Animals in the Park

Underworld Productions Opera

and The Metropolitan Soloists Woodwind Quintet

present

Animals in the Park

A FREE Family Performance

Monday, June 18, 2012 at 7 pm

Isham Park

Entrances south of 215th St. from Park Terrace East or Park Terrace West

Light classics for a summer evening featuring the soloists of Underworld Productions Opera in the premiere of "Wynken, Blynken & Nod" and "The Gingham Dog & the Calico Cat" by Henry Papale, arranged by the composer for voice and woodwind quintet.  

Also on the program is last summer's favorite, "El Rinoceronte/The Rhinoceros" by Michael Dutka on a poem by Elisa Gonzalez.

                                                                    

Performed by Tara Bobiak, soprano; Stephanie McGuire, mezzo-soprano; and the Metropolitan Soloists woodwind quintet.  Vocal selections conducted by Gina Crusco.

  

Underworld Productions Opera has a mission to take music to historically underserved populations including Washington Heights and Inwood and to engender a wider audience for opera through participation by those of diverse backgrounds and ages. UPO has been recognized for innovation and excellence by Musical America’s “Year in Music 2009,” The New York Times, Opera News, Early Music America, and in the blogosphere (“This is genius!” -- Madison Opera Blog).  Underworld Productions Opera, 10 Park Terrace East #4C, New York, NY 10034; underworldprod@gmail.com;  www.underworldprod.com.

Tara Bobiak’s recent roles include Pamina in Die Zauberflöte, Dew Fairy in Hansel and Gretel, and Frasquita inCarmen. Training programs include Opera Project NYC Scenes Program, Juilliard Evening Division Opera Workshop, New York Lyric Opera Artist in Residence Program, and Brooklyn Conservatory Opera Workshop. Ms. Bobiak holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Voice from Penn State and is a 2011-2012 Underworld Productions Resident Artist.

Gina Crusco has been praised in The New York Times for her "elegantly simple staging" and in the Italian press as "la bravissima Gina Crusco." She served as Maestro del Coro of Teatro Lirico Sperimentale di Spoleto (Italy) for two opera seasons and on the voice faculty of New School University for nine years. She has won awards from NoMAA, Uptown Arts Stroll, Fractured Atlas, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, and SPARC, funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts. 

Michael Dutka is currently completing Liebovar, about the inmates of the Maritzenstadt Concentration Camp who write a children’s opera to save their children from the Nazi death camps. He has completed 5 operas including The Crowded House and The Animal Kingdom on bilingual poems by Elisa Gonzalez, both performed by Underworld Productions Opera.

Stephanie McGuire, mezzo-soprano has performed in two roles in New York City Opera’s VOX festival of contemporary music as well as numerous roles in operas such as Handel’s Alcina and Menotti’s Amahl and the Night Visitors. She holds a Master’s degree in music from Longy Conservatory and a Ph.D. from the University of Oxford. Ms. McGuire is a 2011-2012 Underworld Productions Resident Artist.

Henry Papale has written six operas, including JULIA: An Operatic Monodrama premiered by Underworld Productions Opera in 2007.  He has written hundreds of art songs, 10 string quartets, and over 200 piano pieces. His chamber opera, Balloon, received 8 performances in Toronto; other performances include Bach & Madrigal Society of Phoenix; John Harms Theatre in Englewood, NJ; and Duquesne University.