NOVA BILLINGS

FESTIVAL OF ONE-ACT OPERAS

Directed by Douglas Nagel

October 23, 25*, 30 and November 1*, 2015, in the Roebling Theatre

Friday performances at 7:30 pm, Sunday matinees* at 2 pm

Also on Sunday, October 25 @ 7:30 bid on your favorite singer at Auction of Arias.

GIANNI SCHICCHI by Giacomo Puccini

Florence, Italy, 1299: a hilarious sitcom? Yes, indeed. Gianni Schicchi (say Johnny SKEE-kee) is exactly that. Like vultures, a conniving family tries to redirect their rich relative’s will from a monastery to their own benefit through disguise, impersonation, and bribery, only to be out-foxed in the end. Laughs abound and young love triumphs in this one-act production which includes one of opera’s most beloved arias.

THE OLD MAID AND THE THIEF by Gian Carlo Menotti

Set in the early 1950s, The Old Maid and the Thief tells the tale of the persuasive powers of women. The spinster, Miss Todd, takes in a strange man. Laetitia, her maid, becomes enamored of him. Together the two steal everything from Miss Todd, including her car, while Miss Pinkerton, a spinster friend of Miss Todd’s, is hot on their trail. (55 minutes)

Hold the tears: NOVA’s one-act operas will have you laughing, not crying, next week
By JACI WEBB Photos by Hannah Potes

The one-act opera “Gianni Schicchi” features William Mouat in the title role and real-life couple Emily and James Duncan as young lovers Lauretta and Rinuccio.

The crew behind the scenes for NOVA’s one-act opera stagings includes, from left, director Doug Nagel, costumers Gary Treglown and Mary Ann Conners,
and stage manager Jessica Goldade.

For anyone intimidated by a full-scale, three-hour opera sung in a foreign language, NOVA Center for the Performing Arts has the perfect solution: opera light.

There are no tragic death scenes or cursed maidens in the two comedic operas staged at NOVA’s Festival of One-Act Operas.

Instead, audiences will experience laugh-out-loud moments during performances of “Old Maid and the Thief” and “Gianni Schicchi.” They will also hear soaring arias written by one of the most-lauded composers in history, Giacomo Puccini. And all of the words are in English.

Doug Nagel, one of the founders of Rimrock Opera who now teaches voice at Montana State University Billings, directs the two short operas. He also takes on the role of Simone in “Gianni Schicchi.”

The operas will be performed on Oct. 23, 25 and 30 and Nov. 1 in the Roebling Theater at the NOVA Center, 2317 Montana Ave. Call NOVA at 591-9535 for tickets and show times.

The operas will feature some new talent to Billings, including a real-life married couple, James and Emily Duncan, who play a young couple about to be married in “Schicchi.”

“He’s a major goofball,” Emily said of James.

The Duncans started looking for opportunities to perform opera even before they arrived in Billings last year with their three children.

“This is what we love to do,” James said.

William Mouat performs in the title role of Schicchi. Set in Florence, Italy, in 1299, the story follows a conniving family set on acquiring money from a rich relative by changing the will, which bequeaths the fortune to a monastery. Schicchi is hired by the family to oversee the hoax.

“I feel like a one-act opera makes opera more friendly to the public,” Mouat said. “Sometimes an opera sounds too intimidating, but when you put it in English, it becomes more accessible.”

Mouat said there are still musically powerful moments in the production, especially a duet performed by the young couple, but there is plenty of silliness.

“The Old Maid and the Thief” is also performed in English. Set in the early 1950s and written by Gian Carlo Menotti, “Old Maid and the Thief” tells the story of a spinster who takes in a visitor. Her maid becomes enamored with him, and together the two connive to steal everything from Miss Todd, including her car. But another spinster is hot on their trail.

Gavin Askin, who plays the stranger Bob, took on his first opera performance in “Susannah.” For him, opera was an extension of the competitive speech and drama he did at Skyview High. Opera has it all, he said.

“I love making people smile,” said Askin, who at 21 is the youngest member of both casts.

But don’t let Askin’s young age fool you. Nagel described his voice as naturally beautiful.

“Wait till you hear his aria; it’s melancholy yet still beautiful,” Nagel. “Besides that, he gets to play the hunk of the show.”