SFO Stern Grove Program - 2012.indd

Presents
David Gockley
General Director
Nicola Luisotti
Music Director
Featuring
LEAH CROCETTO and MICHAEL FABIANO
with
Nadine Sierra, Laura Krumm, Renée Rapier, Joo Won Kang, and Ryan Kuster
and
The San Francisco Opera Orchestra
Kay Stern, Concertmaster
Conducted by
GIUSEPPE FINZI
Sunday, August 19, 2012 at 2 p.m.
Sigmund Stern Grove, San Francisco
LE NOZZE DI FIGARO, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Overture..........................................................................................................................................................................................Orchestra
ZAIDE, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
“Ruhe sanft”.............................................................................................................................................................................Nadine Sierra
Finding Gomatz asleep under a tree, Zaide admires his handsome looks. She leaves him her portrait and a letter asking him to meet her
later in that same spot. She then bids him “peaceful rest” until he awakes.
LE NOZZE DI FIGARO, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
“Non so più” ...........................................................................................................................................................................Laura Krumm
A cheeky teenager who has just discovered girls, the love-struck page Cherubino describes his turbulent emotions: every woman he
sees makes him tremble with inexplicable desires.
DON GIOVANNI, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
“Crudele . . . Non mi dir”........................................................................................................................................................Leah Crocetto
Donna Anna insists on postponing her wedding to Don Ottavio because of her father’s death. “Do not say that I am cruel,” she pleads,
“for you know how much I love you... and one day heaven will be kind to me.”
“Là ci darem la mano”.......................................................................................................................................Nadine Sierra, Ryan Kuster
The relentless womanizer Giovanni suavely woos the peasant girl Zerlina (on her wedding day!), promising to marry her himself. At
first reluctant, she gradually yields to his charms.
IL CORSARO, Giuseppe Verdi
“Tutto parea sorridere . . . Si, de’Corsari il fulmine”.........................................................................................................Michael Fabiano
The pirate Corrado reflects sadly on his life of exile and crime, and he laments his lost innocence. But when a dispatch arrives with
news of his enemies, he rallies his troops and prepares to sail off into battle.
MAOMETTO II, Gioachino Rossini
“Si, ferite! . . . Madre, a te”.....................................................................................................................................................Leah Crocetto
A Venetian colony is under siege by Maometto’s soldiers. Anna, daughter of the colony’s governor, defiantly dares them to strike her
down, as a better reward awaits her in heaven. Turning to the tomb of her mother, Anna prays that she may soon join her in paradise.
LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR, Gaetano Donizetti
“Sulla tomba . . .Verranno a te sull’aure”...................................................................................................Leah Crocetto, Michael Fabiano
Edgardo is leaving Scotland for France to try to restore his fortunes. He and Lucia, who are secret lovers, bid farewell. She urges him
to put aside his hatred for her brother, his sworn enemy. The two lovers pledge to be faithful while parted, saying “My ardent sighs
will come to you on the breeze.”
- INTERMISSION ROMÉO ET JULIETTE, Charles Gounod
“Que fais-tu?”...........................................................................................................................................................................Renée Rapier
Romeo’s friend Stephano baits the leaders of Juliet’s family with this mocking serenade about the white dove of the Capulets
(symbolic of Juliet), who, despite their best efforts to guard her, will go free one day—into the arms of Romeo.
HÉRODIADE, Jules Massenet
“Vision fugitive”.....................................................................................................................................................................Joo Won Kang
Infatuated with Salomé (and unaware that she is his stepdaughter), Hérode tries to satisfy his longing by taking a potion to conjure up
a “fleeting vision” of her, and sings to her of his passionate desire.
ROMÉO ET JULIETTE, Charles Gounod
“Ah, je veux vivre”..................................................................................................................................................................Nadine Sierra
Juliet, who has not yet met Romeo, girlishly exults in the ecstasy of her carefree youth, which she knows must be enjoyed before love
comes to bring its pains. She exclaims that she would like to live this captivating dream forever.
