HOUSTON GRAND OPERA
www.houstongrandopera.org
510 Preston Street Houston, Texas 77002 - 1594
Phone 713-546-0200
David Gockley, General Director
HOUSTON GRAND OPERA STAGES VERDI'S EPIC MUSIC DRAMA OF
POLITICAL INTRIGUE, UNREQUITED PASSION, AND RELIGIOUS
POWER
DON CARLO
Featuring an Operatic Dream Cast that Includes Samuel Ramey, Ramon Vargas, Dwayne Croft,
Patricia Racette, and Béatrice Uria-Monzon!
HOUSTON, TX – After an absence of twenty years, Verdi's monumental music drama Don Carlo returns to Houston Grand
Opera in the rarely heard five-act version that includes the famous "Fontainebleau" scene. Although set in 16th-century Spain
and France during the time of the Inquisition, Don Carlo explores a myriad of conflicts that are as relevant today as they ever
were— church vs. state, parent vs. child, lover vs. rival, Catholic vs. Protestant, liberal idealism vs. established authority.
Houston Grand Opera Music Director Patrick Summers leads the Houston Symphony, the HGO Chorus and an unbelievable
cast of artists including Mexican tenor Ramon Vargas in the title role and the legendary American bass Samuel Ramey as his
father, King Philip II. American soprano Patricia Racette is Elisabetta de Valois, who is married to Philip II through a
politically arranged match but is in love with Carlo. French mezzo-soprano Béatrice Uria-Monzon as the jealous Princess
Eboli, American baritone Dwayne Croft (in his HGO debut) as Carlo's friend Rodrigo, and American bass Dale Travis as the
Grand Inquisitor complete this once-in-a-lifetime cast of principals. American tenor Stephen O'Mara assumes the title role in
performances on May 1 and 5.
Houston Grand Opera Stages VERDI'S DON CARLO, an Epic Music Drama of Political Intrigue, Unrequited Passion, and Religious Power. VERDI'S DON CARLO Opens on Friday April 20th through May 5th, 2001. All performances are held in the Wortham Center's Brown Theater, Texas at Smith. DON CARLO is sung in Italian with English surtitles. Photo by Marty Sohl, San Francisco Opera.
This production of Don Carlo is staged by Spanish director Emilio Sagi in his HGO debut. The sets
and costumes come from San Francisco Opera, and lighting is by British designer Paul Pyant. The
Houston Grand Opera Chorus will be prepared by Chorus Master Richard Bado.
Don Carlo opens on Friday, April 20, 2001 at 7:00 p.m. Further performances are on April
22m, 25, 27, 29m, May 1* and 5* at 7 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. Single tickets are now on sale.
Please note early curtain times.
* The performances of May 1 and 5 will feature tenor Stephen O'Mara in the title role.
About the opera:
With six vividly drawn principal characters enmeshed in a web of personal conflict within the epic spheres of church and state,
Don Carlo is the most ambitious and wide-ranging of Giuseppe Verdi’s operas. Composed as a grand spectacle in French for
the Paris Opéra in 1867, Verdi continued tinkering with the work for the next two decades, finally arriving at the revised
five-act version in Italian which Houston Grand Opera presents in this all-star production. With an inventiveness that equals
Verdi's final three masterpieces—Aida, Otello, and Falstaff—Don Carlo features some of the most dramatic music and
characterizations in all opera. In the words of scholar Julian Budden in The Operas of Verdi: “No other work of his explores
such a variety of human relationships. Each of the principals has a rounded individuality, that is nowhere surpassed in the
Verdian canon. Nor is it only the humans who spring to life. The monastery, the royal palace, the square of Valladolid, or the
gardens, all have a real, musical existence.” Played out on the grand stage in a continuous stream of glorious music, one can
well understand why Don Carlo remains the favorite piece of many opera lovers.
About the artists:
Ramon Vargas (Don Carlo) is one of the most highly acclaimed tenors of the day and has been praised internationally for his
appearances in the world's leading theaters. In 1992, Mr. Vargas opened the Rome Opera season as Count Almaviva in Il
barbiere di Siviglia and the same year made his Metropolitan Opera debut as Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor. He made his
La Scala debut in 1993 as Fenton in Falstaff and appeared as the Duke of Mantua in Rigoletto at the Teatro de Bellas Artes
in his native Mexico City. The role of Alfredo in La Traviata has served for his debuts at the Royal Opera, Covent Garden;
Bavarian Staatsoper; Hamburg Staatsoper and Bonn Opera. He was first heard at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires in 1995
as Fernando in La Favorite, and the Duke in Rigoletto was his debut role at the Arena di Verona in 1995 and Paris' Opéra
Bastille in 1996. For HGO Mr. Vargas has appeared in the leading tenor roles of Rigoletto (1994), Faust (1997), The Tales
of Hoffmann (1998), La Traviata (1999), and The Elixir of Love (2000). This season's performances include Rigoletto at La
Scala, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and a tour with the Metropolitan Opera in Japan; Roberto Devereaux at the Vienna
Staatsoper; La Traviata at the Met and Munich Staatsoper; and Don Carlo in Houston and Washington D.C. Mr. Vargas has
many recordings to his credit and is a featured artist with BMG.
