions underwrite production costs, and are instrumental in making this season’s productions possible. SOCIETY Contributions to the 2020 season, current as of 1/8/2020 EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS THE GLENN W. AND CORNELIA T. BAILEY CHARITABLE FOUNDATION, IN LOVING MEMORY OF CORNELIA T. BAILEY Eugene Onegin Palm Beach Opera most gratefully acknowledges Cornelia Bailey’s immense support to Palm Beach Opera’s productions and programs. Mrs. Bailey’s keen interest in productions, her love for a broad variety of repertoire, and her appreciation of beautiful scenery and costumes led her to become an Executive Producer. Last year, Palm Beach Opera mourned the loss of this dear friend and gracious supporter. Her legacy as a Palm Beach Opera patron and supporter will continue every time the curtain rises on another mainstage opera production. PALM BEACH OPERA 12 EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS MR. & MRS. WILLIAM G. BROWN Il barbiere di Siviglia MRS. RONNIE ISENBERG, IN LOVING MEMORY OF EUGENE ISENBERG Turan d ot Palm Beach Opera is deeply grateful to Ronnie Isenberg for her magnanimous support in memory of Gene. Ronnie and Gene have alternately been on the Board of Directors for the past 20 years, and have always been among the leaders of Palm Beach Opera. After Gene’s passing, Ronnie significantly increased her support to show their love for grand productions. “He introduced me to opera,” Ronnie said. “I enjoy listening and seeing all operas.” With the formal establishment of the Co-Producer Society, Ronnie became an Executive Producer of Madama Butterfly in 2017, continued as an Executive Producer of Tosca in 2018, Don Giovanni in 2019, and was awarded the board designated “Lifetime Grand Patron Award” for her many years of leadership. PALM BEACH OPERA 13 CO-PRODUCER PRODUCERS SOCIETY BLOOMBERG PHILANTHROPIES Hansel and Gretel, Turandot, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Eugene Onegin Palm Beach Opera is sincerely grateful for the generous support provided by Bloomberg Philanthropies as a season Producer. Bloomberg Philanthropies focuses on five key areas for creating last change: public health, environment, education, government innovation, and arts & culture. These five areas encompass the issues Mike Bloomberg and his team are most passionate about, and where they believe the greatest good can be achieved. MRS. ARI RIFKIN Chief Conductor Sponsor, Turandot, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Hansel and Gretel Philanthropist and Palm Beach Opera Executive Committee member Ari Rifkin has always enjoyed opera and classical music, in particular orchestral music and the solo violin. “I especially love the beautiful melodies in classical operas,” said Ari Rifkin. Her love for the arts also includes movies, visual arts, and photography. “Opera is a wonderful combination of orchestral, vocal, visual, and dramatic arts, all inspired during the performance by the conductor.” Palm Beach Opera is most grateful to Ari Rifkin for her continued Chief Conductor Sponsorship. PALM BEACH OPERA 14 PRODUCERS TONI & MARTIN SOSNOFF Scenery & Costume Underwriters, Turandot TRIPLE CO-PRODUCERS MR.