The University of Mary Washington will host its ninth annual Operafest on Friday, June 20 and Saturday, June 21 at 7:30 p.m. in George Washington Hall, Dodd Auditorium. The program, which features favorite operatic scenes performed by local artists and talented voice majors, is open to the public without charge.
The concert is the culmination of five weeks of intensive operatic studies that was open by audition to serious students who want to sing opera and perform on stage. The cast of 22 range from professional opera singers and graduate students majoring in vocal performance to undergraduate voice majors at UMW.
Directed by Jane Tavernier and Kathryn Ahearn, voice instructors at the university, the program includes scenes from such operas as Puccini’s “La Boheme,” Donizetti’s “L’elisir D’amore,” Massenets’ “Werther,” Bellini’s “Norma” and “The Ballad of Baby Doe” by Douglas Moore. Also, for the first time, Puccini’s one-act opera “Suor Angelica” will be performed in its entirety.
For more information about Operafest, contact the Department of Music at (540) 654-1012.