Opera Atelier in Versailles

Jake Rennie as Armour and Peggy Kriha Dye as Armide
Opera Atelier 2012, Photo by Bruce Zinger 2012

Soprano Peggy Kriha Dye said she felt a little bit like Cinderella after her triumphant performance as Armide in the Opera Atelier's production of Lully's Armide in Versailles, France on Friday night. Dressed in a lush, long red velvet gown by Magpie Design for the after-party, she told me that she was moved by the standing ovation and repeated curtain calls demanded by the audience. She also said she was glad that she hadn't known in advance that Armide has never been performed in Versailles before. Her performance set a standard that will be hard to follow, as did all the members of this Toronto-based troupe, who performed as if their lives depended on it.

Opera Atelier: The Spectacle of Armide

Olivier LaQuerre as Chevalier Ubalde
Photo by Bruce Zinger

Opera Atelier's production of Armide, a tragédie en musique, is, in my view, a spectacle worthy of Versailles. First performed in Paris at the Théâtre du Palais-Royal on February 15, 1686, with scenery by Bérain, the Toronto-based Opera Atelier has layered the Middle Eastern aesthetic of the story over a Baroque sensibility, creating a feast for the senses. Captivating from start to finish, this production opens tonight in Toronto and runs until April 21, 2012. In May, the company takes Armide to Versailles, followed by a summer run at The Glimmerglass Festival in New York. 

Opera Atelier's Don Giovanni

Opera Atelier's Don Giovanni (Photo by Bruce Zinger)

Opera can be such a serious affair but in the case of Opera Atelier's presentation of Don Giovanni, the goal was laughter. Director Marshall Pynkoski introduced the opening night production by equating Mozart's character of Don Giovanni to Warren Beatty which in and of itself caused much mirth. He also said  that the two ways to create a comedic opera were 1. speed and 2. youth. By filling his cast with attractive and trim young singers, dancers and actors, and by keeping a lively pace, he achieved both goals and the audience responded with laughter throughout the show and with a standing ovation at the end.

What's on the Fashion Calendar for October 2011

Saena Afternoon Scent Collection

October is chock-a-block with fashion and arts related events:

October 1-2: This is the last weekend to see The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. This exhibition is a celebration of the 30 years of visionary and groundbreaking fashion creations by Jean Paul Gaultier under the premise that there is no singular standard of beauty. The exhibition will move on to venues in Dallas (November 13 - February 12, 2011) and San Francisco (March 24 - August 19, 2012). My review of the show can be read on Fashion Projects here.

October 1 from dusk until dawn: Scotiabank Nuit Blanche is Toronto's all-night celebration of contemporary art. The menu of activities is too long to recount here, but one of the highlights will be a live performance called SLEEP as part of Gullivers' Rehearsal: Drawing into Performance at Loop Gallery.

until October 5: Paris Fashion Week.  I had two invitations to Paris Fashion Week this year neither of which I could accept.... Sigh! I am intrigued by the work of both of these talented young designers as they seem fresh and vibrant in their own way. I've mentioned Saena before as she appeals to my romantic side. Saena Chun is based in Berlin and creates modernist confections like the gorgeous dress shown above. The other designer who has caught my eye is Andrew Majtenyi who has created an edgy and fashion forward collection inspired by the Medieval trial of Katherina Hetzeldorfer in 1477. I am especially sorry to miss this one since I am currently doing research into how fashion designers reference history.

October 14: I will be giving the keynote address at the Costume Society of America mid-west conference on the topic of When Does Fashion Become Art?

October 17-21: The Spring/Summer 2012 Collections of LG (Toronto) Fashion Week Beauty by L’Oréal Paris will take place in their new home at the David Pecaut / Metro Square.  The SS12 Collections will include more than 40 shows and presentations filled with local talent.

October 20: The launch of my project tentatively titled  The Swing on this blog. I chose to do a creative project for one of my grad courses called Design, Text and Ideas and will be posting regular updates here as part of my progress reports for that assignment. This work takes its inspiration from the 18th century painting by Fragonard which is in the Wallace Collection. I will create a dress sculpture in a post-modern mash up of fabrics and using embroidery or other means as interventions to make the work into a conceptual art piece.

October 29: Opera Atelier’s 2011-12 Season opens with a glittering new period production of Don Giovanni designed by Martha Mann and my friend Gerard Gauci. The new production will be presented October 29, 30, November 1, 2, 4, and 5, 2011, at the Elgin Theatre in Toronto and will also be performed in Columbus, Ohio on November 25 and 27, 2011.

