April 2020 OPERAGRAM Volume 12, Number 7 A MESSAGE FROM OUR GENERAL DIRECTOR Dear Friends, It is difficult to predict how long the current situation will last. None of us could have predicted this three months ago. We, at the Santa Fe Opera, remain cautious about predicting what the world will look like three months from now. For the time being, we remain optimistic and focused on preparing for our 2020 Season which is due to open on July 3. When the coronavirus pandemic is behind us, we will have a greater need than ever for the experience of live opera in our open-air theatre overlooking a vast expanse of unparalleled natural beauty. Please know that we are taking every precaution to keep our staff safe as we make those preparations for the 2020 Season and we are also working to ensure that our environment is safe for our patrons. We have implemented stringent sanitation measures throughout our campus and created health and wellness procedures to monitor the well-being of all staff and artists. We are also reviewing our ticket refund and exchange policies and will be prepared to address those with all ticket purchasers once we know more about the fate of the 2020 Season. Again, at present, we have every intention of moving forward with planning and preparations and we will keep you posted as things evolve. In the event of changes in the season, or a cancellation, we will be in touch with you immediately to share all options for your ticket purchase. Over the course of 64 years, the Santa Fe Opera has weathered many storms. I have every confidence that, together with your continued support and encouragement, we will weather this one too. Thank you for your patience and understanding, and for sharing our optimism. With deepest gratitude, Robert K. Meya General Director Please Note: Just prior to the publication of this issue of the Operagram, General Director, Robert K. Meyer sent a message to the opera community that included a link to the COVID-19 FAQ page where he addresses pertinent questions concerning the Santa Fe Opera and the coronavirus crises. Follow SFO’s daily posts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. OPERAGRAM’S NEW LOOK In October, 2019 the Santa Fe Opera adopted a brand that, as identified by Robert Meya, General Director, is more than a logo and will provide consistency, impact and integrity to the opera’s communication strategy. The logo is the most visible element of the Santa Fe Opera’s identity – a universal signature across all communications. It unites the opera’s diverse programs and activities. The new brand consists of two components: the wordmark, which identifies the Santa Fe Opera and the icon, designed as a reference to the Crosby Theatre’s roofline. While a separate corporation, the five-member guilds that make up the Guilds of the Santa Fe Opera, Inc. have partnered with the opera to link SFO’s brand with recognizable identifications for the five communities where guilds exist – Albuquerque, Española Valley, Los Alamos, Santa Fe and Taos. This collaboration should enhance not only the recognition of the Santa Fe Opera, but also our connection to the opera as we work to support the Community Engagement Department through volunteering, fundraising and community activities. Eileen Woodbury President The Guilds of the Santa Fe Opera, Inc. ON HOLD…RESCHEDULED…POSTPONED…CANCELLED Dear Members, The Santa Fe Opera has asked that we put on hold the annual Santa Fe Opera Guild sponsored Meet the Apprentice Singers party in Dapples Pavilion. The SFO has also put on hold the Apprentice Reception (for Singing Apprentices and Technicians) that is held at the Opera Club and sponsored by their Development Department. The opera's leadership team will make the final decision on whether either or both of these events will go forward. It all depends on the trajectory of the novel coronavirus, which is impossible to predict at this time. If all goes well, the Meet the Apprentice Singers will take place on Saturday, June 13 in Dapples Pavilion. We are thrilled to announce that the Desirée Mays lecture, Introduction to Tristan und Isolde has been rescheduled for June 18 at The Santa Fe Woman’s Club at 5:30PM. The Spring Tour opera, Sweet Potato Kicks the Sun has been postponed to a date yet to be determined. The Spotlight Series featuring Oliver Prezant have been cancelled. Stay tuned to email messages and the May Operagram for the latest news. I would also suggest adding the Santa Fe Opera Guild website to your list of sources for updated information. Thank you for your patience and support, Martha Baker President Santa Fe Opera Guild RESERVE YOUR SEAT FOR OPENING NIGHT OPENING NIGHT DINNER FRIDAY, JULY 3, 5:30PM-7:30PM DAPPLES PAVILION, THE SANTA FE OPERA OPERA GUILD