20 Questions with Erin Wall

Canadian soprano Erin Wall will sing Violetta in VO's La Traviata (onstage at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre April 30 - May 12!). What does it take to sing such a sensitive, larger-than-life character? Find out as we ask Erin 20 Questions!


1. Guilty musical pleasure?
Tenacious D’s Rock Your Socks Off.

2. Where do you love to sing?
In the car. I’ve learned a lot of music in there!

3. What is your idea of earthly happiness?
Waking up after a full night’s sleep in my own bed and spending a lazy morning with my husband, my son, and a hot cup of coffee!

4. To what faults do you feel most indulgent?
Procrastination.

5. Who are your favourite heroes/heroines of fiction?
Marguerite Gautier and, yes, I’ll say it, Bridget Jones.

6. Who are your favourite characters in history?
Pheidippides and Marie Curie.

7. Who are your favourite heroes/heroines in real life?
My parents.

8. Who is your favourite author?
David Sedaris.

9. Your favourite musician?
Impossible to chose just one. The list is endless!

10. Your favourite composer?
Very difficult, but I’m going to say Mozart, Strauss, and Mahler.

11. What quality do you most admire in a person?
Diplomacy and generosity.

12. Your favourite virtue?
Punctuality.

13. Your favourite occupation?
I like the one I have - a working singer.

14. What did you want to be as a child?
A figure-skating veterinarian.

15. Your most marked characteristic?
I am excessively verbal.

16. What do you most value in your friends?
Patience and acceptance.

17. For what would you like to be remembered?
Being a good daughter, sister, wife, and mother.

18. What natural gift would you most like to possess?
The ability to learn languages easily.

19. What is your motto?
Never lose perspective.

20. What non-opera song do you rock?
I do a mean “Baby Beluga”!

Find out more about Erin here.

VO Film Series: Camille

Another special event! Here's the final offering in our film series for the 2010-2011 season, presented, as always, with our good friends at the Vancouver International Film Centre.

CAMILLE

Thursday, April 7, 2011
7:00pm: Introduction
7:20pm: Film

Vancity Theatre
Vancouver International Film Centre
1181 Seymour Street

$11/$9 senior or student
(includes $2 Vancity Film Centre membership).
More about the Vancity Theatre

Directed by: George Cukor
(USA, 1936, 109 mins)
DVD
Starring Greta Garbo, Robert Taylor, Lionel Barrymore, Henry Daniell, Elizabeth Allan.

Named one of the top 100 movies ever made by Time magazine and based on the same novel and play as Giuseppe Verdi’s great opera La Traviata (La Dame aux Camélias by Alexandre Dumas, fils), Camille is a tragic love story about a courtesan, Marguerite, and her handsome young suitor, Armand.

Produced in the finest MGM style, and directed by the studio’s most sensitive director of actresses, George Cukor, Camille is remembered above all for Greta Garbo’s expressive and luminous performance. In Marguerite, the iconic 1930s siren finds a vessel for her own ambivalence towards Hollywood. Garbo suggests warmth, sensuality, irony and introspection in gestures of rare delicacy and insight.

Camille will be introduced by national film journalist Katherine Monk. Ms.Monk's writing appears in National Post, The Vancouver Sun and Province, The Montreal Gazette, Calgary Herald and Ottawa Citizen among others. She is also a regular contributor for CBC Radio’s On the Coast and Global BC’s Early News. Ms. Monk is a voting member of the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television, the Broadcast Film Critics Association, the Alliance of Women Film Journalists, and the Writers’ Union of Canada. In addition to her duties as a film writer, Ms. Monk teaches and lectures at Simon Fraser University, the University of Alaska, McGill University’s Centre for Canadian Studies and Capilano University. Her first book Weird Sex and Snowshoes and Other Canadian Film Phenomena (Raincoast Books, 2001) hit the bestseller list and was adapted to the screen by Omni Film.

