Ghostly encounters in Central City

This Opera House photo will help set the mood.

In honor of this summer's production of The Turn of the Screw, we are delving into the haunted history of our historic properties like the Opera House, the Teller House and Williams Stables. Check out one of the fabulous tales from the Teller House. 

The Teller House

If you have any spooky stories of ghostly encounters in Central City, please share them with us! Send your tales to me at hbrecl@centralcityopera.org and we will find fun ways to share them throughout the season.

Rodgers and Hammerstein at Christmas

Composer Richard Rodgers
pictured in the December 29, 1952
issue of Life

As December 25^th approaches, you can’t help but hear Christmas music and wintery tunes in stores and on the radio.

Rodgers and Hammerstein, the musical partners who wrote Oklahoma!, have a tune that’s often heard these days – the classic “My Favorite Things” from The Sound of Music.

While the song has no mention of Christmas or gift giving (other than mentioning brown paper packages), somehow this musical favorite has become acceptable as a holiday carol. Certainly the lyrics of warm woolen mittens, sleighbells, snowflakes and silvery white winters fit the season – but it’s not exactly a yuletide song. I suppose you could say that people are listing their “favorite things” that money can’t necessarily buy. However, for many years there have been traditional television broadcasts of the classic Julie Andrews movie during the Christmas and Easter seasons. I certainly remember it on a black and white screen in my grandparents’ basement while we of the younger set played a cutthroat game of Hi Ho! Cherry-O on the floor. Perhaps this song is just ingrained in our subconscious feel-good memories of the holidays?

I have learned this week that Rodgers and Hammerstein actually did write their very own Christmas carol. In the spring of 1952, Life magazine commissioned a yuletide song from the duo, published under the title “Happy Christmas, Little Friend” in the December 29th issue later that year.

From the article in Life

The article featured complete lyrics and music, as well as an article on the creation of the song. [Read the article here in a Google Book search.] In the same working style they used on projects like Oklahoma!, Hammerstein tackled the song first, writing a complete set of lyrics - in the middle of the summer, no less - before handing the words over to Rodgers to compose the music. Incidentally, the fee for writing the song inaugurated the Rodgers & Hammerstein Foundation which served to provide training for young musical theatre artists.

Rosemary Clooney sings "Happy Christmas, Little Friend" as shown in this picture from a follow-up article in Life.

The song was never incredibly popular, though it was recorded by Rosemary Clooney and became the official song for the National Tuberculosis Association’s Christmas Seal campaign. There doesn’t appear to be a single YouTube entry for the song, but you can hear brief audio samples on the Rodgers and Hammerstein website.

Check out this Rodgers & Hammerstein tune for your holiday listening…and get ready to tap your toes to the memorable Oklahoma! this summer.

Gorgeous Homes & Holiday Shopping Benefiting Central City Opera

The following blog post is from the co-chairs of this year's L'Esprit de Noël Holiday Home Tour, Pam Bansbach and Brooke Maloy.

Join the Central City Opera Guild in celebrating the season with the 35^th Annual L’Esprit de Noël Holiday Home Tour and Boutique. L’Esprit de Noël rings in the holiday spirit when this well-loved historic home tour returns to Capitol Hill’s Historic Morgan District November 18^th and 19^th.  The Morgan District is a hidden gem encompassing roughly three blocks just south of Denver Botanic Gardens.  Five historically significant and meticulously maintained homes will be on display and will feature some of Denver’s top florists and table designers. 

Nearly all of the florists and table designers have participated in past L’Esprit events, with the exception of Encore Style, making its debut to the event this year as both the florist and table designer for Home #2.  Last year’s floral and table designer winners (The Plum Gallery and Patina) will be featured in Home #1.  In addition, Wild Flowers, The Lark, HMK Designs, Bouquets, and Villa Home and Gifts (previously International Villa) will all decorate each of these homes bringing out the best of the season.  

