Happy Holidays

The Sangre de Cristos are capped with snow, the streets of town are dotted with farolitos, and the dulcet tones of Bing Crosby ring out in crowded shops and restaurants.  Grinches beware: the holiday spirit is alive and well in Santa Fe.

 Here at The Santa Fe Opera, we celebrated the season on Saturday evening with our annual holiday bash which was held in… our scene shop. Where else?! For 364 days of the year, our scene shop houses the technology and equipment we use to build sets and props. It looks like this:

But for one special day each year, it looks a little something like this:

Quite the transformation, right? Do you recognize any set pieces from our recent productions? Big thanks to our production staff who trim the trees and deck the halls for this event!

 For many, the holiday season is a time for reflection. Each year brings its own challenges and rewards, and as we approach the yearend, we take time to remember the events and people that made 2012 so memorable. 2012 was a  good year for The Santa Fe Opera, due in no small part to the support of our wonderful friends and fans.  We look forward to sharing the excitement of the 2013 season with you, and in the meantime, send our enduring thanks and best wishes for a happy New Year.

Britten’s Birthday: A New Mexican Tribute

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Aldeburgh is a coastal town in Suffolk, East Anglia, England. It’s located on the River Alde and is known for its Blue Flag shingle beach and fisherman huts where freshly caught fish are sold daily. As of 2001, there were 2,793 residents.

Aldeburgh was also home to composer Benjamin Britten, who found inspiration in the stories and characters that defined small-town life in the British coastal town. Some of you may remember that in 2010, The Santa Fe Opera produced Britten’s chamber opera Albert Herring, based on a short story by Maupassant and set in a small British coastal town very much like Aldeburgh.

Britten was endeared by Aldeburgh’s many musical groups composed of villagers of all ages and abilities. In writing the opera Noah’s Flood, Britten requested that the work be performed in a church or large hall – but not a theater – and that the cast consist primarily of amateurs. This year, The Santa Fe Opera brings Noah’s Flood to life by drawing on the talents of the children and teenagers in our community.

Our production of Noah’s Flood is designed by renowned santero Charlie Carrillo. Charlie is creating Noah’s world in a setting that suggests New Mexico – just as Britten created Albert Herring in a setting that suggested Aldeburgh.

A santero is an artisan who creates santos, traditional New Mexican religious carvings in wood or ivory that depict saints, angels, and other religious figures. This depiction of religious figures dates to the 18^th century in New Mexican communities. Charlie began his creative journey in 1978 by researching the techniques, materials, and subject matter of the early santeros. Today, he’s recognized as the primary authority and most accomplished artist practicing the santo tradition.

Above you’ll find images of some of the hand props we’re building based on Charlie’s designs. Our Master Properties Carpenter, Dave Schneider, is hard at work making Charlie’s designs a reality. Many of the hand props are tools – after all, you need more than a few tools to build an ark! – and Dave is doing a little research of his own to learn more about the tools germane to New Mexican communities during the era in which the production is set.

Noah’s Flood will be presented in celebration of Benjamin Britten’s 100^th birthday this summer at The Santa Fe Opera Ranch, followed by performances in Albuquerque and Santa Fe in December, 2013. Kathleen Clawson will direct the production. We couldn’t be more excited to honor Britten’s special birthday with this charming opera that highlights the young talent in our community and celebrates our own “small-town” cultural identity.

Remodel at the Ranch

Overheard in town this week: “The Santa Fe Opera, now that’s a company with style.”

Why, thank you very much! The Opera is often admired for its blend of traditional Southwestern style and the elegance one might expect from one of our urban contemporaries. We don’t mean to brag, really, but our campus is pretty rad.

It has been a cornerstone of our mission to ensure that our grounds and facilities not only support, but match the level of artistry seen onstage at the SFO. This is no small task. With over 200 acres, a theater that seats 2,000, all craft shops onsite, an administrative complex, rehearsal halls and coaching studios to the east, west, north, and south, a cantina, swimming pool, and waste water treatment plant (!), sometimes we feel more like a property management firm than an opera company.

