Dan Miller, UW Husky and YAP Intern, Reflects on Don Pasquale

Today's post is by Dan Miller, Seattle Opera's Artistic Administration Intern.

As a lifelong devotee of opera, I am absolutely thrilled to be working on the Young Artists Program's current production of Don Pasquale. I was hired on as the Production Assistant and the Titles Editor, but my relationship with Seattle Opera goes back to when I was four years old and I saw my first Ring cycle in 1991. I have since seen, with avid devotion, every single opera Seattle Opera has produced.

I first worked with Seattle Opera in 2005 as an Education Intern for the second full presentation of the Wadsworth/Lynch Ring cycle, running titles for chorus rehearsals and assisting lectures. I started working last September as the Artistic Administration Intern, helping with season planning, contract drafting, and various aspects of the prodigious amount of work that goes into operating the Young Artists Program, both on the administration and production sides.

Dan Miller backstage with John Relyea at a performance of Attila.
Photo by Dan Miller

I came to these positions from the University of Washington, where I studied Music History and Cinema Studies, with a focus on opera. Imagine my elation, then, when I realized that this year's YAP spring production would take place not in the Meydenbauer Center Theater, as it has done in the past, but in Meany Hall, where I have had experience as a Stage Manager and Assistant Director with the UW's opera program.

Dan Miller directing a rehearsal of Dido and Aeneas for UW opera.
Photo by Dan Miller

The YAP coming to Meany Hall represents a significant opportunity for the University of Washington's School of Music. Seattle Opera gives its YAP productions every bit as much attention and effort as the mainstage shows presented in McCaw Hall, and here that astounding professionalism makes the journey to the Univeristy of Washington campus. Having an A-level opera company within sight of the School of Music gives students a look into the word of professionally run opera, which is very different from collegiate opera programs. "Tech week" is the very busy last week of rehearsals where the show moves from the rehearsal space to the theater and the lighting design is done. With Seattle Opera, due to the sheer amount of people working (from Hair and Makeup, Props, Carpenters, Stage Management and right down to singers, designers, and many others), these rehearsals run like clockwork, with very little deviation from the schedule. Thanks to a collaboration with the UW School of Music, some students get to experience this first hand. I believe that some in the YAP orchestra are affiliated with UW, and Kenny Enlow, who sings the Notary, is a Master’s student with the UW Opera program.

Observing a Seattle Opera rehearsal of Tristan und Isolde in July, 2010: Maestro Asher Fisch, Intern Dan Miller, General Director Speight Jenkins, and Stage Director Peter Kazaras.
Photo by Rozarii Lynch

Having grown up with a company world-renowned and critically acclaimed for championing the works of Richard Wagner, it's only natural that I became a rabid Wagnerian. One would be very hard pressed to find an opera as starkly different to the Wagnerian Gesamtkunstwerk as Don Pasquale. I am an infant opera director with a couple of scenes with the UW Opera Workshop under my belt as well as a couple of productions with my own small company, Vespertine Opera Theater, and I tend to gravitate toward works with stark, existential narratives and plenty of pathos...you know, the kind where most of the characters die at the end. The YAP gives young professional singers an invaluable training experience, but it has also given me the learning experience of a lifetime watching Artistic Director Peter Kazaras at work. Peter is a master of all styles, from Wagnerian tragedy to ebullient Italian comedy. I had the pleasure of shadowing Peter when he directed Seattle Opera's grippingly existential production of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde in the summer of 2010. There he conveyed the eternal pain of the tragically doomed lovers, and here in Don Pasquale he uses the same energy and ingenuity to present the gleefully ludicrous torment of the poor old Don.

Having the YAP so close to my old academic stomping grounds is a truly fabulous thing. It’s not every day that students have such immediate access to world class direction, design, and performance. I hope this is a collaboration that will only become more and more fruitful as the years progress.

Don Pasquale Seen From Onstage

Today's post is by Victor Steeb, who wears multiple hats as Seattle Opera's Production/Administration Intern, Ticket Agent, and, currently, supernumerary in Don Pasquale.

I have been interning with Seattle Opera for almost a year now. One of the duties I have had has been working with the supernumerary (super) performers of the opera. These actors are unpaid and volunteer their time to bring these magnificent performances to life. I am a trained actor and happened to mention to my boss, Seattle Opera Production Manager Paula Podemski, that I would like to try my hand at being a super. She replied that she had the perfect role for me in Seattle Opera’s Young Artist Program (YAP) of Gaetano Donizetti’s Don Pasquale.

Victor Steeb as Don Pasquale's non-singing servant, "Caesar."
Elise Bakketun, photo

I got to work with Peter Kazaras, the director, earlier this year with the other YAP program, Jules Massenet’s Werther. This past relationship made my experience of being a super all the better. Supers are often used to fill the stage with bodies during big scenes, or used to move sets and furniture. In Don Pasquale, I have gotten to do that and more. Along with my fellow supers, David Hsieh and Tyler Johnson, we make up the serving staff of the aging and befuddled Don. Since Don Pasquale is a comedic opera, plenty of humor and mayhem is in store.

Victor Steeb, David Hsieh, and Tyler Johnson as the servants gaze approvingly on Lindsay Russell (Norina)'s plans to clean up Don Pasquale's mansion, to the amusement of Jason Slayden (Ernesto)
Elise Bakketun, photo

The most challenging part of this show is at the end of Act II. The three supers must -- in time with the music -- clear the entire stage of ten chairs, a pedestal and a chaise lounge! All of this after sitting and nodding our heads at specific parts of the music. (This was made easier with the help of the stage manager, Yasmine Kiss, flipping on and off lights in the orchestra pit, to ensure uniform movements.) By the time we move all set dressing from the stage, we are completely out of breath. But there is no time to rest, since we have only the fifteen-minute intermission to change costumes, and have our hair and makeup reapplied.

Michael Uloth (Don Pasquale) is aghast as David Hsieh, sporting the new servants' costume in Act Three, brings home Norina's shopping
Elise Bakketun, photo

One thing I was not prepared for is the amount of transformation undergone in the makeup chair. A friend who saw the show said he had to grab his opera glasses to make sure that was really me prancing across the stage at the top of Act III.

One of the most fun aspects of being of super is the amount of freedom you have with your character. Since these are silent roles, all of the personality comes from the performer. I have made up different conversations that my character has had with his employer, Don Pasquale. On top of that, I got to give him a name…Caesar.

--Victor Steeb

A Trip to the Seattle Opera Scenic Studios

Marie Kennedy and her husband Mark Cockerill (pictured left) moved to Washington in 2003, following 30 years in San Francisco, and became Seattle Opera donors the following year. They've been great supporters of the company ever since, and the two recently joined us for a special tour of Seattle Opera's Scenic Studios in Renton. The Scenic Studios boasts a talented, passionate staff that builds sets for Seattle Opera productions and also takes on many non-Opera projects--like building the "Making of Avatar" exhibit that was recently shown at EMP|SFM, doors for Seattle's iconic monorail, and sets for other theater companies. Marie is our guest blogger today, and she shares what she learned on the tour.

