Free Opera-tunities! The Santa Fe Opera Announces the Return of Opera in the Park & Opening Nights Radio Broadcasts for the 2024 Season
Free Opera-tunities! The Santa Fe Opera Announces the Return of Opera in the Park & Opening Nights Radio Broadcasts for the 2024 Season
View or Print Press Release (PDF)
Santa Fe, NM — The Santa Fe Opera is pleased to announce the return of two free community offerings to complement the 2024 Festival Season: an Opera in the Park screening of The Elixir of Love and Opening Nights Radio Broadcasts in partnership with 95.5 KHFM Classical Public Radio.
2024 Season Opening Nights Radio Broadcasts
The Santa Fe Opera and 95.5 KHFM Classical Public Radio will present free, live-recorded radio broadcasts of the opera’s 2024 Season opening nights, airing at 6:00 pm MDT on Mondays from July 29 through August 26. Following the air date, each broadcast will be available for on-demand streaming on the santafeopera.org and khfm.org websites for 30 days. Now in their fourth year, the broadcasts celebrate the opera’s ongoing commitment to bringing the joy of opera to Santa Fe, Española, Los Alamos, Albuquerque and communities throughout New Mexico and beyond.
To hear the music of the Santa Fe Opera’s 2024 Season from the comfort of your home or vehicle, tune in to 95.5 KHFM Classical Public Radio or khfm.org at 6:00 pm MDT on July 29, August 5, 12, 29 and 26. Each broadcast will feature performances recorded live from The Crosby Theatre: Verdi’s La traviata, Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Spears and Smith’s world premiere of The Righteous, Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier and Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love. Soprano and KHFM host Kathlene Ritch is joined by co-host, tenor and Santa Fe Opera Chief Artistic Advisor David Lomelí; together they provide commentary in English and Spanish.
How to Listen
Radio
Albuquerque, Santa Fe and
nearby communities: 95.5 KHFM
Roswell: 103.1 FM
Taos: 106.3 FM
Ruidoso: 95.9 FM.
Online
Stream the broadcasts via a computer or mobile device at khfm.org, and enjoy free, on-demand streaming for 30 days following each air date at santafeopera.org and khfm.org.
2024 Season Opening Nights Radio Broadcasts Schedule
July 29 at 6:00 pm MDT, La traviata
August 5 at 6:00 pm MDT, Don Giovanni
August 12 at 6:00 pm MDT, The Righteous
August 19 at 6:00 pm MDT, Der Rosenkavalier
August 26 at 6:00 pm MDT, The Elixir of Love
The 2024 Season Opening Nights Radio Broadcasts are co-produced by KHFM Program Director Brent Stevens and Santa Fe Opera Director of Media and Public Relations Emily Doyle Moore, and mixed by Kabby Sound Studios for the Santa Fe Opera.
The Santa Fe Opera Opening Nights on KHFM are made possible by the James R. Seitz, Jr. Fund for Broadcasting.
Opera in the Park
In celebration of the opera’s 67th Festival Season, the Santa Fe Opera invites opera fans and newcomers to bring a picnic and enjoy a free screening of The Elixir of Love at the Railyard Park in Santa Fe on Sunday, September 15. Lawn seating opens at 4 pm MDT and the show begins at 4:30 pm MDT. There will be no intermission. The screening will be presented on one LED wall (17′ x 10′ 3.9mm resolution video trailer system) and sound will be broadcast via outdoor speakers.
The Santa Fe Opera wishes to acknowledge Opera in the Park sponsors Exxon Mobil Corporation, Santa Fe Railyard Community Corporation, City of Santa Fe and the Hankins Foundation. Jesse Fisher directs the performance recordings with support from assistant director Nathan Troup; Kabby Sound Studios provides the sound engineering. Artist appearances are made possible through the American Guild of Musical Artists, AFL-CIO and the American Federation of Musicians, Local 618. More information about the event can be found online at https://test.santafeopera.org/whats-on/opera-in-the-park-2024/.
About The Elixir of Love
Nemorino, a not-so-clever mechanic, has fallen for Adina, a schoolteacher. He desires her attention but doesn’t feel worthy. Fortunately, he meets Dr. Dulcamara (most certainly a quack) who sells him a “magic elixir” that can make his dreams come true.
