BYU’s Opera students will feature famous scenes during the Winter Opera Scenes this February
BYU’s music students will showcase “Dangerous Games,” an Opera Scenes production where students will perform risk-taking roles from various operas. With a focus on singing and stagecraft, the scenes program is an opportunity to showcase more of the students in the vocal program than is often possible with the mainstage opera. BYU’s new Music Building provides the backdrop in the new Choral Hall, with tiered seating which offers every audience member a clear view of the action.
Shea Owens, artistic director of “Dangerous Games,” wants patrons to know that the Opera Scenes performance will be anything but boring. Owens picked scenes that feature unique and exciting music, plot and opportunities for acting.
“Several of our scenes involve cards or high-stakes games, while others involve some deception and trickery… and they all have beautiful music with great storytelling.The audience will see characters “playing games and taking risks whether for fun or to save their lives,” he said.
The repertoire will take viewers on a tour of opera’s history, through time and across geographic and genre boundaries. The program will feature several student-performed pieces from “Falstaff,” “The Pirates of Penzance,” “Florencia en el Amazonas” and “Le nozze di Figaro,” among others. The student performers have mastered difficult pieces in a variety of languages including English, Italian, French and Spanish. Some works are centuries old, while others were composed by contemporary musicians and based on modern tales. The genres and plots vary from light comedy, to magical realism, to life-and-death, to farce.
From the classical fans to the opera-curious, BYU Opera Scenes: “Dangerous Games” offers something for every audience member. Don’t miss your chance to see this unique show!
Tickets and Show Details
Performance Dates and Times: February 24 and 25 at 7:30 PM
Location: Choral Hall in BYU’s Music Building
Price: Free admission
Tickets: Available in person at the Marriott Center Ticket Office, by phone at (801) 422-2981 or online.