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The world premiere of The Sparks Fly Upward will be on Saturday, November 8 at 8:00 pm at Hoyt Sherman Place Theatre in Des Moines. The Sparks Fly Upward is a musical drama that follows three German families in Berlin, two Jewish and one Christian, through the Holocaust, beginning in the autumn of 1938 with the events building up to Kristallnacht. Between 1938 and the end of the war in 1945, the families struggle to outlast Hitler. Throughout the story, the three families turn to the Book of Job for reassurance and enlightenment. The suffering of Job, and the contest between good and evil represented in his story, are reflected in the lives of the German Jewish community, and in their non-Jewish neighbors, who face the immediate question of man's obligation to man in times of moral and political crisis. The story is told completely through music and lyrics and was researched, written and composed Cathy Lesser Mansfield. Visit their website to learn more and to buy tickets.
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Simpson College's biennial Madrigal Christmas Dinner will be held on Saturday and Sunday, November 22 and 23 at 6:30 pm in The Great Hall at Simpson College. Usher in the holiday season by experiencing a musical and culinary journey to Elizabethan England--a world bathed in the light of hundreds of candles and resplendent with brocades, tapestries and herald flags. Under the direction of Dr. Robert L. Larsen, the Madrigal Singers will appear costumed in the dress of the period and will entertain throughout the dinner with old and familiar carols of the season, English and Italian madrigals, French chansons, and German part-songs. Recorders, krummhorns, cornetto, brass, lute and harpsichord will furnish authentic instrumental sounds of the period. Mummers will entertain with a masque, ballad singers will stroll among the tables and ancient ceremonies such as the boar's head and the wassail bowl will be observed. Tickets are $50 per person. Call (515) 961-1637 for more information.
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Getting To Know You: Wendy Carlson, President of DMMO's Board of Directors by McB Smith Des Moines Metro Opera's Board of Directors is an outstanding group of community leaders who work tirelessly to raise money, plan events and provide oversight to the Company. They are led by Wendy Carlson, a Board member since 2005, who is Chief Financial Officer and General Counsel for American Equity Life. I had a chance to interview Wendy recently to learn a bit more about our dynamic Board President. Tell me a little bit about yourself.
I'm from Humboldt, Iowa, and first came to Des Moines, the big city, when I started college at Drake. Four years and one business degree later, I still wasn't ready for the real world, and so I went to law school at Notre Dame. I settled here in Des Moines permanently in 1985 to start my career as a lawyer with Whitfield & Eddy, where I spent 14 years and learned a great deal about work, life and the art of client development. In 1999 I had an opportunity to join American Equity, then a new and rapidly growing life insurance company, as general counsel and chief financial officer. We've continued to grow and thrive as a public company despite the many challenges of today's financial markets. If I'd had any real talent I'd be a pianist, not a lawyer and CPA. I began playing at the age of 4 when we moved to a house that came with an abandoned piano in the basement. I still play today -- and love it -- but it's a good thing I don't have to make a living at it. Later in life I became very interested in cycling and other distance sports, and I reached the pinnacle of my athletic career last summer by completing the Hy-Vee triathlon. My goals were to finish and not be last. I enjoy golf too -- I'm a big Tiger fan -- but those who've seen me play must wonder why I persist. What was your first opera experience?
I attended my first opera in 1984 while a summer law clerk at Whitfield. It was Aïda performed by DMMO at the Civic Center. A fellow clerk and I decided to go on a lark as part of our summer-long quest to seek out new experiences. We were smitten! The music, the voices, the sets, the costumes, the baby elephant walking across the stage... it was all magnificent. We were so taken in by it that we sang our conversation to each other on the way home after the performance. I later began attending performances in Indianola and was quickly taken in by the magic of that small hall with all the intensity of experience it offers. How did you come to be involved with DMMO? What drew you to join DMMO’s Board of Directors?
