Toronto Operetta Theatre can be mounting a manufacturing of Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Gondoliers. Performances happen on Feb. 28, Mar. 1 and a pair of on the St. Lawrence Centre.
“Our season this 12 months has been very rewarding artistically with among the biggest critiques ever,” says TOT’s founder and Common Director Guillermo Silva-Marin, “Equally thrilling is the rise in attendance. We reached our objective for Countess Maritza, and ticket gross sales for The Gondoliers have already exceeded our expectations.”
Gilbert & Sullivan: The Gondoliers
Also called The King of Barataria, the work is a Savoy Opera, a kind of comedian opera that premiered on the Savoy Theatre in London. It was an enormous success at its premiere in December 1889, and ran for 554 performances earlier than closing in 1891.
The story takes place in Venice, as two good-looking gondoliers select their wives from the native peasant ladies. It seems certainly one of them is the inheritor to the throne of Barataria — however which one?
The 2 determine to rule collectively, however one other revelation throws a monkey wrench into their plans: one other lady was promised in childhood to develop into the bride of the prince.
The libretto pokes enjoyable on the perks and perils of privilege with a lighthearted lens.
The Forged
The 2 titular gondoliers are performed by tenor Yanik Gosselin as Marco and baritone Sebastien Belcourt as Giuseppe. Gosselin is making his TOT debut with The Gondoliers. He’s initially from the Lake Temiskaming area in Ontario, now primarily based in Halifax. Yanik earned a BMus in Voice Efficiency from the College of Ottawa, adopted by an MMus in Opera and Voice from McGill College.
Sebastien Belcourt is a TOT favorite, and most lately carried out as Popolescu in Countess Maritza. The Toronto-based baritone is a graduate of York College in Classical Voice, and his expertise contains choral in addition to operatic work, together with performing with the Orpheus and Ottawa Bach Choirs. He toured Europe and China with the latter, and has carried out as a soloist in North America and Europe.
The contadini (peasant ladies) are carried out by soprano Brooke Mitchell as Giannetta, and mezzo soprano Lissy Meyerowitz as Tessa. Brooke gained rave critiques as Kathie within the TOT’s The Scholar Prince. Primarily based in Toronto, Brooke is a graduate of Sheridan’s Music Theatre program, with credit that embrace operatic roles like Queen of the Evening in Mozart’s The Magic Flute (No Strings Theatre/Opera By Request), together with Alice in Dangerous Hats Theatre’s Alice in Wonderland, amongst others.
Lissy Meyerowitz’s current roles embrace Rosina in Barber of Seville for Highlands Opera and Niklausse in Les Contes d’Hoffmann for the Halifax Summer season Opera Pageant. She’s a graduate of the College of Toronto Opera Grasp’s program, and served as a Sidgwick Scholar with the Orpheus Choir of Toronto from 2022-2023.
The Duchess and Duke of Plaza Toro are portrayed by mezzo Meghan Symon and baritone Gregory Finney. Sales space are veterans of TOT productions. Meghan earned a Grasp’s diploma on the College of Toronto, and has sung with firms and ensembles throughout Canada, together with Manitoba Opera, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, Cathedral Bluffs Orchestra, Manitoba Underground Opera, The Theater of Early Music, Toronto Operetta Theater and Voicebox: Opera in Live performance, amongst others.
Recognized for his comedic expertise in addition to his voice, Finney is a Dora Award winner (Messiah/Advanced by In opposition to the Grain Theatre), and has hosted AtG’s month-to-month opera pubs. His repertoire contains all kinds of roles, and he’s additionally a director who has led productions Nozze di Figaro and Carmen.
Conductor Matheus Coelho, an alumnus of the São Paulo Symphony’s Academy of Music, and at the moment a UofT Doctoral candidate, makes their debut with Toronto Operetta Theatre.
TOT Common Director Guillermo Silva-Marin directs, with Myra Malley as Stage Supervisor.
- Discover extra particulars in regards to the performances, and tickets, [HERE].
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Anya Wassenberg is a Toronto Metropolis Editor at Ludwig Van. She is an skilled freelance author, blogger and writing teacher.