- Season includes Company premieres of DvoÅ™ák’s Rusalka, Dove’s Flight, Kaminsky/Campbell/Reed’s As One and Copland’s The Tender Land as well as a new production of Strauss’ Die Fledermaus
- New subscriptions on sale starting October 2, 2017; single tickets on sale starting February 1, 2018
Indianola, IA – Michael Egel, General and Artistic Director of Des Moines Metro Opera, has announced the complete repertory for the Company’s 2018 Season, which includes its 46th Summer Festival and 2nd Stages Series. The productions for the 2018 Season include mainstage performances of Johann Strauss II’s effervescent and intoxicating Die Fledermaus, DvoÅ™ák’s mystical masterpiece Rusalka and Jonathan Dove’s charming and instantly beguiling comedy, Flight, as well as productions of Kaminsky/Campbell/Reed’s poignant and touching one-act opera, As One, and Copland’s quintessential American opera, The Tender Land as part of the Company’s popular 2nd Stages Series.
“Curating a season of fascinating works that contrast and complement one another in compelling ways is a hallmark of our company,” said Egel. “The 2018 Season is a beautiful combination of powerful, ethereal and laugh-out-loud funny works.” For the 46th Summer Festival, Die Fledermaus, Rusalka and Flight will be presented for 15 performances between June 22 and July 15, 2018, at the Blank Performing Arts Center in Indianola, IA.
Additional production information:
DIE FLEDERMAUS
Music by Johann Strauss II
Libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée
Premiered on 5 April 1874 in Vienna
June 23, 24, 29, July 7, 12, 15
Sung in English with English dialogue, and English supertitles.
A new Des Moines Metro Opera production. Last seen at DMMO in 1989.
An effervescent and delightful confection, Johann Strauss II’s beloved operetta Die Fledermaus waltzes right into your heart with infectious charm, witty repartee and gorgeous melodies. The supreme example of Viennese operetta, Die Fledermaus both defines and transcends that genre. Its story centers on a magnificent masked ball, given by a Russian prince, which brings together all the main characters in various disguises. The three-act journey from boudoir to ballroom to prison provides ample opportunities for farce and humor, but also for genuine human emotion. Returning to the mainstage after a near 30-year absence, this new production features Taylor Stayton as Alfred with David Gately returning as stage director and Robert Moody making his DMMO debut as conductor.
RUSALKA
Music by Antonín DvoÅ™ák
Libretto by Jaroslav Kvapil
Premiered 31 March 1901 in Prague
June 22, July 1, 3, 6, 14
Sung in Czech with English supertitles
A new Des Moines Metro Opera production. Company premiere.
The only one of DvoÅ™ák’s operas to gain an international following, Rusalka is in many ways a definitive example of late Romanticism—containing folklore, evocations of the natural and the supernatural worlds, and even a poignant interpretation of the idea of a love-death. The story has a strong national flavor as well as universal appeal, infused by the Romantic supernaturalism of Friedrich de la Motte Fouque’s novella Undine and Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid. Des Moines Metro Opera’s new production will be offered 125 years following DvoÅ™ák’s famous residency in Spillville, IA (1893) during which he created his famous New World Symphony. Sara Gartland, who was last seen at DMMO as Jenůfa, returns to Des Moines Metro Opera to sing the title role. The production will be conducted by DMMO Marshall and Judy Flapan Music Director and Principal Conductor David Neely and also features the returns of director Chas Rader-Schieber and designer Jacob Climber.
FLIGHT
Music by Jonathan Dove
Libretto by April De Angelis
Premiered on 24 September 1998
June 30, July 8, 10, 13
Sung in English with English supertitles
A new Des Moines Metro Opera production. Company premiere.
Jonathan Dove’s breakthrough work, Flight, was commissioned by Glyndebourne and premiered in 1998. With a libretto by leading British playwright April de Angelis, the opera has both laugh-out-loud and touching moments as the story of the refugee who lives in the airport—inspired by the true-life story of an Iranian refugee who lived at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris for 18 years—unfolds around the different characters who find themselves delayed in the terminal. The question was whether Dove could create a “Marriage of Figaro” for the today. And the answer was a superb original modern-day operatic comedy which has found universal popularity, with many different productions and over 85 performances to date across the world. This production will feature director Kristine McIntyre and Marhsall and Judy Flapan Music Director and Principal Conductor David Neely, as well as the debut of countertenor John Holiday as the Refugee.
The new season will also continue the company’s popular 2nd Stages Series, another part of Egel’s new vision for the organization. Now entering its fourth year, this series is an initiative designed to present operas in non-traditional spaces in Des Moines proper. As part of the 2nd Stages Series, the company will present the following productions:
AS ONE
Music by Laura Kaminsky
Libretto by Mark Campbell and Kimberly Reed
Company premiere.
Presented in collaboration with One Iowa and Trans Iowa
November 17, 18, 19
Stoner Theater, Des Moines, IA
Tickets available September 1, 2017
As One is an intimate chamber opera in which two voices—Hannah before (baritone) and Hannah after (mezzo-soprano) share the part of a sole transgender protagonist. With empathy and humor, we experience Hannah’s youthful challenges in a small town, her struggles with family, her discovery of a larger community, and her inspiring journey of becoming true to herself. Composer Laura Kaminsky and co-librettists Mark Campbell and Kimberly Reed follow Hannah’s journey as she works to resolve the discord between herself and the outside world. Two of the Company’s most beloved artists, mezzo-soprano Elise Quagliata and baritone John Moore, return to sing the role of Hannah. “As One forces you to think, simultaneously challenging preconceptions and inspiring empathy—with winning humor and a satisfying emotional arc.” —The New York Times
THE TENDER LAND
Music by Aaron Copland
Libretto by Horace Everett (a pseudonym for Erik Johns)
July 5, 8
A new Des Moines Metro Opera production. Company premiere.
Performance location to be announced at a later date.
Tickets available to subscribers on September 1, 2017; to general public on February 1, 2018
The Tender Land is the quintessential American opera composed by Aaron Copland, the Dean of American composers. His music is readily recognizable and speaks of the American landscape. The opera is about a traditional, humble, rural 1930s Iowa family suspicious of outsiders and their morals. When two worldly drifters arrive seeking work on the Moss family farm, their daughter Laurie, about to graduate from high school, falls in love with one of them and is torn between her roots and her desire to explore the world.
Audiences are encouraged to secure tickets early as seats for the 2nd Stages Series performances will be limited and performances customarily sell out.
The productions of Die Fledermaus, Rusalka and Flight will be performed in rotating repertory in the intimate 467-seat Pote Theatre at the Blank Performing Arts Center in Indianola, Iowa. As One will be presented at the Stoner Theater in downtown Des Moines as part of the Company’s popular 2nd Stages Series, an initiative committed to creating collaborative performances designed to engage new audiences in unique spaces. Each opera features English supertitles projected from two locations above the stage. The Des Moines Metro Opera Festival Orchestra, made up of professional musicians from across the country, will accompany all three mainstage productions. As always, Des Moines Metro Opera will continue to provide free opera previews prior to each performance.
Past subscribers are eligible to renew their Summer Festival Season subscriptions now. Beginning October 2, 2017, new subscriptions will be on sale to the general public. Subscribers can save up to 30% over buying single tickets and have the benefit of reserving their seats before single tickets go on sale. Full production and ticket information will be available by visiting www.desmoinesmetroopera.org after September 1 or by calling Des Moines Metro Opera's box office at (515) 961-6221. Summer Festival subscriptions range in price from $105 to $264.
Single tickets will go on sale February 1, 2018 and start at $37.