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Contact: Melissa Chotiner, (703) 255-4096 or melissac@wolftrap.org

                Graham Binder, (703) 255-1917 or grahamb@wolftrap.org 

Vienna, VA—The Wolf Trap Opera Company, one of the nation’s most highly regarded residency programs for emerging professionals in the opera business, proudly presents Zaide, The Turk in Italy, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream for its 2010 summer opera performances.  The three operas will transport audiences to new lands, including the Mediterranean, Fellini’s Italy, and a fantastical world where mortals and magical creatures collide. All operas will be sung in the original language with projected English translations. The company’s 40^th season will feature 16 Filene Young Artists performing lead roles and 12 Studio Artists in supporting roles.

Known for breaking down barriers in the classical music world, the Wolf Trap Opera Company once again enters unchartered territories in 2010. The Company will present the first North American production of Mozart’s unfinished masterpiece, Zaide, with the ending of each performance to be decided by the audience. For its second opera, Wolf Trap has selected a rarely heard Rossini showpiece, The Turk in Italy, which has only been produced four times in the United States in the last 20 years—one of which was Wolf Trap Opera Company’s 1993 production. The last opera of the season will celebrate the 50^th anniversary of Benjamin Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, adapted from the classic Shakespeare play of the same title. Last presented at The Barns at Wolf Trap nine years ago, A Midsummer Night’s Dream will feature all but two of the 2010 roster of Filene Young Artists.

To complement its operatic performances, Wolf Trap Opera Company will offer a diverse array of programming, including two recitals featuring company members accompanied by GRAMMY award-winning pianist and artistic powerhouse Steven Blier. The company will also present collaborative programs with local arts organizations, education opportunities for the community, and interactive family events to engage audiences of all ages.

“Wolf Trap Opera is committed to nurturing our audiences and artists,” said Company Director Kim Pensinger Witman. “We are very proud to be able to stretch our artists’ creative boundaries while simultaneously reaching out to our patrons and their families with the entire force of our marvelous roster.”

The Repertoire 

Opera: (performed at The Barns at Wolf Trap)

Zaide, June 11, 8 p.m.; June 13, 3 p.m.; June 15, 8 p.m.; June 19, 7:30 p.m.

In Mozart’s unfinished opera, a man and woman are held hostage in a foreign land, finding love in one another’s arms. How the story ends will be determined by audiences at each performance of this two-act opera, sung in German with dialogue in English and projected supertitles.

The Turk in Italy, July 9, 8 p.m.; July 11, 3 p.m.; July 13, 8 p.m.

This new production of Rossini’s comic opera in Italian tells the story of a writer in search of suitable material for a new comedy, and a pursuant love story that develops. The music is vintage Rossini, full of vocal pyrotechnics and irrepressible ensembles. Sung in Italian with English supertitles.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream, August 13, 8 p.m.; August 15, 3 p.m.; August 17, 8 p.m.

Benjamin Britten’s opera, based on Shakespeare’s play, celebrates its 50^th birthday this year. This tale of mischief, fickle teenage love, magic, and comedy is the most beguiling of all Britten’s operas. The piece will be performed in English with supertitles.

Recitals: (performed at The Barns at Wolf Trap)

Latin Days, American Nights, July 18, 3 p.m.
Pianist and commentator Steven Blier of the New York Festival of Song joins singers of the Wolf Trap Opera Company to bring you sultry days and simmering nights with Ginastera, Guastavino, Cole Porter, Thelonius Monk, and more.

Invitation to the Dance, August 1, 3 p.m.
Pianist and commentator Steven Blier of the New York Festival of Song joins singers from the Wolf Trap Opera Company to offer the music that makes us dance—from Brahms and Respighi to Bacharach and Gershwin.

Collaborative, Family and Educational Programming:

Backstage Buzz, June 8, June 29 & August 10
In a format popularized by Bravo’s TV show Inside The Actor’s Studio, audience members participate in  a lively moderated panel discussion with cast and crew members at Center for Education at Wolf Trap.

Inside the Opera, one hour prior to every opera performance at Center for Education at Wolf Trap
Kim Pensinger Witman, director of the Wolf Trap Opera Company, reveals her unique perspective on the show—don’t miss your opportunity to become an insider.

