‘Madame Butterfly’ rare treat for BSO audience
Small wonder, then, that the April 20 performance is sold out. Only stand-by ticketing is available. The concert begins at 3 p.m. in Wattenbarger Auditorium, the concert hall of the Bryan Fine Arts Building on the TTU campus in Cookeville. Call 931-372-6088 for information.
In a semi-staged production, the orchestra and conductor move to the back of the stage, and the singers perform in the foreground.
Madama Butterfly is played by Shana Blake Hill, an experienced singer the Los Angeles Times calls “an intense young soprano.” With solos on stages from coast to coast to her credit, Hill has also ventured into recording; her performance of “The Mission,” the song that opens Paramount Studio’s blockbuster “The Sum of All Fears,” starring Ben Affleck and Morgan Freeman, is included on Paramount’s 90th anniversary CD collection of most memorable songs from its movie soundtracks.
Hill is joined by tenor Adam Diegel, a native of Memphis who joins the New York City Opera this season in a performance of “Tosca” and “Cavalleria Rusticana”; baritone Jonathan Carle, a veteran performer of some of the world’s most beloved operas; mezzo-soprano Diane Pulte, a member of the TTU voice faculty who was a regional finalist for the Metropolitan Opera National Council auditions in 1997 and 1998; tenor Jason Ferrante, who has performed on stages on five continents and has been heard on NPR, PBS, and as a panelist on the Metropolitan Opera Quiz; and TTU’s premier vocal ensemble, the Tech Chorale.
Concert-week events for this final performance of the BSO’s 2007-08 season begin Wednesday, April 16, at the Palace Theater in Crossville, where a preview luncheon is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. BSO Music Director Dan Allcott, who is coordinating the semi-staged opera production, will lead a discussion about the concert program, and participants will have a chance to ask questions during the catered lunch. Cost for the April 16 preview luncheon is $10 at the door, and reservations can be made by calling 931-484-6133 by Monday, April 14.
PBS affiliate WCTE-TV, Ch. 22, will broadcast “Prelude and Coffee: Conversations with the Conductor” at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, April 17, and rebroadcast at 8:30 p.m., Saturday, April 19.
The last Symphony Social of the season begins at 7 p.m., Friday, April 18, at West Textures Framing and Fine Art, located at 24 W. Broad St., Cookeville. There’s a $10 cover charge at the door. Call 372-6088 for reservations by Monday, April 14.
Finally, on the day of the concert, TTU piano faculty member Catherine Godes will give a preview lecture at 2 p.m., in Room 223 of the Bryan Fine Arts Building. A post-concert reception will be held in the Bryan Fine Arts lobby, and the audience is invited to an early dinner at Mauricio’s Italian Restaurant, located at 232 N. Peachtree Ave., in Cookeville. Dinner reservations should be made by calling 931-372-6088.