Hear the future: Palm Beach Opera presents showcase of young artists
Put away the Christmas tree tinsel or take a breather from Hanukkah geld Saturday and take some time to hear the future of opera in America.
Palm Beach Opera hosts its annual Resident Artist Showcase tonight at the troupe’s new digs in Northwood, where 14 young singers will show their stuff in curated scenes from operatic masterworks. The singers, chosen for membership in Palm Beach Opera’s two singer-training courses — the Benenson Young Artists Program and the Bailey Apprentice Artist Program — will train with the West Palm Beach-based company for the next five months.
The singers were chosen from more than 1,000 applicants in the United States and abroad, the company said.
“We are pleased to welcome another season of rising singers to Palm Beach Opera,” said David Walker, the company’s general and artistic director, in a prepared statement. “Our programs provide up-and-coming artists with the training and experience they’ll need to embark on successful, international careers in opera. We are proud to support the next generation.”
The Benenson Young Artists Program is for young singers on the verge of professional careers. The five Benenson singers this season are soprano Maria Vasilevskaya of Novosibirsk, Russia; mezzo-soprano Cloe SanAntonio of Locust Valley, New York.; tenor Devin Eatmon of Ocala; baritone Edward Thomas Bland of Morganton, North Carolina; and bass-baritone Ben Brady of Denver. Three of the singers, Vasilevskaya, Eatmon and Bland, are returning to the company after earlier residencies.
Palm Beach Opera’s season will include Puccini’s “Tosca” in January, Offenbach’s “The Tales of Hoffmann” in early March, and Bellini’s “Norma” in early April. The operas will be presented at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach.
Vasilevskaya will sing the role of Clotilda in “Norma,” SanAtonio will perform as La Voix in “Tales of Hoffmann,” and Eatmon, a graduate of Florida State University, will sing Spoletta in “Tosca,” Nathanaël/Spalanzani in “ Tales of Hoffmann,” and Flavio in “Norma.”
Bland will sing the role of Angelotti in “Tosca” and Hermann/Schlémil in “Tales of Hoffmann,” while Brady will perform as Luther/Crespel in “Tales of Hoffmann.”
The Bailey Apprentice Artist Program is for recent conservatory graduates. The nine singers chosen as apprentices this year are sopranos Maggie Kinabrew and Alexis Seminario; mezzo-sopranos Ashlyn Brown and Ori Marcu; tenors Garrett Evers and Ajit Persaud; baritone David Wolfe; bass-baritone Jacob O’Shea; and pianist Emma Luyendijk. Brown and O’Shea are returning to Palm Beach Opera for a second season.
Evers, a native of Orlando, is a graduate of Florida State University, as is Persaud, a native of Georgetown, Guyana, who now lives in Florida.
The Resident Artist Showcase begins at 6 p.m. tonight with pre-concert appetizers at the Cornelia Bailey Opera Center, 425 W. 24th St., West Palm Beach. The performance, directed by Paul Curran and accompanied by Palm Beach Opera musical staff, begins at 7 p.m. A post-concert reception begins at 9:30 p.m.
Tickets are $200 and include the pre-concert reception, valet parking, and a post-performance toast with the cast. Seating is limited. Visit pbopera.org to secure tickets. For more information, call 561-833-7888 or send an email to info@pbopera.org.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Showcase concert features rising young stars at Palm Beach Opera
