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backstage@theopera - The TDO Newsletter
September 30, 2011 Home | Tickets | Donate | 214.443.1000    

In This Issue

Lucia’s Heart of Darkness

Megan’s Musings: The Three American Tenors

From the Desk of Keith Cerny

From the Internet: Miss Piggy Sings Opera and Fashion@theOpera

Other Opera News: On rare instruments and opera’s public appeal

Upcoming Events

October 1
Magic Flute Mini Movie Festival featuring ‘The Smurfs and the Magic Flute’ and Ingmar Bergman’s The Magic Flute
2:45 pm

October 7, 14
Dallas Opera Family Performance of Doctor Miracle by Georges Bizet at Dallas Children’s Theater
7:30pm

October 16
Dallas Opera “Tragic Obsessions” Season Preview Day
3:00pm

October 21
Lucia di Lammermoor Opening Night
7:30pm

For more information, see our Events Calendar!

Aria of the Week

Bryan Hymel, tenor, is singing Sir Edgardo di Ravenswood in TDO’s upcoming production of Lucia di Lammermoor. Here is Bryan singing the Flower Song from Carmen.

You Write the Caption!


Tenors Scott Quinn and Aaron Blake. Join the fun on our Facebook page!
Photo credit Karen Almond.

Feature

Lucia’s Heart of Darkness

by Wayne Lee Gay

“When we remember that we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.”

– Mark Twain, Notebook, 1898

Readers in early nineteenth-century Europe loved a good yarn; a plot rich with violence and scandal, particularly if shaded with romance and a moral undertone, it would be an all-but-guaranteed best seller. No one gave them what they wanted quite so well as the Scottish novelist, Sir Walter Scott.

By 1819, Scott had already racked up international bestsellers with The Lady of the Lake, Waverley, and Rob Roy; later that same year, he would score his greatest literary hit by turning to Medieval England for Ivanhoe. But, before Ivanhoe, he drew again on the rugged history and landscape of his native Scotland, setting a tone both nostalgic and passionate for The Bride of Lammermoor.

Read more >

Megan’s Musings

Vol. 1: The Three American Tenors

moderated by Megan Meister

An interview with our “3 American Tenors” singing in Lucia di Lammermoor. Making his TDO debut is Bryan Hymel singing Sir Edgardo di Ravenswood; Scott Quinn, our former Resident Young Artist, singing the role of Normano; and Aaron Blake, our current Resident Young Artist, singing the role of Lord Arturo Bucklaw. Enjoy this little look into the three tenors’ lives.

To listen, click here >

Save 20% on Single Tickets!

Save 20% on any single ticket purchase by using code SAVE20. Buy tickets here!

Does not include Family Programming.

From the Desk of

General Director, Keith Cerny

Richard Wagner would be delighted to know that more than 125 years after his death, his signature Festspielhaus in Bayreuth still plays to sold-out audiences, with 10-year waiting lists to buy tickets. Thanks to the generosity of the Dallas Wagner Society, and its President Greg McConeghy, I was privileged to attend all five operas in this year’s festival – its 100th. This year’s productions included Die Meistersinger, Tannhäuser, Lohengrin, Parsifal and Tristan und Isolde.

Read more >

From the Internet

Miss Piggy Sings Opera
Miss Piggy tries her hand at singing something “divine.”

Fashion@theOpera
A focus on Geoffrey Henning, one of the designers whose work is being featured during the Dallas Opera’s FIRST NIGHT red carpet opening-night event.

Other Opera News

Art museum rediscovers ‘spectacular’ instrument collection
The Cincinnati Art Museum is cataloguing a collection of more than 800 antique musical instruments kept in storage for decades.

Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Opera
From Portland Opera, manager of education and outreach Alexis Hamilton tells everything you always wanted to know about opera, but were afraid to ask.

Why Opera Isn’t Just for Divas
From the Wall Street Journal Speakeasy blog, Robert Levine explains why opera belongs to everyone.

Thank You and Congratulations

A big THANK YOU to each of you who participated in the DonorBridge North Texas Giving Day for the Opera! It was a real labor of love for everyone and we are so thankful for your persistence. You showed overwhelming support for the Arts in North Texas. And congratulations to our FIRST NIGHT Cocktail Party winners Betty Bettacchi, Lenora McCroskey, and Mary Jane Riedlinger…can’t wait to see you on the red carpet on opening night!

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