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Patrick Eakin Young is a director, designer and artist, and the creative force behind Opera Erratica. Born and raised in Toronto, he studied English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University in New York. He has lived and worked in New York and Johannesburg, and currently resides in London. | Dido and Aeneas in Berlin  |
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Orlando/Lunaire
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| In conjunction with Program E.v., the CMC and Opera Erratica will be remounting their Underground /Opera production of Dido and Aeneas at the 2010 Berlin Biennale. This site specific performance will take place in an old rectory of the Kultubüro SOPHIEN in June. | The second Underground /Opera production in collaboration with the Classical Music Consort, this video cabaret performance will combine Handel’s Orlando and Schoenberg’s Pierrrot Lunaire. Performing in Toronto in September 2010. |
Originally from Vancouver, John now resides in London, England where he is in high demand as a concert and recital soloist. His performances have taken him to France, Germany, Italy and throughout the UK. He sung with the CMC and Opera Erratica last year as Damon in Acis and Galatea. Recent highlights include Handel's Israel in Egypt, Haydn's Creation, Mendelssohn's Elijah, Mozart's Don Giovanni, Bach's B minor Mass and the complete Canticles by Britten.
A native of Edmonton, Alberta, soprano Dawn Bailey received her Bachelor of Music degree in Voice Performance from the University of Toronto. She is an active performer in Toronto, having sung with the Toronto Consort, Tafelmusik Chamber Choir, the Sine Nomine Ensemble for Medieval Music, Exultate Chamber Singers, and the St. James' Cathedral Choir, among others. She has also performed internationally with ensembles in England, Wales, South Africa, Namibia, Germany, and the United States. When Dawn is not singing, she teaches yoga and meditation.
Lyric soprano Charlotte Corwin is one of Canada's most expressive young singers, and is quickly establishing herself as a versatile performer of both opera and concert repertoire. Charlotte received her Masters Degree in Vocal Performance and Opera from McGill University ,and was a member of the elite Atelier Lyrique de L'Opéra de Montréal from 2005 to 2008, performing roles in Turn of the Screw, Suor Angelica and Il Mondo della Luna.Charlotte debuted as Juliette in the 2007 production of Roméo et Juliette with L'Opera de Quebec. In 2008, she performed the role of Mélisande with Montréal's Atelier Lyrique in scenes from Pelléas et Mélisande. On the concert stage, Miss Corwin has performed with many of Quebec's leading orchestras and choral groups, including Les Violons du Roi , Cantabile Chorus and Orchestra and St. Lawrence Choir. This season, Miss Corwin sang Messiah with Toronto's Classical Music Consort and also with Orchestra London.Future engagements include her debut with Pacific Opera Victoria in 2010 as Fiordiligi in Mozart's Cosi fan Tutte.
Born in Canada, Susanne Hawkins studied at the Royal College of Music, London, England and the Flanders Opera Studio, Belgium. Recent performances include The House of the Sleeping Beauties (Defoort) at La Monnaie/De Munt, Brussels; a recital with Graham Johnson; selections from Des Knaben Wunderhorn (Mahler)with Orchestra I Maistri; Der Trommler in Der Kaiser von Atlantis (Ullmann), Baba the Turk in The Rake's Progress (Stravinsky), and Nympha in L'Euridice (Caccini). She has performed under the direction of Patrick Davin, Paul Spicer, Peter Schreier, Bob Chilcott, John Wilson and Michael Rosewell and was the 2006 recipient of the Donna Steinacher award.
Canadian bass-baritone Olivier Laquerre is a sought-after soloist, and is at ease on stage, in recital, and in concert, as well as in a wide range of repertoires. On stage, his roles include Escamillo in Carmen, Leporello in Don Giovanni, Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, Ulisse in Monteverdi's Il Ritorno d'Ulisse in Patria, Achillas in Handel's Giulio Cesare, Andrei Shchelkalov in Boris Godunov, Oronte in Charpentier's Méédée, both Céphée and Méduse in Lully's Persée, Haly in L'Italiana in Algeri, Angelotti in Tosca, the Messenger in Stravinsky's Œdipus Rex, Arbace in Mozart's Idomeneo, and he created the role of Tsar Theodorus at the Boston Early Music Festival premiere of Mattheson's Boris Goudenow. Recent and upcoming projects include Pluto in Monteverdi's Orfeo, Ottone in Monteverdi's L'Incoronazione di Poppea, and Thoas in Gluck's Iphigenie en Tauride. He also sang in the world premiere of Gilles Vigneault's Grand Messe, written for the 400th anniversary of Quebec City. Mr. Laquerre can often be heard both on the English and French networks of the CBC.
