Don Giovanni
PERFORMANCES
January 24, 2020
January 26, 2020
LOCATION
Saenger Theatre
LANGUAGE
Italian with English supertitles
COMPOSER
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
LIBRETTIST
Lorenzo da Ponte
details
Mozart’s operatic masterpiece returns to the Saenger stage in a stunning new production created by Papermoon Opera Productions and stage director Fenlon Lamb. Don Giovanni is an arrogant, charismatic aristocrat who will stop at nothing to challenge unrequited lust – even if it means violence. His reign of terror ends in a brilliant finale as the fires of the underworld welcome opera’s lecherous libertine.
Cast and Creatives
Corey McKern
as Don GiovanniAward-winning baritone Corey McKern continuously earns critical acclaim and accolades in every appearance he makes. Of his performance as Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia, critics hailed: “Corey McKern… has all the goods to rise to star stature – timing, stamina, vocal heft and an easy-going stage presence – especially telling in Figaro’s signature aria, ‘Largo al factotum della citta.’” Recent engagements include the role of Older Thompson in Glory Denied with Opera Birmingham and performances as a soloist in Carmina Burana with Missoula Symphony, and Handel’s Messiah with the Alabama Symphony. Other engagements include Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Tallahassee Symphony and a return to the Florentine Opera for a concert of “Opera’s Greatest Hits.” Upcoming, Corey will return to Pensacola Opera as the title role in their production of Don Giovanni.
Of his performance in La bohème, the Santa Fe New Mexican said, “Corey McKern’s resolute, robust-voiced and rambunctious Marcello, a perfect picture of a wannabe Parisian painter, was one of the best I’ve ever heard.” Mr. McKern garners attention at leading opera houses for his charming and dynamic portrayals of his signature roles: Marcello in La bohème in his Asian début at Opera Hong Kong, Santa Fe Opera, Florentine Opera of Milwaukee, Nashville Opera, and Opera Grand Rapids; Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Nashville Opera and Opera Birmingham; the Count in Le nozze di Figaro with Nashville Opera, Opera Cleveland, Opera Columbus, Michigan Opera Theatre, Tulsa Opera, Opera Birmingham, and Syracuse Opera; Gabriel von Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus with Nashville Opera and Florentine Opera; Papageno in Die Zauberflöte with Opera Omaha, Arizona Opera, Opera Birmingham, and Tulsa Opera; as Silvio in Pagliacci with Austin Lyric Opera, Arizona Opera, Opera Birmingham, and Central City Opera.
Sarah Tucker*
as Donna Anna“The star of the show was Marion Roose Pullin Studio Artist Sarah Tucker who sang Pamina… Her voice was sweet, and her high notes had a radiant bloom.” –Opera Today
Praised by Opera Today for “pure, clear tones” and lauded by the Arizona Republic for “purity and vivacious charm,” young soprano Sarah Tucker is demanding attention for her captivating vocal timbre and engaging stage presence. Ms. Tucker was a National Semifinalist in the 2014 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and recently completed her second year as a member of the Arizona Opera Studio. She was recently heard as Nelly Nettleton in Arizona Opera’s innovative, multi-lingual production of Arizona Lady, in which she not only sang, but also “danced like a flapper” (Opera Today).
In the 2017-2018 season, she made her Opera Philadelphia debut where she reprised First Memory in Lembit Beecher’s War Stories, a role which she first premiered with Gotham Chamber Opera in New York City. Additionally, she sang Gilda in Rigoletto with Opera Connecticut and Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi with the Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival. Her 2018-2019 season includes debuts with The Dallas Opera as Frasquita in Carmen, San Diego Opera as Micaëla in Carmen, and Intermountain Opera Bozeman as Tatyana in Eugene Onegin.
Andrea Baker
as Donna ElviraAndrea Baker is a Chicago based Soprano who was most recently an artist in residence with Pensacola Opera where she covered the roles of Juliette in Roméo et Juliette, Rosalba in Florencia en el Amazonas, and was the soprano soloist in Mozart’s Exsultate Jubilate and Rossini’s Stabat Mater. For three seasons she was an apprentice artist with Des Moines Metro Opera where she sang a small role in Philip Glass’s Galileo Galilei, covered Liù in Turandot and Rosalinde in Die Fledermaus. She was also an apprentice artist with Sarasota Opera where she covered Marzelline in Fidelio, and in 2016 Andrea was a winner of the central district of Chicago Metropolitan Opera National Council Awards. Other operatic roles include Alice Ford (Falstaff), First Lady (The Magic Flute), Viola (Twelfth Night) which was a world premiere by Joel Feign with DePaul Opera Theater, Countess (The Marriage of Figaro), Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte) with D’Angelo Opera Theater and Musetta (La bohème) with Erie Opera Theater. Andrea is thrilled to be returning to Pensacola Opera in 2020 to sing the feisty role of Donna Elvira in Mozart’s Don Giovanni.
