When Hon. Joan Shkane retired from her profession as a Family Court Judge in 2017, she knew exactly where she could continue improving the lives of local children: the Glimmerglass Festival. Already “a fan” of the Festival as a long-time patron and familiar with children’s agencies in the Utica area, Shkane soon began bringing underserved students to Glimmerglass productions.
This summer, 30 attendees from Utica community centers, including 22 students, attended the Glimmerglass Festival’s August 5th performance of La Calisto by Francesco Cavalli. The weekend before, on August 3rd, Glimmerglass Teaching Artist Pamela Simonson Parker prepared the students with an interactive workshop. They learned about the history of opera, listened to audio samples of different voice parts, and acted out scenarios as La Calisto characters using costumes and props. Parker recalled telling the students, “You don’t have to like the art form, but now you know it.” Hopefully, she said, “something will spark” from this early exposure to the performing arts.
The students began their visit on Monday morning with a tour of the Alice Busch Opera Theater led by Joel Morain, Glimmerglass A/V Coordinator. While lighting staff worked on stage preparing for the afternoon’s performance, Morain explained the intricacies of live opera. He answered the youth’s questions about supertitles, the orchestra pit, costumes, and the fly space. Jasmine Vargas, a volunteer from the Mohawk Valley Latino Association, noted, “It’s really great to see their faces and to hear the great questions they’re asking. It’s opening their minds to see there’s a lot more out there.” The students had the chance to watch from the wings as Glimmerglass staff pulled down scenery with a rope system. One student remarked, “I love to see the magic behind the scenes.” Morain also emphasized the importance of communication for shows to run smoothly backstage, a value the students can apply to their everyday lives.
The visitors continued their tour through the costume and scene shop, ending at the Pavilion for lunch. One volunteer chaperone, Cheryl Haritatos, appreciated that the students witnessed several departments required to make opera: “It shows that even if you’re not a performer, there’s a place for everyone in the theater no matter what your interest is.” She mentioned that many former participants in the program have gone on to work as apprentices at Glimmerglass, perform in Glimmerglass youth operas, or participate at other theater companies. “You never know when you plant a seed how it will germinate,” Haritatos observed.
At the Pavilion, Artistic & General Director Rob Ainsley addressed the students. He gave them a breakdown of the La Calisto plot, highlighting the different musical styles associated with each type of character. Afterward, the students visited the pit orchestra to watch a show-and-tell of seventeenth century instruments, many of which they had never seen before (a harpsichord and a theorbo, for example). Anita Bailey, a rehabilitative psychotherapist and chaperone for the day, reflected, “They’re not in their comfort zone, but that’s why we do it.”
At intermission, students reacted to the show with great enthusiasm. For the majority of them, La Calisto was their first experience of live opera. One student commented, “I’ve listened to operas, but it sounds better in person. It’s like a play; it’s better to see live.” Another student exclaimed, “It was hilarious…I was surprised!” The costumes were a hit: “I loved them with my whole heart,” was a student’s response. A middle-schooler decided, “I might be joining the drama club this year.” A high school student predicted that after seeing La Calisto and last year’s Candide, “I could definitely take a class about opera in college.” Before heading home, the students met the cast, still in costume as intimidating Greek gods but certainly out of character and in friendly spirits.
Thank you to the Junior Frontiers, Midtown Utica Community Center, Mohawk Valley Latino Association, Broadway Utica, I CAN, House of the Good Shepherd, the Homeschooling Program, Oneida County Workforce Development Program, and Dodge Pratt Northam Art and Community Center for their partnership in this important community outreach effort.
If you would like to organize a group experience at the Glimmerglass Festival, please reach out to info@glimmerglass.org. You can receive a discounted price on tickets and pay in installments.
Click here for more images from the Monday, August 5th visit. All photos by Brent DeLanoy/The Glimmerglass Festival.