Rolando Sanz to Executive Produce Concept Opera Starring Kristin Chenoweth
In April 2016, Rolando Sanz and Strathmore will present the world premiere of I Am Anne Hutchinson/I Am Harvey Milk, a concept opera by Grammy and Tony Award-nominated composer Andrew Lippa.
September 9, 2015
In April 2016, Rolando Sanz and Strathmore will present the world premiere of I Am Anne Hutchinson/I Am Harvey Milk, the newest work by Grammy and Tony Award-nominated composer Andrew Lippa.
Broadway superstar Kristin Chenoweth will join Lippa, along with a full symphonic orchestra and a cast of 140 actors and singers. Part choral work, part theater piece, this concept opera will bring to life two trailblazing stories of struggle, joy, passion, and ultimately, triumph.
Centuries apart, two reluctant prophets stood up for equality and changed the world. This groundbreaking World Premiere Concept Opera combines song, movement and powerful storytelling, bringing to life the emotional tales of two American icons.
Starring Broadway luminaries Kristin Chenoweth and Andrew Lippa, this stunning production magically weaves together the lives of 17th century women’s rights activist Anne Hutchinson and 1970s’ gay rights leader Harvey Milk. Separated by time, space, and culture, these two heroes were each lit from within by the same fierce passion for human dignity and devoted themselves to the fight for justice. This new, riveting theatrical work celebrates courage in the face of daunting odds, shining across the centuries from the hearts of two good people who achieved greatness.
Strathmore will partner with Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and the National Women’s History Museum, who will benefit from the proceeds of these performances.
Jamie Barton Debuts at Seattle Opera
"Barton is dazzling as Fenena, with a showstopper Act IV aria that displayed the lyricism and agility of this remarkable voice." Jamie Barton sings her first Fenena in Nabucco, a role that will also serve as her Royal Opera House Covent Garden debut this season.
September 8, 2015
Jamie Barton has made her Seattle Opera debut, singing her first Fenena in Nabucco, a role that will also serve as her Royal Opera House Covent Garden debut this season.
Barton is "dazzling, with a showstopper aria that displayed the lyricism and agility of this remarkable voice" (Seattle Times), delivering "arguably the most touching piece of singing all evening." (Opera Magazine)
Performances run through August 22, with alternating casts of Gordon Hawkins and Weston Hurt as the title character, Mary Elizabeth Williams and Raffaella Angeletti as Abigaille, and Russell Thomas as Ismaele. Tickets can be purchased via the Seattle Opera site.
Photo by Elise Bakketun
Read reviews >
"Jamie Barton, an international prizewinner of considerable renown, is dazzling as Fenena, with a showstopper Act IV aria that displayed the lyricism and agility of this remarkable voice."
Seattle Times
"Likewise impressive was Jamie Barton's passionate portrayal of Fenena, the half-sister of Abigaille who wins the man loved by both, the Israelite Ismaele. Her prayer in Part Four, just before the freshly converted Nabucco arrives to stay her execution, was a highlight. So was the trio between her, Abigaille, and Ismaele in Part One."
Bachtrack
"Young mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton as Fenena, new here, has a truly beautiful voice with depth and nuance. She will surely be back."
SunBreak
"Thomas blended well with Jamie Barton’s mellifluous Fenena. Barton’s Act 4 preghiera was arguably the most touching piece of singing all evening."
Opera Magazine
"Fenena is luxuriously cast with mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton, creamy and beautiful in the Part I trio and the Part IV cavatina."
Opera News
Jamie Barton Makes BBC Proms Debut
"That joyfully dark, voluptuous and steady voice sucked us in from the first worried note to the last breath of emollient calm." Jamie Barton sings the Brahms Alto Rhapsody with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, under the baton of Marin Alsop.
September 2, 2015
Photo by Chris Christodoulou.
Mezzo Jamie Barton has made her BBC Proms debut, singing the Brahms Alto Rhapsody with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, led by Marin Alsop.
