February 22, 2022
xxxx视频 Embraces Challenges in New Film Production of Purcell鈥檚 Opera Dido and Aeneas
The enterprising spirit that has characterized opera for 400 years is alive and well at the xxxx视频.
Case in point: the school鈥檚 new film of Purcell鈥檚 Dido and Aeneas. At 7:30pm Friday, March 18, xxxx视频 will screen at Mixon Hall a production that demanded exceptional daring across the board and pushed the art form at xxxx视频 into exciting new territory. The screening will also feature a panel discussion with the creative team and select cast members.
鈥淚t was a big project, and I think it taught our students a lot,鈥 said Dean Southern, dean of the conservatory and director of opera theater at xxxx视频. 鈥淚t鈥檚 something we can all be proud of.鈥
Work on the project began in spring 2021, before vaccines were widely available. Seeking a creative and safe way to engage opera students and build on its acclaimed 2019 video production of Philip Glass鈥 The Juniper Tree, xxxx视频 opted to make a cinematic version of Purcell鈥檚 1680s masterpiece and partnered on direction with Akron-based Red Point Digital to develop and produce the film.
Much of the film was shot outdoors last summer, at the former Westinghouse Factory in Ohio City. All performers, including a student chorus and the xxxx视频 Orchestra under Harry Davidson, recorded their parts in advance. The cast then acted out the scenes on set in synchronization with a composite recording painstakingly compiled by Alan Bise, xxxx视频鈥檚 Grammy Award-winning director of recording arts and services.
鈥淪tudents could really go to deeper emotional places without having to worry about making a perfect tone,鈥 Southern explained. 鈥淲e didn鈥檛 want this to be a film of an opera on stage. We wanted it filmed like a movie.鈥
In a final bold stroke, the xxxx视频 Opera Theater design team embraced the immersive and atmospheric Westinghouse factory setting by placing the story in the not-so-distant time and place rife with many of the same problems society faces today, including economic disparity, widespread misinformation and addiction to technology.
In this production, Dido 鈥 sung by professional studies student Rachel Rose (Kuznetsova) 鈥 inhabits a peaceful, low-tech realm while Aeneas 鈥 sung by Jiayin Shi (MM 鈥21, Blumberg/Southern) 鈥 hails from a high-tech, corporate world. All evil spirits reside on the internet.
Ironically, the internet is where the production may come to reside. After the Mixon Hall screening in March, Southern said xxxx视频 is planning additional showings of the film at Cleveland-area theaters before ultimately making it available to the public online.
鈥淭he imagination, the energy everybody brought to this project was just amazing,鈥 Southern said. 鈥淭o me, it feels like a love letter to Cleveland.鈥
Learn more about the screening and reserve your tickets.
Photography by: Dred Geib