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Opera Idaho with Orchestra
December 7
Tuesday,
7:30 pm
$13 - $16 adult; $9 - $12 student
Upper level seats are listed first.
Includes tax. Group rates $2 off for 10 and $3 for 20. Handling fee is
$2 per order.
The most frequently performed opera in the world since its premiere on NBC television on Christmas Eve, 1951, Gian-Carlo Menotti’s
Amahl & the Night Visitors will be presented in Jewett Auditorium following its performance for the 2nd consecutive year at the Egyptian Theatre in Boise. The opera tells the story of a crippled boy who is made to walk during a visit by the Magi on their way to visit the birth site of Jesus. Boise mezzo-soprano Tiffany Calás will once again star as Amahl’s Mother. Amahl will be performed by either 14-year old Zachary Berreth, who attends South Junior High in Boise, or 10-year old Derek Carson, who attends Summerwind Elementary in Boise.
The remainder of the cast is:
Kaspar, a king, tenor – David Noland
Melchior, a king, baritone – Jason Detwiler
Balthazar, a king, bass – David Hill
Page to the kings, baritone – Adrian San Miguel
Conductor - Laura Rushing-Raynes
Director - Valerie Baugh-Schlossberg
The opera tells the story of a crippled boy who is miraculously able to walk during a visit by the Magi on their way to visit the birth site of Jesus. Boise mezzo-soprano Tiffany Calás will once again star as Amahl’s Mother. A special family ticket price is designed to make the short, one-act opera appeal to families with children.
Complete Synopsis
Outside a bare cottage in the hills above the road to Bethlehem, a young crippled shepherd boy plays his pipe and star-gazes. His mother calls him, and he comes inside breathless with news of a great star overhead. Bitter and skeptical of his tall tales, she worries about their poverty. Amahl soothes her with his dreams of the joys of a footloose beggar’s life. They are settling in to sleep when, far in the distance, a slow, exotic procession makes its way towards the house. There is a knock at the door. Amahl limps to open it, slams it quickly, and runs back to his mother with the news: “There is a king with a crown!” She is, once again, skeptical. Another trip to the door reveals a second king, and a third trip all three. The mother, furious at Amahl’s tale-telling, opens the door herself….and greets three splendid kings and their page, bearing dazzling treasures and seeking shelter. Amahl and their guests get acquainted: gentle Melchior, wise black Balthazar, and Kaspar, slightly addled and deaf.
Kaspar shows Amahl his box of magic stones and Amahl’s mother is entranced. Melchior explains that their gifts are for the Child they believe is a Messiah. She thinks of her own child, and the kings and mother weave a quartet of contrasts: “The Child we seek has the moon and the stars at His feet,” sing the kings, while the mother sighs “…but no one will bring him incense or gold, though sick and poor and hungry and cold.” Neighboring shepherds arrive bearing gifts of food, then dance for the royal guests. All bid good night, and the shepherds leave the kings to sleep. Only the mother remains awake, staring at the gold and meditating “Oh, what I could do for my child with that gold!” Desperate, she reaches furtively for a handful of gold when the page awakes shouting “Thief!” Amahl limps to his mother’s aid crying “Don’t you dare hurt my mother!” then collapses in tears. Moved, Melchior offers to let them keep the gold: “The Child we seek doesn’t need our gold. On love alone He will build his kingdom.” Even Amahl is won over by the hope of a child-saviour and offers a gift of his own: his crutch. As he reaches out with the crutch, he steps forward, miraculously cured. Awe, jubilation and praise follow, and Amahl begs to go with the kings to offer his gift in person. He and the mother part, and as Amahl rides into the night with the kings, he once again takes up his pipe and plays.
www.operaidaho.org
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