The Guardian writes, "the noble beauty of the sound was breathtaking" while the London Times writes that her "vocal finesse" and "joyfully dark, voluptuous and steady voice sucked us in from the first worried note to the last breath of emollient calm."
Barton will revisit the Alto Rhapsody this season with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra before traveling to Moscow for her Russian debut in a concert of Bellini, Donizetti, and Verdi with the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra.
Read reviews:
"Marin Alsop’s Brahms concert with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment here formed the Proms debut of the American mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton, winner of Cardiff Singer of the World in 2013. Her Brahms singing on that occasion marked her out as an important interpreter of his music, an impression confirmed by her Proms performance of the Alto Rhapsody, one of his greatest works, though the unusual forces required – a male chorus in addition to alto and orchestra – have made it something of a rarity. Setting a text by Goethe, the rhapsody examines the nature of existential isolation and the potential of music to offer solace. Where some interpreters ramp up the angst, Barton was notably restrained: the only moment of overt passion came, tellingly, in the heft with which she uttered the statement that “human hatred” has forced Brahms’s traveller from his path. Elsewhere, the noble beauty of the sound was breathtaking."
The Guardian
"Why give opulent American mezzo and only possible winner of the 2013 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition Jamie Barton less than a quarter of an hour to shine in a masterpiece? Shine she did, with...a great voice – and Barton’s unquestionably is – with personality and feeling to match."
The Arts Desk
"Mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton, making her Proms debut, joined the orchestra and the male voices of the Choir of the Enlightenment for the Alto Rhapsody. Barton had an authoritative presence on stage, and drew us in with her rich low notes and touching communication of Goethe’s anguished words of despair. This was a moving performance which proved to be the evening's highlight. Jamie Barton emerged as the star of the evening."
Bachtrack
"It is a pity that these days the term ‘mezzo-soprano’ covers all lower-voice female soloists, because this is absolutely a piece for an old-fashioned contralto, and it was performed majestically as just that. Barton produces some beautifully sweet top notes, but her lower register is magnificent – the bottom A-flat was especially sonorous."
MusicOMH
"Vocal finesse shone from the Alto Rhapsody too, thanks to the wonderful American mezzo Jamie Barton. That joyfully dark, voluptuous and steady voice sucked us in from the first worried note to the last breath of emollient calm."
The London Times
Amanda Majeski Featured in CS Modern Luxury Magazine
"Although fate may have jump-started Majeski's career, pure talent propels it." Amanda Majeski talks with CS Modern Luxury magazine about stepping up to the plate and which opera character she'd like to chat with over coffee.
September 1, 2015
Amanda Majeski talks with CS Modern Luxury magazine about stepping up to the plate and which opera character she'd like to chat with over coffee.
It seems lyric soprano Amanda Majeski was just meant to sing Countess Almaviva in Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro. In 2010, the Gurnee native took to the Lyric Opera of Chicago stage on short notice, when bronchitis sidelined the scheduled star. And last season, she did the same at the Metropolitan Opera when the slated Russian diva dropped out of Richard Eyre's new production. But she did more than step up to the plate; she made the role her own. Although fate may have jump-started Majeski's career, pure talent propels it.
Jamie Barton Featured in Seattle Times
“My first instinct is to go for a very sympathetic Fenena. I’m a big believer in bringing beauty into the story when I can." Ahead of her Seattle Opera debut, Jamie Barton talks to the Seattle Times about Fenena, Wagner, and her roll-out-of-bed-and-sing music.
August 2, 2015
Photo by Elise Bakketun
Ahead of her Seattle Opera debut, Jamie Barton talks to the Seattle Times about Fenena, Wagner, and her roll-out-of-bed-and-sing music.
“My first instinct is to go for a very sympathetic Fenena,” Barton says of a role she will sing for the first time in Seattle. “I think there is a core of strength within, but I do think it’s nice to create a contrast to Abigaille (Fenena’s sister and romantic rival). I’m a big believer in bringing beauty into the story when I can..."