On Sunday, Feb 8, the Pitt State opera held performances of two operas in the Bicknell Center for the Arts. “The Telephone” and “Trial by Jury” both have themes of love and distraction at their core.
Patrick Howle, the artistic director of PSU’s opera theater, wanted to make opera available for students to be able to perform as well as for students to watch and understand.
Chandler Goodman, a junior majoring in Music Education, comments on how he prepared for The Telephone: “I typically like to have patience with opera and let things internalize over time, but some production dates are within a two-week span. Luckily, I had the whole semester before to prepare this amazing opera duet.”
He also talks about preparing his voice for a performance. “Some vocal exercises I found most useful for “The Telephone” were sustaining open vowels and working through my scales. This repertoire is notorious for many twists and turns.”
“The Telephone” itself is a charming romantic comedy by Menotti about a man named Ben, played by Goodman, trying to propose to his girlfriend Lucy, played by Sara Flessner, a senior majoring in Music Education, who throughout the opera is constantly distracted by the phone and other devices. They go back and forth between Ben trying to explain himself and Lucy getting another phone call just before Ben can propose.
In his frustration, Ben finds a hammer and goes to smash the telephone, but it begins to ring just as he goes to hit it. Lucy finds him hammer in hand, and they argue, leading to Ben having to leave for his trip before asking Lucy. It resolves with Ben calling her from away and finally proposing. The opera was written as not only a romantic comedy but also as an exploration of how mobile phones impact romantic relationships, often with the relationship between us and our phones being obsessive and intrusive in our daily and romantic lives.
The other opera performed was “A Trial by Jury” by Gilbert and Sullivan, a satirical comedy set in a courtroom. The defendant named Edwin, played by Brayden Seiwert, a freshman majoring in theater, is a suave man who is being put on trial for his infidelity and trying to marry multiple women. The plaintiff named Angelina, played by Mary Jo Peterson a senior, is one of the women wronged by him. The opera plays out with the judge, played by Marlee Mikel, a senior, explaining how she only got this job through marriage and not merit. As the play continues you see Edwin and the judge drinking from flasks and many mischievous deeds. In the end the judge settles things by marrying Angelina, instead of any legal issues.
A Trial by Jury is meant as a satirical form of commentary and comedy based on corruption in our judicial system. With an unqualified judge, two biased jury, and having both the plaintiff and the defendant spinning their words and actions to sway the jury as well.