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Opera Westminster to Present “The Marriage of Figaro”

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Posted on Friday, March 23, 2018

On Saturday, April 7 in Orr Auditorium, Opera Westminster will present the full-scale opera “The Marriage of Figaro” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (in English) at 7:30 p.m. This light-hearted opera, directed by Mihai Valcu, will showcase faculty members and students from the School of Music and is open to the public for free admission.

Preparations for the opera began in the fall semester of 2017, and this was the first time Westminster Opera practiced for two semesters due to the length and nature of the singing.

“What’s most rewarding about this work is seeing students learn to work together,” professor of music Dr. Anne Bentz said.  “Any weak link really stands out in rehearsal and ultimately in the performance forcing the ensemble to really takes ownership for the success of the production.”

Opera Westminster is Westminster College’s School of Music’s opera performance group who puts on a show every other year. Students are offered opportunities to perform in the opera, play in the orchestra or help produce the show. 

“The choice of opera is dependent upon several factors: the size and constellation of the group interested in performing, the years of experience performing with Opera Westminster and the level of expertise of the individual singers based on a consensus between Opera director, voice instructor and conductor,” Bentz said.

“The Marriage of Figaro” requires eight performers to be on stage most of the time, so students Rhiannon Griffiths, Jeremy Roberts, Samantha Connell, Zachary Balog, Alexandra Isabella, Lauren Faber, Meghan Kowalski, David Osorno, Corey McNulty, mathematics professor John Bonomo and alumnus Matthew Younger will perform.