Connecticut Lyric Opera (CLO) is pleased to announce the first production of its 2011-2012 performance season, one of greatest of all French operas, Les Contes d’Hoffmann (Tales of Hoffmann) by Jacques Offenbach. This fully staged Opera Fantastique will be performed during this production run in New Britain (Nov. 4), Middletown (Nov. 6), New London (Nov. 13) and Middletown (Nov. 19).
Jacques Offenbach became rich and famous as a composer of operettas full of witty topical references and irresistible tunes, but as he neared the end of his life, he craved more: acceptance as a “serious” composer. He decided to write an opera and chose the fantastical and often enigmatic stories of the real life of German poet, E.T.A. Hoffmann, and placed him as the title character of three, fanciful stories of failed love. The result is one of the grandest and most expressive of all 19th-century French operas — achieving a combination of emotional depth and musical brilliance that only the finest opera composers ever equaled. Filled with many memorable tunes, most notable are the beautiful soprano/mezzo duet, the “Barcarolle” (Belle nuit, ô nuit d’amour) and the Doll Song, the coloratura showpiece of the wind-up doll Olympia.
Starring in the title role, fresh from a recent triumph at England’s prestigious Glyndebourne Festival and preparing to make his debut at the Royal Opera Covent Garden this winter is tenor Michael Wade Lee. The extraordinary cast of singers will also include the CLO’s resident soprano, Lithuanian Jurate Svedaite, who will sing the roles of Giulietta and Antonia; crowd favorite Romanian bass-baritone Laurentiu Rotaru will return as the multiple villains; Connecticut native Sarah Asmar debuts with the company as Olympia; while the role of Nicklaus will be portrayed by outstanding Ukrainian mezzo-soprano Galina Ivannikova, who is also debuting with CLO. The production is co-staged by Chris Ryan and Jayson Ferrandino, with Set Design and Costumes by Katie Jurkiewicz and an original set for to be built by Phoenix Theater of New Britain. Finally, as always, CLO Artistic Director, maestro Adrian Sylveen will lead the outstanding Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra (CVCO) in this production that is fully staged with a twenty-voice chorus and English supertitle translations above the stage.
Tales of Hoffmann is co-produced with CLO’s resident orchestra, the CVCO, and will be premiered at Trinity-on-Main Arts Center, New Britain on Nov. 4 at 8pm and repeated on Nov. 6 at 3pm at Middletown High School Arts Center; on Nov. 13 at 5pm at the Garde Arts Center, New London; and on Nov. 19 at 8:00pm at the Palace Theater, Waterbury.
About Connecticut Lyric Opera
Founded in 2003, CLO is SE CT’s only full season opera company and is a 501(c)(3) non-profit cultural and educational organization whose mission is: Inspire – to contribute to the cultural life of Southeastern Connecticut and beyond with the highest quality operas and concerts from the traditional and contemporary repertoires; Involve – to encourage the development of Connecticut based singers, musicians and theatrical artisans through their participation in professional opera productions; Instill – to present opera to people of all ages in such a way as to foster a love and appreciation of the form in particular, and classical and vocal music in general. CLO is grateful for support to The Frank Loomis Palmer Fund, The State of Connecticut’s Commission on Culture and Tourism, Pfizer, the New London Day, and others. For tickets to the New London performance call The Garde’s box office at (860) 444-7373 or visit GardeArts.org; for additional information call (860) 440-3594 or visit CtLyricOpera.org. For tickets to other performances visit TheVirtuosi.org.
About the Artists
Continuing to thrill audiences worldwide with his powerful voice and amazing performances, critics hail American Tenor Michael Wade Lee as “that rarity among operatic tenors, a really good-looking, virile, well-built and gifted thespian with a wide-ranging voice to match.” A seasoned performer on the operatic stage, he performs with some of the most respected companies in the world, including the Greek National Opera, New York City Opera, San Antonio Opera, Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Staatstheater Mainz, Chautauqua Opera, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Mississippi Opera, El Paso Opera, Musica Viva (Hong Kong) and the San Francisco Opera Center. Michael has thrilled CLO audiences in memorable performances of the Duke in Rigoletto and most recently as Tamino in last season’s Magic Flute, and will make his debut with one of the world’s greatest opera company – the Royal Opera, Covent Garden – once he finishes this run as Hoffmann.
Lithuanian soprano Jūratė Švedaitė has performed throughout Europe and the US with the Lithuanian National Chamber Orchestra, the European Baroque Festival Opera, Kaunas Chamber Orchestra, Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra, among others. Having last season performed Tosca and Pamina in Die Zauberflöte, her previous roles with CLO include Violetta in La traviata, Mimi in La bohème, Contessa in Le nozze di Figaro, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni, and Marguerite in Faust. The granddaughter of one of Lithuania’s most revered composers and arrangers of traditional music, Jonas Švedas, Ms. Švedaitė attended the Lithuanian Music Academy where she earned Bachelors and Masters and Degrees in Opera and Vocal Instruction. Ms. Švedaitė now resides in CT in Groton.
Romanian bass-baritone Laurentiu Rotaru began his career performing with The National Opera of Bucharest and as a soloist in numerous ensembles in Bucharest, touring Romania, Greece, Austria, Hungary, Italy, Canada and The United States. His operatic repertoire, including many with CLO encompasses roles such as Leporello in Don Giovanni, Don Basilio and Dr Bartolo in Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Méphistophélès in Faust, Sparafucile in Rigoletto, Dulcamara in L’elisir d’amore, Frère Laurent in Romeo et Juliettte, Gremin in Eugene Onegin and Geronte in Manon Lescaut. He earned his Bachelor’s in Music Performance from Central Connecticut State University and a Master of Music degree from University of Connecticut. He has won numerous competitions such as NATS and The Connecticut Guild Opera Competition, Metropolitan Opera Guild – New England Region, Gerda Lissner and Verismo Competition.
Mezzo-soprano Galina Ivannikova is originally from the Ukraine, where she was a leading performer at the Kiev Conservatory Opera and Nikolaev Musical Theatre and performed such roles as the title role of Carmen, Azucena in Il Trovatore, Maddalena in Rigoletto, Lubasha in the Tsar’s Bride, Olga in Eugene Onegin, and Marfa in Khovanshchina. In April 2011 she performed Amneris in Aida with New Jersey Verismo Opera and in October 2010 she performed Amneris with Opera Memphis. She is currently in the process of completing her doctorate in vocal performance at the University of Memphis, where she has performed the roles of Marcellina in The Marriage of Figaro and Prince Orlovsky in Die Fledermaus. She is also a first place winner of the University of Memphis Concerto Competition.
Conductor and virtuoso violinist Adrian Sylveen is a graduate of Paderewski Music Academy in Poznan, Poland and of the Yale University School of Music. His awards include First Prize at the International Chamber Music Competition in Lodz, Poland, the President of the Republic of Poland’s Award for Outstanding Achievement “Primus Inter Pares” and the Polish Department of Education National Scholarship. Mr. Mackiewicz has performed extensively in Poland, former USSR, Germany, and the US, where he has resided since 1992. In 1997 Maestro Sylveen founded the Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra, a New Britain-based orchestra dedicated to presenting and preserving the traditions of chamber music, both traditional and contemporary, which is also CLO’s resident orchestra. In addition to his duties with CLO (as general and artistic director and conductor) and the Virtuosi, Mr. Sylveen is also Artistic Director of the Classical Orchestra of Piła in Poland and the New Britain Chorale.