House #1

House #2

IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK…

These stately homes of the past are rich in historic architecture and represent the solid construction and cultural dynamism of the roaring 1920s.  The introduction of new technologies like a central vacuum system and providing a “home” for the automobile were incorporated into these magnificent residencies.  While all of the featured homes on the tour where built around the same time, each are unique in their form and presence.

House #5

SHOP 'TIL YOU DROP

L’Esprit also offers a fabulous boutique, free to the general public, located this year in the prestigious Cherry Creek North shopping district at 105 Fillmore Street in a vacant store space next to Hermes.  The Boutique is open from 10:00am until 4:30pm daily during the Tour dates.  A variety of vendors offer unique items, including gifts, clothing and jewelry.  Shoppers can easily get a jump on their holiday gift buying, while supporting Central City Opera. 

BE MERRY!

Tickets for the Tour are $18 in advance and may be purchased at all area King Soopers stores and at the Central City Opera Box Office (303-292-6700) or for $20 at Home #2 (825 Vine St.) during Tour hours (10:00am-4:00pm). Tour maps are available at the Boutique. For additional information, visit www.centralcityopera.org/lesprit. 

The Central City Side of WEST SIDE STORY

Do you remember Central City Opera's dynamic West Side Story in 2008? The creative team who brought us that fabulous production, as well as 2011's Triple Bill of one-act operas (Director Ken Cazan, Scenic Designer Cameron Anderson, Lighting Designer David Martin Jacques and Costume Designer Alice Marie Kugler Bristow), have reunited for Vancouver Opera's West Side Story. A recent review proclaimed, "this co-production of Vancouver Opera and Colorado’s Central City Opera can even be said to outshine the mostly brilliant movie version."

The Vancouver West Side Story is artistically based on our 2008 production and indeed uses many of the scenic elements featured previously on the Central City Opera stage. This week, I caught up with Cindy Maupin, Central City Opera's assistant carpenter, who traveled to Canada to assist with the scenic transfer and load-in to the theatre.

Cindy Maupin, Central City Opera's assistant carpenter, enjoying the sights in Vancouver.

Prior to arriving in Canada, Cindy spent several weeks pouring over blueprints, refreshing herself on the intricate details of the scenery and consulting with David "Mick" Jackson, Central City Opera's head carpenter, on what to anticipate during the tech process.

The Colorado scenery was shipped by truck to Vancouver.

Vancouver Opera has a much larger stage than ours in Central City, so Scenic Designer Cameron Anderson expanded the design. The "working" pieces of scenery - like Maria's entrance and Doc's door - are generally pieces from the original Colorado set, but additional elements have been added to fill out the stage.

The original Central City Opera production used one arch; the design has been expanded here.

The tip of this wall came from Central City, but the rest of the diagonal was added for Vancouver.

"Working" parts of the scenery, like the door above, were installed from the Colorado production, but the rolling wagons on which they were placed were increased in size. The pieces roll so smoothly, however, that the crew remains essentially the same size as the one used in Central City.

With Cindy's guidance, the second wall was smoothly assembled in roughly half an hour. (It still took a lot of teamwork to get it in the air!)

Compare the photo above to the first design shown in the following video of preliminary designs from Scenic Designer Cameron Anderson. Note the original red paint on the wall and how the design has been extended to our left.

A few mementos of the Central City Opera production remain, including this playful message from crew members regarding a certain performer's offstage ritual before entering the scene.

This was Cindy's first real experience in Canada, other than the brief memory of a trip when she was four years old. She took advantage of her free time away from the opera house, spending time exploring Granville Island and other sights, as well as checking out the local karaoke bars (a favorite pasttime). This original "Gulf Coast gal" particularly enjoyed eating fresh seafood every day, from salmon to raw oysters - a treat she's missed while living in the Rocky Mountains. However, if you ask her what her favorite part was about the experience, it was simply the opportunity to travel for Central City Opera in this position. In a heartfelt moment, Cindy expressed her complete gratitude towards Festival Production Manager Karen T. Federing and Technical Director Nathan E. Thompson for choosing her. "I cried when I was given this opportunity - overwhelmed that they trusted me."