Colin Ramsey*
as LeporelloBass Colin Ramsey has been lauded for his “majestic, rotund, ravishing bass” (Opera Today). Mr. Ramsey’s unique “smoky” timbre has been well lent to roles such as Raimondo in Lucia di Lammermoor, Figaro in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro, Guglielmo in Così fan tutte, Don Basilio in Il barbiere di Siviglia, Father Palmer in Silent Night, Alidoro in Rossini’s La Cenerentola, Collatinus in Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia, Seneca in Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea, Mr. Kofner in Menotti’s The Consul, Il Frate in Verdi’s Don Carlo, Angelotti in Tosca, and Cadmus and Somnus in Handel’s Semele.
The 2018-19 season was an exciting one including a return to the Los Angeles Philharmonic for performances of Phillip Glass’s Europeras directed by Yuval Sharon. He reprised Colline for a concert version of La bohème in Los Angeles to benefit the Opera Buffs in September and made his San Diego Opera debut as Marullo in Rigoletto. In the spring of 2019, Mr. Ramsey will return to Opera Santa Barbara for an exciting and timely production of Robert Ward’s The Crucible singing the role of Reverend Hale and in the fall of 2019, Mr, Ramsey will take on the title role in Boito’s Mefistofele. In the winter of 2020, Mr. Ramsey will debut the role of Leporello in Don Giovanni and in the spring of 2020, Mr. Ramsey will make a role debut as Friar Lawrence at Opera Santa Barbara.
His recent performances have seen him in role and company debuts singing Le Comte des Grieux in Manon, The Speaker in Die Zauberflöte, and multiple runs of performances as Colline in La bohème which has become a signature role. During his recent summer as an apprentice at the Santa Fe Opera he made his debut singing the Registrar in Madama Butterfly and covered Edward Teller in John Adam’s Dr. Atomic in a landmark production directed by Peter Sellars. For summer 2019, Mr. Ramsey will return to Santa Fe Opera covering Don Alfonso in Così fan tutte and Benoit / Alicindoro in La bohème.
David Blalock*
as Don OttavioPraised for his “fine tenor voice” (Winston-Salem Journal), David Blalock is becoming widely known for his beautiful lyric tone and his varied repertoire. During the 2019-20 season, Mr. Blalock made made his Metropolitan Opera debut as Pong in Turandot and joined Pensacola Opera to sing Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni. Mr. Blalock also made his debut with the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra as the tenor soloist in Handel’s Messiah and joined the Firelands Symphony Orchestra for a concert of Mozart, Puccini, and Verdi. COVID-19 cancellations included the title character in Orpheus in the Underworld at Madison Opera, Frederic in Pirates of Penzance at Virginia Opera, Jaquino in Fidelio with South Dakota Symphony and a reprisal of Count Almaviva in On Site Opera’s acclaimed production of Paisiello’s Barber of Seville at Caramoor. This past year, Mr. Blalock joined Atlanta Opera as Young Thompson in a recorded production of Glory Denied. Upcoming engagements include a debut with Bar Harbor Music Festival as Ferrando in Così fan tutte, a return to the Metropolitan Opera (Turandot and Ariadne auf Naxos), as well as an eagerly anticipated recital with Madison Opera.
Hidenori Inoue*
as Il CommendatoreHidenori Inoue, Bass, hails from Himeji, Japan. In 2017-18 he debuted the role of Timur in Turandot and covered the role of Méphistophéles in Faustwith Tulsa Opera. Most recently he sang as Makoto Kobayashi in Jack Perla’s An American Dream (East coast premiere) and Barone in La Traviata with Opera Maine, Padre Guardiano and Marquis in Verdi’s La forza del destinowith the New Amsterdam Opera, and Don Magnifico in La Cenerentola with New York City’s ARE Opera. 2018-19 engagements include the roles of Leporello and Commendatore in Don Giovanni with Opera Steamboat. He sings the Bonze in Madama Butterfly with Virginia Opera and Opera Omaha, reprises his role in An American Dream at Anchorage Opera, returns to Tulsa to sing Commendatore in Don Giovanni , makes a role debut as Sarastro in The Magic Flute with Opera Maine, and is heard again as the Commendatore with Penscola Opera.