And the thing about property management is that all structures eventually reach an age where their design is revisited and the powers-that-be ask themselves, “is this space still serving its intended function?” Well, in the case of our Ranch administrative building, which was originally designed to house a dude ranch in the 1950’s, the answer we came up with was, “um, not exactly.”

Those of you who’ve followed the comings and goings of the SFO in recent years know that we began a capital campaign in celebration of our 50^th anniversary in 2006, in part to support facilities projects. The campaign was completed in 2011, thanks to the generosity of many wonderful friends, and we’re now embarking on the final project to fall under the auspices of the Building A Sound Future campaign: the Ranch remodel.

The Ranch administrative building is home to our Maintenance, Housing, Press, Marketing, Artistic, General Administration, and Executive Departments. The music library and the company archives live there, too. It’s the focal point of administrative activity. And it’s very charming. Adobe, exposed beams, a kiva fireplace. No doubt, it epitomizes “Santa Fe Charm.”

But as the company has grown, it’s become difficult to maintain operations in the space and, of course,   it’s essential to stay in compliance with all the rules and regs. So, just after the final curtain call of the 2012 season, many of us packed up our offices and relocated to satellite workstations around campus. Moving is never a fun task, per say, but we seem to be transitioning to our new offices and officemates without any permanent scars!

The remodel should be completed sometime next spring. Here’s a taste of the changes in store for the Ranch: a new kitchen, new office configuration, new reception area, and a new portal for outdoor entertaining. Fear not, though, the exposed beams and kiva will remain untouched.

We’ll keep you posted as the remodel adventure continues. To whet your appetite for the inevitable “before and after” pics, check out the progress in what used to be our supply closet:

Fun with Numbers

Opera fans may know that there is style of aria called the “list aria.” A list aria is, well, just what it sounds like. For example, in Don Giovanni, Leporello sings “Madamina, il catalogo e questo,” a list of the Don’s many lady loves – of which there are 1003, by the way. In The Mikado, Ko-Ko sings about his “little list,” an inventory of the citizens of Titipu who should be decapitated, including “all people who have flabby hands and irritating laughs.”

Here at The Santa Fe Opera, we’ve composed our own list aria of sorts for the 2012 season. We surveyed various departments to ask them two questions: how much and how many? The results are pretty exhaustive. Or maybe that’s exhausting? Let’s just say we’re looking forward to a long and lazy Labor Day weekend!

We pared down the list for the sake of our readers, but here’s a snapshot look at the stats that made the 2012 season so memorable:

 At The Crosby Theatre

Mainstage opera performances: 36

Apprentice scenes programs: 2

Susan Graham gala concert: 1

Program books ordered: 53,000

Around Town and at the Ranch

Apprentice community concerts: 2

Apprentice concerts at Rancho Encantado: 3

Apprentice concerts at Vanessie’s: 7

Encore performances of Shoes for the Santo Nino: 2

Adult learning seminars: 2

Wining and Dining

Preview buffet dinners: 35

Preview buffet guests: 5,736

Patron events: approximately 50

Invitations mailed: 2,273

Postage stamps used: 5,000

Flower arrangements ordered: 88

Enough cake, cookies, brownies, lemon squares and berries for 3,025 people (not including preview buffet desserts!)

The Back Deck

Costumes built onsite: 93

Scenic changeovers: 92

Total props for mainstage performances: 1,156

(Props by show: Tosca: 250; The Pearl Fishers: 341; Maometto II: 145; King Roger: 150; Arabella: 270)

Wigs built: 30

Wigs styled: 120

Plywood (all thicknesses):  2000 sheets or almost enough to cover 1.5 acres

Epoxy (and hardener combined):  110 gallons

Carbon fiber and fiberglass fabric combined:  over 800 square yards

Steel tubing: over 12,000 linear feet or 2 ¼ miles laid end to end

Total lights focused for mainstage performances:  9,633   

(Lights focused by show: Tosca: 3,588; The Pearl Fishers: 2,168; Maometto II: 1,272; King Roger: 1,485; Arabella: 1,120)

