Put Some Flowers in Your Helmet

Designer Keith Brooks arranges flowers for the 2014 Crosby
Arts Festival preview party. (Photo courtesy Facebook)

Some characters have really good stories to tell.

When that character is a master designer and has been in the Toledo area for decades, those stories are going to be great.

Spend an evening with Keith Brooks as part of the Toledo Opera Guild's Brunhilde Parties Fundraising Series and hear some of these colorful tales firsthand.

Guests will gather in two locations Tuesday, April 14: first, at 5:30 p.m., dinner at Memphis Pearl restaurant, 5147 Main St., Sylvania; then at Hafner Florist next door, 5139 Main St., where Brooks will demonstrate flower arranging.

One lucky guest will get to keep the stunning creation he will make, but all will leave with a little gift from Hafner Florist.

Cost for the entire evening is $35 per person. Dinner is included; a cash bar will be available at the restaurant.

Proceeds will directly benefit the opera guild, thanks to event organizer and underwriter Laura Draheim.

To RSVP, contact Draheim at 419-475-1720 or ldraheim3434@att.net.

Guild Party Paints Masterpieces

Brittany McMahon Craig paints swirls of pink and orange.

As part of the Brunhilde Party Fundraising Series, Cindy Niggemyer recently hosted guild members and other guests at CBK Studio for a painting workshop and gourmet luncheon.

Canvas masterpieces were created while attendees sipped wine and listened to the music of Bolero on March 11 at the studio at 2620 Centennial Road in Toledo.

For more photos, check out the album on our Facebook page.

The event was sold out and raised $280 to support the Toledo Opera Guild and its mission to raise awareness of and financial support for opera in Toledo and northwest Ohio.

Upcoming Brunhilde events that are open to the public include: an evening with Keith Brooks at Memphis Pearl restaurant and Hafner Florist, hosted by Laura Draheim; and opera-inspired yoga and lunch at the home of Wafaa Hanna, hosted by Shirley Joseph and Barbara Brown.

Phashion of the Opera Will Be Phantastic

We've switched our clocks an hour ahead, the sun is bravely trying to melt the snow, and the official first day of spring is just around the corner. Our toes are desperate to be free of our boots and our arms would like to feel something besides wool -- soon, please!

It's the perfect time to be preparing for Phashion of the Opera, the Toledo Opera Guild's spring fashion show. This is the premier runway event in northwest Ohio, and it is guaranteed to satisfy your yearning for fresh fashion.

Event chairmen Joyce Stenberg and Pam Bettinger, along with a super committee of guild members, are presenting two opportunities to enjoy this signature event.

The show is slated for April 29 at the Toledo Club, with fellowship and vendor shopping beginning at 9:30 a.m., runway at 11 a.m., and lunch in the club's Main Dining Room immediately following. A "Peek Behind the Curtain" dress rehearsal and hors d'oeurvres reception will be held the prior evening, at 5:30 p.m. April 28 at the Toledo Club.

Tickets for the Phashion of the Opera runway show are $50 for general admission and $75 for diva level with front-row seating. Tickets for the Peek Behind the Curtain event are $50. Proceeds directly benefit the Toledo Opera. Order online at http://brownpapertickets.com/event/1343495.

Exciting elements for this year's Phashion of the Opera include celebrity models joining the professional models of Studio K Coaching, and guests will have the chance at buying and popping balloons to win gift items such as dining certificates, jewelry, and other complimentary offerings from local businesses and opera supporters.

To learn more about celebrity modeling, for a $500 donation to the guild, email the event committee at toledooperaguild@gmail.com.

Guild members who would like to help prepare mailings for the event are encouraged to contact Joyce. Envelope stuffing will take place at 10 a.m. March 18 at Charlies Taverna Greek restaurant, off of Dussell Drive in Maumee.

Mark your calendars now for these amazing events. It's going to be just Phabulous!

Toledo Opera Thanks Guild for 'Susannah' Sponsorship

Cindy Niggemyer, president of the Toledo Opera Guild, shared a letter from Toledo Opera executive director Suzanne Rorick at Wednesday's board meeting:

Dear Cindy,

Thank you for your gift of $20,000.00 in sponsorship* of Susannah to Toledo Opera. We are extremely appreciative that you recognize the importance of live opera in the cultural life of the region and in your own life, and that you demonstrate this through your support.

The funds you have provided will help us continue the 57-year tradition of opera performance of the highest quality. Thank you for caring and believing in the work we are doing.

Very sincerely yours,

Suzanne G. Rorick, CFRE
Executive Director

* A small portion of the gift will be used to support Opera On Wheels.

'Susannah' Conductor Encourages Support of 'Brave, Exciting' Toledo Opera

Bob Mirakian (center) conducts the Toledo Symphony Orchestra on stage
as character Olin Blitch preaches to the congregation in Toledo Opera's
February 2015 production of 'Susannah.' (Photo courtesy of Toledo Opera)

Bob Mirakian, following his exquisite direction of Toledo Opera's lauded production of "Susannah," recently issued the following missive to opera supporters in northwest Ohio.

