The Smithsonian invited DC Theatre Scene to present the next season to their audience, and as part of that presentation, DCTS Senior Writer Tim Treanor talked about shows he particularly anticipated. Today, we reproduce (more or less) what Tim had to say about experimental plays, operas, and theatre for young audiences.
Blue Viola, a bluesy, jazzy new opera from UrbanArias
What would you call the blend of music and genre in UrbanArias’ world premiere Blue Viola? Standard terms like “chamber opera,” “folk opera,” or “comic opera” fall short. Is it Chicago opera? Rosewood blues? Whatever you might call it, it is funny, thought-provoking, absorbing, and certainly not what most of you imagine when you think […]
Three Decembers from UrbanArias
What do you imagine when you think of “going to the Opera?” Vast theaters, draped entirely in tacky red velvet? Huge casts with elaborate sets in sprawling shows that go on for hours in a language you studied half-heartedly in high school? Those are typical answers, but UrbanArias, a local opera company devoted to producing […]
Bastianello and Lucrezia from UrbanArias
It’s delightful sitting in the audience knowing you’re about to write a rave. You relax knowing you have plenty to write. Words will come easily. And in the case of this weekend’s UrbanArias performance, you put your pen down and roll your head back laughing. John Musto’s Bastianello and William Bolcom’s Lucrezia, commissioned and first […]
She, After
Few operas require the soprano to sing in between bites of baked goods. Contemporary opera often goes one of two ways: avant-garde and over our heads, or separate from the grand and often inaccessible genre of opera. She, After, Daniel Felsenfeld’s exploration of women in metaphorical cages, doesn’t reject its genre entirely, but it also […]
Opera based on Cather short story next up for Urban Arias
The world premiere of Paul’s Case, an original opera based on a Willa Cather short story, will be UrbanArias’s next production, opening April 20th, the company announced today.
Photo-Op
It is open season on political candidates, and Urban Arias may have just bought the license to shoot them all. Their latest opera, Photo-Op, makes good on the company’s promise to sing tough and shoot straight while keeping things short, sharp, and sassily accessible. If you are weary of punditry and just a little cynical […]
New Opera duo: Booze and Cigarettes
Contemporary opera is supposed to be a rare and endangered species. Robert Wood, Artistic Director of UrbanArias, says otherwise and believes fervently that it’s a cause worth pursuing. His second season is proving that opera properly seeded and nurtured can thrive. His recipe for his developing company is “Opera. Short. New.”
Positions 1956
UrbanArias has not only landed once more in our midst, but opened its second season and first commissioned opera Sunday night to a full house. This world premiere of Positions 1956 with music by Conrad Cummings and lyrics by Michael Korie showcases two mature professionals at the top of their game, completely at ease in […]
11 shows and 1 movie I’m glad I saw
I had to slow down a bit after having heart surgery the end of February, so I carefully selected shows I thought I’d have a great time seeing and for the most part I chose wisely. The critics have spoken (and you can read their reviews here) but here’s my take.
UrbanArias Festival defines a new kind of opera. Will musicals fans follow?
Washington boasts so much music-theatre these days that it’s not surprising the conversation has returned about what is opera, what is a musical, and what is music-theatre. People bring their prejudices, often based on limited experiences, to the conversation, and want to stake out their positions. But now, more than ever, these divisions seem artificial […]
UrbanArias opens with two Ricky Ian Gordon short operas
UrbanArias, a new opera company dedicated to producing short, contemporary operas, presents its Inaugural Festival of Contemporary Opera from March 31 – April 10, 2011 at Artisphere’s Black Box Theater in Arlington, VA. Three operas will be presented: Glory Denied by Tom Cipullo and Ricky Ian Gordon’s Orpheus and Euridice, and Green Sneakers.