MANON, Jules Massenet
“Je suis seul . . . Ah! fuyez, douce image”..........................................................................................................................Michael Fabiano
Though she loves Des Grieux, the pleasure-seeking Manon has abandoned him for a life of luxury, and he has entered a seminary in a
vain attempt to forget her. Preparing to take his holy orders, Des Grieux fervently prays to God to remove her “sweet image” from his
heart.
“Toi! Vous! . . . N’est-ce plus ma main?”...................................................................................................Leah Crocetto, Michael Fabiano
As Des Grieux is about to take his priestly vows, Manon suddenly appears and implores him to forgive her faithlessness. Furiously he
attempts to reject her, but when she recalls memories of their past—the touch of her hand, the sound of her voice—his resistance is
overcome, and they join in an impassioned avowal of love.
THAÏS, Jules Massenet
“Méditation”....................................................................................................................................Orchestra and Kay Stern, violin soloist
The voluptuous courtesan Thaïs has been urged by the monk Athanaël to abandon her sinful ways and convert to a godly life. She is at
first defiant, but during the music of the famous Méditation, she carefully ponders his words and resolves to change.
LE VILLI, Giacomo Puccini
“Torna ai felici dì”...............................................................................................................................................................Michael Fabiano
Under the spell of an enchantress, Roberto has forgotten his fiancée Anna, and she has died of grief. Now penniless and tormented
by remorse, Roberto returns home hoping to find Anna alive. Recalling their love, he laments the day he went away and curses the
seductress who led him astray.
MADAMA BUTTERFLY, Giacomo Puccini
“Un bel dì”..............................................................................................................................................................................Leah Crocetto
Though three years have passed, Butterfly is certain that her husband Pinkerton will return to her “one fine day.” She imagines the joy
that she will feel when she finally catches sight of him coming up the hill. Meanwhile, she resolutely exclaims, “I wait for him!”
Today’s performance by San Francisco Opera is presented by
the Stern Grove Festival Association.
In addition to the artistic fee paid by the Stern Grove Festival Association,
additional funds to support this performance have been provided directly to
San Francisco Opera by the Patricia Yakutis Endowment Fund.
LEAH CROCETTO made her San Francisco Opera debut
as Sister Dolcina (Suor Angelica) in the 2009 production
of Puccini’s Il Trittico. She also performed Liù (Turandot)
and roles in Aida and Cyrano de Bergerac. A former Adler
Fellow and Merola Opera Program alumna, Crocetto recently
appeared as the Female Chorus (The Rape of Lucrezia) with
Houston Grand Opera, Anna (Maometto II) with the Santa Fe
Opera, Leonora (Il Trovatore) with Bordeaux Opera and North
Carolina Opera, and concerts with the Berlin Philharmonic,
Los Angeles Philharmonic, and Toronto Symphony. A
winner of the 2010 Metropolitan Opera National Council
Auditions, the soprano’s other awards include First Place,
People’s Choice, and the Spanish Prize in the 2009 José Iturbi
International Music Competition. She also represented the
United States in 2011’s BBC Cardiff Singer of the World
competition, where she was a finalist in the Song competition.
Upcoming engagements include Desdemona (Otello) at
Venice’s La Fenice (also on tour with that company in Japan)
and Frankfurt Opera, the title role of Luisa Miller with the
Israel Opera, and concerts at the Tanglewood Music Festival
and with the Calgary Philharmonic.
A winner of the 2007 Metropolitan Opera National Council
Auditions, MICHAEL FABIANO made his San Francisco
Opera debut as Gennaro in 2011’s Lucrezia Borgia, a role
he first performed at English National Opera. The tenor’s
career highlights include the Duke of Mantua (Rigoletto) at
Dresden’s Semperoper, English National Opera, and Florida
Grand Opera; Edgardo (Lucia di Lammeroor) with Vancouver
Opera and in Bilbao; Rodolfo (La Bohème) with Deutsche
Oper Berlin and Limoges Opera; Cassio (Otello) with Paris
Opera; Rinuccio (Gianni Schicchi) at Milan’s Teatro alla
Scala and Greek National Opera; Raffaele (Stiffelio) with the
Metropolitan Opera; Alfredo (La Traviata) at the Teatro San
Carlo; and Nemorino (L’Elisir d’Amore) with Fort Worth
Opera. Fabiano’s awards include first prize in the 2008 Opera
Index Awards, first prize in the 2006 Licia Albanese Puccini
Foundation Competition, and the José Carreras Prize for the
best tenor in the 2006 Julián Gayarre Competition. Upcoming
engagements include Rodolfo with Opera Lyra Ottawa,
Dresden Semperoper, and Seattle Opera; Cassio with the
Metropolitan Opera; Alfredo (La Traviata) with the Santa Fe
Opera; and concerts with the San Francisco Symphony, Oslo
Philharmonic, Deutsche Oper Berlin, and in Kansas City and
Puerto Rico.
