Jun 2, 2008
by Steve-O
Dreams are the fuel of the American psyche. We are a people who have built an entire culture around the quest to fulfill our ideas of what tomorrow could be. The American Dream is the blank canvas that we are free to paint with the vision of what we want our lives to be.
But not every dream is fulfilled, and dreams denied are a fundamental part of the American story as well. And Saturday night as Anthony Dean Griffey and Phillip Addis took the stage as Lennie and George on the lam in the Fort Worth Opera’s interpretation of the John Steinbeck by-way-of Carlisle Floyd masterpiece Of Mice and Men, we saw one of the most tragic ways a dreams shatter — when they are just within reach.
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May 25, 2008
by Steve-O
When it was time for the curtain call at the end of the Fort Worth Opera Festival premiere of Puccini’s Turandot on Saturday night, a very un-Fort Worth-like thing occurred. When young soprano Sandra Lopez, who had dazzled the sold-out audience as Liu took her bow, the enthusiastic ovation she received was punctuated by two bouquets of flowers tossed from a box several tiers above the stage.
It’s not an uncommon thing to see on the European stage, but a rarer site in Fort Worth. Presumably, the flowers were by design and not an afterthought. But considering how her arias inspired ovation after ovation, maybe her fans were just caught up the moment. Maybe it was just something in the air, but the audience came prepared to have a good time, and they responded in a way that I haven’t seen at an opera in Fort Worth.
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May 19, 2008
by Steve-O
Does controversial, challenging art have a place in Fort Worth? Based on Friday’s night’s debut of Angels in America at the Fort Worth Opera Festival, it would seem so.
Some people like it, some people aren’t so sure. But people are talking. And that’s just within opera circles.
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May 12, 2008
by Steve-O
I had a chance to sit down with General Director Darren Woods of the Fort Worth Opera last week for a preview of this year’s festival, which kicks off Friday night at the Scott Theatre with Angels in America. Tickets are still available for all four operas. Hope to see you there.
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Feb 6, 2008
by Steve-O
I have a confession to make – I’m an opera geek.
I love going to the opera. I buy opera records (yeah, that’s right … records, not CDs. But that’s a whole other story.) I sometimes even watch opera on TV.
One evening not long ago, I was having a conversation with Bret Starr at the Chat Room on Magnolia. Glasses of Rahr Stormcloud in hand and the Silversun Pickups blaring on the jukebox, I made that confession to Bret, one of the marketing ninjas of Magnolia Avenue, he of the choppy haircut, the trucker hat and the Versace eyeglasses. That’s when he said something that surprised me.
“Oh, yeah? Me too.”
Really? It was like Robinson Crusoe seeing the footprint in the sand. I am not alone. In fact, Bret out-nerded me. He’s on the board of trustees for the Fort Worth Opera.
Which is how I found myself sitting in the office of Darren K. Woods, director of the Fort Worth Opera.
And that’s when I made another amazing discovery. A lot of young people actually think opera’s pretty cool, too.
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