Deal Diva Laura wrote:
> Obviouisly I'm not Peggy, but maybe I can help a little too. Help, Help,
> The Globolinks wouldn't really be considered musical theatre I don't think.
> Although I've been hearing a lot lately about Menotti being "out of fashion"
> or something, so maybe he's not considered opera anymore either. I don't
> know. I got the piano/vocal score myself from a local library. It looks
> like a LOT of fun to do. But you also have to rent some digital tapes and
> such for the sound effects from the publisher (this is probably a good way
> for them to keep track of who's performing it, when, and where). I seem to
> recall it was from Schirmer, which you can go to online at
> http://www.schirmer.com.
Your answer above is fine....but about Help Help the
Globolinks. We did that opera a bunch of years ago. I
didn't sing in it, but operated the tape recorder
backstage. Quite a challenge to make the cues. We had to
use a reel-to-reel recorder, and it was a bear being at
exactly the right place on the tape AND having the tape come
in exactly on time. I had to play with a couple of machines
to get the one that worked the best. This was the most
nerve-wracking thing I've EVER had to do - because the tape
is critical dramatically. If I messed up, it would mess up
everyone on stage! Fortunately, I didn't, though we did
have a power outage from too many lights running on too few
circuits (the room wasn't wired for stage performances).
It is a fun opera to do, but musically VERY difficult, as
most Menotti is (though it doesn't sound difficult to listen
to it, because he sets the English language so well). I
think Menotti is WAY underappreciated by critics. I know
few if any singers who've worked on the operas who don't
think the man knows everything there is to know about
writing for the voice and the stage. And the music a SO
interesting. The surface is nice, but there's also a lot
below the surface.
Not an opera, but if any singer interested in vocal ensemble
has the opportunity to work on The Unicore, the Manticore
and the Gorgon, leap at it. Very hard, musically, and
vocally (all a capella with challenging harmonies) but I
found it one of the best pieces of music I'd ever worked
on. We did it on a double bill with Globolinks! This must
have been 15 years ago, and sing so much better now. I'd
love to do it again.
Peggy
--
Margaret Harrison, Alexandria, Virginia, USA
"Music for a While Shall All Your Cares Beguile"
mailto:peggyh@i...
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