After attending an energetic and fun OPERAtors volunteer meeting, I headed to the Greensboro airport this evening to pick up the final piece of the Trovatore puzzle, our star soprano Jill Gardner, who will assume the role of Leonora in our production.
Those of you who saw Piedmont Opera's recent productions of La Boheme, Light in the Piazza and Turandot will surely remember the beautiful voice and exquisite acting of this talented Tobaccoville native, now living in Binghamton, NY but flying in to grace our stage once more. Jill's husband Jake Gardner is also an opera singer, a terrific bass-baritone, who joined Jill on stage for his Piedmont Opera debut in Turandot. Jill (as Liu) kills herself in that one, and Jill (as Mimi) dies of consumption in La Boheme. Jill and Jake have starred together recently in Puccini's opera Tosca (Mercury Opera in Rochester, NY), in which Jill (as Floria Tosca) murders Jake (as Baron Scarpia)...talk about a challenge to marital bliss! Did I mention that Tosca kills herself after killing him? This woman Jill knows how to die on stage! Opera is full of such good stories.
Jill joins the other principals in rehearsal tomorrow. Most of them don't know each other, but they already know the parts they will be taking on. It will be fun watching Jamie and Steve as they start the process of pulling it all together for opening night on October 1. Stay tuned for further developments!
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