Camille is presented in association with Vancouver Opera’s production of La Traviata, April 30 to May 12th. Verdi’s most popular opera is realized in a gorgeous new co-production directed by Sir Jonathan Miller. Sumptuous parties, passionate encounters and intimate scenes of tragic tenderness, together with dramatic and vocal intensity from beginning to end, make this a magnificent opera experience.

Seating is limited. This special event continues a series of co-presentations between Vancouver Opera and the Vancity Theatre.

Opera Speaks - Tuesday April 19

The next Opera Speaks promises to be a popular one! Mark your calendars and plan to get there early!

Tuesday, April 19, 2011
A Feature Interview With Sir Jonathan Miller

Sir Jonathan Miller is one of the world’s most fascinating and creative polymaths: opera and theatre director, neuropsychologist, writer, television presenter and humourist. He rose to fame 50 years ago as part of the influential British comedy show “Beyond the Fringe”, with Dudley Moore, Peter Cook, and Alan Bennett. He is in Vancouver to direct La Traviata.

Bard on the Beach artistic director Christopher Gaze will engage Sir Jonathan in a feature-length interview about his work, his life, and his provocative ideas. An excerpt from La Traviata will be performed. Thanks to Bard on the Beach for their support!





Opera Speaks @ VPL
Tuesday, April 19
7:00pm - 9:00pm
Alice MacKay Room
Central Branch of the VPL

Free Admission! Limited Seating!

VO in NY

I was fortunate enough to attend a conference this month, the 2011 National Arts Marketing and Development Conference at the Kimmel Center on the campus of New York University.

Although I’ve been to New York a couple times before, I find that I discover new parts of the city each time. Previous trips included stops at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Lincoln Centre, Broadway, and some amazing restaurants. (Particular standouts were Pastis in the meatpacking district and DBGB, one of Daniel Boulud’s many restaurants in NY) As I would have much less time on this trip, I planned ahead and booked a ticket for a concert on my first night in the city.

One of my favourite violinists, Joshua Bell, was playing the amazing Bruch Concerto at the historic Carnegie Hall. Needless to say, it was breathtaking and even with the extremely high expectations I had going in, I was not disappointed.

It would have been difficult for the rest of the trip to measure up to what I experienced on that first night, but it is New York, and they don’t call it the Big Apple for nothing. Other highlights from the trip included a heavenly stop at Saks 5th avenue, people watching at Washington Square Park, a couple slices from Joe’s Pizza, and a wonderful performance of Billy Elliott on Broadway. (Thanks TKTS booth!)

Being in a city with such a huge assortment of choices, not just in food and shopping, but in its culture, induced great feelings of envy. The number of concerts, events, and museums you could go to on any given day, was just staggering.

Combined with some amazing sessions at the conference with other arts colleagues from all over the country, this trip was quite simply inspiring. I can’t wait to go back and see what I discover next time.

- Jennifer Lee, Marketing Manager

Someone's in the kitchen with....me!

I have really gotten myself in the soup… naively agreeing with the irresistible Barbara-Jo McIntosh, of that wonderful store Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks, to “participate” in a little fund- and friend-raising event for Vancouver Opera. Before I knew what hit me, I had agreed to preside over her in-store kitchen for an evening of food and the arts, based around the witty American writer Pat Conroy’s eponymous new cookbook.

Because I spent ten years living in the South – Charlotte, North Carolina to be precise - and because I really love to eat, and because I exaggerate my abilities as a cook to those I think that will impress, I have found myself “hosting” an event this Tuesday evening. As we progressed in the planning of this little soiree, I imagine that reality began to dawn on Barbara-Jo and she has wisely filled out the evening’s personnel with people who actually know what they’re doing: there will be a real chef to cook the difficult dishes!

Friend Mollie Massie will be reading selections from the cookbook (which is much more than just a collection of recipes) in her authentic Southern voice with her authentic Southern charm, and Jim Byrnes will provide the live music.

