Ash Lawn Opera Festival

2011 SEASON

(Il barbiere di Siviglia)

Learn more about the Cast

July 15 / 7:30

July 17 / 2 pm

July 21 / 7:30 (mid-week ticket discount)

July 23 / 7:30

Gioacchino Rossini's The Barber of Seville remains as fresh as when it was written two hundred years ago. One of the most popular operas of all times, there is even a steak dish (Tournedos Rossini) named after the composer and Bugs Bunny has immortalized the Barber's antics in Looney Tunes! In Italian with English supertitles, you won't miss a word of this witty masterpiece.

With an accomplished cast including singers from The Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, La Scala, English National Opera, Washington National Opera, and Los Angeles Opera - and whether this is your first or your fiftieth Barber - you won't want to miss one of the four performances!

Learn more about the Cast

July 30 / 7:30

July 31 / 2 pm

August 4 / 7:30 (mid-week ticket discount)

August 6 / 7:30

August 7 / 2 pm

A smash hit since it debuted on Broadway and was then made immortal by the film starring Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr, Rodger and Hammerstein's classic The King and I will make you want to “Whistle a happy tune” and ask “Shall we dance”! This production is led by stage director, Baayork Lee, herself the original five year old Princess Ying on Broadway, and by conductor, Jon Kalbfleisch who, for twenty years, has been the music director of the prestigious Signature Theater in Washington , D.C.

Glen Hennessy, Hennessy Inc.

Based on the true story of a British governess who travels to Siam in the 1860's to help the King modernize his country, The King and I is the story of the cultural misunderstanding between East and West, and the love that neither Anna nor the King is able to express. With exotic costumes and accompanied by a full orchestra, the talented cast is joined by twenty-five local children. There are only five performances, so don't miss this memorable show for the entire family!

July 23 at 4pm

“The Barber of C'ville” is a wonderful way to introduce children and their families to the fun and magic of opera. This hour-long performance of excerpts in English from Rossini's witty The Barber of Seville features an interactive narration, lively printed educational materials, and souvenirs to take home.

Children will not only have the opportunity to experience live, professional opera - with a full orchestra, sets, and costumes - but they'll also get to see how an opera is put together. In between excerpts, they'll see a set move, lights and costumes changed, participate in a “Rossini crescendo”, conduct the orchestra, and much more. This is a great way to make opera accessible and fun for the next generation!

Other Exciting Events at Ash Lawn Opera

Ash Lawn-Highland “Opera under the Stars”

Aug. 5 / 7:30

Bring you own picnic and enjoy Ash Lawn Opera's talented Young Artists perform 'Opera under the Starts', a relaxing evening of opera excerpts sung in English and accompanied by piano.

Tickets: Youth $10, Adults $20 - available at Ash Lawn-Highland after 6pm the day of the performance.

The Wintergreen Summer Music Festival

July 9 / 7:30

For the first time, Ash Lawn Opera takes a performance up to the Evans Center at the Wintergreen Resort. Enjoy a condensed concert version of Rossini's Il Barbiere di Siviglia in Italian with piano accompaniment.

Tickets: Youth $10, Adults $20 - available at www.wintergreenperformingarts.org or 434.325.8292

FREE TO THE PUBLIC

Noon-time recitals

Come spend you lunch break with the Young Artists as they perform their favorite art songs and arias with piano.

June 29 & July 27 at 12 noon at The Haven; no reservations necessary

Opera Scenes in English at The Haven

Aug. 3 / 7:30

Enjoy an informal evening of semi-staged opera excerpts sung by the talented Young Artists in English with piano.

Pre-performance lectures at The Paramount Theater

Ticket holders are invited an hour before curtain to a stimulating lecture before every performance of The Barber of Seville and The King and I.