Susan Kulkarni hops across the pond to design The Marriage of Figaro

A sneak peek of The Marriage of Figaro costumes hanging in Central City Opera's Cast House dressing rooms with designer Susan Kulkarni

Susan Kulkarni flutters around the Opera House's second floor. She checks in on actors' fittings, holds design conversations with the wigs and makeup supervisor, and scoots costume pieces left and right on one of the floor's numerous z-racks. Always abuzz with work, Kulkarni continually remains tranquil and pleases others with her chirpy voice. She may be from England, but Kulkarni is making her nest in Colorado as The Marriage of Figaro's costume designer, the first show in Central City Opera's 2014 Festival.

Not only is it her first time living in the United States, but it's also the first time she's costume designing a major full-length opera. But don't let all the firsts fool you; Kulkarni is a seasoned and versatile designer. Her website boasts an impressive amount of experience in theatre, dance, film, and television for such a fresh-faced artist. Opera is just the next project on Kulkarni's list of theatrical mediums to conquer. 

Costume Designer Susan Kulkarni
Does this maid's outfit remind you of any popular television show? Stay tuned!

"It's a funny thing because a lady at the National [Theatre in London] recommended me to [director Alessandro Talevi]," she said. "It turned out when he wrote my number in his phone that we actually had worked together eleven years ago on a tiny little opera, so we did know each other but in passing. He said, 'Oh, Susan, great!'" 

Kulkarni has designed upwards of 60 costumes for The Marriage of Figaro, opening on June 28 at the Central City Opera House. Costume designers often yearn to create each dress, undergarment, and accessory from scratch in order to align a unified composition. More often, however, time and money get in the way. "It always comes down to budget," Kulkarni said. "It can cost $1,000 just to make a jacket. It's an expensive business." Instead of building each piece, designers frequently borrow costumes from other companies and then rework them. Luckily for Kulkarni (and Central City Opera), many of this show's costumes will be borrowed from the hit British television show Downton Abbey. 

Kulkarni's costume sketch for Susannah in Act I, The Marriage of Figaro

Costume sketch of the Count

Kulkarni served as an assistant costume designer during season two and was able to pull some strings to borrow a few costumes. Opera patrons will have to play a bit of "Where's Waldo" while watching The Marriage of Figaro to try and spy the original pieces. Though she calls her connection to Downton Abbey "slightly nepotistic," Kulkarni simply found work as many people do in the arts: with equal doses of diligence and moxie. "I had a contact who knew the costume designer there, and I set myself up with her and said, 'Hello!'"  

Though she has taken on other projects since Downton Abbey, Kulkarni remains proud of the show's enduring success even here in the States. "In England, if you say [Downton Abbey] everyone knows what it is, and it feels like it's the same here. [Americans] appreciate period dramas; it's great that it's been embraced." Fortunately, The Marriage of Figaro is another period piece that will flaunt Kulkarni's detailed design. Talevi has decided to set the show in 1920s antebellum Spain. This allows Kulkarni to dabble with glitzy flapper costumes and unadorned servant ones alike, reflecting a time in Spain when some embraced bobbed hair and lower waistlines while others grasped onto turn-of-the-century traditions.

Costume sketch of the Countess

Designing dozens of costumes for The Marriage of Figaro has certainly kept Kulkarni busy, but she still manages to enjoy the sights of Central City during her stay here. "It's really refreshing to just leave your home and go for a hike in the mountains. I'm really enjoying it," she smiled. Given the staggering altitude on her morning hikes, Kulkarni is learning firsthand the necessity of breath control in opera. "We're using a lot of stiff collars, so during fittings we've ascertained if we're going to choke the singers to death," she joked. "But designing for opera is an absolute delight because you have a team of people who really enjoy what they're doing; there's a lot of passion here."

Want more of the inside scoop? Join us for Opera Inside Out, Tuesday, June 17th in Central City. Tickets are just $10 and include a performance by our Ensemble Artists as well as a behind-the-scenes tour. The Marriage of Figaro runs June 28 to July 26.

MONDAY NUN DAY: How Sister Helen Prejean Unwinds

It's time for another "Monday Nun Day" posting, and we just had to share this fun video posted recently on Sister Helen Prejean's Twitter feed.

When asked what she liked to do just for herself....would you believe the answer involved ZOMBIES???



Sister Helen Prejean's autobiography Dead Man Walking was the inspiration for the opera of the same name, written by Jake Heggie and Terrence McNally. See Central City Opera's production of Dead Man Walking July 5 to 25, 2014. 

Central City blooms on annual Planting Day

Nancy Parker has attended nearly every Planting Day since 1984. Despite a torrid morning in Central City on June 4, Parker dexterously used her trowel to plant some fuchsia petunias in the Opera Garden. "Some years it rains, some years it's cold," Parker stated. "I ask my friends to join me for Planting Day. They say, 'You're still doing that? Are you crazy?' That's why we need the younger people to help us." This year, Parker's prayers were answered.

