Parting Gift



Our set in the sanctuary of Wesley Methodist Church in Muscatine, IA

CORALVILLE, IA - Our final performance of Così was Thursday night at the Wesley Methodist Church in Muscatine. Having a humongous cross dangling above the set of our sexual farce added a new dimension to our humble production.

The show went well musically and dramatically. It's quite possible that we saved the strongest overall performance we've had for last. The church was blessed with decent acoustics, which is always a good thing. Courtney worried that she might have sung the B section of her Act II aria three times instead of two, but it turns out that her worries were misplaced; she sang it correctly. In fact, there may have been no significant vocal mistakes made on stage tonight. Everybody sounded great.

The tour wraps up on Friday afternoon with a performance of Pigs at a school in Des Moines. It's hard to believe that the end is finally here. The beginning seems so long ago now, and it will be odd to wake up on Monday and not have to hop in the van to meet some more children in a distant town. We've done good work, and we're all very tired. It will be great for all of us to get a little rest.

On Wednesday night in Burlington, I gave my colleagues my parting gift: a video montage I composed of photos from our ten-week odyssey. As I begin my eastward journey back home, I am happy to present the film here for your enjoyment. It's best enjoyed with a broadband internet connection.

Click here to view the Opera Iowa 2005 video.

Posted: Fri - April 15, 2005 at 01:11 AM      

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