CCMONSTAGE OPERA D’ARTE UNDERGRADUATE OPERA
Music by Jacques Offenbach
Adapted by Omari Tau
Libretto by Hector Crémieux and Ludovic Halévy
Adapted by Buck Ross
Feb. 4-6, 2022, Cohen Family Studio Theater
Opera d'Arte Sponsor
Rafael and Kimberly de Acha
*CCM Student
Orpheus in the Underworld will last 95 minutes with a 15-minute intermission between Act 2 and Act 3.
By Amy Johnson
Sometimes we all need a good French farce. Its mélange of mistaken identities, caricature, disguises, magical elements, breaking of fourth walls and healthy doses of indecency give us permission to take nothing seriously, other than the laughs.
Special thanks to the CCM Voice faculty, Donna Loewy, Kathleen Kelly, Robert Doak and Vernon Hartman.
In the prologue, Public Opinion sets the tone in the manner of a Greek Chorus, assuring us that the audience is safe from the ensuing mayhem. We then meet the misbehaving Eurydice, followed by her husband, Orpheus. It quickly becomes clear that they both have extramarital interests and would gladly divorce if not for tarnishing their reputations. As an alternative, Orpheus plans to dispose of Eurydice's lover - Aristaeus, who, in fact, is Pluto in disguise. When Eurydice meets her demise instead of Aristaeus, his identity is revealed and she is willingly swept away to the underworld.
Orpheus is elated when he learns the news but is immediately reprimanded by Public Opinion and charged with descending to the underworld to retrieve his wife (whether he wants her or not!).
While some gods are sleeping, others who have been frolicking during the night attempt to sneak back into bed before being caught. Diana's entrance is quick and dramatic, and she laments the loss of her love, Acteon. Jupiter admits to interfering with the affair by turning him into a stag. This leads to a family feud regarding Eurydice's disappearance. Mercury arrives in time to momentarily lower the tension, if not the temperature. However, he brings with him Pluto, who Jupiter believes is responsible for Eurydice's disappearance. Their confrontation is interrupted by civil unrest which leads to a condemnation of Jupiter's past indiscretions. The crisis mounts with the untimely arrival of Public Opinion and Orpheus. Orpheus identifies Pluto as the one who took his wife - exonerating Jupiter. Jupiter declares that Pluto must return Eurydice to Orpheus. To ensure this happens, Jupiter will go to Hell himself to retrieve her. The gods are fascinated and decided to make a family outing of it.
Eurydice complains of being abandoned in a tacky suite with no internet. Truly Hell. John Styx professes his admiration and sings of his rule as King of Boeotia. As he whisks her away they are interrupted by the approach of Pluto and Jupiter. John Styx quickly secures Eurydice. Upon their entrance, Pluto continues to claim his innocence and invites Jupiter to a party. Jupiter doubles back, determined to find Eurydice and with the help of Cupid and The Love Police, slithers his way through the keyhole of her room and seduces her. They plan a rendezvous at the party and thereafter an escape.
A party set in one's worst nightmare - superficial luxury and never-ending commercialized holidays. As the guests praise debauchery, a mysterious bacchante arrives and sings a hymn to Bacchus. Courtly dances follow, but they quickly ignite into a can-can orchestrated by the otherworldly Lady Phaedra. Pluto prevents the escape of Jupiter and Eurydice but is exposed as her kidnapper. Jupiter challenges Orpheus to lead Eurydice out of the underworld without looking back at her lest he lose her. The gods place bets. Orpheus fails. Public Opinion is scandalized. Pluto is hopeful that he will retain Eurydice, but Jupiter has other plans. He will put her on The Voice.
*Featured in the performance on Sat., Feb. 5
Reed Demangone
Senior Vocal Performance student from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
At CCM: Sorceress in Dido and Aeneas, Public Opinion in Orpheus in the Underworld, Third Spirit in The Magic Flute, L'Eco in L'Orfeo with Opera d’Arte.
Nia Spaulding
Junior Vocal Performance student from Berkley, California
At CCM: Zita in Gianni Schicchi, 2nd Witch in Dido and Aeneas, Public Opinion in Orpheus in the Underworld and Dritte Dame cover in Die Zauberflöte with Opera d’Arte, Citizen’s Chorus in Les Dialogues des Carmélites. Elsewhere: La Zia Principessa in Suor Angelica with International Summer Opera Festival of Morelia (Morelia, Mexico), Second Woman in Dido and Aeneas with Voices of Music (San Francisco, California).
Alea Vernon
Junior Voice student from Cheshire, Connecticut studying with Elliot Madore
At CCM: Eurydice in Orpheus in The Underworld, Königin der Nacht in The Magic Flute. Elsewhere: Chorus in Aida with Cincinnati Opera, chorus in La Bohème with Cincinnati Opera, Adele in Die Fledermaus with Berlin Opera Academy.
