New York, NY (Top40 Charts) On Monday, March 6, 2023 at 7:00 p.m. at Duling Hall, 622 Duling Ave, Opera Mississippi will present "La Divina" in honor of the
Maria Callas Global Centennial Celebration! Opera Happy Hour starts at 6 p.m. Admission is $35. Students get in FREE with ID. For tickets and information, visit www.operams.org or call our box office, 601-960-2300.
But who was
Maria Callas? According to Dr. Stanley Hauer, Professor Emeritus at the University of Southern. Mississippi, "She was the
Elvis Presley of opera!" Her musical and theatrical performances were so significant that forty-five years after her death, she is still recognized as one of the world's greatest performing artists. Known in the opera world simply as "La Divina," she was the greatest soprano of her generation and a cardinal influence on operatic singing of the twentieth century. She acted and sang with passion and abandon, bringing a new sense of realism to the operatic stage. Her performances were truly electrifying!
Callas was best known as the mainstay of La Scala in Milan, Italy where her many opening nights are the substance of operatic legend. Although her life was often troubled, her artistic legacy is immortal. She regularly sold-out houses on two continents where fans lined up days in advance for tickets. Her recordings are the staple of every operatic collection and it is impossible to write of twentieth-century music without mentioning her name. No matter how short the list of all-time choice opera singers, her name is on it.
This program features soprano, Maryann Kyle and pianist Michael Bunchman. Maryann Kyle has a long and distinguished history of operatic singing. She is known for her beautiful lyric soprano voice as well as her extraordinary interpretations of the many characters that she has portrayed on both opera and musical theatre stages. Michael Bunchman maintains a fulfilling schedule as a collaborative pianist with both singers and instrumentalists throughout the United States. He is currently on faculty at the University of Southern Mississippi as the director of the Collaborative Piano Program, where he is honored to coach, teach and guide the next generation of collaborative pianists in both vocal and instrumental repertoire.
The program will include arias from Bellini's Norma and I Puritani, Bizet's Carmen, Boito's Mefistofele, Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor, Rossini's The Barber of Seville, Puccini's Tosca, Manon Lescaut, Turandot, and La bohème, as well as Verdi's La Traviata, and Il Trovatore.
And don't forget to get your tickets to Opera Mississippi's grand opera finale and one of the world's most beloved musical comedies: Die Fledermaus! (or… The Bat Gets Even!) by Johann Strauss II, on Saturday, April 22. It's the company's grand return to
Thalia Mara Hall and not to be missed!
For more information on all events and to purchase tickets, visit www.operams.org or call our box office 601-960-2300.
Founded in 1945, Opera Mississippi is the ninth oldest continuously operating opera company in the United States, and Mississippi's only professional opera company. Their mission is to entertain, educate, and enlighten Mississippi audiences through world-class opera, musical theatre and popular musical experiences while providing educational outreach and emerging artist opportunities that reflect community connection and culture and preserving the art form of opera.
