Oberlin Opera Theater Presents Comic One-Act Opera, "Fortune's Favorites" in Local Schools; Offers Oberlin Performance, Wednesday, February 9, 6:30 P.M., Kulas Recital Hall Story by Michael Chipman
	Scheduled Performances: • Friday, Jan. 21 Olmstead Falls Middle School • Monday, January 24, Amherst Middle School • Tuesday, January 25, Avon Lake, Learwood Middle School • Thursday, January 27, Oberlin, Langston Middle School • Friday, February 4, Kendal at Oberlin, 7:30 p.m. • Wednesday, February 9, Kulas Recital Hall, 6:30 p.m.		Marcy Stonikas and Matt Hayden perform for Langston Middle School students Oberlin Opera Theater is out to show Lorain County school children that opera can be fun -- and even funny -- through performances of a Winter Term Opera outreach production of "Fortune's Favorites," by Seymour Barab. This humorous one-act opera, directed by Jennifer Bertoni, assistant director of Opera Theater, will tour local intermediate and junior high schools in an effort to get college students and staff involved with the greater regional community. The troupe, composed of baritone Matthew Hayden, a senior from Williamsville, New York; mezzo-soprano Marcy Stonikas, a sophomore from Elmhurst, Illinois; and Tara Sievers, a senior from Rochester Hills, Michigan, will perform "Fortune's Favorites" for Oberlin audiences, Wednesday, February 9 at 6:30 p.m. in Kulas Recital Hall. Staff Coach/Accompanist Daniel Michalak, musical director of the piece, and perform on piano. "Fortune's Favorites" tells the story of two misguided lovers thrown together by chance and almost separated forever by silly superstitions. "One of the reasons I chose 'Fortune's Favorites' is because it is small," explains Bertoni. "In fact, the scenery consists of only a table and two chairs. Now I've upped it to three chairs. Even so, it makes for a very portable production." Another reason Bertoni says she chose "Fortune's Favorites," is that "the story is on a level middle-school aged kids will understand. It is based on a story by H.H. Munro, whose stories are often read by middle school-aged students. However, the humor in the opera isn't as evil as it is in the book. The opera's characters are more foolish than their nasty counterparts in the book. In this show, the audience gets the jokes before the characters themselves do, which adds a lot of fun humor." Langston Middle School students watch a performance of "Fortune's Favorites" This production marks Bertoni's second direction of "Fortune's Favorites," having directed it once before as a graduate student at Florida State University. "Musically it's a fairly tonal piece, in a sentimental vein," says Bertoni. "It's not too dissonant, so it won't bend the audience's ears too far back. It is rhythmically difficult -- in a conversational style. Barab plays with four-beat bars against five-beat bars, which is appropriate since one of the characters cannot remember whether he has four or five children." The libretto of "Fortune's Favorites" is adapted from a short story, "Barker's Dozen" by the British writer H. H. Munro (better known as Saki). In the story, Richard and Emily, lovers in their youth, meet accidentally in a restaurant after years of separation. Avid believers in signs and portents, they take this surprise meeting as a sign they should marry. Disaster strikes when they realize that together they would have thirteen children, which would be bad luck. After trying without success to get a passing waitress to adopt one child, they resign themselves to part forever. Fortune smiles upon them again when they realize that Richard has counted one of his children twice -- once as Richard and one as Junior. Joyfully, the problem is solved and the waitress can finally take their order. "This is a great opportunity to work with students in a slightly more relaxed atmosphere," says Bertoni. "I am glad to work with baritone Matt Hayden again. He was a student at Oberlin while I was in school here, and he was actually in the very first production I ever directed. After that production, many years ago, he came up to me and told me that I was good at this and that I should keep doing it, so I guess he is largely responsible that I'm doing what I'm doing now. Working with him again closes the circle nicely." About the Artists Seymour Barab (b. 1921) is a contemporary composer best known for his vocal works. He had an early musical career as a symphonic cellist and soloist, appearing with the Cleveland, San Francisco, Philadelphia, ABC, and CBS orchestras. A visit to Paris in 1952 fostered an interest in composition for this self-taught composer. He has written over 20 operas and several song cycles. Although Barab has written full-length works, his most popular operas are his one-act operas an his shows for children, including "Chanticleer," "Little Red Riding Hood," "Only a Miracle," and "The Toy Shop." "Fortune's Favorites" had its premiere in 1982 at After-Dinner Opera in New York City. Daniel Michalak was recently appointed as Staff Coach/Accompanist for Oberlin Conservatory's Opera Theater and Division of Vocal Studies. He holds degrees in Music from Harvard University (B.M., 1985) and in Piano Performance from Indiana University, Bloomington (M.M. 1988), where he also served as Coach/Accompanist from 1991-1999. His piano teachers have included Bernard Rose, Boris Barere, Edward Auer, Michel Block, and (in chamber music performance) Leon Kerchner. As a composer he has also written extensively for the voice, including the song cycles "This is Just to Say," "Song of Herself" and "A Life Filled With Flowers." Jennifer Bertoni, assistant director of opera theater Jennifer Bertoni is currently in her fourth year as assistant director of opera at Oberlin. She holds a B. Mus. in Voice Performance from Oberlin and a M. Mus in Opera Production from Florida State University. She has worked backstage and on-stage with numerous Ohio arts organizations, including The Ohio Light Opera, Lyric Opera Cleveland, and Beck Center for the Cultural Arts. Ms. Bertoni has also served as a music and drama instructor in the Beachwood and Hudson school districts. Matthew Hayden completed the Bachelor of Music degree at Oberlin last fall where he will complete an English degree in May. He hails from Buffalo, New York, He teaches voice at Lorain County Community College and sings at Trinity Cathedral in Cleveland. Tara Sievers is a fifth-year vocal performance and music education major from Rochester Hills, Michigan. She has performed in several opera scene productions (including scenes from "Don Pasquale," "Ariodante" and "Susannah"), but this is her first role in a full production at Oberlin. In the late spring, Sievers plans to present a stage production of Bach's "Coffee Cantata" as an independent outreach project. Marcy Stonikas is a sophomore vocal performance major at Oberlin. She currently studies with Professor of Voice Daune Mahy. This is her debut performance in an opera, but she has been involved with musical theater. Favorite roles include Rizzo in "Grease" and Mother Superior in "Nunsense."
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