In 2016–2017, Hidenori sang the title role of Don Pasquale with the Manhattan School of Music, Pistola in Falstaff with the Italian La Musica Lirica, Benoit and Alcindoro in Puccini’s La Bohème with International Vocal Arts Institute, and Barbemuche in Leoncavallo’s La Bohème.
Voce di Meche lauded Inoue’s “deeply resonant” and “flawless” performance as Don Magnifico in 2017, writing: “In this wide range of emotion and behavior, there was not a false note, not vocally, not dramatically.” In 2016, Inoue performed Monstre Cathos in Jacques Ibert’s Persée et Andromède with the Manhattan School of Music. Hailed as “the smoky-voiced bass” by the New York Times and “assertive” by Opera News, this performance was listed in The New York Times as one of the Top 10 Vocal Performances of 2016.
Hidenori Inoue holds a Bachelor of Law degree from Doshisha University in Kyoto, Japan, and a Master of Music from the Manhattan School of Music.
Bizhou Chang*
as ZerlinaChinese-American soprano Bizhou Chang is quickly becoming known for her warmth of tone and thrilling interpretations of opera’s most beloved roles. This season, she returns to Opera Columbus, singing Pamina in the world premiere of The Temple: A Magic Flute Experience—an immersive production based on Mozart’s The Magic Flute—and she appears as Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte with Pensacola Opera.
In the 2022-23 season, Ms. Chang performed Mimì in La bohème with Pensacola Opera and made her company debuts as Liù in Turandot with Opera Southwest and Countess Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro with Knoxville Opera. She returned to Guerilla Opera for the concert presentation and theatrical workshop of Emily Koh’s Her: Alive|un|dead, and she appeared as a featured soloist in Pensacola Opera’s 40th anniversary gala concert Forty Forward, along with the Pensacola Symphony Orchestra.
During the 2021-22 season, Ms. Chang made her role debut as Pamina in Die Zauberflöte with Pensacola Opera, performed the role of Maria in the world premiere of Island of Hope, Island of Tears by Gabriele Vanoni with Guerilla Opera, and appeared as Violetta in an immersive production of La Traviata with Opera Columbus and Out of the Box Opera.
During the Covid-19 impacted 2020-21 season, Ms. Chang made her art film debut as Mimì in an innovative film version of La bohème directed by Laine Rettmer with More than Musical (Hong Kong), a co-production of Opera Omaha, Tri-Cities Opera, and Opera Columbus. She also performed Mimì in a new production of La bohème with Opera Columbus and returned to Pensacola Opera as Micaëla in Carmen.
Corey Gaudreau
as Masetto
Cody Martin
as ConductorAmerican conductor Cody Martin was recently named Music Director at Pensacola Opera, where he was previously the Director of Education and Director of the Artists in Residence Program since 2017. During the 2023-24 season, he leads a production of Lucia di Lammermoor and serves as associate conductor and chorus director for Die Fledermaus, in addition to continuing his work with the company’s nationally respected Jan Miller Studio Artist Program. He also appears as guest conductor for Florida State Opera‘s The Cunning Little Vixen. Recent seasons have seen Cody leading productions of Carousel, Die Zauberflöte, Don Giovanni, As One, Florencia en el Amazonas, Man of La Mancha and María de Buenos Aires in Pensacola, in addition to various concert appearances. He made his debut with Fargo-Moorhead Opera conducting Jake Heggie’s Three Decembers in 2019. Other companies Cody has enjoyed working with include Des Moines Metro Opera, Arizona Opera, Opera Birmingham, Virginia Opera, and the Janiec Opera Company at Brevard Music Center.
Cody holds degrees from Murray State University and Florida State University. He lives in Pensacola with his former shelter dog, Rosina, a corgi/dachshund mix (@rosinathelongdog).
