Contact:Gretchen Miller Basso
Public Relations Director
The Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra
Phone: 407/896-6700 x 223
Fax: 407/896-5512
gmiller@orlandophil.org
www.orlandophil.org
(Orlando, FL – March 3, 2010) – After two successful performances of the Philharmonic’s inaugural concert opera, Carmen, The Orlando Philharmonic enthusiastically presents the second opera in its new concert opera series – Porgy and Bess. The opera is presented in collaboration with Mad Cow Theatre and the “Negro Spiritual” Scholarship Foundation, and is directed by Mad Cow’s Alan Bruun. Porgy and Bess is held on Friday, April 9, 2010 at 8:00 PM and Sunday, April 11, 2010 at 2:00 PM at the Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre, 401 W. Livingston Street, Orlando. This series is generously sponsored by the Dr. P. Phillips Foundation, United Arts of Central Florida, Darden Restaurants Foundation and media sponsor WMFE 90.7 FM.
Porgy and Bess reigns as George Gershwin’s American Masterpiece. Music includes “Summertime,” the sultry, bluesy lullaby. Music Director Christopher Wilkins says, “Everyone knows it; it is part of the American musical signature. And most people also know “It Ain’t Necessarily So” and “I Got Plenty of Nuttin’,” clever high-spirited tunes wedded to two of the finest lyrics in all of American music.”
Wilkins goes on to describe the opera, “Porgy and Bess is a tour-de-force, a magnificent proclamation of passion and compassion, putting it squarely and fairly in the company of the greatest grand operas in the repertory. ‘If I am successful, it will resemble a combination of the drama and romance of Carmen and the beauty of Meistersinger, if you can imagine that,’ Gershwin wrote in 1933 to the Charleston reporter Frank B. Gilbreth, the future author of Cheaper by the Dozen. What drives Porgy and Bess is what drives those other masterpieces: multi-layered emotional expression; human frailty exposed with deep empathy; the striving for something better in life; infectious humor; and violence real enough and believable enough to frighten. Every moment is packed with inspiration and intensity, revealing Gershwin’s uncanny gift for musical story-telling.
“The opera is a rare example of near-perfect collaboration,” Wilkins continues,” in this case between two unlikely pairs: two brothers from New York, George and Ira Gershwin, and two authors from Charleston, Dubose and Dorothy Heyward. Though approaching their subject from a white perspective, the affection Dubose Heyward and George Gershwin felt for the African American communities living on the sea islands of South Carolina is everywhere evident in the opera. The real world of early 20th century Charleston is heard in the Gullah hymns and worship songs, spirituals, work songs, folk songs, dance tunes, and even the cries of the street vendors. Gershwin’s supernatural ear – how else to describe his ability to imitate, assimilate, and adapt any music he heard? – made possible the astonishing blend of styles that coexist in Porgy and Bess. It is one of the miracles of American dramatic art.”
Porgy and Bess stars internationally acclaimed soprano Marquita Lister as Bess, and acclaimed bass baritone Alvy Powell. Considered by many to be the best ever in the role, Lister enjoyed enormous success this past summer at the Hollywood Bowl’s concert production of the Gershwin classic. Moreover, her performance as Bess in New York City Opera’s PBS broadcast of the opera prompted the prestigious opera house to award her its “Diva Award” for 2002. The Atlanta Journal Constitution, noting Ms. Lister as “tall and charismatic,” claimed her large voice matched the character’s emotional range: “…purring in the middle range, glassy on top…”
Staff Sergeant Alvy Powell is a bass baritone in the U.S. Army Band. His performance of Porgy in the New York City Opera production of Porgy and Bess, broadcast live from Lincoln Center on PBS, was nominated for an Emmy Award for Best Classical Music Production. Powell has performed the role of Porgy over 1,100 times with companies such as La Scala, Houston Grand Opera, San Francisco Opera, Cape Town Opera in South Africa, and Sydney, Australia.
Tickets to Porgy and Bess are: $14, $28, $40, $54 and $70. To purchase subscriptions and single tickets, phone 407-770-0071, or visit www.OrlandoPhil.org.
The Orlando Philharmonic is proud to carry on the tradition of opera in Central Florida. We hope that you will join and support us as we continue our journey into the world of opera!
