Cast Corner - John Conlon (Baritone)

As the holiday's draw nearer we're trying to make sure you get an introduction to at least half or our talented cast for January's upcoming concert production of Die Fledermaus!

For our 6th Edition, we'd like to introduce Baritone, John Conlon who will be joining the VanCOCO stage as Gabriel von Eisenstein, the character around which the entire story revolves!

John has already graced many of Canada's professional houses, and we are delighted to have him joining us for this production. Originally from Parry Sound, Ontario, John holds a Master of Opera degree from the University of British Columbia and made his professional debut, as Danilo with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra in their performance of Lehar’s The Merry Widow.

We had a chance to catch up with John and find out a little more about him. We hope you will enjoy these little tidbits...

Q. Can you tell us a little bit about your first experience with Opera?

A. My first experience was playing Ahmal in "Ahmal and the night Visitors" in 1990. It seemed easier then. I was lucky my next opera experience was in the same show as one of the kings 10 years later.

Q. Is there any 'dream role" you'd like to play?

A. MacBeth in Verdi's Macbeth. I have always liked the Shakespeare play and saw it in Stratford Ontario twice when I was in high school and loved it. As a chorus member at Vancouver Opera I was able to be in their production and it was a wonderful experience. Verdi took some liberties with the story but still a great opera.

Q. Could you imagine yourself doing something else besides singing?

A. I really like the building industry especially the home building industry. When I was in opera school I worked for a contractor based lumber yard and I have a lot of background in the industry as well. I could see my self running a lumber yard or even being a home inspector.

Q. Has there been a crossroads in your journey to date? What keeps you going when times get tough?

A: This question is easy. There have been times when it would of been easy to call it quits. What keeps me going is the support from my wife. She has always been the one to push me on to keep going.

We all know that as an artist times get tough, and it is important to have a strong support system. We're pleased that John has a cheerleader in his back pocket, and we're sure you will be one too! We hope you take this opportunity to hear why John keeps forging ahead!

For more information on John, you can visit his website or visit our Artist Page for his full bio! Don't forget... tickets are on sale now and can be purchased securely from our website.

IN BRIEF: Vancouver Concert Opera Society presents Strauss’ Die Fledermaus at Pyatt Hall in Vancouver (834 Seymour St.) on Jan 4 & 5, 2013 at 7:00pm and at First United Church in White Rock (15385 Semiahmoo Ave) on Jan 6 @ 7:00pm. “Concert Opera” sung in German with English dialogue. Tickets starting at $24 can be purchased online at vancoco.ca. CASH ONLY at the door.                                    

Cast Corner - Jessica Wright (Soprano)

Soprano Jessica Wright joins the cast of Die Fledermaus as Yvan (Orlofsky's Valet), the second of two pant rolls in this saucy little operetta. When we heard Jessica in our September auditions, she charmed the pants off us (pun intended!) and so much so, that we had to find place for her on our stage!

Jessica Wright (Far Left)
in The Mikado

Interestingly enough, Jessica is currently finishing a degree in psychology, so if anyone can understand the concept of dual personalities, it certainly would be her! In addition to her studies, Jessica has spent the last five years singing with various companies in the lower mainland including Dragon Diva Operatic Theatre, Opera Appassionata, and UBC's Gilbert and Sullivan Society.

Discovering that her music journey began as a jazz vocalist we were really interested on how she began her transition into classical music...

Q: How did you get started with opera?

A: I had been a jazz vocalist, making the rounds at cafes and restaurants in and around Vancouver. Then about five years ago, I took the plunge and auditioned for The Pirates of Penzance with DragonDiva Operatic Theatre. Pirates has always held a special place in my heart and I took it as a sign. I haven’t looked back since.

Q: What might you say to someone who has never been to an opera before to get them excited about this particular show?

A: When many people think of opera, they often think of grand Wagnerian productions in huge theatres. With VanCOCO, the audience has the opportunity to experience opera in a much more intimate setting. Add to that the gorgeous music of Strauss as well as an English script, and well, what’s not to get excited about?

Q: When you are not immersed in opera, what is your favorite past time?