We started our evening by checking in and getting our choice of wonderful gourmet sandwich boxes and drinks before boarding the bus for the ride to the Scenic Studios. During check-in we received color-coded name badges so that we could be split into three manageable groups for the scene shop tour. There was lots of rousing and interesting conversation, along with a tasty dinner, during the bus ride—which actually went pretty fast considering that we were in the heart of rush-hour traffic. Upon arrival, we were welcomed by Michael Moore, the Scenic Studios Manager. Michael explained that leaders of the three elements of creating scenery would be giving presentations on design, construction, and scenic arts. He said they were just finishing up the scenes and props for the upcoming Young Artists Program presentation of Don Pasquale and that we would be discussing elements from the recent production of Orphée et Eurydice, as well.

Dave Crouse (left) speaks to the tour group.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

We were in the “red” group and our first presentation was about design, and given by Dave Crouse, the Assistant Technical Director. We first looked at drawings and photos that would be used for the backdrop of Don Pasquale and Dave explained how these designs would be projected onto very large and long blinds. He also explained that using projections allows for a very cost-effective process which is a top consideration for the Young Artists Programs. We got to see how the design process progressed from small drawings to large-scale computer-aided-design layouts. Dave’s next topic was some of the backdrop for the Orphée production and the folks in our group were very interested in how the designer came up with the idea for the large tree used in Act I. We saw photographs of a dead tree that were taken somewhere in Africa, and it was from those photographs the detailed design for the on-stage tree was created. Each person in our group then received a sample of the artificial grass from the Orphée production that was mounted on a small wooden board. These handouts have become collectors’ items; in previous tours, we received samples of the dragon skin from the Ring as well as blue sky fabric from Amelia.

Bruce Warshaw and Michael Moore give a demonstration, using the blinds from Don Pasquale.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

Our next presentation was about construction, and given by Bruce Warshaw, who is the Master Scenic Carpenter. Bruce explained that in addition to carpentry, his expertise also includes metal work, such as working with steel beams and steel supporting structures for the scenery. Bruce explained that his area receives the design documents and they are tasked with determining the best way to build the scenery, whether from wood or metal or other materials. We first got to look at the large blinds that are being used as the projection backdrops for the YAP Don Pasquale production. The blinds are 20 feet high and work just like blinds that we use in our homes, but because they had to be 20 feet high, they needed to have special metal reinforcement in the head-rails. Another technical glitch that had to be overcome was that standard blind slats have lots of holes in them for normal blind operation and this wouldn’t work for the production because it would mean light would shine through during the performance, spoiling the projections. So Bruce’s team had to order solid slats and then drill only a couple of tiny holes in each slat so the blinds could be opened and closed properly. As I recall, there were hundreds of slats that had to be drilled and then hand inserted into the little strings that control the blinds. It was amazing to hear about the level of detail that these folks go through to ensure a seamless production.

Bruce Warshaw shows the tour group the grass used in Orphée et Eurydice.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

We then moved onto a discussion of the grass mounds that were built for the Elysian Fields in the Orphée production. We got to look at detailed design drawings for the steel and wood structures and learned how each section of grass had to support a certain amount of weight because several dancers and performers would be running up and down these structures. We also learned about the artificial grass and saw it in a large roll, and learned how it had to be attached to the supporting structures and then how all of the structures were held together on stage.

Our third and final presentation was by Kitty Kavanaugh, Master Scenic Artist, who spoke to us about scenic arts. As we sat down to hear Kitty’s presentation, one of the artists on her team was finishing up the painting of a large Picasso reproduction that was going to be used in Don Pasquale.

A reproduction of a Picasso painting, for the current Young Artists Program production of Don Pasquale.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

We then moved onto discussion of the scenery from Orphée and we focused on the large ball of roots that was used in the second act. Kitty explained how the root ball, which looked three dimensional during the production, was actually painted and since it was on velour, they were able to create a three dimensional look. She also showed us the tools they used to paint the stage surface for Orphée and explained how the paint had to hold up with people walking and bicycling on it. Kitty showed us samples of different materials that were used in the backdrop of the Furies segment of Orphée, where the backdrop was a webbing of light-colored crisscrossing lines or bones on a dark backdrop. Here again, the painting on velour gave a very three-dimensional look that was eerie and perfectly appropriate for that scene. We had lots of good questions and discussion within our group and we hated to leave.

Kitty Kavanaugh explains the inspiration for Act II of Orphée et Eurydice.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

As we all got ready to board the bus for the return ride home, Michael Moore held a large section of the special curtain that was first used in Ring 2009. We all got to see close-up and feel all of the different types of fabric that were woven to create the curtain. Michael explained how the curtain was created at the Scenic Studios with weavers crawling on the floor to create that masterpiece.

Michael Moore shows a guest the curtain developed for the Ring in 2009.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

We boarded the bus for the drive back to the Opera offices. Again there was lots of rousing and interesting conversation as folks discussed their impression of all the wonderful presentations by the folks at the Scenic Studios. It was a wonderful evening—one of the best—and everyone looked tired and happy as we walked to our cars to drive home. A terrific time was had by all.

--Marie Kennedy

Meet our Young Artists: JOSEPH LATTANZI, Dr. Malatesta

Today we wrap up our series of Young Artist Q&As with a chat with baritone Joseph Lattanzi, who sings Dr. Malatesta in the April 1 and April 7 performances of Don Pasquale. The Young Artists Program production of the Donizetti comedy opens tomorrow night at University of Washington's Meany Hall, and we talk to Lattanzi about his role, what skills a performer needs for comedy, and what is next for him in his career.

 

 

 

At Seattle Opera’s recent gala, you sang the Pearl Fishers duet with William Burden. What was that like?
It was great! It was the first that I had ever done that Pearl Fishers duet, and it’s such a great piece of music. So I was really happy to get to sing it, and really happy to sing it with Bill, who has done that role all over the world. It was really daunting for me because I knew I had to try and get to his level really fast, but it was great experience and he’s such a nice guy and a really great mentor for a young singer. He’s really got everything it takes. He’s a great actor, a great singer, and a great person.

Young Artists Christopher Lade and Joseph Lattanzi with tenor William Burden at Seattle Opera's 2012 Gala, "A Perfect Pairing."
Photo by Alan Alabastro

This opera is basically a cautionary tale warning against marriage (“Marriage is nothing but a heap of trouble,” everyone sings at the end). What do you think?
Well, I think this opera is really about the wrong kind of marriage, in particular, and cautioning against marrying for the wrong reasons. Pasquale says at the beginning that he really just wants to marry someone to spite Ernesto, because Ernesto wants to marry Norina and he doesn’t approve. My character, Malatesta, shows Don Pasquale what a rash decision that was, and that he’s misguided. So I don’t know if it’s a cautionary tale against all marriage.

Have you sung any of the music in Don Pasquale prior to this production?
Yes, I’ve sung the aria “Bella siccome,” which is one of the arias that people often give to young baritones because it’s really conducive to learning line and style and you can work on your Italian language through it. It’s one of those things that people hear a lot, so it’s hard to turn it into something really special and professional and get away from the amateur side of things. When you’re young and you work on an aria, things get ingrained. So after singing this for several years, I had a lot of habits I had to change and I had to modify the way that I was thinking about the role to fit in to how we’re doing it here in this production. I’ve also performed the duet with Norina and trio with Norina and Pasquale, both at the Chautauqua Institute a couple years ago.

