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Contact: University Communications & Marketing
Phone (678) 839-6464, FAX (678) 839-6645
ucm@westga.edu
Opera workshop presents Figaro
February 24, 2003
CARROLLTON, GA - The University of West Georgia Opera Workshop will bring the music and comedy of The Marriage of Figaro, an opera sung in English translation, to the Townsend Center for the Performing Arts on Thursday, March 6, and Saturday, March 8, at 8:15 p.m.
The opera, with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and text by Lorenzo da Ponte, is set in the late 18th century. Based on the play Le Mariage de Figaro by the French author Beaumarchais, Figaro features a humorous story line and comic character antics that are a thin disguise for the kind of social criticism that led to the French Revolution five years after the play’s first performance.
Figaro was considered dangerously controversial in its time because of its many revolutionary monologues and blatant scorn of the aristocracy and its abuses of power. Because Beaumarchais argued that society should reward individual merit rather than bestowing privilege based solely upon birth, King Louis XVI refused to allow the production of the play for over two years.
In large part because of Louis’ strong opposition, the play became notorious before its first appearance, with widespread curiosity and circulation of the script, so that by the time of its opening it was already wildly popular among members of all social classes. Mozart and da Ponte seized the opportunity to set such a play to music, and their combination of musical and literary genius has made it one of the most popular operas ever written.
The UWG production of Figaro is directed by Dr. Larry Frazier, associate professor of music and director of opera, who has been in charge of the opera program at West Georgia since 1988. The stage settings utilize professionally painted drops provided by Charles H. Stewart Company from Andover, Mass., and the elaborate costumes were custom-made by Melanie Evans Parry and Creative Costumes Inc. of Griffin.
Members of the cast include Jameson Linville of Newnan; Anna Jaskiewicz, Jason Conner and Melissa Huckeba of Carrollton; Elizabeth Mote of Villa Rica; Ashlie Prior of Conyers; Ed Elliott of Austell; Emily Maniccia and Kurt Ross of Peachtree City; Kristen Johnson of Chamblee; Philip Jones of East Point; Dale Edwards of Vidalia; Michael Burnaman of Woodstock; and Heather Schroeder of Lilburn.
According to Opera America, an international opera-advocacy organization of opera companies, businesses and individuals, The Marriage of Figaro is one of the top 10 most frequently produced operas. It is an example of an art form that, according to Opera America and the National Endowment for the Arts, has become increasingly popular in the United States over the last two decades.
Tickets are $7 for general admission, $5 for seniors and free for UWG students. They can be purchased at the door or in advance by calling the Townsend Center at 770-836-6694. For more information, contact the UWG Department of Music at 770-836-6516.
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