An annoyed looking Jessica (Centre)
in DragonDiva's HMS Pinafore

A: I love reading, watching films and cycling, but most of all I adore spending time with my two wonderful children. They teach me so much!

Q: Tell us about your first experience with Opera.

A: My father is a big fan of classical music and opera. One of my earliest childhood memories is making up dances to the operas of Bizet, Offenbach and Verdi.

Q: Could you imagine yourself doing something else besides singing?

A: Currently I am working on my degree in order to become a psychologist. But I will be a singing psychologist! Most singers will tell you that singing is a part of their soul. I’ll never give it up!

Will Jessica be too big for these "britches"? We think not, but we know that she will breath new life into Yvan the Valet!

For more information about Jessica please visit our Artist Page for her full bio! Don't forget... tickets are on sale now and can be purchased securely from our website.

IN BRIEF: Vancouver Concert Opera Society presents Strauss’ Die Fledermaus at Pyatt Hall in Vancouver (834 Seymour St.) on Jan 4 & 5, 2013 at 7:00pm and at First United Church in White Rock (15385 Semiahmoo Ave) on Jan 6 @ 7:00pm. “Concert Opera” sung in German with English dialogue. Tickets starting at $24 can be purchased online at vancoco.ca. CASH ONLY at the door.

Cast Corner - Linda Baird (Mezzo)

"Imagine that you were living in Europe 250 years ago? What did people do for entertainment? Go to a movie? Turn on the radio? Play a video game?  Not then. You might have read a book (if you could read), played an instrument (if you were lucky enough to have one), or listened to another perform (if you had a talented friend). Life was quite a silent existence.  To hear a group of instruments or voices together would truly have sounded like heaven. Going to plays were a favourite pastime, but live music could not be played at the same time as the actors spoke. There were no microphones. Their voices would be drowned in the musical drama, but it is the music that creates the real drama. Imagine Star Wars without the music. To bring acting and music together, voices were needed that were powerful enough to project above an entire orchestra of instruments. Ah yes, there is actually a reason why opera singers sing so loudly! Opera was the only medium of the day that brought together instruments, singing, dancing, drama, artistic sets, costumes, poetry, and so much more."

This is what Mezzo Soprano Linda Baird had to say when asked the question "What might you say to someone who has never been to an opera before to get them excited about this particular show?" 

Linda, originally from North Vancouver, but who has recently relocated to Seattle, WA with her husband, is also a music educator, which is not suprizing given her thought provoking answer above. She will be joining the cast of Fledermaus as the Russian Prince "Orlofsky". Here are a few more tidbits that will help you get to know Linda a little better!

Q: When you are not immersed in opera, what is your favorite past time?

A: I love to socialize, especially with family and good friends, but really,... I’ll talk to almost anybody.

Q: What is the most bizarre thing you've done or seen on stage?

A: In 2006, I sang in Vancouver Opera’s production of Faust. During the carnival scene, the staging director assigned me to kiss with Stephen Bell for me most of that scene. Everyone around us was singing and dancing, but Stephen and I were against a wall pretending to make out for about 15 minutes every night.

Vancouver Opera
Pirates of Penzance (2012)
Adam Kozak & Linda Baird

Q: What will a successful opera career look like for you?

A: In opera, it’s easy to measure success by naming roles we’ve sung, venues we’ve sung in, conductor’s we’ve worked with, but for me that has not been what drives me. My view of success in opera is in how I sound and express myself. If I can bring a stranger to tears or laughter or any other emotion, then I know that they are feeling what I feel and what the composer feels. I sing because it feels so good and I love it when I can share that. That is success to me.

We're really looking forward to seeing and hearing Linda bring Prince Orlofsky to life! After seeing her quirky portrayal of this character in her audition, we're certain you will walk away smiling and thinking "Chacun à son goût!". To read more about Linda and to get your tickets to this event, visit our website!

IN BRIEF: Vancouver Concert Opera Society presents Strauss’ Die Fledermaus at Pyatt Hall in Vancouver (834 Seymour St.) on Jan 4 & 5, 2013 at 7:00pm and at First United Church in White Rock (15385 Semiahmoo Ave) on Jan 6 @ 7:00pm. “Concert Opera” sung in German with English dialogue. Tickets starting at $24 can be purchased online at vancoco.ca. CASH ONLY at the door.