At one point I thought I was really home free, and would only have to stand around and lend my august presence to this gathering….but no. I was recently informed that I would be cooking some of the dishes after all, with Chef Glenys supervising and doing the real work. So earlier this week I lured friends over for the very yummy Country Ham with Bourbon Glaze, which turned out very well (who can argue with bourbon and maple syrup?). This weekend I am enticing more unsuspecting friends over for my first-ever attempt for gumbo (with shrimp, crabmeat, andouille sausage, bacon, a whole chicken…) and a grits casserole made enticing by the addition of a bit of heavy cream.

I am a fair cook, and quite excited to be cooking and visiting with folks this coming Tuesday evening – I’m pretty relaxed about it all because I know that whatever I might attempt to do or not do, Chef Glenys and Barbara-Jo will be right there and everything will be scrumptious and the whole evening will be a fun-filled success. Bon appetit!

There may be room for a couple of more adventurous souls – if interested, here are the details:

Vancouver Opera Fundraiser with Jim Wright
Tuesday, March 29, 6:30 p.m.

Food and the Arts have always shared a special bond. This evening we celebrate both at a fundraising dinner theatre for Vancouver Opera.

This evening James Wright, General Director of Vancouver Opera, joins us in the kitchen for a festive evening of fine food and drink and the arts. Jim, an enthusiastic cook, will be behind the hob cooking a fine menu from The Pat Conroy Cookbook: Recipes and Stories of My Life by Pat Conroy. An evening at the opera would not be complete without music and drama so this evening will feature live music with Jim Byrnes and readings from The Pat Conroy Cookbook by Mollie Massie. Proceeds will be donated to Vancouver Opera.

Guests: 20 Cost: $195.00 (The evening includes a copy of The Pat Conroy Cookbook).

For more info or reservations call Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks: 604-688-6755

Voices of the Pacific Rim

Vancouver Opera produced a wonderful concert last Sunday evening at the Playhouse Theatre: Voices of the Pacific Rim.

This concert is unique in our city. Combining eastern and western vocal traditions in a concert setting is the sort of adventurous engagement of our diverse communities that excites all of us at Vancouver Opera.

In all likelihood not a single person in Sunday night’s audience was familiar with every selection – I certainly was not. And I am even more certain that no one had ever heard them performed together on the same program by such youthful, engaging talent. Sunday evening’s Voices of the Pacific Rim cross-cultural meeting was respectful, engrossing and rewarding, and serves as an example of what is possible in the arts and essential to our lives.

The evening was a success because of the incredibly hard work and enthusiasm – and vision – of a special group of volunteers headed by our board member Stephanie Chung with lots of strong support from her fellow directors Yoshiko Karasawa and Julia Kim, and a host of other staff and volunteers – and of course the wonderful artists who performed.

To give an idea of the selections on the concert, here are a few: "Pace, Pace Mio Dio" from La Forza del Destino; "Je Veux Vivre" from Romeo et Juliette; “The Song of the Cherry Shell” (traditional Japanese song); "Glitter and be Gay" from Candide, "O Soave Fanciulla" from La Boheme; “The Never-setting Sun Rises Over the Prairie” by Jiang Dawei; The Queen of the Night’s aria from The Magic Flute, and “In the Memory of the Mountain” by Young Sub Choi. What a diverse repertoire!

The wonderful Canadian artists performing were Tina Chang, Evanna Chiew, Jihwan Cho, Caroline Yoonkyoung Jang, Teiya Kasahara, Brian Kwangmin Lee, Rose-Ellen Nichols, and Xiao Dong Zhang. Our special guest soprano from Korea was Young Mi Kim. Kinza Tyrrell was the music director and Gina Oh curated the program.

I left the theatre being very proud of our Canadian talent, grateful for our dedicated volunteers, and happy to be associated with Vancouver Opera.

- James W. Wright, General Director, Vancouver Opera

Review of Seattle's Don Quixote

The intrepid, globe-trotting D.S. Spring is back with another review from the road! Here's D.S.'s review of Seattle Opera's Don Quixote.

Too much sanity may be madness.
But the maddest of all see life as it is and not as it should be.

