Carthage Opera

04/03/2024

Here's the poster for the next opera workshop performance at Carthage. But there is only one opportunity to see this program, so plan accordingly!

12/13/2018

Mike Pence is killing it in his cameo role.

01/27/2017

Come see an hour of Offenbach - next weekend!!!

05/11/2016

We survived The Day of Madness! Congratulations to our unlucky but ultimately successful cast of "The Marriage of Figaro"!

05/13/2015

If you're in the area, tune in to WGTD FM 91.1 at about 8:00am to hear Mike Anderle (Michele), Nick Huff (Luigi) and Greg Berg, our music director, on The Morning Show talking about Il Tabarro! The show opens this weekend, Friday and Saturday, both performances at 7:30! We hope to see you there! And

04/24/2015

Craving an opera? Well, to tide you over until Il tabarro opens, you will want to see the amazing production our friends in Carthage Theater are mounting of Mitch Leigh's Man of La Mancha! There is even a familiar face or two to the Carthage Opera stage in the cast! It premiers tomorrow, don't miss it! For information see the below link or Carthage Theater's website.

https://www.facebook.com/events/346343395556207/

03/25/2015

It is our immense pleasure to announce the operas (yes, plural!!!) which we will put on this semester! Both are tales of the Parisian low class and their struggle for happiness at the bottom. And, in very different ways, about losing the flame of love in the city of lights.

We will perform Il tabarro (The Cloak), the first installment from Puccini's famous triptyc, Il trittico! Now If that name sounds familiar it shouldn't be a surprise! We performed another one-act opera from this same trio, Gianni Schicchi, a little over a year ago! But if Gianni Schicchi's light-hearted antics are heaven, the universe of Il tabaro is certainly hell! Follow the story of Michelle (baritone Mike Anderle), the captain of his own cargo vessel routed on the river Seine in Paris, his wife Georgette (soprano Merikate Bock) who would like nothing better than to be off the ship, and a deckhand known as Luigi (tenor Nicholas Huff) who offers her an illicit but welcome escape together - If they can make it off the ship without Michelle knowing...
(also joined by Marina Awes as Frugola, and Matt Burton and Andrew Rewerts as Tinca and Talpa)Directed by Matt Boresi and Greg Berg.

And, in very exciting news, we aren't done at only one opera! We will also present scenes from another famous Puccini piece, La Boheme! However: we are pleased to bring you a very rare glimpse into the world of the La Boheme novel by also presenting parts from a setting of the same story by Ruggero Leoncavallo! Bitter rivals and both quite popular in their time, these two composers famously both had country holiday escapes for composition right next to each other where they would make flags with insults and profanities and hang them out the window for the other to see! They even butted heads writing dueling settings of La Boheme at the same time! Leoncavallo's Boheme has all but fallen into obscurity but, brilliant in its own way, deserves to be heard as well! We couldn't be more excited to bring it to you! Follow Rodolfo, Marcello, Musette and Mimi as they struggle to make ends meat and find happiness as bohemians in Paris! (various singers between the two settings include Max Dinan, Stephen Hobe, Jack Hagget, Austin Merschdorf, Olivia Wallace, Alexandra Kurkjian, Emily Bednar). Directed by Matt Boresi and Greg Berg.

The verismo-style Il tabaro, an ambitious undertaking for the undergraduate stage, La Boheme set by both Leoncavallo, a rarity unto itself and by Puccini, even more rarely heard together, if ever! So please join us on the third weekend in May for this amazing chance to hear such wonderfully beautiful and rare music! It literally may be your only chance ever to see this work - don't miss it!

02/15/2015

If you're not doing anything in an hour or so, stop by First United Methodist Church of Kenosha for their opera scenes performance with the wonderful Merideth Arwady of Metropolitan Opera fame! It's free and features two of our own singers, Nick Huff and Mike Anderle! Join us at 3pm today for what will be an amazing performance!

http://www.fineartsatfirst.org/ #!meredith-arwady/cdyi

03/27/2014

Some (not quite all) members of the cast in our upcoming workshop production of Mozart's Cosi fan tutte outside the restaurant "Cosi" in Madison Wisconsin during spring break choir tour! We can't wait to get back to work on Monday and finish prepping this hilarious show!!!

Photo courtesy of MeriKatherine Bock

02/10/2014

Here's a blog entry of mine, in case any of the cast is interested in a few thoughts I had about Schicchi- but don't let Matt Boresi or Peg Cleveland Plambeck read it .... because I say some pretty mushy things about them and I don't want them getting a big head! Congrats again, one and all!

This weekend was when Carthage finally got to unveil its production of Puccini’s delightful one-act comedy Gianni Schicchi and there’s no question but that this experience has been among the most gratifying of my entire career - at least in part because the opera itself means a lot to me, personally...

02/06/2014

Our second Schicchi poster!!! Come out and see the performance Friday and Saturday, both at 7:30 in A.F. Siebert Chapel! "You've never seen bereavement better acted . . ."

02/06/2014

Lauretta gets left out of a lot of the action in this show when her dad tells her to go play with the birds. We were all talking about what she could have possibly done to fill all that time: we think it probably looks like this!

01/30/2014

Look what we just got! This is our first ever "real" set! The walls are are finally in, now we're just waiting on the real furniture and the Schicchi set will be done!

01/24/2014

Rehearsing for Gianni Schicchi, we took some photos of a staging session!

01/22/2014

Check out this great story about the show's process and especially our run-in with Betto in Greg Berg's blog! Thanks to Jonny for stepping up to save the day!!!

http://messyprofessor.com/Greg_and_Kathy_Bergs_Homepage/Blog/Entries/2014/1/19_Johnny_Come_Lately.html

Carthage’s J-Term Opera production, Puccini’s one-act comedy Gianni Schicchi, has become one of the best feel- good stories of my entire time at Carthage .... although it didn’t start out that way. We chose the opera back in the summer, when it seemed like the only problem we would have with cast...