Lindsay Russell as "Sofronia" and Joseph Lattanzi as Dr. Malatesta in Don Pasquale.
Photo by Elise Bakketun

Like Albert in Werther, who you sang for us last fall, Malatesta is a bit of a two-faced character. Do you prefer these more dramatically complicated roles to a character who is simply good or bad?
Yes, I think I do prefer them more. These types of roles have a lot of emotions to play and different ways to act around different people and things like that. But I have not met an opera role that has not been challenging yet. [Laughs] Even if they’re not two-faced or dramatically as interesting, nothing is really easy to play on stage, and there are always so many factors.

Have you played much comedy? How do the skills differ from those it takes to perform something like Carmen, which you sang on the mainstage last fall?
I went to a performing arts high school outside of Atlanta where I grew up and we did a lot of musical theater and musical comedy there. And then in undergrad, I performed in Così fan tutte, and I also did Papageno, so those were comedic. Those roles do differ from the more dramatic roles—but my character in Carmen wasn’t so dramatic. Moralès gets to have fun, and that was a fun role for me. But, yes, the skill set for comedy is a little different. You have to have your wits about you and know what you’re going for but at the same time everything has to look very easy and spontaneous. When the performance looks planned, it’s not so funny for the audience anymore. You have to keep everything fresh while still hitting all your marks.

Joseph Lattanzi as Moralès and Sarah Larsen as Mercédès in Carmen.
Photo by Elise Bakketun

Are there any roles in particular that you really hope to get to perform someday?
Oh, gosh, there are a lot of roles I really want to do. I’ve done a lot of Mozart (in school) and I was really lucky to have sung Don Giovanni. I’d really love to go back and do that again, because that a role that keeps evolving as you bring more experience to the table. I would also love to do Figaro in The Barber of Seville. That would be really fun down the line, maybe in a couple years.

What has been your favorite role you’ve sung so far in your career?
I think I would say probably Don Giovanni. But this one, Dr. Malatesta, is shaping up to be one of my favorites because it’s really fun to sing. There are a lot of opportunities for showing off and it has legato singing, ensemble singing, and solo singing, so it’s really got everything. Don Giovanni was really fun, and so was Guglielmo in Così fan tutte, which I did at Oberlin when I was a student there. Don Giovanni was also through Oberlin, but as part of the Oberlin in Italy program.

How fun! Was that your first time in Italy?
Yes, and I loved it. I have family lineage in Italy, so it was great to be there and also it was a really cool place to spend the summer. I went two summers ago and was there for maybe six or seven weeks for the Oberlin in Italy program, which was in Arezzo. Afterward I went to Paris for 10 days, as a vacation, because I’d always wanted to visit.

Joseph Lattanzi as Dr. Malatesta.
Photo by Elise Bakketun

What’s next for you, once you leave Seattle?
I’m going to be at the Merola Opera Program this summer with San Francisco Opera and I’m doing a role in Postcard from Morocco called The Man with the Shoe Sample Kit. It’s the baritone role in that opera, and it’s an ensemble piece for sure. Everyone has a lot to do and it has challenging music, by Dominick Argento. So I’m trying to learn that right now. It’s going to take a lot of time. Some of the more modern pieces take a little longer to get in your brain, but it’s in English, so that’s nice, and it’s just a cool piece. I think it’ll be exciting!

Don Pasquale - Preview Trailer

Donizetti's comic masterpiece unfolds with gorgeous melodies as we laugh at the declining fortunes of Don Pasquale and cheer for the inevitable triumph of the young lovers. Seattle Opera's Young Artists perform this beautiful score with fresh lyric voices and unbridled enthusiasm. Don't miss this fresh, gorgeously sung production!



Learn more about Don Pasquale on the Seattle Opera Website

Meet Our Young Artists: JASON SLAYDEN, Ernesto

Tonight, at the final dress rehearsal of Don Pasquale over at Meany Hall, we’ll hear tenor Jason Slayden in the role of Ernesto. Jason, who made his mainstage debut in January in Attila, made a big splash last summer when he sang Rodolfo in Santa Fe. He speaks to us today about Ernesto, the not-so-heroic romantic lead he plays in Don Pasquale, and some of the lovely music he sings.

So far this season you’ve sung a French hero (Werther) and an Italian one (Ernesto) for us. Do you find one or the other language, and/or way of being, more suited to your voice?
Italian is a little more natural, as far as being able to stay true to your technique, because the vowels are simpler--they're either open or closed. Most people, when they’re learning to sing, start with Italian art songs. Italian has no nasal vowels. You’re always trying to maintain a steady stream of sound with your vowels. And in Italian, unlike French, you don’t have any guttural sounds.

What about the nature of the hero's character? Is it easier for you to connect with Ernesto or with Werther?
They’re different. Werther is a lot more emotional, a much more complex character. It let me go further into a darker place.

Jason Slayden as Werther in last fall's YAP production, with Sarah Larsen as Charlotte.
Photo by Bill Mohn

Is that your favorite kind of character?
Not necessarily. I like to explore all elements of character, but Ernesto is fun because I get to be a little more goofy.

Andrew Stenson, who shares the role of Ernesto with you, recently pointed out that tenors have to be the straight man in a comedy.
Yes...Ernesto is very young and inexperienced, he's living off his uncle. But there are times where you can be a little more lively than with Werther, because of the nature of the comedy.

Andrew Stenson and Jason Slayden discuss the role of Ernesto with YAP director Peter Kazaras.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

There’s a great moment in the score where you laugh hysterically at how “Sofronia” treats Don Pasquale. Is it necessary to “sing” the laughter?
I don’t sing it, I just laugh! It's true, Donizetti wrote 8th notes, but we’re not doing that moment metrically. In the plot, at that point, Don Pasquale wants something out of Norina and she shuts him down with “No!” and Ernesto finds it funny. For the first time since Ernesto has been disinherited, he’s seen Pasquale shut down.

Up to this point, you’re horrified that Norina is going to marry him...
And I don’t get it, I’m just fuming, I feel betrayed by Pasquale, betrayed by Norina, betrayed by Malatesta, who’s supposed to be my friend...

Attila (John Relyea) has no idea that his duplicitous slave Uldino (Jason Slayden) is poisoning his drink in Act Three of Attila .
Photo by Alan Alabastro

When you appeared on the mainstage as Uldino in Attila a couple of months ago, you told us about having to add complexity and backstory to what was in the libretto, to make the character make more sense. Have you done the same with Ernesto, or are you happy to present him as your standard, straightforward, sweet young lovestruck tenor hero?
I’m trying to figure out whether Ernesto is completely naïve, living off his rich uncle, or if he’s maybe been around the block and is trying to settle down.

You sang a few Tosti songs at a recent recital—you told us they were “tenor heaven.” What do you feel about the third act serenade you sing in this opera, “Com’è genile”?
Absolutely. It’s supposed to be a folk song, an Italian song that already existed.

Jason Slayden and Lindsay Russell rehearse their Don Pasquale love duet.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

What’s your favorite moment in Don Pasquale?
I like singing the ensemble at the end of Act Two. It all comes together for the character there, and I always like singing with other people...

Do you sing patter in that ensemble?
Just a very little bit. And it's really hard! I haven’t gotten it perfect yet.