Cast Corner - Robin Eder-Warren (Soprano)

For our 4th edition of this season's Cast Corner we are pleased to introduce Soprano, Robin Eder-Warren. Quite possibly our youngest cast member to date, we've had the pleasure of watching Robin develop over the years and were pleased to be able to offer her the role of Ida for this production of Die Fledermaus.

Similar to Soprano, Stephanie Domingues (Adele), Robin began her training at a very young age and her motives for getting started can only be described as "adorable"!

Q: How did you get started with opera? 

A: I fell onto the operatic stage almost by accident, it seems. I started taking voice lessons at age 10 to follow a boy I had a crush on from school into a musical theatre summer camp, and when it was over, made the fateful decision to keep up the lessons. I never stopped. Four years later, it felt like I looked around and discovered that I had begun singing in operas. I never looked back!

Q: What excites you most about this show? 

A: I finally get to spend time with some of my favourite music! My whole family is Austrian; these are tunes I’ve been humming and dancing to in one form or another since I was very small. There’s something like coming home to music like this, for me.

Q: What is the most bizarre thing you've done or seen on stage? 

A: I had to do trapeze work onstage once in the Bahamas after having had only one crash-course in the apparatus. Good thing I was only about nine or ten, and the audience expected my failure to be adorable and applauded loudly anyway.

While our show won't have any trapeze work in this production, we may try to convince our nimble and ambitious little Ida, who is now a Certified Yoga Instructor and has started her own opera company (Opera Mariposa), to see if she can incorporate downward facing dog into her performance!

Don't forget... tickets are limited and ON SALE NOW on our website where you can also read more about Robin!

IN BRIEF: Vancouver Concert Opera Society presents Strauss’ Die Fledermaus at Pyatt Hall in Vancouver (834 Seymour St.) on Jan 4 & 5, 2013 at 7:00pm and at First United Church in White Rock (15385 Semiahmoo Ave) on Jan 6 @ 7:00pm. “Concert Opera” sung in German with English dialogue. Tickets starting at $24 can be purchased online at vancoco.ca. CASH ONLY at the door.

Cast Corner - Mark Pepe (Tenor)

Our third installment of Cast Corner features, Tenor Mark Pepe. While Mark bears no direct relationship to the famous French Skunk "Pepé Le Pew", his self-proclaimed mastery of Italian cuisine and "delicious" Bolognese Sauce reminded us of this legendary cartoon character!

Joking aside, Mark will be joining the cast of Die Fledermaus this January as Dr. Blind (The Lawyer). Apparently drawn to "sleazy roles", this should be as fun for Mark as it will be for us to see him bring Dr. Blind to life!

Here's a few little fun Q & A's from Mark...

Q. Is there any 'dream role" you'd like to play?

A. Fellow singers always look at me funny when I say this, but Don Basilio in Le Nozze di Figaro. He’s such a sleazebag, and his music is fun to sing. But I do hope one day I can get to a level to sing Cavaradossi in Tosca or Otello.

Q. What might you say to someone who has never been to an opera before to get them excited about this particular show?

A. You’ll know the music! Remember when Tom and Jerry fought to conduct it once?

Q. What is your most embarrassing moment on stage?

A. Back in high school, I was Merryman the Butler in Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Ernest. As the curtain rose to begin the second act, I was on stage alone pruning a bush. I bent over, with my back facing the audience, and split my pants. It was a long…slow…rip. I then slowly turned and began to prune the bush from the other side.

We're pretty sure you won't see any "pant-splitting" in this show, but you may split a side or two! Mark will be appearing in all 3 of our performances this coming January, so no matter which date you choose, you'll be privy to his antics and beautiful tenor!

Don't forget tickets are limited and ON SALE NOW on our website where you can also read more about Mark!

IN BRIEF: Vancouver Concert Opera Society presents Strauss’ Die Fledermaus at Pyatt Hall in Vancouver (834 Seymour St.) on Jan 4 & 5, 2013 at 7:00pm and at First United Church in White Rock (15385 Semiahmoo Ave) on Jan 6 @ 7:00pm. “Concert Opera” sung in German with English dialogue. Tickets starting at $24 can be purchased online at vancoco.ca. CASH ONLY at the door.