MEMBERS, $75.00 Join the Guilds of the Santa Fe Opera for our annual Opening Night Dinner on July 3, 2020, at Dapples Pavilion. We celebrate the new festival season of the Santa Fe Opera, with this year’s production of Rossini’s beloved opera The Barber of Seville. This fundraising event is hosted by all five member guilds from around the state. The Guilds of the Santa Fe Opera, Inc. pricing is $75 per guest ($40 tax deductible.) The Opening Night Dinner will feature a celebratory toast, and a sumptuous, themed buffet dinner with wine. The guest speaker is Mark Tiarks who is well known to many Santa Fe Opera attendees as a featured speaker. Mark has enjoyed a distinguished career in opera and theatre production spanning more than four decades. Please join us for this much anticipated event! You may purchase tickets here for the Opening Night Dinner. To pay by check, make your check payable to Guilds of The Santa Fe Opera, Inc. and mail to P. O. Box 2658, Santa Fe, NM, 87504. All guests are responsible for purchasing their own opera tickets for the July 3, 2020, performance at the Crosby Theatre. Purchase your opera tickets online directly from The Santa Fe Opera Box Office or call the Box Office at 800- 280-4654. SANTA FE OPERA ANNOUNCES YOUTH NIGHTS Dating back to 1959, the Youth Nights program has introduced over 100,000 children to opera. Today, working with the Guilds of the Santa Fe Opera, Inc., the Pueblo Opera Program, and other community partner organizations, we continue to provide an introduction to the world of opera. Youth Nights serve youth groups and local organizations who provide learning opportunities to local youth. These groups attend the dress rehearsals of three out of the five main stage operas performed during the 2020 season. Youth Nights are scheduled for: Monday, June 29, The Barber of Seville Tuesday, June 30, The Magic Flute Tuesday, July 21, Rusalka The deadline for making reservations is May 1, 2019. Please contact Volunteer Liaison, Rebecca Jensen, for more information at (505) 946-2407. We kindly ask that you maintain a ratio of one (1) adult to every five (5) youth so as many youth as possible can attend with adults serving as chaperones for each group. If you are looking for performances suitable for a greater number of adults to attend with youth, we are pleased to direct you to our Family Nights program. BACKSTAGE PREVIEW. SAME TIME. NEW FORMAT BACKSTAGE PREVIEW SATURDAY, APRIL 18, 11:00AM – 1:00PM The Santa Fe Opera Guild presents its annual Backstage Preview on Saturday, April 18 at 11:00AM. The event will be transmitted remotely because Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham has requested New Mexicans take a number of precautions to avoid the transmission of the coronovirus. If you've purchased a ticket for the event, you'll receive a link and instructions on how to connect to the video presentation featuring Missy West Randy Lutz (Props), Missy West (Costumes), and Scott Schrek (Scenery) discussing how the magic happens behind the scenes. Stay tuned to the Santa Fe Opera Guild's website and your inbox for any changes in scheduling. We know you'll Scott Schrek enjoy the insights about this festival season's productions. Randy Lutz VIVACE BOOK GROUP MONDAY, MAY 11, 6:15PM - 7:30PM PRE-DISCUSSION SOCIAL 5:45PM COLLECTED WORKS 202 GALISTEO STREET, SANTA FE COMPLIMENTARY FOR GUILD MEMBERS, NON-MEMBERS $5 Monday, May 11: The Noise of Time by Julian Barnes, is a fictionalized biography of Dimitri Shostakovich. It is 1936 and Dmitri Shostakovich, just thirty years old, reckons with the first of three conversations with power that will irrevocably shape his life. Stalin, hitherto a distant figure, has suddenly denounced the young composer’s latest opera. Certain he will be exiled to Siberia (or, more likely, shot dead on the spot), Shostakovich reflects on his predicament, his personal history, his parents, his daughter—all of those hanging in the balance of his fate. And though a stroke of luck prevents him from becoming yet another casualty of the Great Terror, he will twice more be swept up by the forces of despotism: coerced into praising the Soviet state at a cultural conference in New York in 1948, and finally bullied into joining the Party in 1960. All the while, he is compelled to constantly weigh the specter of power against the integrity of his music. An extraordinary portrait of a relentlessly fascinating man, The Noise of Time is a stunning meditation on the meaning of art and its place in society. Julian Barnes is the author of twenty-three previous books, for which he has been awarded the Man Booker Prize, the Somerset Maugham Award, the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize, the David Cohen Prize for Literature, and the E.