Twelve Shady Side Academy students will perform in the Opera Theater SummerFest production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute on June 29, July 1, 8 and 14. Performances will be held in the Richard E. Rauh Theater at the Hillman Center for Performing Arts, located on the SSA Senior School campus at 423 Fox Chapel Road, Fox Chapel. Tickets range from $20-$75 and can be purchased online at www.otsummerfest.org.
Rising sixth graders C.J. Coyne, Koji Shimada and Will Engel have singing roles and will be playing The Three Boys in the opera. Nine younger SSA students are performing in the children’s ensemble, playing children, birds and other animals in several scenes: rising fourth grader Rory Engel; rising third graders Torrey Hill and Hunter Sheehan; and rising first graders Samuel Benning, Gretchen Chalmers, Jack Engel, Marley Grandizio, Kamryn Kasubinski and Stevie Wallace. The students have been rehearsing for several months. Junior School music teacher Kim Price was instrumental in arranging and coordinating the students’ roles in the opera.
The Magic Flute is the story of Papageno the bird catcher, three strange spirits, an evil queen and a host of colorful animals. The opera follows a noble prince and a beautiful princess on their journey to true love, set to the timeless and charming music of Mozart.
The Magic Flute is one of three main-stage productions of Opera Theater SummerFest, which is making its home at the Hillman Center from June 29–July 15. The other two mainstage operas are Leonard Bernstein’s Candide and a chamber version of the Georges Bizet classic Carmen-The Gypsy. SummerFest also features Night Caps, a program of contemporary and newly commissioned miniature late-night operas; and Mozart Camp, four days of study, insight and discussion with leading experts on the impact of Mozart and The Magic Flute. The operas will be surrounded by chamber music concerts, voice recitals and a program of family activities and events. Learn more about SummerFest on the Hillman Center’s website.
Read the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article on Opera Theater SummerFest.