Mirakian expresses pride in the people on stage and behind the curtain, remarks on this moment in his career, and encourages us to support that which has garnered such praise and offers back to the community in such amazing ways.

Sent Feb. 17, 2015:

[Mirakian includes an excerpt from The Blade's review, which you can read online here:]

"Performed before a full and supportive house in the Valentine Theatre, [Susannah] exemplified the best this company can deliver. ... [It] served as proof positive that the opera's strategic planning, artistic development, and pursuit of ever higher standards is really paying off."

Dear Friend of the Opera,

It was my honor to conduct Toledo Opera's production of Carlisle Floyd's Susannah this past weekend. Our production team, the Toledo Opera Chorus, the Toledo Symphony Orchestra, and our cast came together to create a compelling, innovative, and polished production that we were all personally proud of and thrilled to see so well received by audiences.

I have worked as a professional orchestra and opera conductor for more than a decade but this production was my first time working with the full resources of a professional opera company, representing a major milestone in my career and development. It was also an important production for our brilliant stage director Sean Cooper and our wonderful Susannah, Jennifer Goode Cooper, both artists of significant experience and ability who were given a new opportunity to share their talents.

If opera is to thrive, a commitment on the part of companies to identify and foster emerging talent, as Toledo Opera did with Susannah, is absolutely vital. It will not only ensure that the next generation of opera artists has a place to learn its craft and test its abilities but also that fresh ideas and perspectives will continue to invigorate opera as an art form.

Toledo Opera has made itself an important part of opera's future by continually seeking out the best ways of servings its community in the most financially responsible manner possible: dramatically improving its finances, developing excellent educational programs that serve more that 20,000 students each year, and expanding its season to three beautifully produced operas. It is currently one of the best regional companies in the country, and a cultural institution that Toledo rightly takes increasing pride in.

Opera, like all significant human endeavors, requires the support of a community that recognizes its value and nurtures its existence. Thank you for being a vital part of Toledo Opera's current and future success as part of that community. I hope you will continue your involvement through a gift of support for the brave, exciting, and successful company.

Sincerely,
Robert E. Mirakian
Conductor, Susannah

To make a donation to Toledo Opera online, visit its online form here.

'Susannah' Offered as Fully Staged Concert Opera

Suzanne Rorick, center, executive director of the Toledo Opera, tells the
Toledo Opera Guild that a survey will be conducted with 'Susannah.'

One of the factors that is enabling the Toledo Opera to present three full operas this season is that "Susannah" is being done in a concert fashion with digitally projected scenery.

Conductor Bob Mirakian promises it will be an amazing experience, in part because of the intimacy of the staging.

"Everything is happening within 15 feet of the audience," he said at a recent Toledo Opera Guild luncheon.

Mirakian will be on stage as well, in front of the Toledo Symphony Orchestra and behind the actors. Toledo Opera executive director Suzanne Rorick said that to be able to conduct both the musicians and the singers this way, he knows the score so well that it is in his very being.

"It's not a small thing," she said.

The conductor shared the credit with stage director Sean Cooper for pulling real emotions out of the actors.

"We have a wonderful cast," Mirakian said, noting that Cooper and his wife, Jennifer Goode Cooper who plays Susannah, are local stars and opera scholars.

Carlisle Floyd's "Susannah," often referenced as the best American opera yet, will be presented in full length with all of the scenes acted out, and the pacing will be "very tight dramatically" because there are no large set changes, Mirakian said. The running time is about 110 minutes.

Rorick said this type of "fully staged concert opera" is not only an enjoyable experience but an economical one as well. She said it is still twice as expensive to produce as a gala performance might be but that it is only a third of the cost of a traditionally fully staged opera.

The Toledo Opera will be conducting a survey after "Susannah" to gain feedback on the concert staging and other efforts by the organization.

"We want to know what the audience thinks," Rorick said.

Tickets are going fast for "Susannah," which will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 13 and 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 15. Purchase tickets online or call the Toledo Opera box office at 419-255-7464.

Delavan to Replace Ramey in 'Susannah'

Toledo Opera-goers will be disappointed to miss Samuel Ramey, the bass-baritone who essentially made the role of Olin Blitch but had to pull out of next week's local production of Carlisle Floyd's "Susannah."

But the audience will be excited as well, since baritone Mark Delavan has been secured as a replacement. Delavan is squeezing in the preacher role before performing as Scarpia in the Lyric Opera of Chicago's upcoming production of "Tosca."

There was a momentary panic over losing Ramey, Toledo Opera executive director Suzanne Rorick admitted at an opera guild luncheon Wednesday, but this was not an unfamiliar scenario.

"It happens all the time," Rorick said, noting that about a third of productions encounter the need to replace singers in lead roles.

"Susannah," an American opera set in mid-20th-century rural Tennessee, will be offered at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 13 and 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 15 at the Valentine Theatre in downtown Toledo. Visit the Toledo Opera website at toledoopera.org to learn more about the production and to purchase tickets.

A free public lecture, part of the Opera Extras series, is slated for 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 10 at Registry Bistro, 114 N. Superior St., in the Secor Building in downtown Toledo. Kevin Bylsma will share his perspective on coaching performers for "Susannah."