What a delightful endearing opera! Massenet and librettist, Henri Cain, based this opera, not on the Cervantes’ novel, Don Quixote, directly, but on a play by Jacques Le Lorrain. Le Lorrain had reduced the novel’s complexity, greatly simplified the main character and focused specifically on Don Quixote’s infatuation with Dulcinée. Madness, dreams, kindness and humanity were themes throughout and were beautifully portrayed in Massenet’s music.

Carlo Montanaro conducted the enchanting score. Stage Director, Linda Brovsky, kept the stage settings simple with over-sized books as sets and kept the action moving on stage. Flamenco dancers entertained us in almost all of the crowd scenes. Don Quichotte was a new role for Canadian bass-baritone, John Relyea, who sang and acted the part with much sensitivity. Argentinian bass-baritone, Eduardo Chama, was the quintessential Sancho Panza. Polish mezzo-soprano, Malgorzata Walewska, whom I last heard as Judith opposite John Relyea in Bluebeard’s Castle in Seattle in 2009, ably sang the role of Dulcinée. Don Quichotte’s horse, Rocinante, and Sancho Panza’s donkey, Dapple, were played by well-mannered live animals, which enhanced the charm of this production.

I left the opera house admiring Don Quichotte and wishing to see life, not so much as it is, but more as it should be.

D.S. Spring
March, 2011

MLA Sultan at Cinderella

The students of Ridgeview Elementary had a double treat last week. Not only did they get to see our VOIS production of Cinderella, but they also shared the show with a special guest: MLA Ralph Sultan!

Here's a photo of MLA Sultan with the cast.

MLA Sultan is a great supporter of VO's mainstage and education programs. Did you see this video where he encourages everyone to "skip Question Period; go to the opera!"?

Honourary Degree for Legendary Cellist

Langley cellist Ian Hampton has been granted an honourary degree from SFU! Ian was VO's Principal Cellist for many years and is already the recipient of an Order of BC.

Ian will be receiving the honour from SFU along with singer Sarah McLachlan, astronaut Robert Thirsk, ecologist Buzz Holling and First Nations chief Wendy Grant-John.

Read more here.

Congratulations from everyone at VO, Ian!

Road Food

Vancouver Opera In Schools' Joshua McFaul dishes on dinners with the Cinderella crew...

I really enjoy food. My tastes may be simple and my palate undiscerning - my wife will lamentably attest to this - but neither of those things detract from the satisfaction I take from a good meal.

Such reflection was certainly abundant during this season's VOIS tour, not only due to the culinary sensibilities of my colleagues, but also due to their meal making expertise. From the start, we agreed that each of us individually would take an evening as part of a weekly rotation to prepare dinner for the others while we were on the road.

This path, while excellent in theory, was not easily traveled; for various reasons, meals were required to be entirely void of eggs, dairy, and gluten. Those who know me will find some humour in this because those three things occupy a special place in my heart and heritage, and as such, compose the bulk of my diet (can anyone say 'pancakes'?). Heedless of this fact, I accepted the challenge and strove blindly into unknown territory.

What came next was a string of delicious and satisfying meals, the likes of which I have not experienced in some time. Menus were guarded, ingredients were bought, borrowed, and scrounged, and humble hotel kitchens came to life. In the evenings, we converged at the table to enjoy exciting new dishes prepared with skill and care, which exhibited the personal touch of that night's chef. Rice, chicken, squash, carrots, corn, beans, tomatoes, kale, and other foods were woven into impressive fare that recalled fond memories of family suppers at home.

After witnessing the wide array of recipes offered, I realized that cooking for 6 under such conditions was an easier task than I first thought, and a tasty one, to boot. Also came the added benefit of a solid night's work followed by a break while someone else worked their feast-making maneuvers.

Over our time together, I have observed that we function not entirely unlike a family, working together each day and sharing our ups and downs through 107 shows and counting. So, too, have we sat and shared food and drink on many occasions. We have reached a remarkable rapport, and this is, I believe, why I have enjoyed our meals together so much. I've heard it said that it's the company, not the cooking, that makes the meal.

