Singers’ Workshop at Centenary presents “Mixed Messages” November 18 and 19
SHREVEPORT, LA — The Singers’ Workshop at Centenary College’s Hurley School of Music will present two evening performances of a double bill entitled “Mixed Messages” for its Fall 2022 production. “Mixed Messages” will be performed at Hurley’s Anderson Auditorium on Friday, November 18, and Saturday, November 19, at 7:30 p.m. The production is free and open to the public.
Menotti’s opera The Telephone opens the show and establishes the theme, which is further articulated in the second half of the production through a selection of musical theatre scenes depicting “mixed messages.”
“I picked the opera The Telephone because it's a comic opera that is in English, and very accessible for the audience,” explained Dr. Janani Sridhar, assistant professor of music at Centenary and director of the Singers’ Workshop. “I also wanted the students to have the opportunity to learn how to navigate the soundscape of 20th Century music. We have had a ton of fun, and laughed a lot during this process!”
The cast for The Telephone includes current Centenary students Jazziraé Robinson, Carson Alvarez, and Keegan Tunstall along with recent graduate Madelyn Stewart. In the second half of the program, these singers will be joined by students Emma Allsopp, Nina Guerrero, Destry Martignetti, Christopher Masterson, Madelynn Sill, and Stella Simolke in a variety of solo, duet, and ensemble pieces from A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, A Little Night Music, Brigadoon, Bye Bye Birdie, Rent, and Spamalot.
Centenary’s Singers' Workshop is a course that develops students’ dramatic skills and stagecraft and prepares them for building a performance career. The workshop concentrates on honing solo and ensemble performance, as well as career skills required for success in the fields of opera, musical theater, and recital work. Students will work on character development, movement, managing performance anxiety, professionalism, marketing and branding, as well as role preparation. Ensemble members also have the opportunity to work with guest artists through workshops, seminars, and masterclasses.