Cast Corner (International) - Joel Cummings (Tenor)

For our second installment of Cast Corner we are happy to introduce one of our two Alfreds. One of a handful of our "International Guests", Seattle based Tenor, Joel Cummings will be joining us for the first time on the VanCOCO stage!

A graduate of the North England Conservatory (Masters of Music), Joel already has a plethora of credits to his name including Giuseppe (La Traviata), Fernando (Cosi fan tutte), and Tamino (Die Zauberflöte) just to name a few.

Joel with his beautiful bride Jaci.

In speaking with Joel we were pleased to discover that he is a true singing actor and is digging deep to bring to an honest and realistic character to the stage.

We always want to know what makes an opera singer tick and so we are always interested in the answer to this question...

Q: How did you get started with opera?

A: During my freshman year at Pacific Lutheran University, I attended the Opera Workshop performance of Die Fledermaus. The Rosalinda was Angela Meade, who made her Metropolitan Opera debut a couple years ago and is now an international star. She was good back then too. I was so blown away, and after talking with my teacher, I decided I was "all in", and the rest is history.

Q: We all have a guilty pleasure when it comes to our listening tastes, what do you enjoy listening to that we might find surprising? 

A: Renee Fleming singing Over the Rainbow.

Q: What excites you most about this show?

A: The play between the characters, specifically in the Jail Scene at the end. I just love ad-libbing on stage and playing with my stage colleagues, and this show calls for that quite a bit. 

Last question Joel... (for now anyway)

Q: Who are your musical mentors (Teachers, coaches, etc) and what is it about them that inspires you?

A: My current teacher is Erich Parce, who had a great career internationally as a baritone, most notably at The Metropolitan Opera. He has turned to directing now, and I love how obsessed he is with honesty as a singer. Sometimes we can get caught up in the act of singing and think we're fooling our audience with big, loud notes, but in reality when we are honest and truly feel the music and the character, that's when we get the best response.

Joel is "happy and excited" to be bringing to life the the wit and charm of "Alfred the Opera Singing Tenor" and we can't wait to get to know him through the rehearsal process and to share his beautiful tenor voice with our audience. We're confident our audience will leave this show humming a tune or two and thinking to themselves... Wow! Those characters were alive and vibrant!

Don't miss your chance to hear Joel make his VanCOCO debut! He will be performing the role of Alfred on Friday, January 4th (in Vancouver) and on Sunday, January 6th (in White Rock). 

And remember that Opera Tickets make great Stocking Stuffers! 

Click HERE to get yours today! 

Cast Corner - Stephanie Domingues takes the People's Choice Award at the MET Regionals!

We are happy to bring you the first installment of our "Cast Corner" series for our upcoming production of Die Fledermaus! Over the next month will be introducing you each of our cast members.

Our featured artist for this first installment is Soprano, Stephanie Anne Domingues who was just awarded the People's Choice award at the Metropolitan Opera National Audition Competition in the Western Canada District this past weekend! We're not at all suprized that Stephanie was the crowd pleaser as she simply WOW'd us in her audition in September! That said, we'd like to congratulate her on this important stepping stone in a singers career.

Stephanie, who will be singing the role of Adele this January, was gracious enough to answer a few questions about her life as a singer. Here's what she had to say...

Q. How did you get started with Opera?

A. When I was younger, I sang in a choir. My mom asked me if I wanted to go to a "Choir Camp" during the summer and I thought it sounded fun. While I was there, the conductor of the camp, Ann Coper Gay, of the Canadian Children's Opera Company, asked me if I wanted to join her choir.  I remember looking at my mother and saying "No! I don't know how to sing opera!" After listening to some recordings and talking with Ann, I accepted.  Throughout grades 7 to 10 I commuted two hours twice a week to Toronto to sing in the choir and through the CCOC, I also got the opportunity to perform with the COC and for some amazing people in Toronto. While I was singing at the COC, Peter Barrett told my mother that I should apply to this program in the USA called "Tanglewood". I looked into it and applied. I remember really wanting to get into the program, and I did. I atteneded the program in 2005 and 2006.

