It’s always nice to get something novel in a press kit. In anticipation of its world premiere production of Kirke Mechem’s The Rivals, The Skylight Opera Theatre put together a pretty impressive package for those of us covering the local theatre scene. This particular kit included, among other things, a CD with some 9 tracks on it. Featuring bits that will appear in the show.
Here are a couple of those tracks. This is music written for Kirke Mechem’s The Rivals excerpted from recordings of the Maryland Opera Studio. Leon Major, Director. Miah Im, Conductor.
MRS. MALAPROP'S ARIA by Kirke Mechem
RAGTIME TRIO by Kirke Mechem
An opera in English--just a few voices and a piano. It kind of reminds me of recordings I still have that were drawn from an English-translated UWM studio theatre production of Donizetti’s Don Pasquale that I did tech for ages ago. There’s a kind of intimacy and responsiveness in tiny operajust a few voices and a piano. Where as the intimacy of an English translation of Donizetti worked so well in a studio environment, this contemporary operatic adaptation of a late 18th century farce can’t help but be opened-up and expended beautifully with a larger orchestra under the music direction of the substantially talented Richard Carsey.
The Skylight Opera Theatre’s world-premiere of The Rivals runs September 16th through October 2nd. For ticket reservations, call 414-291-7800.
