Opera Chapman puts its own spin on Mozart and Moran works with spring production
Performing on April 19 and 21, Opera Chapman’s spring production will be a double bill of two lesser-known operas by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Robert Moran. Photo by EMI THOMAS, Staff Photographer
For their spring production, Opera Chapman didn’t exactly make things easy for themselves.
Included in the event’s two-night performance is a production of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s “Il sogno di Scipione.” It’s a lesser-known work by the famous composer since it was once buried after a benefactor was dissatisfied with it. The second opera, Robert Moran’s “From the Towers of the Moon,” while more modern, is very ambiguous, having only ever been performed once prior.
Due to their lesser-known status, sophomore Evan Richards, who is double majoring in vocal performance and instrumental conducting, has been able to learn about what it takes to produce such pieces. He serves as Opera Chapman’s assistant music conductor and claims the difficulties have required the team to be more innovative in order to put the opera together.
“What really fascinates me with our production and these two shows is that, in a way, we’re really reviving them because of how unknown they are,” Richards said. “There were quite a few hiccups when it came to just getting (‘From the Towers of the Moon’) to where it was because there was no recording of this opera anywhere. I believe if Chapman chooses to publicize our production, we will be the first archival recording of the sort. We’ve had to discover what it’s like to come up with the aural concept of hearing it for the first time and seeing it set to music in real-time.”
On Friday, April 19, and Sunday, April 21, Opera Chapman will perform its spring production double bill. Opera Chapman director Marc Callahan previously staged a production of “Il sogno di Scipione” during his time teaching at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The university’s plethora of production services allowed him to replicate the production on a much larger scale. As an associate professor in the Conservatory of Music, Callahan also reached out to Chapman’s dance department for help regarding choreography for the production, which incorporates K-pop.
Astronauts, cupcakes and neon palm trees may not be facets you’d expect walking into a performance of a Mozart opera from the 1700s, but it’s exactly what you’ll get at the spring production. These elements serve as some of Callahan’s efforts to emphasize “Il sogno di Scipione’s” dreamy atmosphere.
The opera follows the prince Il Scipione as he is approached by two specters, la Fortuna and la Costanza, in a dream. Both characters offer him choices on how he can lead.
“From the Towers of the Moon” follows the moon princess Kaguya, who lives as a human on Earth. Unlike “Il sogno di Scipione,” which is being modernized, Opera Chapman is incorporating Heian period style clothing, traditional Japanese theater Noh and traditional Japanese dance Nihon-buyō, among other facets, into the performance of Moran’s piece.
When choosing that opera, Callahan scoured the internet for references to use, eventually receiving the piece’s score from a composer. The score, though, needed some work.
“We’ve spent the last several months reconstructing the scores so that the orchestra can play them, and just rebuilding the opera — kind of creating this wonderful thing that could have otherwise been lost — we’re recreating,” Callahan told The Panther. “It’s really exciting to do that.”
Senior vocal performance and global communications double major Julia Sapeta, who is also Opera Chapman’s vice president, will be playing the titular role in “Il sogno di Scipione.” Sapeta has found performing in the opera to offer both rewards and challenges.
“I think that (performing in a different language) is (the most rewarding aspect of being in the spring production), the experience of doing that,” Sapeta said. “On top of that, I get to play a character that’s just very me, and it just feels so natural to be up on that stage and just kind of josh around and improvise certain feelings, certain actions.”
“It’s a big acting challenge for me. I’m on stage for an hour. I don’t get to leave the stage throughout the entirety of the production, which was really daunting at first. Once we started getting into it, I was like, ‘Oh, you just have to be yourself. You just have to play yourself.’ I think it’s been super cool to be given that opportunity to explore that level of acting for that period of time.”
Prior to earning the role of Il Scipione, Sapeta originally envisioned herself in the roles of la Fortuna or la Costanza. But the role of la Fortuna went to junior psychology major Dylan Mattingly, who is also one of the publicity chairs for Opera Chapman.
To Mattingly, one of the most rewarding aspects of working on the spring production is the collaboration that ensues and the bonds that form between creatives working on the production.
“If I wasn’t in opera, I wouldn't know any of the costume department, who are absolutely wonderful,” Mattingly told The Panther. “The social media team, the hair and makeup team, all the behind-the-scenes, backstage people. There’s just an immense amount of effort that goes into this. You just have these little moments with people that you don’t expect, and you may end up meeting someone that’s like, ‘Wow, that’s such an awesome person,’ and create a super strong friendship and bond.”
The importance of producing a lost opera, according to Callahan, falls on the fact that fewer and fewer operas are being composed.
“First of all, I think (‘From the Towers of the Moon’) is an incredible work, and as we go through time, fewer and fewer operas are being composed,” Callahan said. “I think where we have this hidden gem of an opera that we think has legs and tells an important story, I think they’re really important to preserve and furthermore, hopefully, to publish so that they can be disseminated not only throughout the country but throughout the world.”
Tickets for the performance can be purchased on Chapman’s ticketing site.
“First of all, I think (‘From the Towers of the Moon’) is an incredible work, and as we go through time, fewer and fewer operas are being composed. I think where we have this hidden gem of an opera that we think has legs and tells an important story, I think they’re really important to preserve and furthermore, hopefully, to publish so that they can be disseminated not only throughout the country but throughout the world.”