Lea Nayak
Junior Vocal Performance student from San Francisco, California
At CCM: Eurydice in Orpheus in the Underworld with Opera d'Arte, People's Chorus and Voix de femme en coulisse in Les Dialogues des Carmélites with CCM Graduate Opera, Belinda in Dido and Aeneas with Opera d’Arte.
Jarrett Hazelton
Sophomore Voice student from Waterford, Michigan studying with Daniel Weeks
At CCM: Orpheus in Orpheus in the Underworld, Armored Man 1 in The Magic Flute.
Zachary Burnham
Junior Vocal Performance student from Detroit, Michigan
At CCM: Gherardo in Gianni Schicchi, Sailor in Dido and Aeneas, Orpheus in Orpheus in the Underworld with Opera d’Arte, chorus in Dialogues des Carmélites. Elsewhere: Doody in Grease at Riverbank Theatre (Marine City, Michigan).
Andrew Cunningham
Senior Voice student from Cincinnati, Ohio studying with Daniel Weeks
At CCM: Featured Dancer in Die Fledermaus, Orfeo in L'Orfeo, Monostatos in The Magic Flute.
Jadyn Riggs
Junior Vocal Performance student from Cincinnati, Ohio
At CCM: Ensemble in Orpheus in the Underworld, Ensemble in Die Zauberflöte. Elsewhere: MUSE Cincinnati Women’s Choir (Cincinnati, Ohio).
Torie Davis
Sophomore Vocal Performance student from Toledo, Ohio
At CCM: La Ciesca in Gianni Schicchi, Spirit in Dido and Aeneas, Love Police in Orpheus in the Underworld with Opera D’Arte. Elsewhere: Chorus in Carmen, The Ballad of Baby Doe, Macbeth and La Bohème with Toledo Opera, Grace Davis in Street Scene at Bowling Green State University (Bowling Green, Ohio), Mystery in The Fairy Queen at the University of Toledo, Nursing Sister in Suor Angelica with Resonanz Opera (Mentor, Ohio).
Laura Stanell
Sophomore Vocal Performance student from Harleysville, Pennsylvania
At CCM: Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi, Ensemble in Orpheus in the Underworld with Opera d’Arte. Elsewhere: Angel/Maiden in The Maid of Orleans with the Russian Opera Workshop at the Academy of Vocal Arts (Philadelphia), Suor Genovieffa in Suor Angelica with Bel Canto in Tuscany (Greve, Italy).
Natalia Adame
Senior Vocal Performance student from Novi, Michigan
At CCM: Dido in Dido and Aeneas, Cupid in Orpheus in the Underworld, Dritter Knabe in The Magic Flute with Opera d’Arte. Elsewhere: Gertrude Stein (cover) and Anna Hope (cover) in The Mother of Us All, Shamana 3 in The House on Mango Street (premiere), Owl in The Cunning Little Vixen and Rose and Mrs. Medlock in The Secret Garden with the Chautauqua Opera Company and Conservatory (Chautauqua, New York), Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro and Mercédès (scenes) in Carmen at the International Opera Summer Festival of Morelia (Morelia, Mexico).
Henry Lunn
Senior Voice student from Lake Forest, Illinois studying with Kenneth Shaw
At CCM: Featured in every undergraduate opera at CCM since 2018. Elsewhere: Professional roles at Lyric Opera of Chicago and Chicago Opera Theater.
Emilio Vasquez
Junior Vocal Performance student from Houston, Texas
At CCM: 2nd armored man in Die Zauberflöte, Jupiter in Orpheus in the Underworld, People's chorus in Dialogues of the Carmelites.
Grant Shields
Junior Vocal Performance student from Morrow, Ohio
At CCM: Gherardo and Rinuccio (cover) in Gianni Schicchi, Sailor and Chorus in Dido and Aeneas, Chorus in Dialogues des Carmélites, Mercury in Orpheus in the Underworld, Chorus in The Magic Flute with Opera d’Arte, Tenor Soloist in Nunez Garcia’s Requiem, Jephte in Historia di Jephté.
Henry Lunn
Senior Voice student from Lake Forest, Illinois studying with Kenneth Shaw
At CCM: Featured in every undergraduate opera at CCM since 2018. Elsewhere: Professional roles at Lyric Opera of Chicago and Chicago Opera Theater.
Guest Artist from Cincinnati, Ohio
The Lady Phaedra — Cincinnati’s “Statuesque Moose” — as she is known, is no stranger to any stage. She has a performance resume as long as her legs, and a heart as big as her brassiere! Her easy-going charms, sharp wit and bawdy humor have made her one of Cincinnati’s most sought-after entertainers — and as long as her knees don’t fail her, she has no interest in slowing down!
