Opera Under the Stars
 

Champagne Trio- From Strauss’s Die Fledermaus. This song is a bubbly toast to champagne with champagne!

 

La Bohème - Giacomo Puccini

Set in Paris in the 1830s, this is probably the most well-known Puccini opera. The opera opens by introducing the four young bachelors sharing a small apartment unit. There is Rodolfo the poet, Marcello the artist, Colline the philosopher, and Schaunard the musician.

​Act 1 takes place on Christmas Eve, and the men decide to head out to the local Café Momus to celebrate the evening. Rodolfo, however, wants to stay behind to finish his writing, promising to join later. Suddenly, there is a knock on the door. It is his beautiful neighbor, Mimì, asking for help to light her candle. On her way out, she realizes that she lost her key. As they both search for her key, both their candles blow out. Rodolfo finds her key in the darkness and slips it in his pocket. A beautiful sliver of moonlight shines in through his window as their hands touch for the first time. In a desire to keep the conversation going, Rodolfo sings "Che gelida manina" (What a frozen little hand) introducing himself to Mimì. He tells her that he is a poet, a man of many words. She replies with an aria of her own, “Si, mi chiamano Mimì”, (Yes, my name is Mimì.) Mimì talks about the simple joys in her life, like her embroidery work and the beautiful sunrises that stream through her window. Suddenly head over heels in love, they sing the famous duet “O soave fanciulla” (O, sweet girl) as they leave for Café Momus together, arm in arm.

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 Act 2 is all about Musetta. The whole act builds to her entrance and her aria, Musetta’s Waltz, officially titled “Quando me’n vo’” (When I go along). Marcello is out at the Café Momus with his friends when his ex-girlfriend, Musetta, walks in. Even though she is there with her date, the wealthy Alcindoro, and Marcello is pointedly trying to avoid her, Musetta is determined to win him back. So, in true Musetta fashion, she makes a scene to make him jealous, hopping up on the tables and singing her waltz about how all the men look at her when she goes out looking as fabulous as she does. Her plan works and the act finishes with her back in Marcello’s arms.

 

Pirates of Penzance - Gilbert and Sullivan

Gilbert and Sullivan have some of the most popular shows in the genre of operetta. These shows are light, cheeky, and more closely mimic what we might think of as a modern day musical with a combination of songs and spoken dialogue. But they still have a distinctly operatic flair in their outlandish plots and over the top characters.

 

This particular operetta follows the plight of a young man named Fredric who has been apprenticed as a pirate since he was young. It is his 21st birthday so he is being released from his apprentice ship and he announced to the crew that he no longer wishes to be a pirate. So, they drop him off on land. Having spent his entire adolescence on a boat full of men and his old childhood nurse who came with him on this journey, he is delighted when he almost immediately stumbles upon a troop of sisters on a picnic at the beach. He desperately serenades them hoping to win the love of just one sister (Oh, Is There Not One Maiden Breast?). None are interested, except the eldest, Mabel! She jumps at the chance (Poor Wand’ring One). The couple is happy, briefly.

 

It is soon revealed that Fredric was born on a leap year. Which means that technically he is not 21 years old and must return to the pirate troupe to continue his apprenticeship. He and Mabel are heartbroken (Stay Fredric, Stay!) as it is a long time before he will be 21 in leap years! 

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Intermission

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Don Giovanni - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

If you have seen the movie Amadeus, you will be familiar with the final scene of Don Giovanni. The ghost/statue of the Commendatore drags the titular character in quite the epic scene (Sorry. Spoilers). If you haven’t seen Amadeus, I highly recommend it. It’s a fun interpretation of what Mozart’s life might have been. 

 

A prolific composer, Don Giovanni, remains one of Mozart’s most performed works. It follows the story of nobleman Don Giovanni, as he attempts to seduce, take advantage of, and otherwise use every woman he comes across with really no consequences to himself until the very end of the show. It is thought to be a commentary on and condemnation of the behavior of Mozart’s own noble patron at the time. Mozart opera plots are notoriously complicated (in a good way!) with lots of characters. I’ll do my best to keep this brief but this might be a longer than usual program note section!

 

The opera opens with a masked Don Giovanni fleeing Donna Anna’s room with her chasing angrily after him. He had tried to break in and take advantage of her while she was sleeping. The commotion rouses her father, The Commendatore, who rushes to his daughter’s aid. He and Don Giovanni duel and the Commendatore is killed. Don Giovanni flees the scene leaving Donna Anna behind, devastated at the death of her father. Her fiancé, Don Ottavio, tries to console her, but in their duet, "Fuggi! Crudele! Fuggi!" (Flee! Cruel One! Flee!),Donna Anna swears revenge on the mystery assailant.

