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Ohio Light Opera: Can-Can (June 20)

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by Kelly Ferjutz, Special to ClevelandClassical

Can-Can1If you’re among the millions who love Paris, whether it drizzles or sizzles — or even if you’re not — you’re bound to love the new production of Can-Can at the Ohio Light Opera. It’s bright and colorful, and, with the witty lyrics of Cole Porter, it’s totally sassy as well. It’s also a huge show, technically, as nearly everyone other than the principals plays double and triple roles, complete with numerous costume changes. This energetic production, helmed by artistic director Steven Daigle, never missed a beat. Act One has ten scenes, while Act Two has seven — daunting indeed. The colorful, bright costumes were designed by Charlene Gross, and the multi-purpose set and picturesque scrim by Cassie King. Lighting design is by Erich Keil. [Read more…]

Ohio Light Opera 37th season: a roundtable discussion with the stage directors

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by Kelly Ferjutz, Special to ClevelandClassical

SteveSteven Daigle (left) has been at the helm of Ohio Light Opera since 1999. But not even a Superman could successfully choose and direct all seven full-scale productions in the eight-week summer season at The College of Wooster. This season, Daigle will be in charge of four of the seven shows, and three members of his company will each direct one.

I sat down with Daigle, associate director Julie Wright Costa, principal guest director Ted Christopher, and Jacob Allen — all four of whom are teachers specializing in the lyric theater tradition — to ask questions about their careers and their lives at OLO.

Kelly Ferjutz: Could you each share your thoughts about shows you’re directing this season?

Steven Daigle: I’m directing four of the seven productions. Our repertory is shifting in the direction of a musical theater, which has a different emphasis than operetta. They all have their difficulties, but the biggest one is time constraints — there’s a lot to do after choosing a piece before you present it to the audience. Building sets is time-consuming and expensive. We’re trying to economize where possible, without hurting our quality. Maybe we build less complex sets at times. [Read more…]

Ohio Light Opera to open its 37th season on June 13

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by Daniel Hathaway

OLO-G&SOhio Light Opera will produce 58 performances of 8 shows this summer in Freedlander Theatre at the College of Wooster, kicking off its season with Lerner & Loewe’s Brigadoon on Saturday, June 13 at 7:30 pm.

Founder James Stuart originally had a summer Gilbert & Sullivan festival in mind in 1979, but since its inaugural season in Wooster, OLO has evolved to embrace a wider range of light opera, including European operetta and American musical theater. OLO is now under the leadership of artistic director Steven A. Daigle and general director Julie Wright Costa.

The mix of operettas and Broadway shows to be performed in 2015 by the 40 members of the vocal ensemble includes Cole Porter & Abe Burrows’ Can-Can, Ogden Nash & Kurt Weill’s One Touch of Venus, George & Ira Gershwin’s Oh, Kay!, Gilbert & Sullivan’s Ruddigore and Yeoman of the Guard, and Franz Lehár’s Friederike. [Read more…]

Review: Ohio Light Opera — Gypsy Baron (July 2)

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by J.D. Goddard

OLOOn Tuesday afternoon, July 2, at Friedlander Hall on the campus of The College of Wooster, the Ohio Light Opera presented their opening summer performance of Johann Strauss Jr.’s The Gypsy Baron. The scoring and the nature of the piece led many critics to consider it neither a comic opera nor a lyric opera, and thus an operetta. Whatever you call it, during the composer’s lifetime The Gypsy Baron enjoyed great success, second only to the popularity of Die Fledermaus. This was a time when Vienna was awash in the beloved waltzes of Strauss Jr. and audiences turned out in droves to hear his always engaging melodic waltz themes while dancing the evenings away.

For today’s audiences, however, staging an operetta such as The Gypsy Baron, with its predictable story line, romantic happy ending, concealed identities and syrupy dose of social satire can prove to be a daunting task. Ignaz Schnitzer’s libretto (English translation by Ruth and Thomas Martin) utilized the usual stock operetta types: feuding Hungarians and gypsies, a buried treasure and a notable absence of genuine mirth. [Read more…]

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