Human Resources

Total headcount of company members: 653

Hours donated by volunteers: 18,082 (or 2,260 days, 452 work weeks, 9 work years)

We end our aria with a nod to the people behind the numbers. Artists, staff, Board members, Guild members, volunteers… We could go on, but that would lead to yet another long list. And a special shout-out to our friends and fans in the audience, and all those who contributed to the season in simple, but meaningful ways like attending a backstage tour or liking our Facebook status.

And if you think we left something important off the list, let us know! We’d love to hear from you.

One more crucial statistic: only 300 days until the opening night of the 2013 season!

Costume Director David Burke with one of our terrific volunteers.

Looking ahead…

To everything there is a season. And to those of us who hold stake in The Santa Fe Opera, it’s evident that opera season is coming to an end.

Of course, we all know that closing night is a mere 24 hours away. The sun will set on Tosca and The Pearl Fishers one more time, and we won’t bear witness to that iconic sunset in the Crosby Theatre until opening night of The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein next year.  It’s bittersweet.

Before packing their cars and beginning the trek from New Mexico to their respective next destinations, a few members of the Apprentice Program took a break from their still-rigorous schedules to chat about their time in Santa Fe and their future plans.

On the technical side…

Matt Meldrem, a first year Stage Crew Apprentice, will head back to Iowa where he recently earned a degree from Iowa State University. When asked what his first impression of The Santa Fe Opera was, he simply said, “AWESOME.” Next year, he plans to move to Los Angeles, where he hopes to break into the acting biz.

Nicole Kelly, a first year Properties Run Crew Apprentice, has internships with the Manhattan Theatre Club and Goodman Theatre on the books for 2012-2013. Like many of us, she thinks of The Santa Fe Opera as a family.

Evan Hershman, a first year Shop Carpentry Apprentice, is studying lighting design at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania. While in Santa Fe, he learned to weld and work from 3D renderings. He hopes to come back next year, but in the meantime, he’s looking forward to studying abroad at London’s Goldsmith College.

Jeanne “JJ” Hu, a second year Props Carpentry Apprentice, wrote her thesis on theatrical blood effects. She put her research to good use building the blood dagger for the I Puritani scene in one of the Apprentice scenes programs. Next for JJ is a props internship at The Juilliard School.

As for our singers…

Tenor Christian Sanders was studying to be a marine biologist until he started taking voice lessons as an undergrad.  He caught the opera bug and the rest, as they say, is history. Christian’s biggest challenge this summer was learning how to pace his energy during the intense 12-week program. His most rewarding experience was singing the opening chorus of King Roger with the Desert Chorale. This fall, Christian will sing the role of Tom Rakewell in The Rake’s Progress at the University of Colorado in Boulder.

Soprano Mary-Jane Lee echoed Christian’s sentiment about the importance of pacing oneself. With opera in the family – she cited her sister mezzo-soprano Tamara Mumford as a major influence – Mary-Jane talked about discipline and staying vocally healthy for coachings and rehearsals.  After the season, she’s “living the dream,” and moving to New York with her husband to take lessons and auditions.

 

The sights and sounds of goodbyes are everywhere. New and longtime friends whose lives converged at the Opera this summer are meeting for final lunch dates at the cantina. They’re hugging and exchanging numbers. Some of us will be here next year and some of us won’t. But we’ll always have the unique moment in time when this group of people, circumstances, and repertory came together to create the 2012 season.

Young Blood

So, everybody knows that the Apprentice Scenes are a time for youth to shine: young singers and young technicians make these two Sundays in August (Aug 12 and Aug 19) nights to remember. They perform and design two nights of fully-staged scenes from famous operas. But what you may not have known is that even the stage direction is often done by some seriously new (and exciting) talent.

Apprentice Scenes Director, Matthew Ozawa.

