Opera Saratoga Celebration Kicks Off 62nd Season
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Opera Saratoga kicked off its 62nd season with a gathering and press event May 31 on Broadway at Saratoga Arts.
General and Artistic Director Mary Birnbaum discussed highlights of the season, her first as curator, director and producer, and performers entertained the crowd with a live abbreviated showcase of the upcoming season’s staging of “Guys and Dolls,” and “Cosi fan tutte.”
Saratoga Springs Finance Commissioner Minita Sanghvi was in attendance representing the city and presented Opera Saratoga with a $15,000 check, which community members authorized by a public vote in the city’s Participatory Budgeting process.
Opera Saratoga 2024 season will feature three new productions this summer at Universal Preservation Hall. These are:
-Guys And Dolls, June 29, July 2,3,5,6,7. Guys and Dolls features Mikaela Bennett (City Center Encores’ The Golden Apple, West Side Story at Glimmerglass), as Sarah Brown. The gambling musical features direction by Mary Birnbaum, choreography by Caili Quan, and musical direction by Andy Einhorn (Broadway’s Carousel and Hello, Dolly!), with scenic design by Kristen Robinson, lighting design by Anshuman Bhatia and costume design by Oana Botez. In addition to those already announced, the cast of Guys and Dolls will feature William Socolof as Nathan Detroit, Ariadne Greif as Miss Adelaide, Shavon Lloyd as Sky Masterson, Maximillian Jansen as Nicely Nicely Johnson, and Aubrey Allicock as Arvide Abernathy.
-Così Fan Tutte, June 28 & 30, July 3,6. Mozart’s opera Così Fan Tutte features Grammy nominated bass-baritone Aubrey Allicock as the cynical Don Alfonso. The opera also features Nicoletta Berry as Despina, Julia Stuart as Fiordiligi, Anna Kelley as Dorabella, Maximillian Jansen as Ferrando, and Michael Hawk as Guglielmo. Directed by Gisela Cardenas (Princess Grace Fellow) and conducted by Ryan McAdams (Crash Ensemble, Opernhaus Zürich).
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-Inti Figgis-Vizueta World Premiere Opera, June 30 & July 5. A world premiere opera, devised and composed during the summer season by Composer-in-Residence Inti Figgis-Vizueta.
Additionally, Listen To This: Voices From The Future – will take place at Universal Preservation Hall June 4, June 11, and June 18. The three-part concert series hands the mic to cutting-edge creators who break through boundaries of what opera can be through the lens of access and healing.
Tuesday, June 4: The Other Side Of Silence will feature work by RPI Director of Institute Ensembles Robert Whalen; Tuesday, June 11: Winterreise, Director George Miller, Bass-Baritone William Socolof and Pianist Chris Reynolds collaborate on the workshop of a contemporary staging of Schubert’s seminal song cycle Winterreise; Tuesday, June 18: i woke up in the sky, composer-performer Catherine Brookman shares her album i woke up in the sky with Opera Saratoga’s audiences.
“This season pays homage to Saratoga Springs’ history as a pleasure-seeker’s paradise and betting destination while looking to the future by pushing the definition of what opera can be – and how it can be made – forward,” Birnbaum said. “We hope to tempt risk-takers to the festival by dazzling them with reinventions of two classics in addition to a totally unique creation that they can only see in Saratoga.”
For tickets and more information, go to: operasaratoga.org.