.'Opera in Bramhall Park' Offers Sneak Peak of Opera San Jose's 2016-17 Season

Opera San Jose’s 2016-17 season doesn’t start until September, but fans of big voices and archetypal stories can get a sneak-peak of just what the local opera company has in store this weekend at “Opera in Bramhall Park.”
The free, 90-minute concert features Opera San Jose residents and guest artists performing selections from the upcoming season, as well as excerpts from popular operas like “La Traviata,” “Don Giovanni,” and “The Pearl Fishers.”
If none of these ring a bell or are unfamiliar, head of music staff Veronika Agranov-Dafoe and general director Larry Hancock encourage everyone to attend, regardless of their music background.
“It’s very exciting and I think people need to check us out,” says Agranov-Dafoe.
The upcoming season is already freshening up its act with the addition of four new singers to the resident company. The new singers include sopranos Sylvia Lee and Ksenia Popova as well as baritone Brian James Myer and bass-baritone Colin Ramsey.
Lucia di Lammermoor opens the season and showcases each of the residents talents as singers and performers. The last time this dramma tragico was produced by Opera San Jose was in 2007. Hancock explained the titular character is very difficult to cast but they found their Lucia with the “stunning young singer” Sylvia Lee.
From tragedy, OSJ moves into comedy with The Barber of Seville by Gioachino Rossini. Filled with Rossini’s popular crescendo compositions, it stands as the most important comic opera.        
After that, Pulitzer Prize winner Silent Night will make its West Coast debut—and its composer Kevin Put, along with the librettist Mark Campbell, will be present on the opening night for a special event. The opera depicts the widespread WWI ceasefires between enemies during the Christmas holiday. Silent Night was difficult to produce due to its huge size, but Hancock was not deterred from adding it to the repertoire.  
“We’re not taught this in our schools,” says Hancock. “It’s a dark part of our past but it’s terribly important.”
The season will close with the romantic La Bohéme, which both Agranov-Dafoe and Hancock agree is the perfect opera for first-timers.
Opera in the Park is free and will take place Sunday July 10 at Bramhall Park.

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