Cindy considers this trip the pinnacle of her career - so far. Calling herself "just a girl," Cindy first worked with the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (Denver Local 7) in January of 1999, straight from being a stay-at-home mom. On Father's Day of the same year she was assigned to Central City Opera. New to the business then, she credits guidance from Mick and her fellow union brothers and sisters for making her a familiar face backstage now in venues throughout the Denver metro area. She has held the title of Assistant Carpenter at Central City Opera for the last four years.

Cindy can't say enough about her fellow union members on the Vancouver Opera crew (Local 118), either. "They were great - very nice," she said. "I went straight to the crew room the night of rehearsal and told them so, to which Scott, their head carpenter, replied, 'Well, we're Canadian - we're supposed to be nice!'"

Vancouver Opera's West Side Story runs through this Saturday, October 29th. Video of the production, showing the completed scenery, can be found on the Vancouver Opera website. Compare the finished product with Cameron Anderson's preliminary designs.
 
All photos courtesy of Cindy Maupin.

Winter at the Denver Office

Okay, technically it's still officially fall, but WINTER has come to Colorado overnight. Gilpin County Schools in Central City are closed for the day. Down here at the Denver office we're still plugging away, but there's certainly a white layer on everything. Here's a shot from my office window, overlooking Colorado and Alameda Boulevards in south Denver.

Yes, the Denver office keeps working away all year long and things are quite busy around here! Applications have come in for our 2012 Bonfils-Stanton Artists Training Program, so the Music staff is busy sorting through them for our upcoming auditions. (Applicants will be notified if they have been accepted for an audition by November 18, 2011, or October 28, 2011, for Denver auditions.) The Education & Community Programs Department, myself included, has just returned from a mini-tour in Lander, Wyoming, and is prepping for our Opera Rocks the Rockies tour. This yearly collaboration with CU Opera will start off with a public performance in Parker, Colorado on November 4th, then head north to several communities in Wyoming. We're also keeping busy with additional performances like our brand-new school show Eureka Street, visiting community groups with Opera on the Go and a great number of performances of Inside the Orchestra in collaboration with the Junior Symphony Guild. Down the hall, the Development Department is busy writing grants, securing donations and gearing up for Colorado Gives Day on December 6th.  Meanwhile, Marketing is working on ad campaigns and artwork for our 2012 Festival and of course the Box Office is busy with subscription renewals.

You can renew your subscriptions from the comfort of your own home, either by mailing in the form you received or calling the Box Office at 303-292-6700...Or, if you want to venture out in the snow today, it's now even easier to find us thanks to the new sign with the Central City Opera logo in front of our building.

That's 400 South Colorado Boulevard, at the southeast corner of Colorado and Alameda in southeast Denver. Look for the blue mirrored building, then use the elevator on the East side of the building (towards the Super Target and Sports Authority) to the fifth floor. The Box Office is Suite 525 and the Administrative Office is 530 (both are connected - we've got two entrances). Stop in and see us sometime!

Of Budgets and Earthquakes

As Central City Opera's Festival Production Manager, I spend each year getting ready for our season, managing our current Festival, closing it down and getting ready for the next one. Now that our 2011 Festival has finished and all my production staff and interns have scattered to the four winds, this is my time to start closing down the details of my 9th season with Central City Opera.

Festival Production Manager Karen Federing and the 2011 Festival Staffers

First comes my drive home; I head back to the East Coast where I've lived much of my life - most of it in New York City. Then I take a few days to unpack, regroup and readjust to sea level and the summer coastal humidity that I've avoided by spending my summers in the foothills of the Rockies.

