Millikin University's Opera Theatre program will present an entertaining Mozart double bill that takes a trip through the rough-and-tumble timeless world of theatre. Performances will be held Feb. 9-12 in Albert Taylor Theatre, inside Shilling Hall on Millikin's campus.
Audiences will witness the influence of an experienced con man over two seemingly hopeless lovers; a theatre on the verge of bankruptcy, a newly appointed director who already wishes to retire, a delusional and stage-hungry assistant, and two opera divas auditioning for the same part, under the "protection" of a power-hungry-misogynistic business man.
The play is a tongue and cheek story taken from Mozart's operas "Bastien and Bastienna" and "The Impersario." The opera is separated into two acts in the setting of a modern-day rundown theatre. The first act is a dark comedy about the lives of a few theatre employees. The second is about the drama and characters that run the theatre.
In a recent interview with the Herald & Review, Ricardo Sepúlveda, visiting lecturer of music and coordinator of opera at Millikin, said, "Doing this allows people like me with very modest resources to put something together at a larger scale with less money. It also allows me to be a little more flexible to find something suitable for the talent that I have, for the voice and the age."
Both the dialogue and music are performed in English and a live orchestra accompanies the cast.
"Whenever I am performing this type of show, I'm paying homage to the masters who created this," said Vance Martinez, a junior music major from Terre Haute, Ind. "It forces us to do our best. It's all about the music being delivered and the respect to the composer."
Click here to read more about the production in an article from the Herald & Review.
