||| FROM BETHANY MARIE for ORCAS CENTER |||
Two stellar performances from The Metropolitan Opera come to the Orcas Center screen next week. Filmed live in
HD, these on-screen events from The Metropolitan Opera offer a diverse sampling of the world’s best performers at
the height of their careers – giving you the best seat in the house from the comfort of your own island!
Sunday, June 8 at 5pm – Il Barbiere di Siviglia; Rossini’s perfectly honed treasure survived a famously disastrous
opening night (caused by factions and local politics more than any reaction to the work itself) to become what may
be the world’s most popular comic opera. Its buoyant good humor and elegant melodies have delighted the diverse
tastes of every generation for two centuries, and several of the opera’s most recognizable tunes have entered the
world’s musical unconscious, most notably the introductory patter song of the swaggering Figaro, the titular barber
of Seville.
Thursday, June 12 at 7pm – Salome; The story of this incendiary and powerful opera is derived from a brief
biblical account: A young princess of Judea dances for her stepfather Herod and chooses as her reward the head of
the prophet John the Baptist. This subject captured the imaginations of generations of visual artists, but its full
possibilities were perhaps best realized in Oscar Wilde’s 1891 tragedy (which was banned from performance in
several countries). Strauss’s score combines the grandeur of Wagner’s epics with the focus and emotional punch of
the short Italian verismo operas.
Ticket prices range from $10-$63 with an additional $2 ticketing fee. Tickets are available online at
www.OrcasCenter.org by phone at 360-376-2281 ext 100, or in-person at the Box Office an hour prior to the
performance.
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