Story of the GWO's efforts to revitalize opera and attract a new generation of audience members. Explains the opera-going experience, dispels common misconceptions, and includes interesting facts related to a classic performing art.

1. 24 THEPULSEMAG.COM | Nov. 2014
Entertainment
Think opera is
boring? How about opera sung in
English, in a bar or based on How I Met Your Mother? It
seems like a lot more of a good time now, doesn’t it?
The Greater Worcester Opera group has spent the better part of 11 years doing
just that: making opera more enjoyable for a broader audience.
“We want people to know that it’s not stuffy and stodgy,” said Christine Petkus,
GWO’s fundraising chairperson. “We’re having fun. We present good, quality
shows, and they’re affordable.” Petkus, along with Executive Director Elaine
Crane, also performs with the group on a regular basis.
To Crane, opera is “a lot like musical theater, but bigger singing.” She and
Petkus agree that while most people consider opera to be foreign, it’s really
more akin to musical theater performances like The Phantom of the Opera.
“Musical theater and opera aren’t that far apart,” Petkus said. In fact, many
people don’t realize that the hit musical Rent actually began its life as La
Bohème, a Puccini opera that debuted in Italy over a century ago.
Petkus said that, above all else, singing in English is key to bringing opera
music to more people. At larger venues like the Metropolitan Opera in New York
City, the translation is usually displayed on the back of the seats. Other times,
the translation is projected somewhere on the stage. According to Petkus, this
can make the experience a lot less fun. “The audience lags behind, and they
can’t pay attention to the movements and actions of the performers.”
To rectify this, Crane translates entire operas from Italian, German or French
into modern English. She starts with a public-domain opera from before 1928,
saving the group money on production rights. She then sits down with the
original script, a “to-English” dictionary and a thesaurus and sets to work. After
completing
the first draft, she cross-
references her translations with English translations
already in existence. This long, arduous process takes her about three
months to complete, but, she said, it’s “absolutely worth it.”
The final script, however, isn’t without room for adjustment. “It’s not the Bible,”
Crane said. “Singers get to give their input regarding solos and translations.”
One would think that for opera purists, translating a piece from its original
language would be nothing short of musical heresy, but Petkus said this isn’t
the case. In fact, most countries in Europe perform operas in their native
language. Petkus believes that “operas are more popular in Europe with the
younger crowd because of this.”
Where opera used to be a “park-and-bark” stationary form of performance,
GWO has worked to change this. Crane said, “Now, it’s a lot of singing actors.”
“You have to be a good singer, a good actor and a good colleague,” Petkus
added. Set-building, rehearsal and everything leading to the actual performance
takes a lot of work, and there’s no room for personality clashes or egos. Petkus
said an actor can have the greatest voice in the world, but if he or she is difficult
to work with, it makes it difficult for the rest of the cast and production staff.
Instead, GWO thrives on “positive energy and great people.”
Crane and Petkus both consider themselves “late bloomers,” getting involved in
opera when they were in college. Now, they try to introduce opera to a younger
audience. Their efforts include updating a traditional piece to create Cosi Fan
Tutti, or How I Met your Mother. The original opera includes the music of Mozart
and was set in the regency period (think Jane Austin). The GWO re-vamped
GWO:Opera for the nextgenerationBy Sean Haley

2. Nov. 2014 | THEPULSEMAG.COM 25
the performance to include aspects of the
popular television show, How I Met Your
Mother, complete with vignettes, plot twists
and modern cultural references to tell a tell
a tale of “romance, deception and happy
endings.” According to Crane and Petkus, the
production was met with standing ovations.
GWO members also have collaborated with
the Boston chapter of Opera on Tap, a national
organization that puts opera singers together
and arranges opera performances in bars
across the state. Songs and vocal arrangements
are developed, rehearsed and performed,
complete with horned hats. “It’s very tangible
and cabaret-like,” Crane said. “We got a great
reception,”
The GWO has also performed at Worcester State
University, Eagle Hill Cultural Center in Hardwick
and the Warner Theater at Worcester Academy.
Despite the number of operas the group performs
and an audience volume that averages 600 people
per series, the GWO still doesn’t have a steady
place to perform on a regular basis. “We haven’t
found just the right spot to settle in,” Crane said,
“so we try a lot of different places. We have to rent
venues.”
Along with arranging, translating and rehearsing
these operas, GWO members also build their own
sets and make their own costumes.
“I love costuming. Besides performing, that’s my
passion” Crane said.
“She can turn scraps into a ball gown.” Petkus said.
“I’ve seen her do it.”
With all of their dedication, however, the group is
still beset with obstacles to its overall success. “The
economy has been terrible for the arts over the past 10
years.” Crane said. “Support comes from sponsors that
give $300 here, $500 there. It helps, but we could always
use more. We sing for our supper. We could use grants,
but we don’t have anyone to write them.”
Yet, the group still manages to generate funds and give
back through educational programs. The GWO performs its rendition of
Diamonds and Toads, an operatic adaptation of a fairytale by Charles Perrault,
in local schools to introduce opera music to children. The group not only
performs the opera for children but also provides a handbook for students,
which teaches them opera etiquette and includes games. The GWO also offers
scholarships to exceptional singers and instrumentalists.
For its upcoming series, GWO will collaborate with the Trinity Lutheran Church
in Worcester and Fourth Wall Stage Company in Grafton to perform Amahl
and the Night Visitors, a one-act holiday opera about the Three Kings who
meet, Amahl, a disabled boy, on their way to see the birth of Jesus. The series
will run from Jan. 9-11. Crane said that for just $15, this one-hour opera is the
perfect introductory opera.
So how does GWO expect to bring more young people to the opera, especially
in a city full of college students who are used to going to rock shows?
Crane said it comes down to advertising. “If I can sit down and have a
conversation with every person, they’d come. The question now is how to use
social media to do that.”
Petkus added, “It’s basically like issuing a challenge: You love music? I
challenge you to come and listen to another type of music.”
For more information, visit greaterworcesteropera.org.