Marc Michalak is a graduate of the Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto, where he studied piano and theory. Recently, he has performed with Univox, All the Kinds, Voices, Oakville Chamber Ensemble, Victoria Scholars Male Ensemble and the Choir of Gentlemen and Boys and Grace Church on the Hill, Toronto. He also galavants around the GTA singing with a pop/rock a cappella quartet called Fine Grind. Marc has recently completed a Masters Degree in Environmental Studies at York University.
Andrew Pickett studied voice at the University of Western Ontario and the Royal College of Music, and has coached with Dame Emma Kirkby, James Bowman, Michael Chance and Daniel Taylor. He has played roles in operas by Monteverdi, Scarlatti, Hasse, Handel, Purcell and Jonathan Dove. Andrew is a founding member of The 1607 Ensemble vocal consort; was Lay Clerk at Manchester Cathedral and a member of the Tafelmusik Chamber Choir; and has been a soloist in works by Purcell, Charpentier, Handel, Orff, and Bach, in the UK, France, and Canada. He has been a Britten-Pears Young Artist and Brighton Early Music Festival Young Artist.
Kevin Pook has been a member of the Elora festival singers and the Toronto Mendelssohn choir for three seasons and is also a member of the St. James Singers at St. James Cathedral. Before moving to Toronto he was a member of the Vancouver Opera Young Artist's Touring Ensemble and performed small roles on the mainstage of Vancouver Opera such as "The Jailor" in Poulenc's "Dialogue of the Carmelites", "Wagner" in Gounod's "Faust", and "The Corporal" in Donizetti's "The Daughter of the Regiment".
Sarah Elizabeth Whalen, originally from Sault Ste. Marie, completed her Bachelor in Music Performance from the University of Toronto, and her Masters in Music Performance with Distinction from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, England. In Toronto, Sarah has performed with the Tafelmusik Baroque Chamber Choir, with Opera Atelier, the Aradia Ensemble and the Tallis Choir as well as the CMS in Handel's 'Messiah' in 2008. As a part of the Benjamin Britten Festival in 2004, Sarah performed under Niki Goldshmidt in Britten's Noye's Fludde, recorded for CBC's Opening Night. Recording credits include 'Chants Sacrees et Profanes' with Tafelmusick for CBC and 'Vivaldi Complete Works Volume 1' with the Aradia Ensemble for the Naxos label. In theatre, Sarah was a deviser and performer for Ducky's 'The Class Club' at the Barbican Pit Theatre, performer in 'The Night Kitchen Cabaret', Scottee's 'Eat your Heart Out' and collaborated with DJ Warboy in soon to be released club track 'Vive la Evolution'.
Dido and Aeneas
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Acis and Galatea
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| A contemporary redux of Purcell's masterpiece of English opera about the tragic love and suicide of the Queen of Carthage. "It was impossible not to be drawn into this production, which marks a new level of sophistication for baroque opera in Toronto." –Tamara Bernstein, The Globe and Mail |
George Frederic Handel's 1718 masque about a young shepherd's love for the nymph Galatea and his violent death at the hands of the Cyclops Polyphemus. Semi-staged with video projections. "...a hugely enjoyable production with a refreshing and somewhat unexpected approach that mixed old music with new media." –Wayne Gooding, Opera Canada |
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Champ: A Space Opera
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| A balletic rock-opera set aboard a spaceship traveling to a distant planet. An eight-piece indie-rock band and five contemporary dancers tell the story of Champollion, who hears a mysterious signal summoning him to leave the ship. "Champ – a space opera, cannot be categorized. It is of itself. Passionately, beautifully and yes, loudly performed. It's a fantastic voyage. Ear plugs optional" – Oscar E Moore, Talk Entertainment |
The first production in the new Underground /Opera series, and continuing our collaboration with the Classical Music Consort, Dido and Aeneas was a smash hit with audiences and critics alike. Even Canadian Opera Company General Director Alexander Neef praised the performance on his blog, writing: this "ambitious and passionate interpretation is well worth seeing and hearing."
