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Opera graces Broyhill Music Center
Thursday, 19 November 2009
by EMILY MELTON
Lifestyles Editor
A child sits outside a poor shack of a house, gazing earnestly at the sky. His mother calls from within: “Amahl! Amahl!”
Thus begins the script of Amahl and the Night Visitors, the tale of Amahl, a crippled boy, and his widowed mother, who live in poverty and are forced to contemplate begging for food.
One night, however, they are visited by the Three Kings on the way to Bethlehem, who stop to rest and land upon Amahl and his mother’s house.
During the night, Amahl’s mother attempts to steal the gold the Kings bring, though a gift for the Christ child.
Upon the Kings’ consent of letting the mother keep the gold, Amahl offers his crutch, and, in doing so, is healed.
Grace E.
McKinnon, junior vocal performance and music education double major, is
one of two who were cast for Amahl, McKinnon’s first major role.
The
first time she was in an opera, last spring, she was an understudy.
Ashley Sigmon, who plays the role of the mother, rehearses her role in Rosen Concert Hall Monday. Photo by Jamie McGirt
“It’s been a
little challenging, first of all, because I’m not a boy,” McKinnon
said. “Since it’s [played by] a soprano, [we] would have to have a
really little boy to do it, and we don’t have access to any really
little boys, so it had to be a girl, and the other girl who plays Amahl
– she’s a lot shorter than me.”
After being
cast in September, McKinnon spent many hours of individual rehearsal in
the practice rooms of the Broyhill Music Center, “beating out the
notes” and learning her part.
Because the
opera is performed by the Hayes School of Music’s Opera Workshop class,
cast members rehearse in class for three hours each week, in addition
to out-of-class rehearsals.
“We would
rehearse during class time for the first month or two, and then,
starting in November, we were rehearsing three nights a week,” McKinnon
said.
Joseph L.
Amaya, Amahl and the Night Visitors director, has been directing at
Appalachian State University for 20 years and was responsible for
selection of the opera, casting and “coaching.”
“It’s just
like athletics,” Amaya said. “It’s exactly like athletics. It’s just
like training an athlete. You build technique, strength and power and
learn how to use it. It’s not just how hard you can hit; it’s where you
can hit.”
Football, Amaya said, is about balance and leverage.
“When you’re
producing your voice, to power it over a full orchestra, for
instance…you have to be able to project your voice in a large
auditorium without microphones,” he said. “None of this is mic’ed.”
J. Adam Sensenbrenner, junior vocal performance and music industry studies double major, plays King Melchior.
Sensenbrenner
believes Amahl and the Night Visitors portrays an accurate depiction of
what opera is really like – and, he said, is performed in English and
spans approximately one hour.
“Opera is the
most intense form of music and theater you can have…it is so vocally
demanding, but at the same time, you have to create a relatable and
believable character,” Sensenbrenner said. “Your voice has to, kind of,
be an extension of that character.”
The opera
will be performed Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at
2 p.m. in the Rosen Concert Hall of Broyhill Music Center.
Two performances on Monday at 9:15 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. will be shown to groups of elementary school students.
Because there
are two sets of primary cast members, performers will alternate each
showing, and those who are not performing in the primary cast will join
the chorus.
In addition, a pianist and two student oboists will serve as accompaniment.
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