A native of Iowa City, Iowa, mezzo-soprano LAURA
KRUMM is a first-year Adler Fellow who makes her San
Francisco Opera debut in this fall’s Rigoletto. As a master’s
student at the University of North Texas, she was awarded
the Bill and Margo Winspear Award and was winner of the
2011 Concerto Competition. Her recent repertoire includes
Charlotte (Werther), Sesto (La Clemenza di Tito), Cherubino
(Le Nozze di Figaro), Prince Orlofsky (Die Fledermaus), and
the Second Lady (Die Zauberflöte). As a 2011 participant of
the Merola Opera Program she was featured in scenes from
I Capuleti e i Montecchi and Rigoletto. She has performed
in concerts and operas with La Musica Lirica in Novafeltria,
Italy and OperaWorks in Los Angeles, and she was a finalist in
the 2011 Dallas Opera Guild Competition.
Korean baritone JOO WON KANG is a first-year Adler Fellow who made his San Francisco Opera debut this past summer as the Second Priest in The Magic Flute. A Merola Opera
ENTER TO WIN
- Two Orchestra Tickets to RIGOLETTO This Fall Enter-to-win forms accepted only on the day of the event.
Please write legibly and drop off your completed form at the San Francisco Opera tent.
Name: Mr. / Mrs./ Ms. ____________________________________________________
Address: _______________________________________________________________
City: ______________________________________State: ________Zip: ___________
Phone: __________________________Email: ________________________________
I am interested in receiving information about:
□ E-Opera, San Francisco Opera’s monthly e-newsletter □ San Francisco Opera Performances □ LGBT Events □ BRAVO! CLUB (opera lovers 21–40)
□ Family Events
□ Free Performances
□ Special Introductory Offers
□ Group Ticket Discounts
Winners will be contacted by phone or email. No purchase necessary.
Program alumnus, he recently earned first prizes from the
Gerda Lissner International Competition and the Palm Beach
Opera Competition. Recently he sang Count Monterone (Rigoletto) and the Duke of Verona (Roméo et Juliette) as a member
of the young artist program with Florida Grand Opera. Kang
holds a master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music
and a bachelor’s degree from Yonsei University. Upcoming
engagements include appearances in the Company productions
of Rigoletto, Lohengrin, Moby-Dick, and Tosca this fall.
A second-year Adler Fellow, RYAN KUSTER made his San
Francisco Opera debut last fall as a Mandarin (Turandot) and
returned as Astolfo (Lucrezia Borgia), Masetto (Don Giovanni), and Escamillo (Carmen for Families). He is a graduate of
the 2010 Merola Opera Program, where he performed in the
scenes program as Garibaldo (Rodelinda), Bartolo (Il Barbiere
di Siviglia), and Cajus (The Merry Wives of Windsor). As a
participant in Philadelphia’s Academy of Vocal Arts, he has
appeared as Schaunard (La Bohème), Enrico (Anna Bolena),
Oroveso (Norma), and as the Governor in the world premiere
of Margaret Garwood’s The Scarlet Letter, among other roles.
Recent engagements include his debuts with San Antonio
Opera as Marullo (Rigoletto) and Annapolis Opera as Angelotti (Tosca). He was also featured as Rambaldo (La Rondine)
with Oberlin Conservatory in Italy; Count Ceprano (Rigoletto)
as well as as Betto (Gianni Schicchi), and in Ching’s Buoso’s
Ghost with Opera New Jersey. He appears in this fall’s Rigoletto, Lohengrin, and Tosca with San Francisco Opera.
