The crew assembles the Rigoletto set
Rigoletto opens in nine days! For an opera company, nine days can seem like a long time. Right now the Company is busy preparing for Rigoletto and a flurry of activity can be found on the Lyric Theatre stage as the production takes shape.
Just a few days ago the crew began preparing the technical aspects of Rigoletto starting with hanging the electrics and scrims. The set for Rigoletto is from the New Orleans Opera Association. Because of the size of the Lyric Theatre, sets aren’t loaded in until all of the electrics and scrims are hung, so everything has to happen quickly on stage. After a day for hanging, the set in its many pieces was unloaded. The pieces are being assembled by the crew, quickly putting together what amounts to a giant 3-D puzzle. The good thing is that the crew has done this before, and even though they have never assembled this specific set, they will be finished with the main assembly by Friday.
Richard Paul Fink and Mary Dunleavy chat between photos
Because a part of the set has already been assembled it can be used by another part of the Company. Today, the marketing department held a photo shoot with two of the principal performers. With opera, the visual aspect is just as important as the audible aspect. Lighting, sets, costumes, wigs, and makeup are all part of the visual aspect. Being able to show the public as many of those aspects as possible helps portray an accurate visual of what to expect on stage. This photo shoot of Rigoletto (baritone Richard Paul Fink) and his daughter Gilda (soprano Mary Dunleavy) is in full costume on part of the set. The most dramatic images from the shoot will be used with advertising, and when combined with audio can give a quick summation of what the opera experience is like for both eyes and ears.
While sets are being assembled and cast members are posing for photos behing the curtain, Artistic Director Ward Holmquist rehearses with the orchestra in the pit. Rigoletto has a large orchestra so it is a tight fit in the pit. Each morning this week Maestro Holmquist and the orchestra will work their way through Rigoletto, focusing on one scene or act at a time. Did you know the orchestra only rehearses 2 times without singers before the final dress rehearsals?
By next week rehearsals will move from our Production and Education facility to the Lyric Theatre stage where full stagings with the orchestra and singers will begin.
