Sat 6/18-Sat 8/13
For those who love the combination of music and theater, there is no better place to enjoy it than Ohio Light Opera, in residence at Wooster College, some 75 miles south of Cleveland.
The 2016 season is OLO’s 38th banquet of lyric theater gems presented in its own unique way: seven productions over eight weeks in repertory. A big factor in the success of OLO’s offerings is the resident orchestra. Very few theater companies have the appropriate room or resources to house a 34-piece orchestra so necessary in re-creating the ambiance in which these productions were first seen or heard.
Repertory means that the production that opens the season – Cole Porter’s 1948 triumph Kiss Me, Kate! may be seen another 13 times after opening night on Sat 6/18. More than a few theater devotees proclaim this to be the very best musical ever. The final curtain on this show will fall on Fri 8/12. Of course, this also means you have no valid excuse to miss seeing this prime example of book, lyrics and music all melding together into perfection.
The next opening, Annie, Get Your Gun, actually dates from two years earlier, when Irving Berlin stepped in almost at the last minute to write the words and music for this tribute to the Old West and all the rootin’, tootin’ cowboys and Indians who lived west of the Mississippi. Along with Annie Oakley, you’ll also meet Chief Sitting Bull and Buffalo Bill Cody, and of course, the handsome and dashing Frank Butler, plus an assortment of other memorable characters. Curtain goes up on this sparkler on Thu 7/23, and it will be seen 12 more times before it closes on Sat 8/13.
The Mikado is perhaps the most beloved of all the creations of Arthur Sullivan and W. S. Gilbert, the team that entertained England (and the rest of the world) during the last years of the 19th century. The first of its eight performances for this season will be Thu 6/30, while the final one will also end the season for OLO on Sat 8/13.
The Mikado is the first of this year’s productions that will perhaps be more familiar to attendees, at least in presentations at OLO. This year will be the 14th year for Nanki-Poo and his confederates to trod the boards at Wooster. When Ohio Light Opera began all those years ago, it was primarily as a Gilbert & Sullivan showcase, highlighting the more popular shows every year. More recently, The Mikado has usually been seen every four years. Such is the case with this production, which is utilizing the same set, costumes and a good many of the actors as the 2012 version.
Many of the same faces will be seen this year. While some members of the orchestra return year after year, there are always new musicians to fill the unoccupied chairs. Continuity is achieved through music director J. Lynn Thompson, returning this year for his 27th season, while associate music director Steven Byess is in year 18. Wilson Southerland returns for his second season on the conducting staff, having spent a few previous summers here as rehearsal pianist.
As for the stage directing staff, Steven R. Daigle, who is also the OLO artistic director, returns for his 27th season, although not all of those years were in his current position — he has also served as stage manager or in other artistic or technical positions. Actually, his real title should be “chief archaeologist” for his skills in unearthing early American operetta and musical theater gems, and then persisting in finding the necessary scores and librettos to be able to produce these delightful bon-bons. Many of these come from the old Princess Theatre archives. (This year’s prize is Have a Heart.)
Soprano/associate artistic director Julie Wright Costa is this year celebrating her 25th year at OLO. Baritone/principal guest director Ted Christopher returns for his 18th season, and is joined this year by all three of his children, who are also appearing on stage in various productions. Wright Costa will direct La Vie Parisienne, and perform in The Dancing Years, Have a Heart and Annie Get Your Gun. For several years, she has also been in charge of the casting process for OLO, traveling to seven cities and auditioning more than 300 singers during November and December each year.
This season, Ted Christopher is directing The Mikado, which opens Thu 6/30, while also appearing in Kiss Me, Kate, La Vie Parisienne and The Dancing Years. Jacob Allen returns for his 10th season to direct Annie Get Your Gun, while Stephen Carr returns after an absence of several years to direct Kiss Me, Kate.
The current record for most active years belongs to Spiro Matsos, tenor and waiter extraordinaire, who will celebrate his 35th year on stage for OLO in La Vie Parisienne, opening Wed 7/13.
Other productions scheduled for this season are: Have a Heart, La Vie Parisienne, The Dancing Years and The Little Dutch Girl. There are several special events for this season as well. Mon 7/4 is the pops concert by the OLO orchestra in downtown Wooster; Tue 7/12 is the Children’s Introduction to Theater in the Freedlander Theater lobby; and the highly praised Festival Symposium — a three-day exposition on the Lyric Theater Tradition — is Tue 8/2-Fri 8/5. Limited seating is still available for this not-to-be-missed program.
For more information about any events at Ohio Light Opera, or to purchase tickets, visit them at ohiolightopera.org or call the box office at 1-330-263-2345. For an additional treat, to read more about and hear clips of some of the music for each of the above mentioned shows, go here: ohiolightopera.org/season
[Written by Kelly Ferjutz]
Wooster, OH 44691
One Response to “Ohio Light Opera Launches Its 38th Season in Wooster”
Raye Tschache
cool site , bookmarked