Making her San Francisco Opera debut this season in Rigoletto, American mezzo-soprano Renée Rapier is a firstyear Adler Fellow who has performed with the San Francisco
Opera Orchestra, the Northern Iowa Symphony Orchestra,
the Grinnell Orchestra, the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra,
and with the Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute Orchestra. She is a frequent performer with the Boston-based early
music ensemble La Donna Musicale, and appeared on their
latest CD, Anna Bon: La virtuosa di Venezia, released in 2010.
Rapier holds a master’s degree from the University of Northern Iowa, was a studio artist at Chautauqua Opera in 2009,
and a participant of the Merola Opera Program in 2010. She
returned to Merola Opera Program in 2011 where she sang
Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia. She has been the recipient of
the Chautauqua Studio Artist Award, a winner in the Schubert
Club Scholarship Competition, a national finalist of the Bel
Canto Vocal Scholarship Foundation Competition, and was
a national semifinalist at the Metropolitan Opera Council
Auditions in 2011. She appears with the Company in this fall’s
Rigoletto.
Second-year Adler Fellow NADINE SIERRA made her San
Francisco Opera debut in 2011 creating the roles of Juliet
and Barbara in the world premiere of Heart of a Soldier; she
also sang Papagena in this summer’s The Magic Flute. She
is an alumna of the 2010 Merola Opera Program, where she
was heard as Adina in L’Elisir d’Amore. Winner of the 2009
Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Sierra’s
other recent awards include first prize of the George London
Competition (2010), the Gerda Lissner International Competition (2010), the Loren Zachary Competition (2010) and the
Stella Maris Competition (2011), as well as second prize in the
Mirjam Helin International Vocal Competition (2009). Sierra
recently appeared as Tytania (A Midsummer Night’s Dream)
with Boston Lyric Opera, Euridice (Orfeo ed Euridice) with
Palm Beach Opera, and Gilda (Rigoletto) with Florida Grand
Opera. Her other 2011–12 engagements include Anne Trulove
(The Rake’s Progress) with the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra
and her solo recital debut at Carnegie Hall.
Violinist KAY STERN has served as concertmaster of the
San Francisco Opera Orchestra since 1994. Having performed
and presented master classes internationally, she has been a
faculty member at the Cleveland Institute of Music, the San
Francisco Conservatory of Music, and the University of San
Francisco. Stern has been featured on several television and
radio programs, including PBS’s Live from Lincoln Center,
CNN’s Women Today, and Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home
Companion. She received her bachelor’s, master’s, and
doctoral degrees as a student of Dorothy DeLay at the Julliard
School, and her concerto and chamber music recordings can
be heard on the Phillips, Nonesuch, Innova, MusicMasters,
Koch International, and Gramma Vision labels.
San Francisco Opera Resident Conductor GIUSEPPE
FINZI made his Company debut in 2008 conducting The
Elixir of Love for Families, and he returned for performances
of La Bohème, The Abduction from the Seraglio, Faust, La
Fanciulla del West, Aida, Turandot, and Carmen as well as
the Company’s performances at the 2009 and 2011 Stern
Grove Festivals. He is also extensively involved in the San
Francisco Opera Center, conducting Carmen for Families and
the 2011 Adler Fellows gala concert. A native of Bari, Italy,
he studied composition and conducting at Milan’s Giuseppe
Verdi Conservatory and Siena’s Accademia Chigiana.
Finzi previously served as assistant conductor, coach, and
pianist at Milan’s Teatro alla Scala. He made his conducting
debut in 2003 with Tosca at the Teatro Rendano in Cosenza
and returned in 2004 for La Traviata. Finzi has since led
productions of L’Elisir d’Amore, Madama Butterfly, Rigoletto,
La Traviata, L’Elisir d’Amore, and Così fan tutte as well as
concerts in Italy, Russia, Albania, South Korea, and Japan.
Most recently he made his debut in Germany conducting
Carmen at Deutsche Oper Berlin. Actively involved in the
community, Maestro Finzi led a master class with the San
Francisco Conservatory of Music and conducted their spring
production of Così fan tutte this past March.