Opera to Go! Tour to Midland

Monday, Feb. 16- Day 2

Little Mermaid is on the road! Yesterday we left Houston and drove to San Marcos, TX. Our first order of business on Monday was a fun one: outlet mall shopping! None of us could resist the temptation of those great discounts.
However, we also had to make it all the way to Midland, TX that same day - about a 7 hour drive - so it was an intense power shop! We had two hours, and we definitely took advantage of it. There were many deals to be had!

After our quick shop, we had lunch and then hit the road. There isn't a whole lot to see in between San Marcos and Midland, so most of us took advantage of the quiet van ride to read, listen to music, and learn our new Opera to Go! scores. Within our group of 6 singers in Little Mermaid, there are three people singing Daughter of the Regiment in the spring (Michael Walsh, Dennis Arrowsmith and Hannah Lu) and three people singing Romeo & Juliet (Cecilia Duarte, Alejandro Magallon and myself, Erin Bales). We each studied our scores to prepare for our new shows, which will start rehearsing as soon as we're back in Houston, on Monday, February 23rd.

But the drive wasn't all work - we took time to play some games, too! One we played was called picnic - it's an alphabet memory game, where each person has to say what they're bringing to the picnic, while remembering what everyone else is bringing, too!

-Erin Bales, Rusalka in Opera to Go!'s production of Little Mermaid

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A Midsummer Night's Dream at HGO

This blog entry is from Samantha Smith, a seventh-grader who sings in both HGO Children's Chorus and Girls Chorus. Sam recently performed in Houston Grand Opera's mainstage production of A Midsummer Night's Dream by Benjamin Britten.

A Midsummer Night's Dream was by far the most exciting opera I have been in so far. I was part of the children’s chorus, otherwise known as the fairies. I got the chance to be the cover for the solo fairy Cobweb, meaning that if the real Cobweb couldn’t do the part, I would step in.

I was also a part of the fairy Banda (bahn-duh), the operatic term for band. In the Banda I played the finger cymbals. There was also someone playing the wood blocks, and two people playing recorders. At first, the music for the Banda looked really hard, but eventually we all got it memorized and felt comfortable doing it. The music was really cool to learn for the singing parts. In our schedule of learning things, it was music and Banda for about 1 to 1 ½ months, and about ½ a month to 1 month learning staging (learning where to move on the stage). On opening night, the only thing running through my mind was, 'Oh my gosh, I’m going to mess up I know it'. Of course everything went fine and now I look back on it as a success. One performance the real Cobweb actually couldn’t sing the solo parts! So of course I had to sing the part, finding this out approximately an hour before the show. I was incredibly nervous but I did really well considering that I heard the news so close to the performance starting. I think that was by far the most exciting thing for me during the run. A Midsummer Night’s Dream was an incredible show and I am very glad that I didn’t miss out on being a part of the magic.

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Opera to Go! Tour to Midland

Sunday, Feb. 15: Day 1

We left HGO Sunday at 4:30, headed toward San Marcos, our first stop on the tour. Chuck and Derek were in the cargo van, while the singers and I were in the passenger van.

Along the way we saw an interesting motorcycle, and stopped at Buc Ee's for some jerkey and other snacks. Once we arrived at the hotel and put our things in our rooms, we all went across the street to Chili's to enjoy our first of many meals together.


-Kade Smith, Opera to Go! music director Read more...

Opera to Go! at the Heinen Theatre

Alejandro Magallon is the author of this week's blog. Hailing from Mexico, he is currently starring as Prince Jonathon in Opera to Go!'s touring production of Little Mermaid.

Performing at the Heinen Theatre, should be a real treat for every performer, at least it has been for me. Located at the Houston Community College, the Heinen is a true jewel, and not just because of its architectural design.