Photo provided courtesy of Saena.

Notice of copyright: 
All text and images on this blog are the copyright of Ingrid Mida, unless otherwise noted. The copying of posts, images and/or text without proper attribution is violation of copyright and legal action will be pursued.

Eye Candy at the Opera: Opera Atelier's La Clemenza di Tito

Photo: Bruce Zinger / Artists: Michael Maniaci as Sesto; Curtis Sullivan as Publio; Kresimir Spicer as Emperor Tito; Measha Brueggergosman as Vitellia; Mireille Lebel as Annio and Mireille Asselin as Servillia along with Artists of Atelier Ballet

As a visual artist, I drink with my eyes so to speak. There have been times when I've attended an opera  and had to close my eyes because of the discontinuity between what I see on stage and what I'm listening to. But my eyes were wide open at Friday's opening night performance of Opera Atelier's La Clemenza di Tito and rarely have I enjoyed an opera so completely.

Designer Gerard Gauci created exquisite backdrops that created grand illusions of Imperial Rome in 79 AD as it might have been imagined by artists in Mozart's time. His beautiful costumes also bridged the two periods with a harmonious colour palette and silhouettes evocative of the 18th century. I was especially captivated by Measha Brueggergosman's black gown trimmed with a jaunty striped bow. The gown was lined in red, perhaps referencing her blood-thirsty quest for revenge. She also carried a lace shawl that appeared to be attached to a ring and which magnified every hand gesture. (I think I need one of those!) 

With Opera Atelier's strong cast of talented vocalists, I didn't need to read the subtitles to follow this complicated tale of revenge and redemption. With spectacular voices, each cast member conveyed the emotion of their character with both grace and vigor. But what was a particular treat was to hear the male soprano Michael Maniaci sing the role of Sesto.  I had never heard a man sing in this range and it was a rare gift.

There are four performances left at the Elgin Theatre on April 26, 27 and 30 and May 1, 2011. For more information, visit the Opera Atelier website.

P.S. Although I was invited to attend as media, I bought my own tickets just in case I did not want to write about it. But this production was so extraordinary that I just could not keep it to myself.

Opera Atelier's Versailles Gala 2011

Opera Atelier Versailles Gala Fashion Show
Photo by Ingrid Mida 2011

I am a huge fan of Opera Atelier. Their productions of 18th century operas are unlike any other I've ever seen, combining the best of opera and ballet with costumes and sets that are both beautiful and true to the period.

This past week, Opera Atelier celebrated their 25th anniversary with a Versailles Gala. Having donated one of my photographs from my All is Vanity series in which I am wearing a gown from an Opera Atelier production of The Coronation of Poppea, I was thrilled to be part of this event. And what made it even more special for me was my seating placement beside Opera Atelier's ever-so-talented costume and set designer Gerard Gauci. (Gerard also happens to be an incredible artist who is known for his exquisitely beautiful oil paintings of rooms from great palaces and homes. He is represented by Leo Kamen Gallery and Galerie de Bellefeuille). 


As you might imagine, the event was an elegant affair from beginning to end. The evening began with a fashion show featuring some of the costumes from the Opera Atelier archive. With only a tiny point and shoot camera tucked into my evening bag, my photo taking ability was limited, but I think these out-takes convey the regal deportment of the dancers who were in the show.

Opera Atelier Versailles Gala Fashion Show
Photo by Ingrid Mida 2011

Another highlight was a performance by Canadian operatic superstar Measha Brueggergosman who sang a selection from her upcoming role in Opera Atelier's La Clemenza di Tito by Mozart. Although I was enchanted by her glorious voice, I have to say I also was impressed by her choice of gown. Brueggergosman wore this black ruched dress with aplomb, conveying the confidence of a woman that knows she is beautiful and talented.

Measha Brueggergosman at the Opera Atelier Versailles Gala
Photo by Ingrid Mida 2011

In case you are wondering what I wore to this event, I chose a black lace top and long black skirt with a train by Canadian designer David Finley. And no I don't have any photos of myself.

Opera Atelier's production of La Clemenza di Tito by Mozart begins on Friday, April 22 and runs through to May 1, 2011. Tickets can be purchased at Ticketmaster or at the Elgin Theatre box office.

Drama and Desire at the Art Gallery of Ontario

Edgar Degas, L'orchestre de l'opera 

Oil on Canvas 1870

Musee d'Orsay, Paris

A list of my favourite things would have to include art, music, ballet and opera but rarely am I able to combine them into one experience. And yet, the Art Gallery of Ontario has done exactly that in their current exhibition Drama and Desire.  

