Spotlight on Opera set to open second summer season at Centenary
SHREVEPORT, LA — The prestigious vocal training program, Spotlight on Opera, will open its 13th summer season with a welcome concert and reception in Centenary College’s Anderson Auditorium on Sunday, June 23, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Spotlight on Opera is celebrating its second summer in residence at Centenary’s Hurley School of Music, presenting two major performances, an opera scenes showcase, several casual evening events, a traveling children’s opera, and a gala concert to close out the season.
“Shreveport and Centenary really welcomed us with open arms last year, and it’s just a great fit,” says Cindy Sadler, former artist-in-residence at Centenary’s Hurley School of Music and the founder/director of Spotlight on Opera. “Our students loved being here and went home and told their friends, so this season we have more than doubled our enrollment. We had audience members from across the ArkLaTex region and from as far away as Dallas, which showed us that summer opera is welcome and needed here in Shreveport.”
Sadler founded Spotlight on Opera in 2007 as a one-week summer program. It has since grown into an independent non-profit organization, attracting students from all over the United States and several foreign countries. In partnership with Centenary, Spotlight on Opera has awarded four full scholarships to students from the Hurley School of Music this summer. All four students will be singing leading roles in Spotlight productions.
More information on the program is available at SpotlightOnOpera.com.
“This summer, we’re also really excited to be getting out in the community more with some of our concerts, including our Spotlight Cabaret, our new Ale & Arias concert at Flying Heart Brewing in Bossier City, and a cabaret performance at Rhino Coffee uptown,” says Sadler. “Our motto is ‘Opera for Everybody.’ We have many free events, and since our ticket prices top out at $25 with discounts for military, seniors, and students, we really can say we have offerings to fit every taste and every budget. All this, while our young artists get amazing training and performance experience.”
For tickets to all Spotlight on Opera 2019 season events, visit spotlightonopera.com/events.html.
Welcome Concert
Sunday, June 23, 7:00-9:00 p.m.
Anderson Auditorium
FREE and open to the public
Reception to follow
Spotlight's distinguished faculty welcomes the 2019 cast with arias, Broadway tunes, and art song. Featuring Gale Odom and Elizabeth Herlitz Cortés, sopranos; Sarah Stankiewiecz Dailey, mezzo-soprano; Cindy Sadler, contralto; Nicholas Simpson, tenor; Bruce Cain and Adam Philley, baritones; under the direction of Kristin Roach, Spotlight’s Music Director, with collaborative pianists Dr. William Reber, David Hill, and Choi Heeyoung.
Aria Extravaganza
Saturday, June 29, 7:00-10:00 p.m.
Anderson Auditorium
FREE and open to the public
Reception to follow
“Death by Aria” is a tradition in many summer opera programs. Spotlight's talented 2019 cast introduces themselves to Shreveport with a fun and informal showcasing each singer in a single "party piece" aria. A reception follows the performance.
The Bremen Town Musicians
Monday, July 8, 10:00 a.m.
Louisiana State Exhibit Museum
FREE and open to the public
Please contact the venue directly for information
Thursday, July 11, 10:00 a.m.
Norton Art Gallery
FREE and open to the public
Please contact the venue directly for information
Friday, July 19, 11:00 a.m.
Shreve Memorial Library, Broadmoor Branch
FREE and open to the public
Please contact the venue directly for information
(Additional dates and locations TBA)
Spotlight’s annual touring children’s opera, with music by J. Offenbach, G. Rossini, G. Donizetti, A. Sullivan and G. Verdi, will appear at various locations around Shreveport. Four outcasts --- Eddie Pensier, a rooster with operatic aspirations who woke the farmer once too many times practicing his arias; Barcarolle, the dog, and Dorabella, the cat, kicked out because they can no longer catch rabbits and mice; and General Boom, a retired army donkey --- team up to form a band. Working as a team to overcome their differences and face the hardships of the road, the Bremen Town Musicians celebrate the idea that friendship, cooperation, and respect for others is far better than facing problems alone.
If you would like a performance for your organization, please contact Sarah Stankiewieckz Dailey at stankis@hsu.edu.
Spotlight Cabaret
Friday, July 5, 7:15 p.m.
Rhino Coffee Uptown
*A percentage of all sales goes to benefit Spotlight on Opera!
Saturday, July 6, 9:00 p.m.
Flying Heart Brewing (700 Barksdale Boulevard, Bossier City, LA 71111)
A casual evening of Broadway melodies curated and directed by Shreveport’s favorite music director, Adam Philley. Donations accepted.
Così fan tutte
Saturday, July 13, 7:00-10:00 p.m.
Sunday, July 14, 2:00-5:00 p.m.
Anderson Auditorium
$20 general public
$10 students, seniors, military with ID
FREE for Centenary faculty, staff, and students with ID
Mozart's sparkling comedy pits men against women as two soldiers, challenged by a cynical bachelor friend to prove that their girlfriends are paragons of fidelity, give themselves over to his direction to play a trick on the ladies and their clever maid. But can anyone handle the outcome? Sung in English.
Ale and Arias at Flying Heart Brewing
Sunday, July 14, 6:00-8:00 p.m.
Flying Heart Brewery
Donations accepted
Join Spotlight after the Sunday matinee performance of Così fan tutte, for some delicious brews, pizza, and more opera as the cast of Spotlight 2019 lets fly with your favorite arias. Flying Heart is generously donating $1 per pint of beer or glass of wine sold during the event, so come thirsty for good beer, good company, and good music!
The Consul
Saturday, July 20, 7:00-10:00 p.m.
Sunday, July 21, 2:00-5:00 p.m.
Anderson Auditorium
$20 general public
$10 students, senior, military with ID
FREE for Centenary faculty, staff, and students with ID
Though it premiered in 1950, this tragic tale of a dissident family struggling to flee their tyrannical homeland and immigrate to safety could be ripped from today’s headlines. Freedom fighter John Sorel, having narrowly escaped capture, is forced to flee across the border, leaving his wife, mother, and infant son behind. Watched and harassed by the secret police, Sorel’s wife Magda visits the Consulate every day in hopes of getting visas for her family. There she finds an assortment of other hopeful refugees, each as entangled in unfeeling bureaucracy as she is. As the situation grows increasingly more desperate, Magda at last reaches the breaking point, with devastating results. Sung in English.
Opera Scenes Showcase
Friday, July 26, 7:00-10:00 p.m.
Saturday, July 27, 2:00-5:00 p.m.
Anderson Auditorium
$10 general public
$7 seniors, students, military with ID
FREE to Centenary faculty, staff, and students with ID
Opera excerpts from The Daughter of the Regiment, La Rondine, Manon, Die Fledermaus, The Impresario, The Marriage of Figaro, The Magic Flute, I Capuleti ei Montecchi, Dialogues of the Carmelites, Carmen, Giulio Cesare, and Lucia di Lammermoor.
Aida: A Gala Concert
Sunday, July 28, 2:00-5:00 p.m.
Anderson Auditorium
$25 general public
$12 seniors, students, military with ID
Donations accepted
Spotlight's distinguished faculty, guests, and students come together to present a grand season finale --- a concert of Verdi's Egyptian-themed masterpiece, Aida. A love triangle between a brave enslaved princess, the Egyptian general who loves her, and the powerful Pharoah's daughter who wants the general for herself, Aida is filled with magical, evocative music and drama. This grand concert is a special fundraiser to help Spotlight continue its tradition of excellent training for young artists, and intimate opera for the community. A reception will follow the afternoon performance.