PRESS RELEASE July 18, 2014 Contact: Camille Cintrón, Manager, Public Relations 703.255.4096 or [email protected] High-resolution images of the artists listed are available on Wolf Trap’s website: wolftrap.org/Media_and_Newsroom/Photos_for_Publication.aspx Wolf Trap Opera Presents Bizet’s Carmen for One Night Only, July 25 Wolf Trap Opera, National Symphony Orchestra, and The Washington Chorus join forces in a custom designed Operascape production at the Filene Center at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts As previously announced, the production utilizes Google Glass and MobiTXT™ technologies Vienna, VA— Wolf Trap Opera presents Bizet’s Carmen for one night only, Friday, July 25 at 8:15 pm at the Filene Center at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts. See below for ticketing information. A spellbinding drama filled with lust, jealousy, and tragedy, Carmen is one of the world’s most popular and oft-performed operas. Bizet’s masterpiece features many of opera’s most powerful and memorable arias, from the “Habanera” to the passionate seduction song “Seguidilla” and the triumphant bravura of the “Song of the Toreador.” The production will be sung in French with English supertitles, projected on screens in-house and also available on internet-capable devices via MobiTxt™, Figaro Systems’ new supertitle technology, to patrons on the lawn. Continuing Wolf Trap’s tradition of excellence as a top-tier operatic training program for emerging artists, all leading roles will be performed exclusively by Wolf Trap Opera’s Filene Young Artists. This cast includes French mezzo-soprano Maya Lahyani as Carmen and Americans tenor Kevin Ray as Don José; baritone Norman Garrett as Escamillo; and soprano Melinda Whittington as Micaëla. See complete casting below. Wolf Trap Opera’s elite group of young singers is chosen through a highly selective annual nationwide audition tour. In addition to the artists listed above, technology journalist and opera aficionado David Pogue joins the chorus and cast as an “extra” outfitted in costume and Google Glass to give the Wolf Trap audience a first-of-its-kind perspective of the Filene Center stage. Los Angeles Opera’s resident conductor Grant Gershon returns to Wolf Trap following last summer’s production of La traviata. He leads the Carmen cast, the National Symphony Orchestra, and the Grammy Award-winning Washington Chorus (Julian Wachner, Music Director). Tara Faircloth directs, with 1930s-period costuming by Rooth Varland and lighting by Mark Stanley. With its vibrant colors and evocative images, this new Operascape production was created specifically for Wolf Trap’s large outdoor amphitheater by renowned projections designer S. Katy Tucker. Audiences will enjoy a traditional production, set in Spain a few decades after the composition of the opera, through the use of larger-than-life video set projections displayed on a 60-foot wide custom screen. This production of Carmen is made possible in part through generous philanthropic support from Wolf Trap Foundation Board Chairman Dan D’Aniello and his wife, Gayle. ### New production in French with English supertitles projected and available for mobile devices on the lawn. Carmen Music by Georges Bizet Libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy Friday, July 25 at 8:15 pm Wolf Trap Opera, National Symphony Orchestra and The Washington Chorus Filene Center at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts 1551 Trap Road, Vienna, Virginia 22182 Creative Team Conductor – Grant Gershon Director – Tara Faircloth Video Projection Designer – S. Katy Tucker Costume Designer – Rooth Varland Lighting Designer – Mark Stanley Language Consultant – Marie-France Lefebvre Cast Carmen, a gypsy – Maya Lahyani, mezzo-soprano Don José, a corporal – Kevin Ray, tenor Escamillo, a bullfighter – Norman Garrett, baritone Micaëla, a country girl – Melinda Whittington, soprano Zuniga, a lieutenant – Ryan Speedo Green, bass-baritone Moralès, a corporal – Joo Won Kang, baritone Frasquita, a gypsy – Mireille Asselin, soprano Mercédès, a gypsy – Virginie Verrez, mezzo-soprano Le Remendado, a smuggler – Robert Watson, tenor Le Dancaïre, a smuggler – Tobias Greenhalgh, baritone The National Symphony Orchestra, Christof Eschenbach, Music Director The Washington Chorus, Julian Wachner, Music Director The Children’s Chorus of Alexandria High resolution photos of the production will be available upon request on July 25. Photos of the following artists are now available on Wolf Trap’s website: Grant Gershon Tara Faircloth Maya Lahyani Kevin Ray Norman Garrett Melinda Whittington Ryan Speedo Green Tickets start at $25 and can be purchased online at wolftrap.org, in person at the Filene Center Box Office, or by calling 1.877.WOLFTRAP. For more information, call Wolf Trap at 703.255.1900. Wolf Trap is Metro accessible! Our environmentally friendly Wolf Trap Express Bus travels from the West Falls Church Metro stop every 20 minutes starting two hours prior to show time. For details, please visit wolftrap.org/Plan_Your_Visit/Access_by_Metro.aspx. ### .