Parker, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Central City Opera, was joined by twenty-something volunteers, old and young alike, at this year's annual Planting Day. These helpers were comprised of the usual CCO Guild members, as well as this year's teenaged Flower Girls (who will be featured in the June 28 Yellow Rose Ball) and other volunteers who assisted with planting dozens of flowers around the Opera House.

Some of this year's Planting Day volunteers pause for a picture in the Opera Garden.

"These people are an amazing, multigenerational group," said Christina Dinegar, President of the CCO Guild. "They're motivated, loyal, and friendly. You make really good friends from 80 to 17."

Dinegar's daughter Sarah, one of the upcoming Flower Girls, is among the younger crowd this year. "I haven't been to the Opera [House] in a while, but it's nice to come out here and help. I'm looking forward to returning in a few weeks."

As president, Dinegar oversees nearly 250 Guild members, and the group is responsible for acquiring the gardening supplies, flowers (from Novacek Greenhouse in Golden and Center Greenhouse in Denver), lunch, and, of course, the volunteers. This year, there were also a handful of men helping out. One of them was Geoffrey Hughes, who has returned home between architectural projects in Beijing. Hughes volunteered with his mother Julie, another Guild member. "It's a lot of fun," he said. "My main job is moderate to heavy lifting, and to take orders," which pleased his proud mother.

While it could be considered an arduous event, Julie Hughes certainly knew how to liven it up - this was her sixteenth year volunteering at Plant Day. Hughes shared stories about Geoffrey's time in Lebanon and cracked jokes with the other volunteers. "This is one of the things that is hard to give up," she said. Hughes has also partook in other volunteering events that the CCO Guild manages, such as setting up the 33 homes in the Central City Opera House Association in April and then cleaning them come August.

Susan Stiff, another Guild member, has volunteered in another capacity. "Back when performers would come through Denver, we would host people," she remembered fondly. "They stayed in our basement. We called them our 'basement boys,'" she said with a chuckle. "Gene Scheer [Cap'n Andy, Show Boat, and Librettist, Three Decembers] was one of our 'basement boys.' He's become a lifelong friend; he sang at my husband's funeral."

Stiff looks forward to Planting Day each year almost as much as she looks forward to opening night. Taking off her gardening gloves for just a moment, she paused and marveled at all of the volunteers' work. "You look at all these flowers, which will be hailed on before June 28, but they'll still be here then and you can say, 'We did that.'"

Thank you to all of our volunteers for making the Opera Gardens look beautiful!

Central City Opera Showcases Young Artists with “Death by Aria”

Editor's Note: Here's our first blog post for the 2014 Festival from Marketing/Public Relations Assistant Billy McEntee. You'll be seeing many blogs from Billy "on the Hill" over the next few months. 

“Death by Aria.” Truly, it’s not so different from death by chocolate. It’s a bit of a marathon, but ultimately both are savory and filling. Central City Opera kicked off its 2014 Festival with this unique event that successfully showcased the talented performers of the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation Artists Training Program under the direction of Michael Ehrman. These performers will be seen and heard at the Opera House and the Denver Performing Arts Complex later this summer, giving audience members a promising forecast of what’s to come.

Studio Artist Michael Kuhn closes Act I with an aria from The Rape of Lucretia by Benjamin Britten with Michael Baitzer at the piano during Central City Opera’s “Death by Aria”

Gilman Hall, with its rich acoustics yet intimate setting, played host to the 31 Studio Artists and Apprentice Artists, all of whom comprise the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation Artists Training Program and perform in the chorus or in bit roles for Central City Opera’s 2014 Festival. These well-dressed and well-rehearsed singers each performed an aria of choice (all accompanied by the skilled and tireless Michael Baitzer). Opera selections were as diverse as the mishmash of chairs in Gilman Hall. The pieces ranged from Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro) to Bolcom’s A View from the Bridge while the audience sat in seats from similarly varying time periods – tubular Thonet chairs meshed with pastel painted wooden ones. The haphazard mix of songs and setting highlights one of Central City Opera’s strengths: creating a diverse composition of artists and performances.

Despite only a handful of English pieces, the “Death by Aria” singers masterfully communicated sentiments of rage, longing and bliss in their foreign songs. Isaac Bray justly received a rousing ovation for his Handel aria in which he sang fleeting grace notes with exquisite clarity. Following Bray, Karina Brazas crafted a wonderful marriage of shyness and yearning in her aria from Donizetti’s L'eliser d'amore (The Elixir of Love). These changes in character were perfectly mirrored in Brazas’ morphing dynamics. Shortly after, Evan L. Johnson showed off his high notes with his piece from Gounod’s Faust. Johnson’s suave voice coasted comfortably on Gounod’s melody.