As a young lawyer I served on many non-profit boards in the Des Moines community including everything from the YWCA to Visiting Nurse Services to Civic Music Association and others. Now in my old age (over 40, don't ask me to be more specific), I've reached the conclusion that if I'm going to volunteer my time, it will only be in connection with those organizations for which I have a real passion and which I believe are very well run. DMMO fits that bill perfectly, and I was very pleased to be asked to serve on the Board beginning several years ago. In my biased opinion, the quality of opera DMMO puts on is world class and we are extremely fortunate to have this organization in our community. What are your goals for your term as President of DMMO’s Board of Directors?
We have a tremendous year ahead with the upcoming season of Tosca, The Barber of Seville and Der Freischütz. As Board members we are stewards of the organization and our role is to facilitate the work of DMMO's staff and management to create, underwrite and promote a first-rate artistic experience for our audiences. Specific goals I have include kicking off the new advisory council authorized by the Board last year, enhancing and energizing the activities of DMMO's Guild as a critical part of our outreach to the community, redoubling our efforts to publicize our upcoming season to attract new audience members and contributors, and organizing events in some of the communities surrounding Des Moines and Indianola to increase awareness of DMMO in those areas. Perhaps most importantly, it is my goal to revisit with the Board the strategic issues facing the organization to ensure its long-term vitality and position in the Des Moines community as an indispensable arts treasure. Who is your favorite opera composer? Why?
My favorite is Verdi, the grandmaster. However, my loyalties are suspect because I tend to adopt a new favorite with each new season. Each one seems even better than the last to me. What operas would your dream season include? Why?
My dream season is the one we're putting on this year. I can't wait to hear Freischütz, knowing that its so rarely performed and that its been a dream of Dr. Larsen's for some time. And how could you go wrong with Tosca and Barber? I'll probably see each of them twice -- and I recommend that to all our audience members!
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The NEA Opera Honors The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has established its first individual arts award in 25 years, the NEA Opera Honors.The awards, which celebrate lifetime achievement and individual excellence, will be presented on October 31 at the Harman Center for the Arts in Washington, DC, with performances by the Washington National Opera and members of its Domingo-Cafritz Young Artists program, conducted by Placido Domingo. NEA chairman Dana Gioia says that the new award "recognizes that American opera has truly come of age with our singers, musicians, composers, directors, designers and opera companies who are second to none in the world." OPERA America, the national nonprofit service organization, is the NEA partner in the Opera Honors program. In this inaugural year of the award, Washington National Opera is also a partner. The first NEA Opera Honors are being given in four categories: singer, composer, advocate and conductor. Soprano Leontyne Price is known for her elegant musicianship, her generosity to young singers and her remarkable recording legacy. Composer Carlisle Floyd has had a long and distinguished career; his many memorable operas include Susannah and Of Mice and Men. Advocate winner Richard Gaddes, the general director of the Santa Fe Opera and co-founder of Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, is known for challenging, adventurous programming. James Levine, who has led the Metropolitan Opera premieres of work by composers from Mozart to Weill and the world premieres of American operas by John Corigliano and John Harbison, has also fine-tuned the Met orchestra into one of the world's leading ensembles. For more information, visit the NEA Opera Honors Website or www.operaamerica.org.
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The Met Live in HD: Doctor Atomic (Met premiere) by John Adams Saturday, November 8, 2008 (12:00 pm CT)
Wednesday, November 19, 2008 (7:00 pm CT)
Running time: 3 hours, 21 minutes. John Adams' contemporary masterpiece explores a momentous episode of modern history: the creation of the atomic bomb. Director Penny Woolcock makes her Met debut with this gripping story that changed the course of history. Baritone Gerald Finley plays J. Robert Oppenheimer, the title character. Conductor: Alan Gilbert; Production: Penny Woolcock; Sasha Cooke, Meredith Arwady, Gerald Finley, Eric Owens, Richard Paul Fink
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