Why should people go to hear you in Don Pasquale?
It is really fun, hilarious, has got a good moral—

What is that moral?
Don’t deceive your friends...don’t try to arrange a marriage without love.

When you sing “Cercherò,” you’re going to leave her, go off to a life of wandering, because you wouldn’t want to inflict a life of poverty on her.
Yes, she’s already poor. He knows there’s something out there better for her.

It’s supposed to be selfless on his part—
—but it’s not. He’s feeling sorry for himself, for sure, but he thinks he’s doing something noble.

That’s interesting. We were talking with William Burden about this, when he sang Orphée here a couple of weeks ago, and he said something I found fascinating: he said that grief is a selfish emotion. You know, in Orphée, he sits there grieving, alone, for the first half hour of the opera, and dramatically that’s a very self-involved, solipsistic scene. Finally he gets off his duff and says, “I’m going to do something about it,” when Amour comes in. Is the same thing true of “Cercherò”?
Maybe. Is he really enlightened, at this point, or is he just feeling sorry for himself, being a little snot?

That’s certainly what his uncle thinks! Tell us what you're doing next.
I’m going to Wolf Trap, where I'll sing my first Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni.

Good for you! And we look forward to hearing you tonight.

Meet our Young Artists: LINDSAY RUSSELL, Norina

On Saturday the Young Artists Program opens its production of Don Pasquale, which runs for four performances through April 7. Soprano Lindsay Russell will sing Norina on April 1 and 7 (she alternates with Amanda Opuszynski, who sings on March 31 and 6) and today we talk to her about how she became interested in opera and what she thinks about her mischievous character in Don Pasquale.

 

Can you tell us about your background and how you first become interested in being an opera singer?
My undergrad was at James Madison University in Virginia, and I was actually a music education major. I was really serious about being a teacher but once I was in school I decided to take studying voice really seriously, as well. I was there with a voice teacher as part of my studies, so why not go for it? I had some success in small competitions and my teacher took me abroad to Germany when I was a sophomore in college and that was my first foray into the real world of opera. In college you do shows and it’s always on the smallest budget in the whole world, and it’s always kind of thrown together, with late nights and a student orchestra. So it was very cool for me to go and see a real working opera house in Germany, even if it was very small and low-level, to see that they have a normal workday and it’s very organized and they can live in one place there because they all have contracts. That got me interested in opera as opposed to being an education major.

Your voice type is one of the most competitive, particularly among young singers. Apart from a beautiful voice, what kinds of skills and qualities are required these days to succeed in your part of the soprano world?
This is a question that I don’t know how to answer correctly, because I honestly don’t think I know any more than anybody else. I mean, it is very competitive. I think it helps that I look like my part that I’m singing; I still have a baby face and I’m petite. And I think maybe my background in musical theater gives me some skills to transfer over to opera. But, honestly, I feel very lucky that I’m here every day because I know there are a lot of people I went to school with or worked with who haven’t had the opportunities that I’ve had, and I feel they’re equally talented. A lot of times it just comes down to a really great audition, or that the people you’re auditioning for see something that interests them, some unknown quality.

Jason Slayden (Ernesto) and Lindsay Russell (Norina) in rehearsal for Don Pasquale.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

We hear you recently had the opportunity to sing in China. How did that come about?
Yes! I went to China in November to do a concert with the Hong Kong Philharmonic, which is now being run by Michael MacLeod, who used to run Glimmerglass, where I was a Young Artist the past two summers. He is starting to bring over young American singers to do concerts, and the one I sang in was an outdoor concert called “Symphony under the Stars.” The concept was outer space and the night sky, so I sang the Queen of the Night arias and then I sang this really pretty aria from Il mondo della luna. It was really exciting because I didn’t think it was going to be as big a deal as it was, but once I got to the actual venue on the day of the concert, there were probably 20,000 people. It was at a race course in Hong Kong, and the biggest audience I’ve ever sung for. There were video cameras that were zooming in on my face, and a big screen to show everything because it was such a big venue, and then fireworks afterward.

How long were you in China? Did you have time to be a tourist?
With travel it was six days but I think I was technically only in Hong Kong for three days. The Young Artists Program was very nice to release me from being here, doing Werther, to go do this concert. It was my first time in that part of the world, and my first going abroad completely alone, so I did get a little bit of touristy stuff in. One day I took a little ferry that goes from the island to the mainland and then I just walked. I went about two miles one direction and two miles back and kind of wove in and out of the streets. It reminded me of Chinatown…but it was real, and everywhere! [Laughs] It was so cool.

Amanda Opuszynski (Norina, March 31 and April 6), Jason Slayden (Ernesto, April 1 and 7), Andrew Stenson (Ernesto, March 31 and April 6), YAP Artistic Director and Don Pasquale Stage Director Peter Kazaras, and Lindsay Russell (Norina, April 1 and 7).
Photo by Alan Alabastro

In this production of Don Pasquale, you sing Norina on April 1 and 7. She’s a gifted actress, taking on different personas throughout this opera. Who do you think she really is, and what do you think Ernesto sees in her?
One of the difficult things about showing Norina in this opera is she’s very rarely really herself. She’s always putting on a character. There are only a couple minutes where you see her being really honest. I think that deep down, she’s just someone who loves to have fun all the time and I think that’s part of the reason she puts on these characters. I think it’s fun for her, and I think that’s probably what Ernesto sees and loves in her—that she just wants to have a good time.

Your character also delivers a slap to Don Pasquale’s face. Why does Norina do that? Do you have to really hit Michael Uloth, or have you choreographed a sound effect at that point?
I’m very lucky—I don’t actually have to slap Michael. Actually, He’s lucky! I was in a show a couple years ago where I actually did have to slap my Figaro, and the director wanted a good slap sound, which meant was we had to practice it a lot. I felt terrible, I felt like I was hurting him every day of my life. But here, we’ve staged Don Pasquale so I don’t have to slap him, but it still looks and sounds real.

I think the reason Norina slaps Don Pasquale is because she sees the endgame as a life with Ernesto, and this is the way to get it. She’s tried everything else; she’s taken away all Don Pasquale’s money, she’s redecorated his whole house, she’s hurt his pride, she’s taken away all his power with his servants, and I think she knows this will be the last straw. And she’s right, because by the end of the scene he’s done, he’s ready to find any way out of the marriage. She’s pretty much done everything she can to make his life a living hell.

Michael Uloth (Don Pasquale) and Lindsay Russell (Norina) in rehearsal for Don Pasquale.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

Donizetti’s music is always tuneful and catchy. In your opinion, what’s the difference between singing it well and doing a really great job with it?
I think that focusing on the text is very important in this music, and that Donizetti gives a lot of clues as to what his intention was, through his markings and dynamics. I try and pay really close attention to that. Maestro Garman suggested I bring out the text of this one line—“si stava sempre sole” (At the convent, we're always alone)—when I’m playing Sofronia, so I really brought out the “s” sound and that has evolved into a lateral lisp, so I’ve begun lisping throughout the time I’m playing that character. I don’t know if Donizetti actually wanted that, but there are so many little clues in the text that made me think, why not?