Q.  What might you say to someone who has never been to an opera before to get them excited about this particular show?

A. It's kind of like when you were a child and went into your mother's closet and put on her most beautiful gown and heels and her makeup. Then, you danced around the house pretending you were at themost hip A-List event in town!

Last question Stephanie...

Q.  Could you imagine yourself doing something else besides singing?

A.  Of course not. I am a strong believer in doing something you love and following your dreams and passion, this way, it doesn't feel like you're working. I can honestly say, every time I perform, every hour I have spent in the practice room, or sitting in a class throughout my Bachelors and Masters degree, I have enjoyed it all. Yes, it has been a challenging road, but it has all lead me to new opportunities, new challenges, and always keeps me happy.

We are very proud of Stephanie and all of the rest of our cast members who competed this past weekend in the Metropolitan Opera Competition. Bravi tutti! And... if you'd like to read more about Stephanie, you can read her full bio on our website!

Stay tuned for our next installment of Cast Corner and all of our other upcoming gems!

Celebrate the New Year Viennese Style with VanCOCO

It's official! Vancouver Concert Opera Society (VanCOCO) will be opening it's Third Season with Johann Strauss Jr's classic gem Die Fledermaus. We have gathered an exceptional International team of artists that will bring the sparkle and the charm of this holiday favorite to you this coming January with performances in Vancouver (January 4th and 5th) and in White Rock (January 6th)!

The story behind "the bat"... The best of friends play pranks on each other, but when Eisenstein abandons Falke in the middle of the town square dressed as a bat, Falke swears revenge. With Prince Orlofsky's permission the stage is set and Falke has invited everyone to a grand ball at the Princes' summer palace where Falke will once and for all strike his revenge. Fast forward to the next morning where the entire party finds itself in the town jail and all swear that it was Champagne, the King of effervescence, who is to blame.

As our mandate says, VanCOCO is all about the music and as such we will be performing this work in its original german language but we will be delivering our witty and charming dialogue to you in English.

You won't want to miss these performances and we want you to stay tuned to our blog and social media in the coming weeks so that we can share with you the cast of amazing singers that we will be featuring in these performances and a little bit of what makes them tick as opera singers. We might even throw in a few holiday treats along the way.

For more information and advance tickets please visit www.vancoco.ca!

To stay up to date on special offers and performance updates, link to us on Twitter and Facebook!

TGIF!

If you are not accustomed to the classical musicians lifestyle it has it pros and its cons. Like any other entrepreneurial job, time away from working on the next project almost never happens, but at VanCOCO we definitely know how to enjoy a good Friday night out.  We checked in with our cast about what they do in their time off and found some interesting answers.

When we asked Maestro Gordon Gerrard what his down time consisted of, this was his response..."I am a bit of a music nerd. It sort of takes over my life most of the time. I do read books when I get the time, and I love to cook for people. I recently joined Netflix, and discovering all the TV series that I’ve missed over the past 10 years has greatly reduced my productivity. Most recently, I watched the entire four seasons of The Tudors in a week. Oops."

Mezzo Soprano Jaqollyne Keath tells us that when she is not in opera she is directing shows around the Lower Mainland, acting/singing in Operetta, or sound designing shows. Oh and she like softball. It sounds a bit like when Jaqollyne is not involved in music, she is involved in music. Good thing she loves what she does!

Now we know that Maestro Gerrard called himself a "music nerd" but when we asked Bass-Baritone Max Van Wyck (singing the role of the Court Usher) we think his answer completely trumps our Maestro... "My favorite pastime is school. I love learning and get so excited after every break away from UBC, and practicing everything from voice to piano to history to solfege."  Max likes solfege?  We all do right? Do-re-me-fa-so-la-ti - DOH!

Baritone Aaron Durand is clearly the "jester" in our bunch! Aaron asked us if we would consider "Brunch" as pastime. Sure why not, everybody loves a good late breakfast after a night out. For more hilarity from Aaron go read his blog post!