American bass Samuel Ramey (Philip II) commands an impressive breadth of repertoire encompassing virtually every musical
style from Argante in Handel's Rinaldo, which was the vehicle for his acclaimed Metropolitan Opera debut in 1984, to the
dramatic title role in Bartók's Bluebeard's Castle, in which he appeared at the Metropolitan Opera in a production televised
on PBS. Mr. Ramey's interpretations embrace the bel canto of Bellini, Rossini and Donizetti; the lyric and dramatic roles of
Mozart and Verdi; and the heroic roles of the Russian and French repertoire. He has established an unequaled reputation for
his portrayals of the devil in Gounod's Faust, Boito's Mefistofele and Berlioz's The Damnation of Faust, and he also frequently
performs the sinister Nick Shadow in The Rake's Progress and the four Villains in The Tales of Hoffmann. He was most
recently seen at Houston Grand Opera as Zaccaria in last season's Nabucco, and previously in the title role of Mefistofele
(1999), Olin Blitch in Carlisle Floyd's Susannah (1996), the title role in Attila (1995) and Argante in Rinaldo (1975). Mr.
Ramey has made more than eighty recordings and holds the distinction of being the most recorded bass in history. His
recordings have garnered nearly every major award including Grammy Awards, Grand Prix du Disc Awards, and "Best of the
Year" citations from journals including Stereo Review and Opera News.
The 1996 winner of the prestigious Richard Tucker Foundation Award, American baritone Dwayne Croft (Rodrigo, Marquis
of Posa) has established himself as a leading artist with prominent opera theaters throughout the world. He is a mainstay at
New York's Metropolitan Opera where he has appeared in more than 200 performances of 22 roles including the title role in
Billy Budd, Pelléas opposite Frederica von Stade in a new production of Pelléas et Mélisande, the title roles in Don Giovanni,
Il Barbiere di Siviglia and Eugene Onegin, Count Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro, Guglielmo in Così fan tutte, de Siriex in
Fedora with Plácido Domingo and Mirella Freni, Valentin in Faust, Sharpless in Madama Butterfly, Marcello in La bohéme
and Chorèbe in Les Troyens. Mr. Croft has participated in seven television broadcasts from the Metropolitan Opera including
productions of Billy Budd, Madama Butterfly and Fedora. This season, he adds a new role to his Metropolitan Opera
repertoire when he appears as Giorgio Germont in La Traviata, followed by performances in various roles at Lyric Opera of
Chicago, Washington Opera, Vienna Staatsoper, and the Salzburg Festival. This is his Houston Grand Opera debut.
Winner of the prestigious 1998 Richard Tucker Award, soprano Patricia Racette (Elisabetta) is setting the standard in works
both classic and new. She dominated the headlines of the opera world when she created the title role in Santa Fe Opera's
world premiere of Tobias Picker's Emmeline, which was telecast nationwide on PBS's Great Performances. Ms. Racette's
successes this year began on opening night of the San Francisco Opera's 2000-2001 season in the title role of a new
production of Verdi's Luisa Miller. She followed this with her Washington Concert Opera debut in the title role of Janácek's
Jenufa, a role she immediately reprised for her acclaimed Lyric Opera of Chicago debut. In 2000 she created the role of Love
Simpson in the world premiere of Carlisle Floyd's Cold Sassy Tree at Houston Grand Opera. Ms. Racette made her HGO
debut the year before as Violetta in La Traviata, a role that she has performed at the Metropolitan Opera, Opéra Bastille,
Santa Fe Opera and Dallas Opera. She has also performed Margherita in HGO's 1999 production of Mefistofele. Last
season, Ms. Racette made her La Scala debut as Ellen Orford in Peter Grimes, performed the role of Blanche in Les
Dialogues des Carmélites at the Palais Garnier, and performed Liù in Turandot at the Opéra Bastille. Ms. Racette's Mimí has
been seen at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and Vienna Staatsoper. She first appeared at the Théâtre de Genève as
Micaela and at the Welsh National Opera as Liù.