Had you ever visited Seattle before joining YAP?
I came once for 24 hours with my mom, after I found out that I was accepted to the program, because I was overwhelmed at the idea of moving. I’d never lived on this coast before. So we came here for one day and wandered around the area of the opera house and the rehearsal hall. But I love it here; it’s great! I was in New York two years before I was here, and I feel like this is a cleaner, nicer version of New York. All the good things New York has to offer—like great restaurants, great theater—Seattle also has. My absolute favorite thing is flying into Seattle, because no matter which direction you’re coming from it’s going to be ridiculously gorgeous. You’re going to see Mt. Rainier, or downtown Seattle, or the water, or the mountains. It’s kind of magical.

Meet Our Young Artists: MICHAEL ULOTH, Don Pasquale

Today we speak with Canadian bass Michael Uloth, who takes on the title role in our upcoming YAP production of Don Pasquale (opening Saturday, March 31, at University of Washington's Meany Hall). Michael, a man who likes his low notes, spoke about connecting with the offbeat characters basses always get to play, about singing Don Pasquale’s break-neck patter duet, and about where "bilingual" becomes a bad word.

Welcome to the spotlight, Michael! You’ve been here all year, but we didn’t get much of a chance to hear you last fall because your role in Werther was very small.
But I tried to pack so much into it!

Michael Uloth as the Bailiff in Werther
Photo by Bill Mohn

What can you tell us about your voice, what kind of bass are you?
Long ago you might have had your basso profundo, your schwarzer bass, like that, but nowadays people are mostly interested in whether you’re a bass or a bass-baritone. I’m a lyric bass.

What are your favorite roles to sing?
Sarastro and Sparafucile. If only I could do those all the time!

What’s your range? What’s the highest you sing?
F to F, or thereabouts. I once read that a good bass range was F to F, a bass-baritone F# to F#, and baritone G to G.

True, the difference between all these voices isn’t super dramatic, but it’s important...if you’re trying to sing Sarastro and your voice disappears before you reach get to the bottom F, it’s embarrassing.
We have “money notes,” but they aren’t the high ones. And there are people, too, who mistake color for range. I know someone, for example, who says their favorite bass is George London. Who wasn’t a bass at all.

He was a bass-baritone, right.
But he sounds SO dark. And other guys can comfortably sing down to F, but if they have a younger sound, people may think the notes are higher than they are.

George London, a fellow Canadian. Every year, Canadian applicants to our Young Artists Program are among the strongest.
I didn’t know that!

Yeah. So I’m wondering, from your perspective, if you think the training of young singers in Canada differs from that in the States.
I’m sure there’s some smart person who could do that analysis. But for example, at the Canadian Opera Company program, half the voice lessons we had were with American teachers. And half of the summer programs we apply to are American. When I came down here, I was impressed with how good all my American colleagues are.

Did you grow up bilingual?
I did not grow up bilingual. But it’s required to study French in school from grades 4-9, something like that. I was a Philistine about it—didn’t like it, didn’t care—so I dropped it as soon as I could. It doesn’t play a part in how I later ended up getting into singing.

I ask because sometimes it’s a hurdle for young American singers.
“Bilingual” and “foreign” are not bad words in Canada. Here, they can be applied as if there’s something wrong. Maybe because Canada is a younger country, with lots of immigrants from places where opera is very popular, maybe this plays a part? That it’s still more alive in the home? For instance, I grew up in a very German household, very musical. At family gatherings there would be singing, whoever played piano would do so, my grandpa would play violin.

What was your first musical instrument?
Piano.

Michael Uloth rehearses a scene from Don Pasquale with Amanda Opuszynski (Norina) (Alan Alabastro, photo)

Let’s talk about acting. As a young bass, you don’t get much opportunity to play characters just like you—you’re always the king, or the devil, or (as with Don Pasquale) someone old and decrepit. What do you have in common with Don Pasquale?
Yes, there have been times when I’ve been a little lost for how to be someone who’s so unlike myself. He’s older, he’s heavy, and it’s starting to hurt when he walks, all things which I don’t yet know...unfortunately I’m sure I WILL know! Sometimes it will go straight to caricature and clowning, because I’m just taking a stab at it, and Peter [Kazaras, stage director] is always encouraging me to do less, or to do one thing at a time. Obviously everything makes sense to Don Pasquale—he doesn’t see himself as a clown.

Do you like Don Pasquale?
I do like him, because he’s harmless. He’s a lot of bluster and a lot of bark. His intentions are good, it’s just—he’s willing to go out and get married to prove his point to his young nephew: that he will only inherit if he marries the right kind of person. I.e., rich.

What do you have in common with Sparafucile?
The fun thing about Sparafucile is not having anything in common with him! Being someone who, the first thing he thinks about when he looks at someone is, what would it feel like to snap their neck? Oooh, so fun. But he doesn’t feel real.

What about Sarastro?
Sarastro is another character who is hard to make real. He’s so ideal. You want him to radiate all of the world’s good, safe feelings. For him, you think about what it’s like to be a leader, to be a parent...I’m not a parent, but that’s not impossible to imagine. To imagine having to take care of someone, to pass on experience.

Is it important to you to connect with the characters you play?
I don’t spend a lot of time trying to connect with who a character is as a whole. If you just go moment to moment, there’s plenty going on. Even for myself, in my life, I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about who I am. You just go from moment to moment, you react to things the way you react to them, and someone else could probably describe you better than you could.

What’s the greatest challenge of singing and/or performing Don Pasquale?
Vocally and dramatically the challenge is not to be a clown. I’ve noticed in rehearsals, it slides in the direction of being funny. When people laugh, in rehearsal, you want to get that laugh again...there’s this temptation. “Do what I did last time, ‘cause that must have been funny. Maybe a little more.” And as it gets more and more and more, it stops being funny, it stops being real. That’s been the challenge—to take him seriously.

He certainly doesn’t hear the laughter! In fact, he’s quite gracious, in the end.
I think that the whole way through he has a very good opinion of himself. He isn’t harsh on himself; he certainly doesn’t feel he’s been an idiot. At the end he has a rush of relief that he’s out of that horrible marriage. Just glad it’s over.

Michael Uloth (Don Pasquale) strokes his cheek where it's been slapped by his abusive wife, Lindsay Russell (Norina) (Alan Alabastro, photo)

One last thing—there’s crazy fast patter singing in this opera! You called yourself a "lyric" bass...
Yes, I like long notes!

So is singing patter new for you?
It is new. But I’ve found it’s like anything—you learn it slowly and then click the metronome up and go faster and faster.

The famous explosion of patter here is the big duet with Malatesta, and you have to sing it with two different colleagues. Does that make it two very different duets?
No, not really, because we’re both so busy keeping up with the syllables that the duet doesn’t require a lot of invention. We both get on for the ride and hold on tight.

Who sets the tempo? You guys, or—
Maestro [Brian Garman, Music Director of Seattle Opera’s Young Artists Program.]

And he’s reasonable in what he’s asking of you?
He’s very reasonable. If there were a second, you might object, but that’s not how it works: you see the upbeat, and you just go. There’s lots of things that I can’t get them that fast when I’m practicing. But in the show it just works, somehow—there’s extra adrenaline, and there’s no choice, you sink or swim, so you swim!

