"The Elixir of Love" at Virginia Opera (2008)

Virginia Opera invites audiences to toast the holidays and fall head-over-heels for Gaetano Donizetti's romantic comedy "The Elixir of Love", coming to the stage in nine romping performances from Nov. 14 through Dec. 6 in Norfolk, Richmond and Fairfax, Va.

Last staged here in 1998, "The Elixir of Love" is the classic love potion story, with a comic twist. In the Italian countryside, the young farmer Nemorino drinks a "magical" elixir in the hope it will help him win the love of Adina, the prettiest girl in town. Little does he know the potion, sold to him by a quack doctor, is little more than ordinary red wine.

Soprano Jane Redding makes a delightful return to Virginia Opera's stage as Adina, having earned high praise from critics for previous comedic roles here, including Poppea in "Agrippina" (2007) and Susanna in "The Marriage of Figaro" (2006).

Making their company debuts are tenor Joshua Kohl as the love struck farmer Nemorino and baritone Stephen Hartley as the debonair Sergeant Belcore. The cast of five is topped off by returning bass-baritone Todd Robinson as the traveling cure-all salesman, Dr. Dulcamara, and soprano Allison Pohl as Gianetta. Mr. Robinson virtually stole the show with his moving aria as Prince Gremin in "Eugene Onegin" earlier this year, and Ms. Pohl is an exciting talent who last season was a member of the company's Spectrum Resident Artist program for young artists.

Returning with a re-envisioned staging of "The Elixir of Love" is acclaimed Broadway stage director and choreographer Dorothy Danner, praised for her previous work at Virginia Opera, including most recently "Lucia di Lammermoor" (2008), "Susannah" and "Carmen" (2006), and "La Traviata" (2005).

The Virginia Symphony Orchestra provides the orchestra for this production.

Visit www.vaopera.org/elixir for more details.

Copyright (c) 2008 by Virginia Opera Association - All Rights Reserved. This program may not be copied in whole or in part without the written consent of Virginia Opera Association.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Virginia
• Opera
• Italian
• Elixir
• Love
• Wine
• Song
• Music
• Classical
• Norfolk
• Richmond
• Fairfax
• Comedy
• Romance
• Tenor
• Soprano
• Funny

[MrKhaz101]

An opera is coming to our school, i'm in it :3

[Kingdomhearts1109]

man... we are going to watch this at school on tuesday. i feel bad for my crush. he has to go through with this on his bday. and i dont think he like opera

[ClearOutSamskaras]

@brianlandrytenor Serious query, no attitude:

Do you mean to say that extra weight helps singers to project; changes the way they work the diaphragm?

I don't know squat about opera!

[linorf]

what's that first song called?

[BrightTigerSpirit]

dude, the tenor ain't fat, those are the pants he's wearing, you see how skinny he is for real? gosh think a little dumbass.

[brianlandrytenor]

You know what, "wisemonkey"? Comments and attitudes like that are why opera is dying as an art form. It's being ruined by superficiality. I wish the leading tenor of today would GAIN afew pounds, maybe then we'd hear them in a theater.

[TheWisemonkey8]

the tenor needs to lose weight.

[796824]

The tenor is good, the soprano, mediocre

[scullyhahn]

My family and I saw this opera! It was fabulous! Thanks so much for all the hard work!

[ilegnah303]

Caramba! que achado legal!valeu ter colocado por aqui...