Houston Grand Opera Stages VERDI'S DON CARLO, an Epic Music Drama of Political Intrigue, Unrequited Passion, and Religious Power. VERDI'S DON CARLO Opens on Friday April 20th through May 5th, 2001. All performances are held in the Wortham Center's Brown Theater, Texas at Smith. DON CARLO is sung in Italian with English surtitles. Photo by Marty Sohl, San Francisco Opera.
Béatrice Uria-Monzon (Princess Eboli) made her HGO debut earlier this season as Carmen. The French mezzo-soprano sang
her first performance of Carmen at the Opéra Bastille in Paris and has since brought her vivid interpretation to the Vienna
Staatsoper, the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, the Verona Arena, the Metropolitan Opera and opera houses in Turin,
Toulouse, Orange, Hamburg, Seville and Zurich. She has recorded Carmen for Auvidis with Maestro Alain Lombard
conducting and has also made recordings of Franck's La Resurrection on EMI and Prokofiev's L'Amour de Trois Oranges on
Virgin Records. Ms. Uria-Monzon's other roles include Marie of the Incarnation in Le Dialogue des Carmélites (Toulouse),
Béatrice in Béatrice et Bénédict (Toulouse), Charlotte in Werther (Paris's Opéra Comique, Lille, Toulouse, Geneva),
Marguerite in La Damnation de Faust (Bregenz, Cologne, Leipzig, Orange, Opéra Bastille), Leonora in La Favorite (Liège,
Bordeaux), Dalila in Samson et Dalila (Zurich) and Eboli in Don Carlo (Liège).
American bass-baritone Dale Travis (Grand Inquisitor) has established himself as a regular visitor to this country's most
prestigious opera companies. He was seen at Houston Grand Opera last season as Dulcamara in The Elixir of Love, and was
featured during the 1999-2000 season as the President, Prince Korchagin and Officer in HGO's world premiere of Tod
Machover's Resurrection. As an artist in San Francisco Opera's Merola Program and recipient of an Adler Fellowship, he has
enjoyed a particularly close relationship with that company. He has sung more than 25 roles for San Francisco Opera since
1986, including Don Alfonso in Così fan tutte, Frank in Die Fledermaus, Dulcamara in The Elixir of Love, Quince in A
Midsummer Night's Dream, the Sacristan in Tosca, Pistola in Falstaff, Haly in The Italian Girl in Algiers and Alidoro in La
Cenerentola. He has also worked with the Tulsa Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, Opera San Jose, New Orleans Opera, New
Israeli Opera, Washington Opera and the Berlin Komische Opera. Highlights of the 2000-2001 season include roles in
Jenufa, Tosca and Il Barbiere di Siviglia with Lyric Opera of Chicago and Tosca with Los Angeles Opera.
The American tenor Stephen O'Mara (Don Carlo - May performances) has made a great impression in the French and Italian
repertoire, and increasingly in the German as well. Following successes at New York City Opera as Turiddù, Pinkerton,
Canio and Foresto, he made a stunning debut in Europe in a gala performance of Carmen in 1991 with Agnes Baltsa at the
Vienna Staatsoper. Since that time, he has appeared in the most important European theaters: Vienna, Berlin, Stuttgart,
Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich, Brussels, Paris and Covent Garden. His repertoire includes the great Verdi and Puccini roles,
moving increasingly to Wagner and Strauss. Upcoming performances of Lohengrin, Die Walküre, and Siegfried in the new
Ring Cycle at the English National Opera take the tenor into the heart of the German operatic literature. Mr. O'Mara has
previously appeared at Houston Grand Opera as Calaf in Turandot (1993-94) and Radames in Aida (1999-2000).
Four Houston Grand Opera Studio artists sing comprimario roles in this production of Don Carlo: mezzo-soprano Marie
Lenormand sings the role of the page Theobaldo, bass Joshua Winograde portrays the Old Friar, baritone Chen-Ye Yuan is
the Royal Herald and soprano Barbara Quintiliani is featured as the Celestial Voice. Tenor Matthew Kreger sings the role of
the Count of Lerma.