While “Death by Aria” let audience members hear individual singers outside of their main duty as chorus performers, the singers certainly showed little pressure to impress as they performed solo for each other. In fact, there was more camaraderie than competition in Gilman Hall. As a singer exited after his bow another made his way to the stage, patting his peer on the back. When Chanáe Curtis accidentally performed during Tim Bruno's slot, he patiently waited his turn and then sarcastically quipped, “I’ve got my eye on you, Chanáe” before performing his piece.

Toward the end of Act I, Maya Kherani elicited laughter with her selection from Handel’s Alcina. Kherani shined with her elongated and mellifluous ah’s during which she easily shifted from timid to coquettish. In Act II, Kelsey Park used diction as her weapon of choice for her Mozart aria. She effectively maintained her articulation while still playing a flustered, exasperated character.

With their unwavering talent and professionalism, these young performers certainly set the bar high for the Principal Artists who play leading roles. The nearly two-and-a-half hours of performances certainly satiated the audience’s musical appetite, but most importantly “Death by Aria” gave a taste of how versatile these 31 young artists are. The audience left Gilman Hall happily craving more, which may have not been the case with a chocolate buffet.

Want to see more of Central City Opera's talented young singers? In addition to our mainstage productions, check out Short Works or Lunch & A Song. They're also featured in our sold-out production Trouble in Tahiti.

Competition Winners Everywhere with Central City Opera Connections

Here in Colorado, we've been following the recent Denver Lyric Opera Guild competition quite a bit, especially since four of our Ensemble Artists went on to the final round last Saturday. But as competition season has been in full swing around the country, we've noticed several other familiar names. Take a look:

Last weekend, past Studio Artist (2010 & 2011, Soprano) Audra Methvin took the top prize in the Dallas Opera Guild Vocal Competition.

Audra Methvin

Tonight, former Ensemble Artist Megan Marino (Mezzo-Soprano) competes in the finals of the Marcello Giordani Foundation International Vocal Competition. [Update: Megan also placed third in the Shreveport Opera Singer of the Year Competition March 9th; one of the judges was Marc Astafan (Director, The Barber of Seville).]


And during the recent Denver Lyric Opera Guild competition, there were familiar names on both sides of the final judges' panel, including composer Jake Heggie (Dead Man Walking, Three Decembers) and baritone Matthew Worth (Oklahoma!, Orpheus in the Underworld). CCO Ensemble Artist Teresa Castillo brought home second place, while three additional Ensemble Artists received honorable mention: Antoine Hodge, Emily Murdock and Benjamin Wood.

Judges Matthew Worth, Jake Heggie and Dona D. Vaughn.
Photo from the DLOG Facebook page.



Please let us know if there are others we missed!

Updated 7:17 pm:

Tenor Daniel Shirley, Apprentice Artist in 2008, is shown here in the finals of the American Traditions Competition at the Savannah Theatre on February 28, 2014. He received fifth place.

Catch our Ensemble Artists in Performance

Did you know that, in addition to the summer Festival, Central City Opera continues to perform throughout the year? More than 25 Ensemble Artists present school assemblies, private events, community concerts and season previews, reaching 40, 283 people in 205 programs during 2013 alone. Check out the Education & Community Engagement calendar to see where we'll be next, including several performances during the Prisons, Compassion & Redemption Project.

These talented singers and musicians do not work exclusively for CCO. A majority of them teach at various colleges around Colorado as well as have their own private studios. Here's a small sampling of where else you can find them in the next few weeks.

February 21 - March 2: Loveland Opera's The Mikado (Soprano Teresa Castillo, Yum Yum)

February 23: Opera on Tap Colorado presents a Masterclass with Mezzo-Soprano Marcia Ragonetti

February 27 - March 2: Opera Theatre of the Rockies' Lakmé (Mezzo-Soprano Valerie Nicolosi, Mallika). This production is also conducted by Christopher Zemliauskas (Our Town, 2013 CCO production).

February 28 - March 2: Boulder Opera's Vanessa (Pianist Michael Tilley, Conductor; Baritone Chad Reagan, The Doctor)

March 14 - 18: Piedmont Opera's South Pacific (Mezzo-Soprano Jennifer DeDominici, Nellie Forbush)

Saturday Morning Cartoon: Franz Schubert and Casper

It's time for a Saturday morning cartoon!

In honor of Franz Schubert's birthday yesterday (born January 31, 1797), here's a cute one where Casper the Friendly Ghost tries to help him complete the "Unfinished Symphony."

"Boo Bop," Casper the Friendly Ghost, from 1957