Singer, actor, writer, choir manager, arts consultant, and voice teacher, Mezzo Soprano Megan Morrison is one of our biggest multi-taskers. We're not surprized that she replied that she loves "leisurely morning coffees, aimless neighbourhood walks, good wine, and old movies."  Apparently she needs to clear her noggin' from time to time!

And of course there are the foodies! Bass-Baritone Jordan Collalto (Sparafucile) and Baritone Ed Moran (Count Monterone) share an infatuation of food and water. Jordan says, "My only hobby outside of opera right now would be cooking. I love trying to make new things or tweak and perfect my own recipes when I have time! Tonight I'm making my first attempts at Neapolitan pizza… I also really enjoy surfing, but finding a whole weekend to go and do that while I'm in school has been really challenging."  Meanwhile, Ed made his very first pot of Julia Child's French Onion Soup this week and followed it up with a pot of his world famous chili (well at least HE thinks its world famous!). When ever Ed gets the chance he is either on the water in a Kayak or under the water in scuba gear. "Scuba is really one of the most relaxing things that you can do, once when I was doing a decompression dive in Okinawa Japan, I started to nod off under water while I was waiting at my prescribed 45 minute decompression stop at 30 feet down." Uhhh, we're glad he woke up!

By far, the most interesting answer was given by Soprano SzuWen Wang, who will be singing Gilda.  We asked her when she is not immersed in learning a role or teaching her students their next aria what she likes to do and her answer consisted of four words..."I'll never tell..." We think this maybe exactly why she is perfect for the role of Gilda!

Well we hope you enjoy your weekends as much as we enjoy ours. Wishing a safe journey to all of our out of towners who are flying into Vancouver this weekend. Rehearsals begin on Monday morning! We can't wait to hear all these stellar voices in one room!

Stay tuned for pics and clips from rehearsals, and if you haven't purchased your tickets - don't drag your feet - they're selling like hot-cakes! Click on Tickets above... that'll get you to the right place!

Behind the Baton - Maestro Gordon Gerrard

Making his debut with VanCOCO is Maestro Gordon Gerrard. Maestro Gerrard is no stranger to Vancouver having worked as principal repetiteur with Vancouver Opera a number of years ago. We are fortunate and excited to be able to have him return to Vancouver to take the helm for our upcoming performances of Rigoletto. Maestro Gerrard graciously took some time out of his busy schedule to share with us a glimpse at the man behind the baton.

(Q) What is the most exciting thing about Rigoletto for you?

(A)  I had listened to recordings of Rigoletto for years, and I had even worked on the famous bits (Gilda’s big aria and the famous quartet), but when I moved to New York to go to grad school, Rigoletto was the first opera that I saw at the Met. It’s an experience I will never forget. This music is amazing! Rigoletto is about midway through Verdi’s operas, and by this point he had perfected something magical. The way that he wrote for the voices is unlike anything else in the operatic repertoire. The music is so completely conceived for the human voice. He knew more than anyone before him exactly how the human voice works, and how it can connect with the emotional guts of any listener.

(Q)  How did you get started with opera?

(A) I came to opera a little later than some. I grew up in a small town in Manitoba, and opera was not high on the list of activities for a Saturday night. I saw my first opera when I was an undergrad at the University of Manitoba (Hänsel und Gretel). I had at this point started to play for a lot of singers at school, even though my degree was in solo piano. I went to a summer art song festival where I met my now friend and mentor, Michael McMahon, who encouraged me to apply for the brand new opera training program, Opera Nuova in Edmonton. I thought I was unqualified to go, and I said to him, “I don’t know anything about opera!” He replied, “Well, it’s about time you learned.” I’m happy to say that I’m still learning.

(Q) What might you say to someone who has never been to an opera before to get them excited about this particular show?

(A) One of the criticisms that’s often leveled against opera is that the people and situations are too unbelievable for us to engage. Rigoletto is not to be included in this category. The first time (and every time) I see this opera, I am bowled over by the inescapable plight of poor Rigoletto himself. There’s a tragic inevitability about the story; we can see the outcome approaching a mile away, and Rigoletto cannot. As the opera charges on, you can’t help but become involved. You want to tell Rigoletto to change course, but of course you are stuck in your seat, helpless.

