In this episode of 'Exposition', we talked about the upcoming "Opera Scenes" music ensemble showcase—a selection of seven different opera scenes performed by Southeast Missouri State University students.
Isabelle Murphy: a senior vocal performance major plays 'Sonia' in the Merry Widow scene, Joshua Liebhart: senior vocal music education and vocal performance major plays 'Figaro' in the Marriage of Figaro scene, and Chris Goeke: Professor of Voice and one of the directors for the opera scenes production, give us a preview of their respective scenes and their experience in the production.
The show is in Shuck Recital Hall on the Southeast Missouri State University River Campus, April 27 at 3 pm.
Of the seven opera scenes, we heard exclusively from three of the vocalists and details about their performances.
The program opens with a scene from the opera Die Fledermaus, more commonly translated to The Revenge of The Bat. Goeke describes Die Fledermaus as a sort of comedy of errors that takes place during a party. This party is seemingly full of uninvited guests, including a chambermaid posing as an actress and a man avoiding his prison sentence by posing as a French marquis. The two in question recognize each other and must play along with their roles to avoid detection, while egged on by the party's host.
Following the theme of impersonations is The Marriage of Figaro, which is one in a three-opera trilogy. Joshua Liebhart describes his role as 'Figaro', in which character poses as the story's villain, Count Almaviva, to meet with Susanna, who is pretending to be the countess. Figaro recognizes Susanna, and the two plot to sabotage the count together.
Closing the performance is an aria titled 'Vilja' from The Merry Widow. Isabelle Murphy describes her enjoyment of playing the character 'Sonia', and getting to sing the aria to the audience and those on stage. The character Sonia is a wealthy benefactor holding a party in Paris. As part of this party, she tells a folktale-style story to her guests. The aria will include the accompaniment of a choir.