 

With his mask, Donna Anna did not recognize her assailant and is having a conversation with Don Giovanni, when suddenly a former lover bursts in and warns Donna Anna of Don Giovanni’s philandering ways. Donna Elvira has been angrily stalking Don Giovanni throughout the opera seeking her own closure. Upon hearing these accusations, Donna Anna realizes she recognizes Don Giovanni’s voice as her attacker. She tells Don Ottavio, but he isn’t convinced. He believes that all noblemen have upstanding character and can’t imagine someone in his social class behaving like Donna Anna’s attacker. He sings "Dalla sua pace la mia dipende" (On her peace, my peace depends) he resolves to keep an eye on his friend for the sake of his fiancée's mental health.

 

Don Giovanni is throwing a big wedding party for Zerlina as an attempt to lure her away from her husband, Masetto. Donna Elvira, Donna Anna, and Don Ottavio are tipped off about the part and come in disguise to try and catch Don Giovanni in the act. They sing a little trio, "Protegga il giusto cielo", (Protect us, fair heavens). Well, at least, the couple is praying for protection. Donna Elvira is praying for revenge, as usual.

 

Don Giovanni almost gets Zerlina away, but Matteo catches up with him with a group of friends. Don Giovanni cleverly scatters Matteo’s friends, takes Matteo’s weapons, and basically beats him to a pulp before running away laughing. Zerlina consoles the injured Matteo with "Vedrai, carino" (You’ll see dear one). She makes him feel better by seducing him with the comforts of her love.

 

Throughout the opera, Donna Elvira has been on her relentless quest to capture Don Giovanni. Her motives aren’t really clear, but she is very angry. I like to think she just wants to yell at him and get all that anger out, but that's just my theory. There is a line in one of the ensembles where Elvira refers to Don Giovanni as her husband. Whether that is true, or she was duped, or she is just delusional, I’d be pretty mad too if I found out this is who I was married to. After so many failed attempts, her anger comes to a head in "Mì tradi quell’alma ingrata" (That ungrateful wretch betrayed me). Her anger, along with a tiny bit of pity pours out of her as she muses on what could turn a person into someone like Don Giovanni.

 

Wicked - Stephen Schwartz

With the movie (or at least act one) coming out this year, this section hardly needs an introduction. But I’ll do it anyway!

 

The musical explores the villain origin story of the Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz. In this show, she goes by the name Elphaba and meets the young Glinda the Good Witch in school before either of them are witches. In a classic high school summer camp style plot, they end up becoming accidental roommates and hate it. They are as different as possible. Glinda loves pink and popularity and Elphaba loves alone time as she has green skin, which is unusual even for the Land of Oz. In "What Is This Feeling?", they write home to their families to talk about how much they hate their new roommate.

 

But the hatred doesn’t last long. They soon become fast friends and end up taking a trip to see the Wizard of Oz as Elphaba has extraordinary magical powers. But upon meeting the Wizard, Elphaba realizes that he is not the man she thought he was and he has been responsible for a lot of the persecution and turmoil that has been rocking the land of Oz, particularly in regards to the Animals, a demographic Elphaba is very passionate about protecting. She vows to work against the Wizard and right this wrong in her famous song, Defying Gravity.

 

Act two is full of turmoil for all our characters. For those of you who have only seen the movie, I will spare you the spoilers so you can enjoy it in all its glory when the movie comes out. But at some point, the two friends meet back up and sing For Good. It is an incredible duet about the power of friendships to change the entire direction of someone’s life. I welcome you to think of someone important to you during this duet and try not to cry..

 

Carousel - Rodgers and Hammerstein

Carrie Pepperidge is in love with Enoch Snow. She plans to marry him one day and sings of the idyllic life they will have together in the song Mister Snow. Her friend Julie, on the other hand, has attracted the attention of a rakish carousel worker, Billy Bigelow. His attention gets Julie fired from her job but she doesn’t care. Alone at night with Billy, they shyly sing what their own love might be like in If I Loved You.

 

The last song of our program tonight is You’ll Never Walk Alone. Even outside the context of the show, this song is a powerful one. Together, surrounded by the people we love, we can get through anything. It is a reminder that when things get tough, to find those who will hold you up and walk through the storm with you. Cherish those who show you true love, as they are your greatest asset.

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Thank you!!

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We want to thank all of you for joining us this evening. We hope you had an enjoyable evening with us. Cheers!

 

​While this concert is free, we do take donations. It is with your support that we can continue our mission - to make opera accessible to everyone. If you would like to donate, you can place cash in the jars on the tables near the stage. We also accept payment via Vemno @overdressedduo. For a check donation or if you would like a receipt for your donation, please speak with one of our volunteers wearing the pink volunteer lanyards. We thank you for your support.

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​Overdressed is a 501c3 non-profit organization.

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