Annalese Fusaro
Junior Musical Theatre student from Fredericksburg, Virginia
CCM: Swing in Duke Ellington's Jazz Nutcracker, Ensemble/understudy Ilona in She Loves Me. Elsewhere: Miss Adelaide in Guys and Dolls at The Carnegie (Covington, Kentucky), Maggie Winslow in A Chorus Line at Riverside Center for the Performing Arts (Fredericksburg, Virginia), Ensemble in RAGTIME in Concert with the Cincinnati POPS (Cincinnati, Ohio), Jo in Little Women, Eponine in Les Misérables, and Dragon in Shrek the Musical (CYT).
Nate Jones
Senior Musical Theatre student from Tallahassee, Florida
At CCM: Robin/understudy Nostradamus in Something Rotten!, Phil in The Wild Party, Ensemble/understudy Jean-Michel in Cinderella, Swing in Sunday in the Park with George, and Swing in Spring Awakening.
Tomi Newman
Junior Musical Theatre student from Dayton, Ohio
At CCM: Ensemble in She Loves Me, Swing in Cinderella, Swing in Spring Awakening. Elsewhere: Charlie Price in Kinky Boots and Harry the Horse in Guys & Dolls at The Carnegie (Cincinnati, Ohio), Ensemble in RAGTIME in Concert with the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra (Cincinnati, Ohio).
Brett Scott, conductor
Corey Cochran
Senior Costume Design and Technology student from Fort Worth, Texas
At CCM: Wardrobe Head for Xanadu and Marriage of Figaro, Craft Artisan for Lysistrata and She Loves Me. Assistant Designer for Spring Awakening. Elsewhere: Wig/Makeup Designer and First Hand for Pippin, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Robber Bridegroom and Ain't Misbehavin' at Timber Lake Playhouse (Carroll County, Illinois), Stitchers Apprentice for The Sound of Music, Costume Design Apprentice for La Boheme, Candide, Romeo & Juliet, Rinaldo and The Rip Van Winkles, Costume Designer for Love & War at The Glimmerglass Festival (Cooperstown, New York).
Rosie Burns Pavlik
Senior Stage Management student from Farmington Hills, Michigan
At CCM: Production Stage Manager for Dialogues of the Carmelites, Julius Caesar, and Orpheus and the Underworld, Calling Stage Manager for Cincinnati Dyonisia. Assistant Stage Manager for Cinderella, Galileo Galilei, and Travelogue, Production Assistant for The Magic Flute, and Rocket Science, Wardrobe Supervisor for Spring Awakening. Elsewhere: Orchestra Stage Manager for Aspen Music Festival, Assistant Stage Manager for The Sound of Music (Aspen Music Festival) and The Absentee (The KNOW Theatre of Cincinnati), Sub-Assistant Stage Manager for Don Giovanni (Aspen Music Festival).
Madisen Frazier
Senior Stage Design, Props and Scenic Art from Gainsville, Florida
At CCM: Props Master for Punk Rock, The Marriage of Figaro, Galileo. Elsewhere: Props Designer for Hello Dolly and Crazy for You at the Southeastern Summer Theatre Institute (Hilton Head, South Carolina), Props Artisan for Perchance to Dream, Music in the Air, The Devil’s Rider, Pirates of Penzance, Into the Woods, South Pacific, and Girl Crazy at the Ohio Light Opera (Wooster, OH).
Hannah Kate Hawver
Junior Stage Management student from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
At CCM: PA for Xanadu, Orpheus in the Underworld, and Galileo Galilei, Assistant Stage Manager for Cincinnati Dionysia, Student Choreographer's Showcase (2023), and Sweet Charity, PSM for Gianni Schicchi + Dido and Aeneas, and American in Paris + Other Works. Elsewhere: Assistant Stage Manager at Wagon Wheel Center for the Arts (Warsaw, Indiana), Assistant Stage Manager at Gulfshore Playhouse (Naples, Florida), Assistant Stage Manager at Long Bay Theatre Company (Myrtle Beach, South Carolina).
Leah Berry
Senior Stage Management student from Lexington, Kentucky
At CCM: Assistant Stage Manager The Rocky Horror Show, Student Choreographers Showcase; Project Manager for Light in the Piazza, Little Shop of Horrors and,The Laramie Project; Assistant Production Manager for CCM 21-22 Season. Elsewhere: Assistant Stage Manager Holiday Inn, Flashdance, Mamma Mia!, and Matilda with Surflight Theatre (Beach Haven, New Jersey); Assistant Stage Manager James and the Giant Peach with Lexington Children's Theatre (Lexington, Kentucky).
