See new operas by Bolcom and Musto on streaming video Monday, 5/24

[secondwind]

 I received this announcement today.  I saw the performance of these operas recently, and I'm looking forward to viewing them again via this on-line streaming.  Both operas have libretto by the immensely talented Mark Campbell.  If you have time tomorrow evening, I highly recommend these two short operas.


Special One-time Streaming Event from The Barns at Wolf Trap
Wolf Trap Brings You Parody and Satire - Monday, May 24 at 7:30pm
Tomorrow evening, Wolf Trap's Discovery Goes Digital will stream performances of two entertaining and touching one-act operas: John Musto's Bastianello and William Bolcom's Lucrezia, both with libretto by Mark Campbell. (See descriptions below.) These operas were recently performed at The Barns at Wolf Trap as part of The Discovery Series, and thanks to a grant from the Altria Group, Inc., now you'll be able to watch them from your own home in this one-time-only event.
The streaming event will include entire performances of both operas (sung in English, with subtitles), an artist question-and-answer period that took place after intermission, and the chance for you to chat live with the artists during the streaming event.
To join us, go to www.wolftrap.org/discovery by 7:30 pm EDT on Monday, May 24, 2010.
See you online!
Kim Pensinger Witman
Director, Wolf Trap Opera & Classical Programming
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BASTIANELLO
Music by John Musto
Libretto by Mark Campbell
Inspired by an Italian folk tale, Bastianello is a lighthearted parody about love, forgiveness, and the trials of marriage.
LUCREZIA
Music by William Bolcom
Libretto by Mark Campbell
A riff on Machiavelli's Mandragola, Lucrezia is a wickedly funny seduction satire.
CAST (Wolf Trap Opera Company Alumni)
Rebekah Camm, soprano
Faith Sherman, mezzo-soprano
Rodell Rosel, tenor
Alexander Tall, baritone
Nicholas Masters, bass
David Shimoni & Kim Witman, pianists
Nick Olcott, director
"Both have clever librettos by Mark Campbell and scores by composers who understand in their bones how to weld voice, words, and wit..."—New York Magazine

[secondwind]

I watched the live stream of these operas last night.  Although I was glad for a second opportunity to see them (my memory after one performance can be pretty vague about details), I wasn't thrilled with the picture I got--frequently jerky and with a lag between the video and the sound.  I don't know if this is a fault of my equipment, my connection, or the transmission.  Other people watching had different experiences of problems--some more, some less or none--so it can't be all the transmission, I guess.  Does anyone know?

It was fun (if occasionally distracting) to watch the on-line chat during the performance.  I experimented and eventually decided that the fun outweighed the distraction and so I left the chat on.  Then the decision about whether to have the chat superimposed on the video or to watch the video in a small window with the chat below it. . . . Too many decisions. 

All in all, it was worth my time to watch it again, even given the less than ideal circumstances.  And the operas were at least as funny as I found them the first time, and, in moments, quite moving as well.  I liked Bolcom's use of Argentinian dance forms (tango and jota) in Lucrezia, and the way he turned the old tale on its ear by introducing a truly Machiavellian female!  Musto's music is more difficult to describe, and perhaps more uniquely individual, but I found it quite effective, particularly in some of the quartet singing.