(Q) And one last question, everbody has a guilty pleasure when it comes to music, what yours?

(A) Eek. Well I’m kind of a music nerd. My iTunes is nearly all classical. I do own a couple of Rufus Wainwright albums. I recently discovered Madeleine Peyroux, Gavin Creel and Zee Avi. Sadly, that’s about it.

Well admittedly, we were sort of hoping to hear that the Maestro likes to listen to a little Jay-Z or Snoop Doggy Dogg when not waving his arms around passionately, but we know what it's like to have an iTunes account and be frustrated at the lack of classical categories like Romantic, 20th Century, and Baroque! To read more about Maestro Gerrard, click here go directly to his bio!

Stay tuned for our next blog update featuring the multi-talented Tenor, Frédérik Robert who will be joining us again to sing Il Duca after an impressive and memorable jump in as Don Jose in our January 2011 production of Carmen!

VanCOCO Celebrates Year One!!! Share your accomplishments and WINTICKETS to Rigoletto!

Vancouver Concert Opera Society

“VanCOCO”

2011 Year In Review

A New Year is upon us and we at VanCOCO have been thinking about our many accomplishments in 2011 and what the New Year has in store for us. While we don't like to use the word "resolutions" because "resolutions" have a habit of falling through the cracks, instead we have decided to present a YEAR IN REVIEW to commemorate our first season.

Did we really do this?

Yes we did! 2011 was VanCOCO's inaugural year and we couldn't be happier with the results. Our Founder and Artistic Director, Natalie Burdeny, began with the observation that there simply weren’t enough professional performance opportunities for the many talented artists in Vancouver and that taking on the financial risk of a production individually was simply not feasible. As a result the solution was conceived; a co-operative! The idea was simple; band together like-minded performers to work in a co-operative fashion and mount a professional scale concert performance where not only the financial risk was shared by the artists involved but in turn, so was the financial gain and the artistic rewards. 

And what a ride it has been! Beginning with our very first concert production of Bizet’s Carmen in January 2011, we performed to a sold-out audience who leapt to their feet in applause at the conclusion (Read the review from Opera Canada here). That performance will always be remembered; wrought with illness, Tenor Frédérik Robert stepped in on 36 hours notice to perform the role of Don Jose and young Bass-Baritone Max Van Wyck also stepped in to cover an ailing Zuniga. With some fearless leadership from Maestra, Rosemary Thomson and our two-handed orchestra, Kinza Tyrrell, the night was spectacular! VanCOCO was officially off to the races.

Throughout the year we were able to perform 5 concerts of Carmen in Vancouver, Victoria, and Richmond. While the financial gains were minimal the artistic rewards and exposure were well worth the effort.

And if “concert opera” wasn’t enough, we found ourselves fully entrenched in our first foray into the cyclone that is the “Fringe Festival”. Plans for the mounting of a staged production of Leonard Bernstein’s Trouble In Tahiti began in the early spring with performances set for September. This time we had sets to build, choreography to learn, find and secure a cast and crew to run the show, and most importantly find someone who could play this challenging piece. In the end, the show was a huge success (reviews here!), we learned a boat-load about self-marketing, and we had so much fun being a part of the “Fringe Family” that we are toying with the idea of a commissioned piece that we could tour with in the future. Of course kudos are in order to Kathleen Gable Lohrenz (our fearless Music Director who held us all together), Andrea Rabinovitch (Choreographer responsible for the "Little White House"), Phil Schultze (Lighting Designer) and Ed Moran who wore just about every hat possible, including directing the show and singing the role of Sam! 

Our season finished off with two final back-to-back performances of Carmen at Minoru Chapel in Richmond in October with VanCOCO newbies Mezzo-Soprano Megan Morrison and Pianist, Michal Onwood joining us for the first time. A delightful venue, again with appreciative audiences, it was a pleasure to be a part of their “Opera Series” and we hope to return to Minoru with a new concert production in 2012.

Lessons learned?

