The student-led performance group OPERAtions is returning from a semester-long hiatus to create an online production.
OPERAtions will premiere in “Speed Dating Tonight!” by Michael Ching on Apr. 16. According to an email sent from the Wanda L. Bass School of Music, “Speed Dating Tonight!” is a compilation of vignettes which the OPERAtions team will record individually and edit together for a single experience.
Nadjalie Santos, vocal performance senior, is the artistic director of OPERAtions. Santos said producing a production this year at all was a challenge due to COVID-19 safety regulations and the limited availability for spaces on campus.
The OPERAtions board had regular communication in the fall leading up to coordinating a spring production, Santos said.
“For starters, we had to be super realistic about what was feasible for OPERAtions right now. Last spring, before COVID, we were sailing straight ahead with our production of ‘Dido and Aeneas,’ and when COVID happened, our resources changed dramatically,” Santos said.
Santos said “Speed Dating Tonight!” is the perfect production to fit the needs of the company this semester.
“The show itself is comprised of vignettes, and whenever it is performed, it is with the intention that the people performing it get to choose which scenes they would like to do,” Santos said. “And so that benefits us in a lot of ways.”
Santos said the OPERAtions cast list will be the last one announced of the School of Music season, which limits the pool of applicants. They said “Speed Dating Tonight!” allows the team to cast the people they have and tailor the production toward their strengths.
“The other benefit is that the music of the show is opera, but it is written in a way that is more accessible to young singers,” Santos said. “The original deal with OPERAtions was to give opportunities and experience to younger opera singers, so it is great to return to that.”
Santos said the announced cast will have a coaching session with an accompanist on their material, a rehearsal session with the directors and then a gap period where the performers will work independently on their music.
“The idea is that it will be a lot more of a self-study type of deal because, obviously, with all the COVID regulations we can’t have regular rehearsal like we would in a normal year,” Santos said.
Santos said the production will feel smaller in scope than OPERAtions projects in the past, but the work needed to mount the show will be equal to or excel the work of past years.
Mitchell Gage, opera performance graduate, is the executive producer of OPERAtions. Gage said he has performed in “Speed Dating Tonight!” previously. He said he hopes the show gives the cast an understanding of modern opera.
“I hope we all take away a strong sense of what contemporary opera is, where the direction of opera is heading,” Gage said. “This show is so accessible because it is pieced together and flexible. The composer is still writing music for the show to this day. He will add an aria there or a duet there from different character perspectives.”
Gage said opera is constantly evolving and growing, and he is looking forward to what this show has to offer to students.
“We had a great number of submissions on such short notice, which was so wonderful. It’s really great to see so many students want to be involved,” Gage said. “We are hoping this show’s structure draws even more students to OPERAtions going forward, to continue growing this program.” “Speed Dating Tonight!” will premiere April 16. Students can follow OPERAtions updates at their Facebook page.
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