Making History Again...

The 2011 Festival is fast approaching its June 25th opening with Bizet’s Carmen. With nearly 150 people working in Central City, including staff members, singers, the production teams along with numerous other contributors, it’s not often that everyone comes to a halt during the frenzied workweek. A much-needed break, of sorts, did come to the entire company this past Thursday with our 2011 Company Meeting. Led by Artistic and General Director Pat Pearce and Music Director John Baril, along with Festival Manager Karen Federing and Artistic Director Emeritus John Moriarty, the meeting took place in the historic Opera House.

We began with Pat Pearce explaining, among other things, that the houselights are never brought up any higher than the original gas-light level of illumination.  This provides plenty of light to read your program or visit with your friends before the show and at intermission, but does make it a little interesting to capture pictures of the company gathering!

Pat Pearce in silhouette, in front of the house curtain

After introductions of the Denver year-round administrative staff, and the Festival's artistic, music and production staff, Artistic Director Emeritus John Moriarty spoke on the vibrant history of the Opera House and the City of Central.

Artistic Director Emeritus John Moriarty and members of the 2011 Festival Company

“Each of us is not only a cog, a part of this machine, but we are the caretakers of this historic building,” he said, as he addressed the group. His passion for Central City Opera and surrounding area was evident as he spent almost an hour sharing a detailed and enticing history. Starting with the founding of Colorado and ending with the present day, Mr. Moriarty’s unscripted monologue provided a synopsis worthy of a history-book but far too genuine to be preserved.

To discover more about the memorable birth of Central City Opera’s Summer Festival with the 1932 performance of Camille starring Lillian Gish, or why it is that there was no Festival in the summer of 1982, you can read our brief history online. Or relive Central City Opera's history with the commemorative book, Theatre of Dreams: The Glorious Central City Opera - Celebrating 75 Years. This 200-page limited edition hardcover coffee table book includes never before seen photos and in-depth stories of the people, places and things that make Central City Opera a gem in the Colorado Rockies. Order your own copy of this one-of-a-kind piece of Colorado history today for only $30 by contacting the Box Office at (303) 292-6700.

“This is us,” stated John Moriarty as he pointed to the painted interior walls of the Opera House. As the fifth-oldest Opera House in the nation, Central City Opera has a strong history that makes it undeniably unique. If you’ve experienced Central City Opera and the surrounding area, you just know: it’s tradition worth cherishing.

And with those inspiring words, we all returned to our various positions throughout the Central City Opera properties, where everything's a-buzz with preparations for YOUR arrival.

Tech tables are currently covering the back rows of the theatre for the production staff's use.

The billboards with this year's productions and principal artists are hanging outside the Opera House doors.

Stagehands Cindy and Toni hang the masking curtains at the side of the stage.

CARMEN's red staircase peeks from behind the house pieces from our Triple Bill (GIANNI SCHICCHI, THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS and THE BREASTS OF TIRESIAS).

Costume Designer Alice Marie Kugler Bristow and her crew work on pieces for THE BREASTS OF TIRESIAS.

How will it look when it all comes together? You won’t know until you go!

This blog post was written jointly by Jake Sinatra and Erin Joy Swank.