Meet our Young Artists: DAVID KROHN, Dr. Malatesta

Baritone David Krohn wraps up his second season as a Young Artist with Don Pasquale, and afterward he’ll be sticking around Seattle to sing Prince Yamadori on the mainstage, in the season-closing production of Madama Butterfly. Today we chat with David and take a look back at the roles he’s taken on with Seattle Opera and the Young Artists Program, and find out what’s next for him.

For more on Don Pasquale, which opens next week and features David as Dr. Malatesta on March 31 and April 6, visit our website.

 

Previously on the Blog, you shared with us stories from your summer spent living in Italy. Do you think your time there has helped you with Italian roles like Dr. Malatesta in Don Pasquale?
I think any time you get the opportunity to spend time in a foreign country learning another language, and learning from another culture, you get insight into any role that comes from that country. You also get insight into the language, and why a character would chase to say something a certain way. I could deliver a line and say, “Hi, how are you?” or I could say, “What’s going on today?” or “How you been?” There are a thousand different ways I could phrase something, depending on the language, which then informs a little something about my character. You can read behind the text, the more comfortable you are with the language.

Earlier this season, you sang Dancaïre in Seattle Opera’s mainstage production of Carmen and Albert in the YAP’s Werther. Now you’re prepping for Dr. Malatesta in Don Pasquale, and you’ll help close Seattle Opera’s season in May as Prince Yamadori in the mainstage Madama Butterfly. Which of these characters are you most like?
Well, that’s a difficult question! Dancaïre is a smuggler in the mountains of Spain who tells his girlfriend to go and have sex with customs agents in order to pass contraband. So I hope I’m not like Dancaïre. Albert is a jealous husband who essentially gives his best friend pistols so that he can kill himself, so I’m not Albert. Yamadori is an Asian prince who tries to marry an already married woman, so I’m probably not Yamadori. Malatesta is the only one left, so I guess I’d have to say I’m the most like him, out of default, but I don’t really think I’m anything like Malatesta.

Sarah Larsen (Mercédès) and David Krohn (Dancaïre) in Seattle Opera's October 2011 production of Carmen.
Photo by Elise Bakketun

That’s one of the great things about being a performer, isn’t it? You get to try on so many different personalities.
Sure, you get to take on all different kinds of characters, and you try to find things that are human in all of them because often in opera you’re dealing with people who are legendary. Look at the Orpheus and Eurydice that was just done on the mainstage. How do you play Orpheus? How do you play a god? How do you play Wotan? How do you play Madama Butterfly, a 15-year-old geisha, which is a role often sung by women in their 40s and sometimes even older? It’s the challenge of taking on a character.

So what are the relatable traits you’ve drawn on for your recent roles?
Well, Malatesta runs all these schemes just to help out his buddy. He's trying to help his friend Ernesto get married, so he pulls all these tricks on Don Pasquale. With Dancaïre, who is a smuggler, he’s just doing what needs to be done. It’s what he grew up with. If you ever talk to a criminal, they never tell you they did anything wrong, they feel justified in what they did. He’s simply doing what he knows how to do, which is smuggle goods. Albert, his pride has been wounded. Everyone’s pride has been wounded at one time or another. Everyone has been in love. Not everyone has been cheated on, but a lot of people know what that feeling might be like.

From left to right: Andrew Stenson (Werther), David Krohn (Albert), and Sarah Larsen (Charlotte) in last fall's YAP production of Werther.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

In Don Pasquale, you have to sing both beautiful, long, lyrical, legato lines and staccato patter, as fast as possible. Which is harder? Which is more enjoyable to do?
It’s always more enjoyable to sing long lines. While it may be sort of funny for an audience to get the staccato stuff in a comic opera, it goes against the natural instincts of the voice. The voice is meant to sing long legato lines, just by nature of what the instrument is. It’s what’s going to be the easiest and the most natural to sing, for sure.

In last season’s spring YAP production of Don Giovanni, we got to see you in some memorable costumes—including bright green underwear. What is your look in Don Pasquale?
What Stage Director Peter Kazaras and Costume Designer Deborah Trout have tried to do for this production is to create an atmosphere and a mood of the 1950s and 1960s—Fellini, Rome, La Dolce Vita, that kind of thing, where the characters are very sleek and stylish. I also have a big wig that is going to add about four inches of curls to the top of my head, so I’ll probably be about 6’5” or 6’6” by the time I take the stage! But I think it’s a very attractive costume, and Deb has some really beautiful ideas. What was really funny about last year’s Don Giovanni was the suit I wore. They tailored it perfectly to my body; it was a tight, European-cut, gorgeous, sleek, shiny black suit that looked like a $2000 suit. I spoke to Costume Designer Candace Frank and said, “Look, this suit is beautiful, I want to buy it from the Costume Shop when we’re done,” and she said, “Absolutely!” And then I got to the first dress rehearsal and I realized to make it work for the stage they had put on these giant, white embroidered lapels and added big detail work all over it. So I had to pass on it.

David Krohn as Don Giovanni in the Young Artists Program's 2011 Don Giovanni.
Photo by Rozarii Lynch

What’s next for you, after you leave Seattle this spring?
When I leave here, there are a few things up in the air that I can’t announce one way or the other just yet. But as far as concerts go, I’m doing my debut with the Calgary National Symphony coming up around Thanksgiving 2012. I’ll be doing a pops concert with Jack Everly, of 1940s radio music. That will be really fun—a lot of Cole Porter, Irving Berlin kind of stuff. Then I’ve got some concert work in Virginia through 2013. I’m doing a program of Yiddish art songs that I’ve been getting off the ground, to try and bring Yiddish music from my background. I grew up in the synagogue and my father is a rabbi, and Yiddish was the language we spoke around the house. A lot of these songs are dying out; if people know them, it’s usually people of an older generation. I’m trying my best to keep this rich heritage of art songs going for a new generation.

Meet our Young Artists: AMANDA OPUSZYNSKI, Norina

Her role as Norina in Don Pasquale will wrap up soprano Amanda Opuszynski’s two seasons with the Young Artists Program, which included several wonderful performances in YAP productions, and a mainstage debut as Frasquita in Seattle Opera’s fall production of Carmen. Today we speak with Amanda, who tells us about her role (she’ll perform Norina on March 31 and April 6, alternating with Lindsay Russell who sings on April 1 and 7), the most important things she learned as a Young Artist, and what’s in store for her future.

You’ve previously sung Adina in L’elisir d’amore. She and Norina sing almost the exact same entrance aria, mocking romantic fiction and letting us know you’re too clever to be a Lucia di Lammermoor. What are the differences between Adina and Norina, as you play them?
The way I approach Adina is her power is intellectual. She’s very clever, very smart, but not so much aware of the power of her feminine wiles. Also, she is reading this book and thinking, “I wish this fairy tale could happen to me.” While neither Adina or Norina think the fairy tale is true, Adina wants it to happen, and Norina knows it’s never going to happen. So Adina takes her whole opera to figure out what it is she wants, and to realize the man of her dreams is right in front of her, begging for her attention, the whole time. She doesn’t realize until almost the end of the opera that she’s in love with him and that she has the power within herself to make everything happen that she wants to happen. On the other hand, Norina knows that immediately. She’s reading the book and saying, “This isn’t how it really works in the real world.” She spends all of Don Pasquale making things happen, and she’s a more active character. Things happen to Adina to make her realize how strong she is, but Norina knows that already, and just goes for it.