Based on Italian cinéma vérité and set in Italy just after World War II when the class system was still a part of society, Stephen Lawless’s production of Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love pairs the charming 1950s Italian countryside with a modern depiction of the eternal struggle between social classes. Adina is a landowner with an olive farm who teaches the children of her workers. Nemorino is an uneducated car mechanic, in love with Adina, who uses the elixir of love to win her hand. Lawless and scenic and costume designer Ashley Martin-Davis have retained the opera’s Italian roots and added American iconic elements. Thomas C. Hase provides the lighting design, Susanne Sheston is the chorus master, Sandra Moore is the stage manager and Sordelet, Inc. oversees fight and intimacy direction.
Conductor Roberto Kalb makes his company debut. Chilean soprano Yaritza Véliz, a rising star following notable debuts at Glyndebourne, the Komische Oper Berlin, Ópera Nacional de Chile, sings Adina in her Santa Fe Opera debut. Former Apprentice singer Jonah Hoskins sings Nemorino, a role he debuted in Spring of 2024 to critical acclaim at the Metropolitan Opera and former Apprentice singer Luke Sutliff, with SFO appearances in the roles of Dancaïre in Carmen (2022) and Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (2021), returns to sing the role of Nemorino’s rival, Belcore. Mexican baritone Alfredo Daza makes his house debut as the double-dealing Dulcamara and second-year Apprentice singer Cadie J. Bryan is Giannetta.
The Elixir of Love
Music by Gaetano Donizetti
Libretto by Felice Romani
Premiered 12 May 1832, Teatro della Canobbiana, Milan
A Santa Fe Opera Revival Production, 2009
5 performances at The Crosby Theatre — July 27, 31; August 9, 14 & 22
Opera in the Park screening at Railyard Park — September 15
Sung in Italian with opera titles in English and Spanish
In-theater: Approximately 2 hours 25 minutes with a 25 minute intermission
“Opera in the Park” screening: Approximately 2 hours, no intermission
The 2024 Season is Dedicated to the Memory of
Richard Gaddes, Former General Director of the Santa Fe Opera
Production support generously provided by
The Estate of Suzanne Hanson Poole
The performances of Jonah Hoskins are supported by
The Joseph and Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation
The performances of Luke Sutliff are supported by
The Joseph and Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation
The performances of Yaritza Véliz are supported in memory of
Eileen F. Gallo-Ross
The performances of Alfredo Daza are supported by
The MacKay Fund for Debut Artists
Creative Team
Conductor Roberto Kalb*
Director Stephen Lawless
Scenic and Costume Design Ashley Martin-Davis
Lighting Design Thomas C. Hase
Chorus Master Susanne Sheston
Fight & Intimacy Directors Sordelet, Inc.
Stage Manager Sandra Moore
Cast
Adina Yaritza Véliz*
Nemorino Jonah Hoskins+
Belcore Luke Sutliff+
Dulcamara Alfredo Daza*
Giannetta Cadie J. Bryan=*
The Santa Fe Opera Orchestra & Chorus
*Santa Fe Opera debut, +Former Santa Fe Opera Apprentice, =Current Santa Fe Opera Apprentice Singer
For Calendar Keepers
What: Opera in the Park: a free screening of The Elixir of Love presented by the Santa Fe Opera
When: Sunday, September 15
Where: Railyard Park, 740 Cerrillos Rd, Santa Fe, NM 87505
Lawn Opens: 4 pm; Performance Begins: 4:30 pm
Run Time: Approximately 2 hours with no intermission
About The Santa Fe Opera
Recognized as “Festival of the Year” at the International Opera Awards, the Santa Fe Opera annually draws 85,000 people from New Mexico and around the globe. Nestled atop a mountain vista in northern New Mexico, the company’s iconic Crosby Theatre is open on three sides, allowing visitors to enjoy performances complemented by the elements. Since 1957 the company has presented over 2,000 performances of 179 operas by 91 composers spanning five centuries of opera, creating a legacy of 45 American premieres and 18 world premieres. In 2024 the opera will present its 19th world premiere — The Righteous by American composer Gregory Spears and Pulitzer-prize-winning poet Tracy K. Smith.
Learn more about the 2024 Season at www.santafeopera.org.
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility at the Santa Fe Opera
Opera has the power to speak truth, broaden perspectives and invite empathy. The Santa Fe Opera is committed to the continuous work of becoming an antiracist and anti-oppressive organization and incorporating the principles of equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility. Our goal is to create a joyful and engaging environment in which a diverse community of artists, staff, volunteers and audiences alike belong.
The mission of the Santa Fe Opera is to advance the operatic art form by presenting ensemble performances of the highest quality in a unique setting with a varied repertory of new, rarely performed, and standard works; to ensure the excellence of opera’s future through apprentice programs for singers, technicians and arts administrators; and to foster an understanding and appreciation of opera among a diverse public.