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| The Alice Busch Opera House: Cooperstown, NY |
Here's the operas.
Tosca
An exciting new production of the Puccini shocker replaces the company's old staging. Tosca never loses its power to stun an audience--even those who expect the flying leap at the end are often shaken by Puccini's most powerful score.
Performance Dates: July 9, 11, 16, 24, 26, 29, 31; Aug. 3, 7, 10, 13, 16, 19, 21, 24
Le Nozze di Figaro
This sublime Mozart comedy is ideally suited to a nocturnal setting on the shores of the lake. One wonders if the famous sliding walls of the opera house (the on-site ventilation system) will be left open during the last act.
Performance Dates: July17, 20, 22, 24, 27, 30; Aug. 2, 6, 9, 15, 20, 22
The Tender Land
Aaron Copland's opera receives a rare staging. The Tender Land is best known for featuring the music that would later be written as the ballet score Appalachian Spring.
July 10, 13, 19, 25; Aug. 1, 5, 7, 14, 21
Tolomeo
This opera company has a great deal of experience in baroque opera, and has been key in reviving American interest in the long-forgotten major works of Handel. Tolomeo is the composer's final opera written for the Royal Academy. These performances mark its U.S. premiere.
Performance dates: July 18, 23, 31; Aug. 8, 12, 14, 17, 23
In addition to the opera house, Cooperstown offers the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. (Avoid the weekend of July 23-26, as the baseball world descends on this sleepy lakeside town for the Hall of Fame inductions. There's good lodging, plenty of shopping in its quaint downtown areas, excellent restaurants and the nearby Ommegang Brewery. Also, be sure to check out the James Fenimore Cooper Museum and the Farmer's Museum, featuring the Cardiff Giant.
Photo: Peyton Lea/Glimmerglass Opera.