Food is good by its own right, but I can only hope to always have the opportunity to partake in it with friends. Cheers!

Farewell, db Burger!

Tuesday evening a friend and I made a beeline to db Bistro Moderne for a final visit; the bistro and sister restaurant Lumière are closing March 13. I just had to have the famous – some would say infamous – original db Burger. When would the chance come again?

For those who don’t know, this is an amazing meal: a lump of foie gras and a chunk of truffle-marinated braised short rib packed inside a globe of ground prime sirloin - on a bun, with a side of perfect fries.It’s not priced like any burger at a fast food joint, and it prompted me to double up on the anti-gout pills, but definitely a “burger and fries” meal to be consumed with relish at least once.

As if the db Burger itself were not enough reason to make the trip to the west side, I wanted to tip my hat to Manjy and David Sidoo, partners in the restaurant with Daniel Boulud.

Manjy and David are great friends of Vancouver Opera and have given their support in so many ways – including an annual event at Lumière and db Bistro featuring wondrous food, music, creative cocktails, and conviviality, all in support of Vancouver Opera’s education programs.Manjy, as a member of the opera company’s board of directors is involved in other projects as well, but their signature event at Lumière and db Bistro Moderne was a much-anticipated, much-appreciated and very enjoyable way to help bring opera to students across the province. I salute them and thank them.

- James W. Wright, VO's General Director

Cinderella and International Women's Day

It's International Women's Day!

There are many powerful, smart women in opera (characters, yes, and also those of us who work in the industry! Ha!)

One such strong woman is Cinderella - especially the Cinderella in our Vancouver Opera In Schools touring production. Melissa, our VOIS Manager, has passed along these notes from stage director Rachel Peake:

Rather than accidentally dropping a shoe as she runs away, our Cinderella chooses to leave a bracelet behind as a way of making sure this man loves the real her. He can't be in love with the fairy tale - she wants him to see the truth before he decides who to choose. She knows happiness lies in being honest BOTH: with you and with others.

This powerful, smart Cinderella was a very exciting starting point for the designer, Drew Facey, and me. We BOTH love fairy tales and the romance of times past, but we wanted to bring in this modern sense of being proud of who you are. So we decided to add a little punk to this fairy tale!

“But she's really one smart cookie
And won't accept him
Until he proves that he will value
What he discovers when we strip away the fortunes”
– from Cinderella

Cinderella's 100th Show!

Our Vancouver Opera In Schools touring group is, at this very moment, in Port Moody finishing their 100th performance of Cinderella!

Here are some shots from this afternoon, just before the show began.



Outside Port Moody school!
We received a tweet from one of the cast members:

So we r at the school in Port Moody for our 100th show-

Photos from the set: Props table and wig station; Stage Manager Rebecca Craster with the costumes; the set; and the cast today!
Clockwise from top: Rebecca Craster, Joshua McFaul, Brian Lee, Caroline Jang, Tina Chang and Erin Lawson.

Happy 100th, Cinderella! Toi toi toi!

Great Art Stirs Passion

VO's General Director, James W. Wright, is a contributor to the Vancouver Sun's Community of Interest blog. Here's an excerpt from his latest post on why it's important to create - and support - new works of art.

It is the job of “art” not only to entertain, soothe, or comfort, but also to suggest, provoke, inspire, or “connect the dots” for us. Its job is also to remind us of who we are, whence we came, and where we might yet go. The great works of Verdi, Carr and Mahler do this. So do the exciting new works of art currently being created by Canadians and presented in theatres, galleries, and opera houses across our land. I encourage everyone to experience and support these new works. In doing so, we all help to define our still-evolving Canadian culture.

Read the rest over at The Vancouver Sun!

A Cinderella Moment

Vancouver Opera In Schools is again on the road, this time touring our production of Cinderella. Our Cinderella, Erin Lawson, shares this moment from Uclulet.

Here's one show moment that sticks in my head, not the least because it reminded me of what I expect I would have done as a little girl at a show of Cinderella, overcome by excitement.