Vocal Colors, July 8 & July 22 at Wolf Trap’s Center for Education and the evening of July 22 at the Phillips Collection
In two locations and three live programs, Filene Young Artists respond to visual art from the Phillips Collection with a personal, multimedia musical exploration that bridges musical genres and styles as inspiration beckons. www.phillipscollection.org

Instant Opera!, August 3-7 at 11:15 a.m. at the Children’s Theatre-in-the-Woods
Opera is turned upside down as the ever-popular “Opera by Mad Libs” returns to Children’s Theatre-in-the-woods. Never the same show twice, members of the Wolf Trap Opera Studio create instant operas on the spot, with characters and stories made up by the audience. Both parents and children will love this hilarious introduction to opera.

Behind the Curtain, August 16 at The Barns at Wolf Trap
Your family jumps out of the audience and into the spotlight! Tour behind the scenes of The Barns, watch make-up transformations, craft opera-related props, meet the 2010 resident artists, take a family photo on stage, and lunch together with company members.

The Artists

Wolf Trap Opera Company is one of the only companies in the world to select its operas after the roster has been set, matching the strengths of the performers to the repertoire. The 28 artists performing this season have been handpicked from an applicant pool of 1,015 singers who applied for the Wolf Trap Opera Company residency program. Artists were selected following a six week, seven-market, coast-to-coast tour for which more than 450 singers were selected for live auditions.

Principal roles in the Company’s productions will be performed by the 16 singers selected as the Wolf Trap Opera Company’s 2010 ensemble of Filene Young Artists, featuring: Paul Appleby, tenor; Ryan Belongie, countertenor; Daniel Billings, baritone; Eve Gigliotti, mezzo-soprano; Rena Harms, soprano; Kenneth Kellogg, bass; Angela Mannino, soprano; Catherine Martin, mezzo-soprano; Nicholas Masters, bass; Michael Anthony McGee, baritone; Hana Park, soprano; Nathaniel Peake, tenor; David Portillo, tenor; Ashlyn Rust, soprano; Chad Sloan, baritone; and Michael Sumuel, bass-baritone.  

Supporting roles will be performed by the 12 Wolf Trap Studio Artists featuring: Sean Brabant, tenor; Hunter Enoch, baritone; Christopher Filipowicz, bass; Hilary Ginther, mezzo; Paul Hopper, tenor; Rachel Milligan, mezzo; Rafael Moras, tenor; Amy Owens, soprano; Stephen Pace, baritone; Christopher Remmel, bass; Claudia Rosenthal, soprano; and Daniel Scofield, baritone. 

About the Wolf Trap Opera Company

Established in 1971, the Wolf Trap Opera Company continues to earn national and international recognition for its mission to discover and encourage outstanding emerging talent in the opera field, serving singers of exceptional achievement and potential who are ready to make the transition to full-time professional careers. In addition to the young professional singers, the Company also features the work of emerging designers, directors, and conductors, as well as provides opportunities for aspiring stage managers, administrators, coaches, and technical theatre professionals. Visit the Wolf Trap Opera blog at http://www.wolftrapopera.blogspot.com/

About The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts

The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, founded by Catherine Filene Shouse (1896-1994), produces and presents a full range of performance and education programs in the Greater Washington area, as well as nationally and internationally. Wolf Trap features three performance venues, the outdoor Filene Center and Children’s Theatre-in-the-Woods, both located at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, and The Barns at Wolf Trap, located down the road from the park and adjacent to the Center for Education at Wolf Trap. In partnership with the National Park Service, The 7,028-seat Filene Center annually showcases an extensive list of diverse artists, ranging from pop, country, folk, and blues to classical music, dance, and theater, as well as multimedia presentations from May through September. The Barns operates year round, and during the summer months is home to the GRAMMY-nominated Wolf Trap Opera Company, one of America’s outstanding resident ensemble programs for young opera singers. Wolf Trap’s education programs include the nationally acclaimed Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, Children’s Theatre-in-the-Woods, a diverse array of arts education classes, scholarships, and a nationally recognized internship program that was included in Bloomberg BusinessWeek’s 2009 List of “Best Places to Intern.” As part of its ongoing commitment to protect and preserve the environment, Wolf Trap offers metro access and is a founding member of the Green Music Group. Terrence D. Jones is president and CEO of the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts.

Visit the Wolf Trap Web site at www.wolftrap.org for more information.

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