Do we, as the audience, ever get to see who Norina really is?
Norina is who she really is 100% of the time—but you see different facets of her personality shining through at different moments. She has a lot of sass and can be very matter-of-fact and nagging, but that’s who she is, and she’s not apologetic about it all. I think in the duet with Ernesto toward the end, she’s maybe at her most vulnerable, and there are glimpses of that throughout the opera in different pieces. But I think the best thing about Norina is—unless she’s playing another character, which she does for a big chunk of Don Pasquale—she’s definitely all about being who she is, and she doesn’t apologize for it.

Andrew Stenson (Ernesto) and Amanda Opuszynski (Norina) in rehearsal for Don Pasquale.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

Which part of her personality do you think Ernesto is most attracted to?
Their relationship is interesting because you don’t really see the two of them together; their whole love story happens before the opera takes place. But I think he loves the things about her that she shows in the aria. Her sexuality, her power, her assertiveness. I’m sure she also has a softer side that only he gets to see and maybe she doesn’t show anybody else because she has her guard up a little bit.

Do you have a favorite moment in this opera?
I’ve thought about this a lot, and everything I come up with is not a scene I’m in. [Laughs] I love the duet with Pasquale and Malatesta in Act 3; I think it’s so funny. Michael Uloth (Don Pasquale), David Krohn (Dr. Malatesta on March 31 and April 6), and Joseph Lattanzi (Dr. Malatesta on April 1 and 7) do it so well, and it’s hilarious. I think the reason I love that duet so much is because it’s not something I would ever get to do. It’s a lot of patter singing, and as a soprano I never sing stuff like that, or at least I very rarely do, so I like watching and listening to it. And it’s a very funny moment, too, because Pasquale at that point is fully immersed in this scheme that Malatesta and Norina have concocted, so he has no idea what’s really going on. He’s coming up with his vengeance and the way he’s going to trap her, and he has no idea he’s the one being trapped.

Michael Uloth (Don Pasquale) and Amanda Opuszynski (Norina) in rehearsal for Don Pasquale.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

I have a favorite part to perform, though, and it’s in Act 2 when Norina is paying Sofronia. It’s me playing a character playing a character, and it’s so fun to do because Norina forgets herself and shines through in different moments and then has to quickly get back into character.

You’re about to wrap up your second year with the Young Artists Program. What lessons will you be taking away with you?
When I started this program, I was 23 and just out of grad school. I’d sung professionally a little bit, but this was sort of the first big thing I’d done, and I came into this program still in a scholastic mentality, thinking there was always a right answer and I always had to get an A. Of course, there are no grades here, but that meant still being perfect all the time. But I learned that while you need a strong point of view in your singing, there isn’t necessarily a right answer; two different people can play the same role in different ways, and it can be equally good. You see that really well in this Don Pasquale production because almost all the roles are double-cast. When I got here two years ago, that was a concept I hadn’t quite worked out yet.

I also think that, though I had a lot of really great voice teachers growing up, I really learned to sing opera here. I definitely knew how to sing before I got to Seattle, but in terms of style and the demands of singing an entire opera the way it’s meant to be sung, I think I came into my own with the Young Artists Program. Of course, YAP Director Aren Der Hacopian, Artistic Director Peter Kazaras, and Music Director Brian Garman have had a lot to do with that. And in terms of opera as a business, I guess I didn’t realize how many people can technically sing what I sing, so I had to start to figure out what makes me special and different, and what will ultimately get me a job. That became a lot clearer here.

Young Artists Amanda Opuszynski (Frasquita), Andrew Stenson (Remendado), David Krohn (Dancaïre), and Sarah Larsen (Mercédès) with Anita Rachvelishvili (center, as Carmen) in Seattle Opera's October 2011 production of Carmen.
Photo by Elise Bakketun

What’s next for you, once you leave Seattle?
This summer I’m going to the Glimmerglass Festival in Cooperstown, NY, and I’m covering Elizabeth Futral as Marian the Librarian in The Music Man. I’m really looking forward to that because I started out in musical theater and this is a weird full circle thing for me. And at Glimmerglass, they do it unamplified, with full orchestra, and mostly opera singers, so I’m really excited. Then I’m actually coming back to Seattle next summer to cover in the Ring cycle! I’m covering Woglinde and Wellgunde, two of the Rhine daughters. The Ring is such a key part of this company and it’s really cool to be involved in that in any sort of way. I never thought I would sing Wagner, but it’s great to find out there are roles I could sing. I’ve never actually done a German opera, either, so the Ring will be my first one!

Meet our Guest Artist: KENNY ENLOW, Notary

Our Young Artists open their production of Don Pasquale on March 31, and it marks the first time the YAP will sing at University of Washington’s Meany Hall—but that’s not Pasquale’s only connection to the school; Kenny Enlow, a first-year UW graduate student studying vocal performance, will appear as a guest artist in the role of the Notary. Today we get to know Kenny, who moved from Florida to the Pacific Northwest just for the opportunity to work with Seattle Opera.

How did you get involved with this production of Don Pasquale?
Actually, I was given an opportunity through my voice teacher at University of Washington, Thomas Harper [Mime in Seattle Opera's 1991, 1995, 2001, and 2005 Rings]. Aren Der Hacopian [Seattle Opera’s Artistic Administrator and Director of the Young Artists Program] asked Tom about UW voice students, and that's how I heard about it and came in to audition for the role.

What is your background in music? When did you first become interested in opera?
I didn’t start singing until college, while I was studying at Florida State University. I was originally a trombonist for about 10 years and I’d always sung but I’d never actually pursued classical singing or opera until then. I was involved in a spring production of A Rake’s Progress during my freshman year, and the following summer I auditioned into the voice program.

What is it that you liked so much about opera?
When it comes to acting, some actors and actresses just can’t get into a role because it lacks substance. But you don’t come across that very often in the opera world; there’s just so much that you could fall head first into. It’s amazing to be able to emote using your voice. It’s probably one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve had the opportunity to take part in.

Why did you pick University of Washington as the place to earn your master’s degree?
Actually, I had hopes I could work with Seattle Opera. So when this opportunity came along, I jumped on it, because it’s what I originally set out to do here, along with going to school. Seattle Opera has a wonderful reputation for having great artists and great productions. Also, I did a production at Florida State with Peter Kazaras [Artistic Director for the Young Artists Program, and Stage Director for Don Pasquale]. He guest-directed Der Vampyr when I was in college and I loved working with him, so when I found out he was directing this Don Pasquale production, I was like, “Oh, yes!” He’s great.

What other work have you been involved in since moving to Seattle?
I have to hold down a full-time job while going to grad school—so that doesn’t offer me a lot of time do much else outside of school. But at UW I was Melchior in Amahl and the Night Visitors for our fall production, and we just finished Benjamin Britton’s Albert Herring at the beginning of this month, I sang the Vicar. This spring, we’re doing L'enfant et les sortileges and I’m the Grandfather Clock in that, as well. So I’m getting good experience at school, but I’d also like to open doors whenever possible with the major houses.

