Internationally known tenor Evan Bowers, who has performed throughout the United States and in many international theaters, as well as with the world’s most prominent orchestras, will join the cast of the West Virginia University production of the Georges Bizet opera “Carmen,” which opens at the Creative Arts Center, Feb. 7.
Bowers will perform the leading role of Don Jos� and replaces the student tenor who is unable to perform the role due to illness.
Bizet’s “Carmen”—teeming with dark passion and jealousy—is one of the most well-known and beloved operas of all time. The WVU performance is a joint production of the School of Music and the School of Theatre & Dance, with performances Feb. 7-8 at 7:30 p.m. and a matinee on Feb. 10 at 2 p.m.
The opera will be performed in English, with dialogue adapted from the original French version.
Carmen is a seductive, free-spirited factory worker who has set her sights on the already betrothed soldier, Don Jos�. After Carmen injures a fellow worker, Don Jos� is ordered to keep her jailed and soon succumbs to her charms and his ultimate downfall.
Evan Bowers, lyric spinto tenor, was born in New York, where he also completed his musical training. His participation in San Francisco Opera’s Merola Program in 1987 led to touring engagements throughout the United States with the San Francisco Opera and Houston Grand Opera. In 1992, he joined the ensemble of the Staatstheater N�rnberg in Germany followed by a residency with Oper Leipzig.
During this period his roles included Tamino in “Die Zauberfl�te,” Don Ottavio in “Don Giovanni,” Nemorino in “L’Elisir d’Amore,” Lensky in “Eugene Onegin,” Rodolfo in “La Boh�me,” and Alfredo in “La Traviata.” In later seasons, Bowers had the opportunity to add roles such as Pinkerton in “Madama Butterfly,” Cavaradossi in “Tosca,” Maurizio in “Adriana Lecouvreur,” and Adorno in “Simon Boccanegra.”
More recently, Bowers has emerged internationally as a leading interpreter of the Italian and French lyrico-spinto tenor repertoire. This season he made a sensational debut at the Festival Verdi in Parma, Italy, singing the role of Carlo VII in “Giovanna D’Arco,” Rodolfo in “La Boh�me” at Staatstheater Essen and Edgardo in “Lucia di Lammermoor,” followed by his debut with the Deutsche Oper Berlin in performances of “Ballo in Maschera.”
This season also included a return to the Opera National de Paris, where Bowers shared performances of Riccardo in “Ballo in Maschera” with Ramon Vargas. He also made his debut at the Semperoper in Dresden singing Cavaradossi in “Tosca,” and in November, he performed the role of Don Jose in a Finnish National Opera production of “Carmen.”
Bowers has worked with many other international theaters including the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona, Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich, Frankfurt Opera, Opera di Genova, Scottish Opera, Op�ra de Marseille, Oper Graz in Austria, Teatro Municipal de Rio de Janiero, Teatro Bellas Artes in Mexico City, Teatro Regio in Torino, and the Theater an der Wien. In the United States he has sung with the companies of San Francisco, Houston, Portland, Florentine Opera in Milwaukee and New York City Opera. He has also performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City, as well as with music festivals throughout the country.
Bowers has sung with many of the world’s most prominent orchestras including the Wiener Philharmoniker, the Gewandhaus Orchestra in Leipzig, the BBC Orchestras of Wales and London, the Israeli Philharmonic, the Royal Philharmonic in London, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, RTE Ireland and the Opera Orchestra of New York.
Musical direction for “Carmen” is by Professor Robert Thieme, director of the WVU Opera Theatre and staging direction is by Dr. William Koehler of the School of Music’s voice program.
The scenic design for “Carmen” is by Theatre & Dance graduate student Jane Ryan, with lavish costumes designed by Professor Mary McClung, and lighting design by Professor Alan McEwen.
“We have set the production in 1950s Franco-era Spain, instead of the more traditional 1830s,” said Koehler. “Our production is also a bit different from shows this season due to its sheer size. The number of on-stage performers is roughly 60 people and when combined with the members of the orchestra, the designers, staff, and technical crew, we have a huge number of people working to make the show a success.”
The cast of “Carmen” also includes Jennifer Berkebile as Carmen, Sharon Lankford as Micaela, Nicoletta Ciampa as Mercedes, Samantha DeStefano as Frasquita, Matthew Lightfoot as Remendado, Joshua Smith as Dancairo, and Theatre professor Lee Blair as Lillas Pastia.
In the role of Escamillo is guest artist Greg Pearson, professional opera singer and professor of private voice and music appreciation at Salt Lake Community College. Pearson received a Bachelor of Music degree from University of Arkansas (Monticello) and a Master’s degree in Vocal Performance from the University of Nevada at Las Vegas. In addition to continuing as a frequent performer with Utah Symphony and Opera, as well as Opera Wildwood in his native Arkansas, Pearson also has plans to pursue his doctorate.
The Morgantown Children’s Choir, under the direction of Cyndi Bess, will be featured in this production of “Carmen.”
Tickets are $20 for the general public and $15 for senior citizens and students. There is a group rate of $10 per ticket for groups of ten or more.
Tickets are available at www.ticketmaster.com, the CAC or Mountainlair Box Offices, or by calling 304-293-SHOW.
For more information on the WVU production of “Carmen” please visit theatre.wvu.edu, call 304-293-2020, or email theatre@mail.wvu.edu.
An ongoing rehearsal blog is available on the School of Theatre & Dance website at http://ccarts.wvu.edu/theatreanddanceblog.
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cl/02/06/13
CONTACT: Charlene Lattea, College of Creative Arts
304-293-4359, Charlene.Lattea@mail.wvu.edu
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