This exhibition includes over 100 paintings, drawings and theatrical maquettes by artists such as Degas,  Delacroix,  David,  Ingres,  Toulouse-Lautrec, and Vuillard. The works were borrowed from the collections of the Louvre, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Musée d'Orsay, the British Museum, and the Victoria & Albert Museum. 

Gerard Gauci, set designer for Opera Atelier, was the guest designer for this exhibition. With recreations of eighteenth and early twentieth century stage sets, sound and light effects, theatrical props and on-site performances, the art is dramatically brought to life. 

Visitors enter the exhibition by walking ‘onstage' through a life-size 18th-century set and a full-scale re-creation of an early 20th-century theatre maquette marks the finale of the exhibition. 

“Visitors to Drama and Desire will experience the exhibition as audience members, actors and even stage hands,” says Gauci. “Designing this exhibition has been like designing an opera with an overture, a series of distinct acts, special effects and a grand finale.”

Although the exhibition is open during regular gallery hours, you will be treated to an extra special experience if you are able to attend at one of the times listed below:

Sun. July 4: Artists of the Atelier Ballet, Opera Atelier (1:30 pm, 2:30 pm, 3:30 pm)

Sat. July 10: CanadianStage (between 1:30 pm and 3:00 pm)

Sun. July 11: Artists of the Atelier Ballet, Opera Atelier (1:30 pm, 2:30 pm, 3:30 pm)

Sat. July 17: CanadianStage (between 1:30 pm and 3:00 pm)

Sun. July 18: Artists of the Atelier Ballet, Opera Atelier (1:30 pm, 2:30 pm, 3:30 pm)

Sat. July 24: Single-Thread Theatre Company (between 1:30 pm and 3:00 pm)

Sun. July 25: Artists of the Atelier Ballet, Opera Atelier (1:30 pm, 2:30 pm, 3:30 pm)

Sat. July 31: CanadianStage (between 1:30 pm and 3:00 pm) 

Performances will include actors from Canadian Stage Company performing excerpts from High Park’s version of Romeo and Juliet. Opera Atelier will feature ballet demonstrations in their production ‘Degas and his Dancers’.  Single Thread Theatre Company will highlight key moments in Shakespeare’s dramas.

Drama and Desire runs until September 26, 2010.

Art Gallery of Ontario

317 Dundas Street West

Toronto, Ontario

M5T 1G4

416-979-6648

1-877-225-4246

Opera Atelier and the Marriage of Figaro

Photo: Bruce Zinger / Artists: Phillip Addis, Wallis Giunta, Carla Huhtanen, Patrick Jang, Peggy Kriha Dye, Curtis Sullivan and Cavell Wood

If you have an affinity for Marie Antoinette or the 17th and 18th centuries, you will take great delight in seeing a performance of Opera Atelier. This Toronto-based company brings the 17th and 18th centuries to life on the stage by producing opera, ballet and drama from those centuries. Drawing on the aesthetics of that time and reinterpreting the experience for modern audiences, the company also makes the period more accessible to audiences by performing their operas in English.

Photo: Bruce Zinger / Artists: Phillip Addis, Carla Huhtanen and Patrick Jang

The Opera Atelier is currently performing Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro at the restored Elgin Theatre in Toronto. This enchanting comedy was first performed at the private home of Joseph Hyacinthe Vaudreuil prior to its official debut in Paris at the Comedie Francaise in 1784. Although I've seen this opera several times before, it wasn't until I saw the Opera Atelier's version that I appreciated the subtle nuances of the repartee between the main characters. Although some opera fans might disparage an English interpretation, I loved it, especially as it sparked new ideas for my Revolutionary Fashion series of textile works.  Plus there is much eye candy on display, including exquisite sets by one of my favourite Toronto artists Gerard Gauci, divine period costumes from the talented Martha Mann, and some very handsome actors wearing snug velvet breeches!

Photo: Bruce Zinger / Artists: Phillip Addis  and Peggy Kriha Dye

There are only four performances left on the schedule this week: April 27, April 28, April 30 and May 1st. If you don't live in Toronto, watch for Opera Atelier on tour as the company has been to New York, Houston, Stuttgart, Bremen, London, Singapore, Seoul, Tokyo and Chateau de Versailles in France.

Opera Atelier
416-703-3767 ext. 22