This iconic piece of English music tells the story of Dido, the Queen of Carthage, and her tragic love for the wandering hero Aeneas. A refugee from the ruins of Troy, Aeneas woos the reluctant Queen and wins her heart. But a Sorceress and her coterie of witches conspire to thwart Dido by convincing Aeneas that he must continue on his quest to found Rome. At the opera's emotional climax, abandoned and distraught, Dido takes her own life atop a funeral pyre built from the objects and clothing Aeneas has left behind.
Taking Dido's final words "Remember me, but ah forget my fate," as a point of departure, the video elements of this production play with ideas of memory, doubling and shadows. Projected shadows compliment the action on stage, sometimes aligning with and other times diverging from the movements of the singers. Further playing with convention, the supertitle becomes a sub-text by the introduction of found phrases in addition to snatches of the libretto, which adds another layer of storytelling to the piece.
Listen to Michael Crabb's review on CBC's Here and Now:
"It was impossible not to be drawn into this production, which marks a new level of sophistication for baroque opera in Toronto. The youthful audience on opening night also bodes well for the future of Underground/Opera."
–Tamara Bernstein, The Globe and Mail
"A fascinating production...The playing of the CMC under Aziz is wonderfully crisp and taut... Young's conception is well thought-out, blending the gorgeous music-making of the instrumental ensemble, singers and chorus with an insightful re-envisioning of the story."
–Christopher Hoile, EYE Weekly
"You'll get a lot more than beautiful sounds in Opera Erratica and Classical Music Consort's production of Henry Purcell's 1689 opera Dido And Aeneas. The visuals are a constant wonder in this hour-long work, thanks to director/designer Patrick Eakin Young... The show's filled with striking moments: hands and feet that frame the cackling witches, a picnic's shadow-play entertainment, a conjuring of the natural world through images of leaves and trees."
–Jon Kaplan, NOW Magazine
Directed and Designed by Patrick Eakin Young
Conducted and Music Direction by Ashiq Aziz
Video Choreographer: John Heginbotham
Lighting Design: Burke Brown
Costume Design: Claire Warwick
Production Stage Manager: Melania Radelicki
Technical Associate and Video Operator: Remington North
Assistant Producer: Gabriel Estrin
Shadow Dido: Maile Okamura
Shadow Aeneas: Aaron Mattocks
Shadow Belinda: Meghan Merrill
| The Classical Music Consort  |
John Heginbotham  |
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| Led by founder Ashiq Aziz, the CMC is dedicated to historically informed interpretation and innovative presentation of Baroque and Classical music. Read more |
A frequent collaborator on Opera Erratica projects, including Champ and Dido and Aeneas. John is a choreographer and teacher, and has been a dancer with the Mark Morris Dance Group since 1998. Read More |
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Champollion
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Supermarché
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| Jeff Curtin and Juan Pieczanski make up the core of this Brooklyn-based, electro-acoustic rock band. Equally at home on stage as in their basement studio, they produce startling soundscapes and surprisingly complex and catchy songs. Read More | Filmmakers Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman are a boutique production company based in New York. They create music videos, commercials, documentaries, short and feature films, as well as video for live performances. Read More |
The Classical Music Consort is a young Canadian company committed to performing and promoting the richness and variety of music from the Eighteenth and early Nineteenth Centuries. Based in Toronto under the direction of founder and conductor Ashiq Aziz, the ensemble performs concerts of works by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Bach, among other Enlightenment composers, and in collaboration with Opera Erratica, produces avant-garde staging's of classical opera performed on period instruments.
Jeff Curtin and Juan Pieczanski make strange and wonderful music in their basement in Brooklyn. As leaders of the band Champollion, they composed and wrote the songs of Champ: A Space Opera. Since collaborating with Opera Erratica on that project, they have recorded the music from the show as a full-length concept album. The music of Champ is infused with Jeff's respect for orchestral arranging and his interest in science fiction and fantasy, as well as Juan's flawless ear for compelling riffs and driving rock.
Filmmakers Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman founded Supermarché, Inc. in 2007. As the name suggests, Supermarché provides a little bit of everything, from film/video production and post-production to design, art direction, and creative consulting.
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