Opera in Williamsburg Trovatore Final Corrected A.Pub
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OPERA IN WILLIAMSBURG PRESENTS: Il TrovaTore NOVEMBER 6 AND 8,, 2013 KIMBALL THEATRE WILLIAMSBURG,, VIRGINIA Opera in Williamsburg Founder: Naama Zahavi-Ely Opera in Williamsburg is dedicated to bringing to Williamsburg, Virginia inmate fully-staged opera with world-class cast. Funded by cket sales and the support of members of the community, Opera in Williamsburg is commied to the highest arsc standards and maintains a relaonship with the Internaonal Vocal Arts Instute (IVAI), which is run by co-founders Joan Dornemann and Paul Nadler of the Metropolitan Opera. Opera in Williamsburg’s objecves are as follows: Bring excellent live mainstream opera performances to Williamsburg, Virginia Help outstanding arsts earn a living by praccing their art for fair compensaon Give highly qualified professional singers opportunies to debut mainstream roles professionally Create effecve and aracve mainstream opera producons with minimal financial investment in sets, props, and costumes Aract new audiences to mainstream live opera, and provide opera lovers with more opportunies to see it locally A part of the vision of Opera in Williamsburg is working with outstanding professional arsts and paying them fairl. It is also crucially important to keep cket prices within reach of the community, and within reach of students in parcular. As of November 2012, Opera in Williamsburg is fiscally sponsored by Fractured Atlas, a naonal non-profit tax-exempt art service organizaon. Fractured Atlas can accept tax-exempt donaons to the extent permied by law and can administer grants earmarked for the use of Opera in Williamsburg. Raising money is crucial for the connuing acvity of Opera in Williamsburg: otherwise, for all its arsc success, it would have to stop for lack of funds. Our budget is minuscule by opera standards, but it cannot be covered by cket sales alone, even if every seat at the Kimball is sold. A group of loyal friends has been providing advice, assistance, hospitality, and contribuons to Opera in Williamsburg. Opera in Williamsburg is sll at an early stage. Advice, volunteers, and assistance would be very welcome indeed. Please contact Naama Zahavi-Ely at [email protected] 2 Il TrovaTore BY GIUSEPPE VERDI LIBRETTISTS: ALVATORE AMMARANO AND EONE MANUELE ARDARE S C L E B Conductor: ............................................................................... Jorge Parodi Manrico ............................................................ Rodrigo Garciarroyo, tenor Leonora ................................................... Yasmine Levi-Ellentuck, soprano Conte Di Luna .................................................... Gustavo Feulien, baritone Azucena .....................................................Claudia Chapa, mezzo-soprano Ferrando .................................................................. Matthew Anchel, bass Inez .............................................................. Fiorella Velez, mezzo-soprano Ruiz ....................................................................... Santiago Aponte, tenor Old Gypsy .................................................................................... Daniel Hoy Chorus mistress ................................................... Agueda Fernandez-Abad Chorus .............................. Christine Sperry. Cathy Thorpe, Leo Paolo Leal Dancers ............................ Bryan E. Ingram, Lauren Hebert, Kenna Holley ......................................................................... Jillian Losty, Lauren Findlay Stage combat ......................... Nathan Arries, Josua Blum, Anthony Finch Stage director / lighting designer ..................................... Mathieu Guertin Visual artist (background) ................................................. Olivier Carignan Stage combat ...................................................................... Aaron Orensky Dance choreography .......................................................... Christy Delaney Set, prop, and costume design ................................................ Amelie Cote Supertitles ........................................................................ Naama Zahavi-Ely Pianist / assistant conductor ............................................... Jamison Livsey Violin .................................................................................... Simon Lapointe Cello................................................................................... Peter Greydanus Clarinet ...................................................................................... Shawn Buck Production ....................................................................... Naama Zahavi-Ely 3 Il Trovatore -- Synopsis Act I: The guards of Count Di Luna are waing for him while he keeps watch under the balcony of his beloved, against his rival, a mysterious troubadour. Their commander, Ferrando, tells them how the old Count, the father of their present master, burned a witch at the stake. In re- venge, her daughter stole his younger son and the burned remains of a child were found in the same fire. The old Count insisted that the burned child was not his, and made his son swear to search for his brother. But the brother was never found. Leonora tells her friend Inez how she met an unknown warrior who won at the tourney and she crowned him with laurels. When the civil war started he disappeared like a dream, but a while aer a troubadour ap- peared at night singing her name—it was him! He is her desny, she says, and if she can’t live with him she’ll die for him. The Count is watching in the garden; the troubadour is singing in the dis- tance. Leonora comes eagerly to meet her beloved, but in the darkness she mistakes Count Di Luna for him. The troubadour appears and accuses her of infidelity; she reassures him that only he is her love. The furious Count demands the troubadour’s identy. He turns out to be Manrico, a commander on the other side of the civil war. Rather than call the guards to arrest and execute Manrico, Di Luna fights him in person. The two exit, fighng. Act II: In a camp of gypsy metal scavengers, Azucena sings a sad song about a ferocious fire and a woman taken by a horrendous mob to death by burning. The gypsies leave, and Manrico asks Azicena about her song. It is about the sad end of his grandmother, she says. She was sen- tenced to burning by the wicked Count. Azucena recalls with horror how her mother was pushed by the mob and not even allowed to stop and bless her, her daughter, who was following weeping with her child in her arms. Her mother’s last cry, “Avenge me!” echoes ever in her heart. Did she avenge her mother, asks Manrico? She says that she stole the child of the Count and brought him to the same fire. At Manrico’s horrified reacon, she recalls how the child was weeping, and her heart broke; but then the vision of her mother’s terrible end engulfed her, and she grabbed the child and pushed him into the fire. The vision faded, and she turned around and found—the child of the Count! The child she had 4 burned was her own child! Once past his horror, Manrico asks who is he, then. She says he is her child. She has always been a devoted mother to him. When rumor said he had died on the balefield, she came searching for his body to bury it. She found him barely alive and nursed him back to health. Yes, he says, he alone was sll facing the enemy rather than flee- ing. He was aacked by the men of the evil Count Di Luna and le for dead. Why didn’t he kill the Count when he had the chance, asks Az- ucena? Manrico answers that he does not know himself; he was fighng with Di Luna and almost killed him, but a mysterious feeling stopped his descending sword. But the Count had no such feeling, says Azucena. She encourages Manrico to swear that he would kill Count Di Luna when he next gets a chance. A messenger appears; Manrico is appointed as com- mander of the defense of Castellor, and the leer menons that Leonora, who thinks that Manrico is dead, is planning to take the veil at a convent that evening. Manrico rushes to intercept her, in spite of the urgent pleadings of Azucena that he is barely healed and a wild solitary ride might kill him. Count Di Luna can’t stand the idea that Leonora will not be his. He plans to abduct her with his men before she enters the convent, and sings of his adoraon for her. The nuns appear singing a hymn. Leonora parts from her friends: since Manrico has died, there is no joy for her in anything, and her only wish is to reunite with him in heaven aer a penitenal life. She turns to the altar; Di Luna intervenes, to the dismay of Leonora and the nuns, but before he can take Leonora Manrico appears. Leonora is Jubilant, the Count furious. Manrico’s men appear and disarm the raging Count Di Luna. Again, Manrico does not kill him but rather curses him to life of torment. Manrico leaves with Leonora. Act III: Count Di Luna is besieging Castellor, and his soldiers sing confi- dently of their coming aack on the castle. Di Luna fumes that Leonora is in the arms of his rival. Ferrando appears and says that a suspicious gypsy woman was captured by the scouts. Di Luna interrogates her: she is searching for her son, she says, and comes from Biscay. He asks whether she has heard of a child of Counts who was abducted and brought there some fieen years ago. She denies it, but Ferrando recognizes her as the witch’s daughter who abducted the child. When threatened with burn- ing, she cries out to her son Manrico to save her. The jubilant Di Luna re- alizes that a threat to Azucena