So Tuesday at about 1:52pm ET, I was working in my home office in Maryland (just 30 minutes northwest of Washington, DC). I was making budget entries for my weekly expense report of remaining Festival expenses and looking over photos of our sets this season so I can use them to advertise potential rentals to other opera companies. And then the floor started to shake. And then the ceiling - which was really strange. I thought it was neighbor kids running around outside at first. And then I did what no intelligent Californian would do - I ran outside. No kids anywhere. The stairwell was shaking like mad as I went down the stairs and kept shaking as I watched. It took a few minutes to register that I was experiencing my 1st earthquake. All I can say is that it was a pretty unnerving experience - especially the feeling that my office ceiling was going to fall in, which is really what made me want to leave my office. When I went back inside, framed photos and knick-knacks had been knocked from shelves and framed art was hanging lopsided - proof of a 5.8 quake, to be sure.

I went back to my computer (where I'd been in mid-e-mail conversation with staff in our Denver office), told them what had happened, and went back to work. But I also spent much of the day checking with family and friends here and up in New York, and fielding text messages from all over the place, sharing experiences and a sense of wonder.

It's pretty impressive to think we can stay this connected under duress. I was still living in New York City when September 11 happened, and I will say Tuesday brought me back to that day just a little - especially the desire to reach family and share that we were all ok. But on that day, I could only reach my family right there in New York, not reaching my family in DC until much later in the day, which was quite terrifying. At least Tuesday, technology brought us all together.

Jennifer DeDominici and John Robert Lindsey star in CARMEN with Opera Fort Collins

If you didn't get enough of Carmen this summer, you might want to head up to Fort Collins this weekend. Central City Opera has ties to the two leads of Opera Fort Collins' production of Bizet's classic.

Jennifer DeDominici (Carmen) and John Lindsey (Don José) in Opera Fort Collins' production of Carmen

Jennifer DeDominici (Carmen) portrayed Pitti Sing in The Mikado, a Central City Opera collaboration with the Colorado Symphony a few years ago, and is a member of the Central City Opera Ensemble. As part of our "Where is Carmen?" marketing campaign for the Denver performance of Carmen this summer, Jennifer entertained audiences at Comedy Works with a sampling of the saucy diva.

Earlier in the spring, she also performed the "Habanera" and other opera tunes at one of the "Untitled" events at the Denver Art Museum.

(That's our own version of "supertitles" in the background.)

As for Carmen's love interest Don José, John Robert Lindsey will sing the role for Opera Fort Collins in the same production. This summer, John was a Studio Artist with Central City Opera, where his Short Works performances included scenes from Ariadne Auf Naxos, Susannah and A View from the Bridge, as well as in the ensemble for Carmen, Amadigi di Gaula and The Breasts of Tiresias. As a student at the University of Colorado - Boulder last year, John also toured with the Central City Opera as part of our Opera Rocks the Rockies tour, an annual collaboration with the University of Colorado Opera Studies program. (Jennifer also participated in this tour a few years earlier as a CU student.) Pictured below, John performed pieces from Carmen with Nicole Vogel and pianist Michael Tilley in Opera Rocks the Rockies.

Central City Opera and the University of Colorado Opera Studies will hit the road again in November with their annual Opera Rocks the Rockies tour featuring tomorrow's opera stars. Stay tuned for further details of this tour scheduled to include schools and community centers in Wyoming and a few Denver-area venues. To book a performance at your venue, visit the Regional Touring page or contact education@centralcityopera.org.

Watch Jennifer and John heat up the stage in Carmen with Opera Fort Collins at the recently renovated Fort Collins Lincoln Center. Performances are Friday, August 26th, at 7:30 p.m.and Sunday, August 28th at 2 p.m.

Photo credits: Opera Fort Collins publicity photo as published on ReporterHerald.com; Where is Carmen? - Hilary Miller; Untitled - Christina Jackson, Denver Art Museum; Opera Rocks the Rockies - Erin Joy Swank