This young lady, probably in kindergarten or grade one, was sitting right up by the stage. There was one moment that was so exciting for her she just *could not* keep her thoughts inside her head. I loved her all the more for it!

It was the moment when Alidoro presents me with the big white and golden present. Even before I had the chance to open the lid I heard this intake of breath and a little voice in the front row say, quite quietly, “it’s the dress.”

Now, this in itself was just charming, and I found I had more joy opening the present that day, just knowing that one little girl was right there with me! But, for this little girl, that was only the start.

With each subsequent item removed from the present, the volume and excitement level of her voice grew. Out comes the headpiece, “...it’s the dress.” Out come the gloves “...It’s THE Dress!” Out come the bracelets, “IT’S THE DRESS!!!”

Well, by this point I was grinning from ear to ear!!!

Now, I don’t actually pull the dress out of the box at this point. The dress reveal has to wait until the ball scene. So, off I went from the stage for my quick change, and when the curtain went up for the ball scene, I heard the crowning moment: a huge sigh of relief and our little friend exclaiming “I KNEW there’d be a dress!”

And she sat there quietly for the rest of the show, with a big smile on her fairytale loving face.

And here's a photo from the road: Erin at Long Beach.

I think this photo best captures the essence of the beauty that this amazing province has to shown me.

Being from Ontario, I have NEVER had the opportunity to travel through a place that goes from mountains, that make me feel dwarfed by their magnitude, to rain forest so dense you feel like you're breathing in a history of moss of a million years, to this amazing vista at Long Beach where I could, and did, just sit and stare forever!

photo courtesy of Brian Lee

When Gina Met Steve

Gina Oh is used to performing for important audiences. She has sung at the South Korean Presidential House, was named one of the most influential Korean Women of the World in 2008 and has been the subject of TV documentaries by BCTV, TVKorea and the Multicultural Network.

Now Gina can add one more achievement to her ever-growing list: singing for Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

This week, Gina was invited to perform the national anthem for the PM. Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, Senator Yonah Kim-Martin, and the Hon. Stockwell Day were also in attendance, along with lots of press and security!

After the performance, Gina was invited to the VIP reception for some private time with Canada's leaders.

Gina is also the Artistic Curator of VO's Voices of the Pacific Rim - an evening of opera with an Asian twist! VOPR is on Sunday, March 20th at 7:30pm at the Vancouver Playhouse. Tickets ($25) and info are available here. All are welcome!

VO hearts NY

Two very generous VO supporters were the lucky winners of a spectacular auction package at this year's Overture event.

What's Overture, you ask?

Overture is our annual gala event that kicks off every season: a glamorous dinner and amazing entertainment against the backdrop of an opera set, on the stage at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre.

There's also an auction that features prize packages that you'll never see anywhere else, courtesy of some very generous sponsors. This unique event raises the funds that help VO produce the shows you love.

In honour of Lillian Alling, the theme of this year's Overture was Manhattan to the Mountaintops.

Up for grabs in the auction was a New York package, which included a stay at the Four Seasons Hotel New York, a pair of Tiffany earrings (and a tour of the Tiffany & Co. flagship store), a tour of the famous skyline via Manhattan by Sail (plus champagne brunch), a personalized tour of Ellis Island and dinner at Restaurant Daniel.

And if that weren't enough, the package also included a behind-the-scenes tour of The Met (given by Carol Isaac, one of opera's most sought-after vocal coaches), and tickets to the West End production of Billy Elliot.

VO patrons David Cousins and Pat Dawson beat the clamouring crowds to win this spectacular package. Here they are at Ellis Island, along with Ellis Island tour guide Tom Bernardin.

VO sends out a great big thank you to our Overture donors
Tiffany & Co., Four Seasons New York, Carol Isaac, Ellis Island Tours with Tom Bernadin, Manhattan by Sail, Restaurant Daniel and the DINEX Group, and the Tenement Museum.

Want to find out more about VO's special events? Click here!