It has everything Opera to Go! could ask for: 1) a great space that is the perfect size for our productions, which allows for an intimate communication with the audience, 2) a wonderful and professional crew, 3) spacious and fully equipped dressing rooms from which you can keep track of your calls through the sound system while you spend the last effervescent minutes warming up, waiting for the "PLACES" call.
We did The Magic Flute there a year ago. It was my first show with OTG. This year we presented The Little Mermaid, based on Dvorak's Rusalka with a wonderful adaptation and English text by OTG's director Chuck Winkler. We had two daily performances for five days in a row, Jan. 20th - 25th.
One of my favorite things about the performance, besides all the fun I have on stage with the rest of the cast, is what we get back from the audience. We get lots of different reactions from them, which varies depending mostly on their age (They are usually kids in elementary school). Some of the reactions might be the typical crowd giggle, a loud and isolated laugh, or a shy sobbing. I find these, and all kinds of feedback that reflects the audiences' emotions, really interesting, but most of all, deeply rewarding.

*photo by Laura Sponaugle

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CityCast

For the first time in many years, Houston Grand Opera will offer a free live simulcast of its newest production, Chorus! from the stage of the Wortham Theater Center in downtown. We're calling this event CityCast.

It represents the return of the popular and much-missed HGO event “Plazacasts.” These free live transmissions to Fish Plaza, directly in front of the Wortham Theater Center , were very popular events which would bring thousands of people downtown to enjoy a performance at HGO in a casual, family-friendly outdoor setting.

This year we're streaming to Discovery Green and five Houston area schools, where people can enjoy watching the performance for free!

We think CityCast is a great idea! What do you think? Got any fun memories from Plazacast days? Please share! Read more...

Little Mermaid at the Heinen Theatre

This week's blog is by Erin Bales, who recently played the lead in the Heinen Theatre Matinee performances of Dvorak's Little Mermaid.

The Little Mermaid has always been one of my favorite stories. I used to watch the Disney movie constantly as a little girl, read mermaid stories, and I always pretended to be a mermaid when I was in the swimming pool during the summer. So when I learned I was going to play Rusalka, the little mermaid herself, in this winter's Opera to Go! show, I was very excited!
But before all the fun of performing and touring could happen, there had to be some work.

We all had to get together and learn the music and staging for the show at Houston Community College. We only had two weeks to learn everything – so we had better work fast!

First, each singer met individually with our musical director Kade Smith and our wonderful pianist Youngha Guk. We worked on learning all the correct pitches and rhythms. Since opera is storytelling through song, it was very important that we get all of that right! After each of us knew our parts, we began staging – learning our acting parts and choreography. It was a lot of fun for all of us to be together learning our dance moves and really getting into our characters. And after two weeks of intense concentration and memorization, it was very rewarding to be able to perform at HCC's Heinen Theatre for one week.

The set and costumes were amazing – they really made us feel like we were under the sea. And now the show was no longer work, it was pure fun. It's hard to believe that only two weeks ago we were all just learning these parts.

Thanks to Houston Community College and Heinen Theatre, the Little Mermaid is now ready to tour!

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High School Voice Studio Winter Recital

This week's blog is from Krystal Hargrove, a member of the Houston Grand Opera High School Voice Studio. She writes about her experiences during the HSVS Winter Recital.

Performing for the first time in front of an unbiased audience was an absolutely amazing experience! It opened my eyes to the possibilities I have as a performer and just how the High School Voice Studio is helping me to attain them. Though nervous beyond anything I've ever felt, I was comforted by the other members of the studio as well as Mr. Smith, Ms. Gianni, and my wonderful accompanist Yungha. I finally grasped the "it takes a village to raise a child" concept that evening.

Everyone who helped me reach this vocal milestone was there showing their support. As I began singing, the whole environment instantly felt warm and affable. I knew then no one was out to tell me I missed a note or rhythm. The only regret was that I didn't get to hear my peers perform. Part of being in the HSVS is hearing and adapting to your growth vocally. Individually I believe we noticed our growth, but just didn't have a chance to share it with each other. My favorite part of the evening was meeting everyone afterwards. It was such a blast to meet everyoneʼs families, hear feedback on myself, and of course eat cookies! Yet the one moment that I'll never forget is when two adorable girls approached me for an autograph. I realized that I wasn't just a performer, but that I could also be an inspiration. This is why music is my passion. The HSVS gave me a night I'll never forget!

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