Where do you hope your career in opera will take you?
I would like to build up my resume singing wherever I can. I’ve thought about moving to Europe and giving that a go, and eventually—like everybody else!— I’d love to sing at San Francisco Opera, Houston Grand Opera, the Met, and here at Seattle Opera.

Finally, can you tell us a little about your character in Don Pasquale?
The role is the Notary, and he’s basically a friend of Malatesta’s, who is coming in to play a “notary” for this “marriage” that is going on between Don Pasquale and Norina. He’s hired to act like a notary and get the fake union going on. That’s really all that I’m doing, but it’s great because it’s a role that is comically expressive in the face, which is something I really enjoy doing.

Meet Our Young Artists: ANDREW STENSON, Ernesto

Andrew Stenson as Don Ottavio in last season's Young Artists production of Don Giovanni.
© Rozarii Lynch photo

Andrew Stenson received a wild roar of approval from the crowd after the Sunday matinee performance of Orphée et Eurydice a week and a half ago, when he sang Orphée, as cover, because William Burden had been injured at the previous evening’s performance. Melinda Bargreen, who reviewed that performance for KING FM, agreed with the surprised and delighted audience: “Stenson commands an apparently limitless range, a highly developed vocal agility with remarkably good trills, and a passionate conviction that reaches right into the house,” she wrote. Stenson, who’s starring as Ernesto in our upcoming Meany Hall performances of Don Pasquale, spoke to me the other day about how crazily high the role of Orphée is, about his recent Metropolitan Opera debut, and what he’s learned from two years in our Young Artists Program.

First, tell us about about your experience in Orphée et Eurydice.
Covering Bill [Burden] in Orphée was fantastic. Bill is amazing, he’s able to get up there and do it once, and it’s brilliant. That takes years and years of training, and a lot of discipline and talent. For me, just to be able to be around that really pushed me to be better. He’s so natural and comfortable in his body, that really challenged me. When he takes this kind of posture, or does certain things with his body—you can pick those things up after observing. A lot of little things, and how he’s able to turn on a dime.

There’s a moment—I think it was just before intermission, where he literally sang while lying on his side, with one of his legs curled up—the weirdest position I’ve ever seen anyone sing from!
Yes, in the Elysian Fields scene.

Did you use the same posture?
I did, but I remember, “God, that’s really hard!” (laughs) I took that blocking directly from him, but he just...did it. It’s actually really fun to be able to challenge yourself like that. Like with the aria at the end of Act One, “L’espoir renait”—singing coloratura while holding a lyre above your head. After a while, that gets tough.

Andrew Stenson as Orphée.
Photo by Elise Bakketun

Because your arm gets tired?
Yes. The first time I sang the role, my arm was so sore the next day!

Try being a conductor! Now tell us about the tessitura--the vocal range—of Orphée.
It’s brutally high. It’s the highest thing I’ve ever sung, or for that matter ever seen. That’s my wheelhouse, though. Fortunately, when I was in New York in January, I got some great lessons from my teacher, Gerald Martin Moore. That role lives where a lot of “money notes” are, where the peaks of the phrase would be in most other operas. But in this opera, a high note (G to Bb) is not an event, it’s just another note in a phrase. I’ve always been able to sing high, and they must have heard something in me, I guess, because they gave me the opportunity to do this...

Andrew Stenson (Ernesto) and Amanda Opuszynski (Norina) in rehearsal for Don Pasquale.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

Had they [Seattle Opera’s artistic staff] heard you sing “Ah, mes amis” from Daughter of the Regiment, with its famous 9 high Cs?
Yes, I’ve coached that with Brian [Garman, Music Director of Seattle Opera’s Young Artists Program]. I like to use some of these really high arias, like that and “Languir per una bella” from L’italiana, as vocal etudes. You know, “If I can sing these, then I’m fine.”

You’re like a male version of those Queens of the Night who warm up with their aria. If you’ve just sung a high F, then a high C isn’t so high!
The first time I sang the Daughter of the Regiment aria in public was at the Tucker Foundation auditions, and it that was the best audition of my life—I actually won one of the study grants.

That’s very exciting. As was your recent Met debut, back in January, when you were covering a singer in The Enchanted Island and ended up going on. That’s happened to you twice this year! Tell us about that role.
Yes, the character was simply called Quartet # 3. It’s an haut-contre role, like Orphée.

That opera is a pastiche by a bunch of composers. Who wrote the music you sang?
I sang in a quartet by Rameau, “Tendre amour,” look it up on YouTube, it’s really beautiful and harmonically quite ahead of it’s time. Originally it was supposed to be really high, that’s why I got hired. But then our Maestro, William Christie, decided to transpose it down a major 3rd, so I thought, “Oh, the singer I’m covering could sing this cold, I’m never going to go on.” But then he ended up with tonsilitis, and they call me the day of the show—early, it wakes me up, I’m like (groggy voice) “Hello?” And they say: “You’re going on tonight,” but I fall back asleep for two hours and when I wake up I’m not entirely sure whether the call came or I dreamed it. So I call back, and they say, “You can’t back out on us now—you’re going on!” I’d already been fitted for the costume, and then during intermission the Assistant Director showed me where I needed to be onstage when, I ran it the quartet musically with the other three—we’d never sung it together before—and then I went out and did it.

Crazy.
Funny story, in Seattle I live with Lindsay Russell and Sarah Larsen, two other Young Artists, and when they heard I was going on they called another friend who was in that show and they told him to leave cured meats in my dressing room, because they thought I would appreciate that more than flowers. They were Face-Timeing in the Met Green room through his phone, watching it on the monitor, and I came offstage and there they were, it was really sweet.

Sarah Larsen (Charlotte) and Andrew Stenson (Werther) in Werther.
Photo by Alan Alabastro

Moving on to Don Pasquale, how does the role of Ernesto sit in your voice?
It’s high, but it’s different. Here, the Bbs are events! The phrases are longer than those in Orphée, the gestures are bigger. I’m glad I did Orphée first!

How seriously are we to take Ernesto during the sad aria “Cercherò lontana terra?”
The way we’re doing it, the comedy comes from how seriously Ernesto takes himself. He’s a bit melodramatic. But it can go either way, you could take him seriously or no, and I leave that up to the audience. I hope to portray the character honestly. It could be funny, it could be heartbreaking. I relate him to Ted Mosby in How I Met Your Mother—he gets so riled up!

For you, what’s the difference between playing tragedy and playing comedy?
The unfortunate things about tenors in comedies is we’re usually the straight guy in the comedy. Pasquale is the ridiculous one, Norina is quirky, or sassy, and Ernesto is the straightforward one of the bunch. I discovered this last fall when we were doing Viva la Mamma!. You can’t play for laughs—compared to Mamm’Agata, you’d never win. That was a very good experience, in terms of preparing me for this.

Daniel Scofield (Mamm’Agata) and Andrew Stenson (the Tenor) in Viva la Mamma!
Photo by Bill Mohn

Speaking of that fall 2010 tour of Viva la Mamma!, you’re now wrapping up your second year in our Young Artists Program. What have been some of the highlights, so far, of your work at Seattle Opera?
It’s been so much fun, I’ve done so much with this company. Right now, it’s home. I feel like the company has my back, and I can’t thank Seattle Opera enough. I’ve learned so much, I feel like I’ve been taking leaps and bounds forward with all the opportunities I’ve been given here.