Matthew Ozawa is one such talented young man. Now in his sixth season at The Santa Fe Opera (on and off since 2004), Matthew was not only Assistant Director to David Alden for the stunning mainstage production of Rossini’s Maometto II this year, he is also directing four of the apprentice scenes this summer, including The Turn of the Screw (Aug 12), La Rondine (Aug 12) and coming up on August 19, Gianni Schicchi and West Side Story. His goal in life is to be a director, and it looks like he’s off to a pretty good start. Having starting in Orchestra Services in 2004, Matthew’s talent was spotted by Santa Fe Opera stage managers, earning him a position as a stage manager in 2005 and 2007. Around that time he transitioned into jobs as Assistant Director, and in that capacity has worked with companies such as Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera and Opera Theater of Saint Louis, working closely with directors like Peter Sellars, Francesca Zambello, David Alden and designer Isaac Mizrahi.

Aug 12′s scene from La Rondine, directed by Matthew Ozawa. Note “Lautrece-meets-Luhrman!”

Matthew will be the first to tell you that he’s psyched about this gig. “I am so lucky,” he says. “I have such amazing scenes this year.” In general, his approach is to “take a time period, slightly revamping it so that it is hip, vibrant and accessible, while still having an air of tradition.” For instance, he conceived the look for his La Rondine as, “Lautrec meets Baz Luhrman’s Moulin Rouge – it’s not actually true to the time period, but evokes it. The scenes should have the vibrant colors and detailed intricacy of something that is heightened.”

Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi will walk a similar line. For this huge ensemble number, Matthew says he is “working with group flocking and movement. I’m highly influenced by fashion & music videos, so I want to show that people are individuals, but also part of a community that lives and breathes together.”

Group movement will also be central to his conception of what is perhaps some of the most famous “group movement” in modern musical theater – the gangs in West Side Story. Matthew has decided to set this scene in contemporary times, focusing on what elements both differentiate and unite the Latino and white cultures that are at the heart of the story. What kind of clothing distinguishes them, what kind of movement… But his work doesn’t begin and end with the performers – Matthew is using mannequins from the “bridal shop” scene between Anita and Maria to transition into a static chorus, of sorts, as “members” of the Puerto Rican gang. “I like to use minimal things in different ways to change the space. For me, I hate going to see something and knowing exactly what it’s going to be like, so I try to keep it fresh for the audience, and hopefully, they’ll want to see more!” Indeed, Matthew. We’re almost sure of it.

The Santa Fe Opera Campus Gardens

Meet Carol, our company Gardner.

Meet Carol, a patron to the Opera from previous seasons who recently joined the Santa Fe Opera staff last April as the company Head Gardener.  A gardener since childhood (with a natural green thumb?), Carol has a list of clients throughout Denver, Española, and Santa Fe.  Initially when the Head Gardener staff position was made available, Carol believed that the tended gardens were those located right at The Crosby Theater.  Unbeknownst to her, these gardens were a mere percentage  of the countless gardens that fill and surround the opera campus.

Once hired and as she became familiar with each garden, Carol fell in love immediately with this campus – a place where countless blooms provide viewers with a concert of color! “This campus is such an incredible spot; a little paradise!”

Beginning their work day at 7:00 AM, Carol and her three person crew start with a schedule of daily maintenance and watering throughout the common areas. Unique to the opera garden rules, Carol’s crew must work quickly in the early morning with any motorized tools since outdoor rehearsals begin at 10:00 AM, and thereafter all noise must be kept to a minimum.

Understanding that the opera is located in the high desert and drought is an endless concern, many of the gardens do not depend on daily watering.  The water used to maintain the grounds is a combination of the 600,000 gallons of recycled rain water, treated water, and well water.

This Autumn as the Opera’s season closes, Carol and her staff will put to bed the gardens and lawns in preparation for the winter months. Such thorough maintenance insures a quick transition next Spring as the grounds will once again transform themselves into the rich display of colors, textures and scents for the next opera season.