Conductor Patrick Summers, Music Director of Houston Grand Opera, is known for his diverse operatic experience and
enthusiasm for a wide range of works including period scores, bel canto, late romantic opera and contemporary music. In
addition to the two world premieres he has conducted for HGO—Cold Sassy Tree (2000) and Resurrection (1999), he has
led performances of La Traviata, The Elixir of Love, Little Women, Nabucco and Così fan tutte here. Currently Principal
Guest Conductor of the San Francisco Opera, he has been closely associated with that company since 1989 and has
conducted a vast repertoire there ranging from Monteverdi's L'Incoronazione di Poppea to Jake Heggie's Dead Man
Walking. Maestro Summers has also enjoyed a close association with Opera Australia in Sydney where he conducts each
season. He made his Metropolitan Opera debut in December 1998 conducting Die Fledermaus and returned this season to
conduct Così fan tutte. He recently conducted the Orchestra of St. Luke's for a recording of bel canto arias featuring soprano
Renée Fleming. This season at HGO, Maestro Summers will also conduct Florencia en el Amazonas.
Stage director Emilio Sagi debuted in 1980 in his hometown of Oviedo, Spain with a production of Verdi's La Traviata.
Formerly General Director of Madrid's Zarzuela Theater (1990-99), Mr. Sagi also staged productions there of Don Pasquale,
La Fanciulla del West, Rigoletto, La Cenerentola, Pagliacci, Mefistofele¸ I Puritani, Adriana Lecouvreur, Die Zauberflöte,
Tristan und Isolde, as well as the zarzuelas La Del Manojo de Rosas, El Gato Montés, La Verbena de la Paloma, and El
Bateo. Work outside of Spain includes productions for Il Communale in Bologna, La Fenice in Venice, San Carlos in Lisbon,
Theatre de l'Odeon in Paris, Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, San Francisco Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Washington Opera,
Deutsch Oper am Rhein, Opera de Strasbourg, Opéra de Bordeaux and Opéra de Monte Carlo. This is Mr. Sagi's HGO
directorial debut.
Lighting designer Paul Pyant's award-winning design credits encompass opera, theater and ballet. For Houston Grand Opera
he designed lighting for the world premiere of Sir Michael Tippett's New Year (1999), Tosca (1996), the world premiere of
Daniel Catán's Florencia en el Amazonas (1996), Julie Taymor's production of The Flying Dutchman (1998) and The Elixir of
Love (2000). He is a graduate and associate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and has had a long
association with Glyndebourne Opera. Recent operatic credits include productions for the Metropolitan Opera, Los Angeles
Opera, Vienna Staatsoper, La Scala, English National Opera and Royal Opera, Covent Garden. His theater awards include a
Tony nomination for Best Lighting for Arcadia and a Critics Circle Award nomination for Carousel.
All performances of Don Carlo are held in the Wortham Center's Brown Theater, Texas at
Smith. Don Carlo is sung in Italian with English surtitles—English translations projected
over the stage.
The Southwestern Bell Pre-Curtain Lecture Series takes place thirty minutes before each performance. Guest speakers
present a twenty-minute informal lecture on the sixth floor of the Grand Foyer. These lectures, free and open to all ticket
holders, are intended to enhance the audience's enjoyment by preparing them for the production they are about to attend.
The Wortham Theater Center features easy wheelchair access to both theaters, with a choice of seating locations and ticket
prices. An infrared listening system, generously underwritten by Pennzoil-Quaker State Company, is available and free of
charge at all performances. Please call HGO Subscriptions at (713) 546-0246 or 1 (800) 346-4462 for details. Descriptive
services for persons with vision loss are available with 48-hour advance reservations. Please call HGO Education and
Outreach at (713) 546-0708 for details.
Single tickets for Don Carlo, priced from $22 to $200, are now on sale. Tickets are available by telephone at (713)
227-ARTS, out of town at 1(800) 828-ARTS, in person at the Wortham Ticket Center located in the lobby of the Wortham
Theater Center, or on the website at http://www.houstongrandopera.org. Ticket prices include all city surcharges.
Student and senior citizen rush tickets are $25 and $10 (depending on seat location - one ticket per ID) and go on sale 90
minutes before curtain time on the day of performance, subject to availability. To check availability, please call (713)
227-ARTS or 1 (800) 828-ARTS the day of the performance. For weekend performances call the Friday before the
performance to check availability.
Call Houston Grand Opera at (713) 546-0200, during business hours, for general information.
The Albert and Margaret Alkek Foundation and Mr. and Mrs. Harlan C. Stai are the Grand Guarantors for Don Carlo.
Mr. and Mrs. Robert J. Bruni and Gloria Bruni Knight, The Margaret and James A. Elkins Jr. Foundation, ExxonMobil, and
Lynn Wyatt are the Guarantors for Don Carlo.