Emma King
Senior Stage Management student from Cincinnati, Ohio
At CCM: Assistant Stage Manager of Wings, Assistant Production Manager of TDP Projects 2021, Production Assistant of Clybourne Park. Elsewhere: Production Stage Manager of Little Shop of Horrors and Newsies with Performing Arts, Inc. (Cincinnati).
McKenna Brennan
Senior Technical Production student from Los Alamitos, California
At CCM: Automation Op on Clybourne Park, Wardrobe Crew on 42nd Street, Master Carpenter on Little Shop of Horrors, Automation Op on Light in the Piazza.
Sami Tamulonis
Senior Stage Design, Props and Scenic Art student from Westerville, Ohio
At CCM: Scenic Designer for Once, and Lysistrata and Trojan Women, Charge Artist for Galileo Galilei, Charge Artist for Fellow Travelers, Scenic Designer for Agrippina Elsewhere: Scenic Artist for Cinderella, Margaritaville, Leading Ladies, and On the Golden Pond at Cumberland County Playhouse (Crossville, Tennessee).
Michael Donahue
Senior Sound Design student from Norwalk, Connecticut
At CCM: Sound Designer for Dido and Aeneas & Gianni Schicchi, Production Sound Engineer for Dialogues des Carmelites, Production Sound Engineer for The Burials. Elsewhere: Sound Designer/A1 for Jersey Boys, The Addams Family, Matilda, Spamalot, and Clue with Forestburgh Playhouse (Forestburgh, New York).
Brenden Friedel
Senior Sound Design student from Orlando, Florida
At CCM: Sound Designer for Sweet Charity, Associate Sound Designer for Something Rotten!, Production Sound for Fellow Travelers, Spring Awakening and 30 Years of Stephen: The Music of Stephen Flaherty. Elsewhere: Sound Designer for Ragtime at Flint Repertory Theatre (Flint, Michigan), A2 with Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival (Incline Village, Nevada).
Alex Brock
Third-year MFA Sound Design and Technology student from Greenfield, Indiana
At CCM: Production Sound Engineer for 42nd Street, Assistant Designer for The Bartered Bride. Elsewhere: Utah Shakespeare Festival, Indiana Repertory Theater, Bay Street Theater, Syracuse Stage, Chautauqua Theater Company and New York Stage and Film.
Ryan Hurt
Third-year MFA Sound Design and Technology student from Lincoln, Nebraska
At CCM: A1 of The Rocky Horror Show, Production Sound Engineer of Bright Star, Sound Designer of Clybourne Park, Assistant Sound Designer of Lady Windermere's Fan, Sound Designer of Association of Controlled Dreamers. Elsewhere: Sound Designer of The Niceties at Interlochen Center for the Arts, Sound Designer of Woyzeck at South Dakota State University, A1 of Seussical at South Dakota State University
Patrick Kiernan
Second-year MFA Sound Design and Technology student from Kingston, New York
Elsewhere: Off-Broadway productions of A Salute to the Brave (world premiere) and She Stoops to Conquer (The Actors Company Theater); Simon Dawes Becomes a Planet (Time Shared Productions); Richard III, As You Like It, Around the World in 80 Days (world premiere), Julius Caesar (co-design, Matt Webb), Stuart Little, The Shakespeare, Stealer (Idaho Shakespeare Festival); Henry VI Part One, Breach (Baldwin Wallace University); The Hunting of the Snark (The Players NYC/University of Michigan).
Jie Min
Second-year MFA Stage Management student from Harbin, China
At CCM: Production Stage Manager for Dance Works 2022, Assistant Stage Manager for L'Amant Anonyme, Assistant Stage Manager for Dance Works 2021 Elsewhere: ASM for Ushuaia Blue, ASM for Babel at Contemporary American Theater Festival (Shepherdstown, West Virginia), Co-director and Media Designer for Am I Still Alive, Film Producer for A Painting at Beijing Dance Academy (Beijing, China), Executive Director and Dance Choreographer of Gala Celebrate the Spring Festival at China Central Television (Beijing, China).
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September 18, 2023
UC’s College-Conservatory of Music will welcome a variety of new faculty and staff members to its roster of distinguished performing and media arts experts this fall. The following new appointments have been announced as of Aug 15, 2023. Additional new hires will be announced later this summer.
September 15, 2023
You're invited to a day of discovery for prospective undergraduate singers from 1-6 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 7, 2023! Learn more about the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music's renowned Bachelor of Music degree program in Voice Performance. This informative event is free of charge, but reservations are required.
September 8, 2023
UC's College-Conservatory of Music kicks off its fall performance season in September with a variety of concerts starring the next generation of performing and media artists. Local media featured the college's upcoming events in preview coverage shared by CityBeat, Movers and Makers, Behind the Curtain Cincinnati and All About the Arts.
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