Yes, there were many! While each production had its challenges the overall reward outweighed them all. In the end, we believe we made a positive contribution to Vancouver’s musical scene and met the goals of our mandate to provided high-level performance opportunities to the singers in this community as well as top-notch performances to our audiences. We learned that a good marketing plan is essential and that none of this could be achieved without the hard-working volunteers that have helped us along the way! Fiscally the year could have been better, but as we learn and grow as an organization we are confident that VanCOCO will continue to thrive in the community. We are committed to keeping our ticket prices affordable so that we can continue to entice new audiences through our doors and keep the art of “opera” alive.

What’s next?

As we step into the New Year it is fitting that we also have a new name. In late November of this year we were officially granted our non-profit status and we are now “Vancouver Concert Opera Society” – but you can still call us VanCOCO!!! Our first Founding Board Members meeting will kick off the New Year and will undoubtedly lead to a more focussed vision and concise plan for VanCOCO for the coming years.

And with our new name comes a new production!

February 15 & 17 in Vancouver / February 18 in White Rock

In mid-February we will mount Verdi’s gripping tale of Rigoletto. The talented Maestro Gordon Gerrard will lead us with his baton for these performances planned for February 15 and 17 in Vancouver and February 18 in White Rock. You will see some familiar faces with the enigmatic Tenor, Frédérik Robert returning to us as the Duke of Mantua, along with some fresh faces including Toronto-based Baritone, Keith O’Brien who will make his debut as Rigoletto, and local Soprano, Szu-Wen Wang who will delight you with her sparkling colouratura as Gilda!

Tell us your goals for 2012 and WIN TICKETS!

This is how we intend to ring in the New Year at VanCOCO and we want you to tell us what's in your Year-In-Review. And just for sharing your thoughts with us, we will randomly draw 3 winners from the responses received by January 16 to attend a Rigoletto performance of your choice in February (with a friend of course!).

From all of us at VanCOCO we wish you a prosperous 2012!!!

Seasons Greetings and Gilda's Ginger Snaps!

Seasons Greetings

VanCOCO would like to send each of you a warm Merry Christmas and Seasons Greetings. Each and every one of you have helped us to have a hugely successful 2011 and for that we are truly grateful. We sincerely hope that this season finds you in the presence of those whom you adore most.

VanCOCO started 2011 with a hugely successful production of Carmen, which we have remounted twice this year, and a fully staged production of Bernstein's Trouble in Tahiti at the Vancouver International Fringe Festival. What you may not know is that we have now become a fully registered Non-Profit Society and we are now Vancouver Concert Opera Society, but you can still call us VanCOCO because our motto and mandate have not changed. We are still "all about the music" and our goal remains to "create performance opportunities for emerging Operatic Professionals." We made some great connections during these productions and we hope that we have made some long standing fans.
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Big Announcements

We will be opening 2012 with a concert production of Verdi's masterwork Rigoletto. We have assembled a fine group of artists who will be lead by the baton of Maestro Gordon Gerrard and we know that you will not be disappointed. Tickets are currently available for advance purchase on-line and available just in time to make a great stocking stuffer for the opera aficionado on your list.

Stay tuned in the coming weeks for entertaining information about our upcoming show.

Click here for Advance Tickets or visit our Facebook Event Page.
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Gilda's 
    Ginger 
         Snaps

We wanted to give all of our fans a new Audi A4 to show our love but our new Board of Directors just wouldn't approve the budget so we decided that we would share with you our favorite Christmas cookie recipe. Make sure to leave some of these out for Santa and maybe he will leave you something extra special under the tree.

• 3/4 Cup Shortening
• 1 Cup Br. Sugar
• 1/4 Cup Molasses
• 1 Egg
• 2 1/4 Cup Sifted flower
• 2 tsp Baking Soda
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1 teaspoon Ginger
• 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon cloves

Cream together shortening, brown sugar, molasses, and egg until light and fluffy. Sift together dry ingredients.  Mix dry ingredients into molasses mixture. Refrigerate dough overnight. Form into small balls and roll in granulated sugar.

Place 2 inches apart on greased cookie sheet and bake at 375 F for 10 minutes or until cookie tops begin to crackle. (For crispier cookies, bake 10-12 minutes or until just beginning to darken). Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.

Enjoy with a glass of your favorite holiday beverage and be sure to share with the ones you love.