Fenlon Lamb*
as Stage DirectorOpera News called Fenlon Lamb “moving and convincing” and Seen and Heard International complemented her “well-honed theatrical sensibility.” Ms. Lamb brings these qualities of experience and perspective as an outstanding singing actress to her work as a stage director. Recent engagements include Charlie Parker’s jazz opera Yardbird for Arizona Opera, Carmen for North Carolina and Annapolis Opera. Fenlon also directs Derrick Wang’s Scalia/Ginsburg for Opera Delaware. Upcoming engagements include La traviata for Madison Opera, Don Giovanni for Pensacola Opera, and Romeo et Juliette for Opera Santa Barbara.
Last summer, Fenlon returned to Bar Harbor Music Festival for their 51st season, where she serves as Director of Opera and Vocal Programming, in the role of Producer of the Pops Concert “He Said, She Said” as well as Don Pasquale which was directed by Joseph DeSota. She also returned to Finger Lakes Opera for her first Tosca in a new production created with her artistic partner, Jeff Ridenour where she previously directed La traviata.
Other recent engagements include Carmen for Mill City Summer Opera and Rossini’s The Barber of Seville for Des Moines Metro Opera. She also directed the world première of Riders of the Purple Sage with Arizona Opera in a production that BroadwayWorld.com called “epic” and “memorable…literally and figuratively blazing trails,” which will be revived in 2020. She led Dayton Opera’s Carmen and directed the oratorio To Be Certain of the Dawn (Stephen Paulus) with the Lexington Philharmonic. Fenlon and her artistic partner, Jeff Ridenour, created a unique production of The Juliet Letters with the Resident Artists of Lyric Opera Kansas City which the Kansas City Star hailed as “a successful, intimate show [that] delighted the audience in a noteworthy production.” Fenlon made her company début with Opera Santa Barbara directing a double-bill of Suor Angelica/Gianni Schicchi and returned to Palm Beach Opera for her fifth season to direct Tosca.
Ms. Lamb is the Director of Opera at UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance where she has directed a new production of Hänsel und Gretel, Die Zauberflöte, The Turn of the Screw and Suor Angelica/Gianni Schicchi along with Cendrillon and Little Women. Last spring she directed a tryptic of operas entitled “Women on the Verge” for UMKC including 7 Deadly Sins, La voix humaine and The Old Maid and the Thief.
She has designed and directed engaging productions of Carmen, L’elisir d’amore, Madama Butterfly, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Le nozze di Figaro, La bohème, La Cenerentola, and Don Giovanni at the Bar Harbor Music Festival, while she continues to program innovative recitals and pops concerts each summer.
Fenlon made her début at Dayton Opera directing Les pêcheurs des perles, joined Mobile Opera for Werther with Gran Wilson in the title role, and returned to Arizona Opera as stage director for a “grand and gripping” Rigoletto. She directed the young artists of the Crested Butte Music Festival in a production of Don Pasquale and a new production of Hansel and Gretel for Nightingale Opera Theatre that was hailed as “fresh and alluring from curtain to curtain.” For Palm Beach Opera’s 2013 International season Fenlon directed a “fizzing and delightful” Il barbiere di Siviglia “displaying theatrical ingenuity and artistic taste.” Ms. Lamb also directed Our Town and Alcina with the young artists of that company to critical acclaim. She returned to Opera Carolina as Stage Director for Der fliegende Holländer with Greer Grimsley in a production lauded for its “intriguing visuals, startling set contexts and projections…balancing operatic polish, romantic beauty and feminist critique.”
Production Team
CONDUCTOR | Cody Martin
STAGE DIRECTOR | Fenlon Lamb*
LIGHTING DESIGNER | Brian B. Moore*
PROJECTIONS DESIGNER | Kris Kirkwood*
SET DESIGNER | Jefferson Ridenour*
REHEARSAL PIANIST/CONTINUO | Stephen Variames
PRODUCTION STAGE MANAGER | Alayna Powell
COSTUME DESIGNERS | Zoe Still* & Maureen Thomas*
ALSO APPEARING:
The Pensacola Opera Chorus & Pensacola Symphony Orchestra
* Pensacola Opera debut artist
Media
Extras
Meet the Artists Luncheon
Tuesday, January 14 at 11:30 AM,
Cost: $30
Meet the Artists Reception
Friday, January 24 after the show
Cost: $50, $40 for Season Subscribers
Director’s Champagne Brunch
Sunday, January 26 at 11:45 AM
Cost: $50