Who the H... is Georges Aperghis? 
- 1996 Opera Production 
 

WATER & GRAVITY

RICHARD ARMSTRONG, director

Richard Armstrong's unique experience as a pioneer of the extension of the human voice began in the sixties when he became a founding member of the Roy Hart Theatre in England, a radical group, who, under Hart's tutelage, created one of the most influential and dynamic schools of voice and body reserach, before establishing its base in France in 1974. From that time on, his work as teacher, director and performer has taken him to over 20 countries, and inspired a whole generation of performers and their work.

From 1985 to 1989 he was a founding faculty member of New York University's Experimental Theatre Wing in Paris, and his Roy Hart Theatre production of Leoncavallo's opera Pagliacci won an Obie in New York in 1986 for its "daring and original production."

His work in Canada began ten years ago when he joined the music theatre faculty at The Banff Centre for the Arts. In addition to Banff, he divides his time between Toronto, where he works with Autumn Leaf Performance, southern France with the Roy Hart Theatre, and his home in Corsica.

In 1994 he directed Owen Underhill's The Star Catalogues for Vancovuer New Music, and in 1995, directed the two cabarets What keeps mankind alive and Gibraltar may tumble for the Banff Arts Festival. Projects for 1997 and 1998 include performing in two operas for Autumn Leaf Performance director Thom Sokolowski: Rainer Wiens' Down here on earth and Wende Bartley's Electric Flesh.

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JEAN-PIERRE DROUET, music director

Jean-Pierre started music studies at the Brodeaux Conservatory and continued at the Paris Conservatory, where he obtained the first prize for percussion in 1958. He studied composition with René Leibovitz, Jean Barraqué, Michel Puig and André Hodeir. His interest was in jazz and he played with Kenny Clark, vibraphone in André Hodeir's jazz orchestra, and drums with Lester Young at the Blue Note.

In 1960 he met Lucian Berio and toured the USA with him. This changed his musical orientation completely to contemporary music which led him to create numerous works both as a soloist and a member of several groups, such as Le Domaine Musical and Musique Vivante. Jean-Pierre plays in all the major contemporary music festivals, and has founded several chamber music groups.

He has also studied Indian tabla with Chatur Lal, and Iranian drum with Djamschid Chemirani, instruments from which he gains inspiration to enrich his playing on European instruments. He still retains his taste for jazz and participates in concerts with his friends Michel Portal and Bernard Lubat.

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TERRY GUNVORDAHL, designer

Water and Gravity is Terry's first production for The Banff Centre for the Arts. His designs have been seen extensively at Alberta Theatre Projects and at Theatre Calgary, as well as regional theatre across Canada and the United States. In addition to stage design, Terry has worked as an art director in film and television. As a sculptor, his work has been exhibited in Calgary and as a director, he has worked with Calgary Opera, Minnesota Opera, and the University of Victoria Opera program. He was recently in Paris as the producer of Calgary's bid for the 2005 World Exhibition.

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TOM WRIGHT, stage manager

Tom started at the Banff Centre for the Arts in 1983 as a participant in the Stagecraft Program. Currently he is the Production Manager and Stage Manager for Calgary Opera. He has worked for Edmonton Opera, The Citadel Theatre, Alberta Theatre Projects, J.V. Theatre Productions. Past credits at The Banff Centre include: Eight Songs for a Mad King, Miss Donnithorne's Maggot, Subtle Surprises Ahead, 1994 !Afrocubanisimo¡ Festival and last year's American and European Cabarets.

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PHILIP HEADLAM, conductor

Philip Headlam has worked as a conductor/Répétiteur for the CBC, English National Opera, Welsh National Opera, Wexford Festival (Ireland), Aldeburgh Festival, English Touring Opera, City of Birmingham Touring Opera, Contemporary Music Network and the Israel Vocal Arts Institute in Tel Aviv. He has been conductor and vocal coach at the Banff Centre for the Arts from 1990 - 1993. He has conducted premieres for the Batignano Festival (Italy) and in Canada and England on CD and in concert. He founded the Continuum Ensemble (with pianist Douglas Finch) in 1993 and is conducting his third season of 20th century music concerts with them next year. Past highlights include a critically praised performance of Zimmermann's White Rose and a recent concert of El Rey de Harlem and El Cimarron by Hans Werner Henze for the National Opera. Mr. Headlam is also a vocal coach for the Opera department of the Royal College of Music in London England.

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PATRICK VISSEQ, assistant repetiteur

Patrick originally has studied in Paris, France, as well as at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, England. He has coached master classes for Laura Sarti, Norman Shetler, Walter Moore, Ferenc Rados, and he was coach for Frau Kammersangerin Sena Jurinac's master classes in Vienna in 1993-94. He is accompanist for the International Belvedere Competition, and has recently worked as accompanist and coach in France, Austria and Germany.

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SELENA JAMES, singing teacher

Selena joined the faculty at The Banff Centre in 1986, and she divides her time between Banff and Victoria. She is the Artistic Director of the Victoria Conservatory's Opera Studio, as well as teacher of voice. Selena also conducts the performances given each winter and spring by the Opera Studio. These have included Street Scene by Kurt Weill, Albert Herring by Benjamin Britten, and recently, the Magic Flute and Fiddler on the Roof. Her degrees include an MA and BA in voice with the Manhattan School, New York, and a degree in piano with the Royal Academy, London, England. Her performing career has been varied; from operatic lead roles; Violetta in La Traviata with the National Opera, USA, to Sarah in Guys and Dolls; also the role of Delisle in the world premiere of Tornrak by composer John Metcalf.

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RICHARD BERG, assistant stage manager

Richard is pleased to be back for his second summer at The Banff Centre. Last year he was a participant in the stagecraft program and the assistant stage manager for the American and European Cabarets. Richard hails from Vancouver where past credits include The Collected Works of Billy the Kid at the Firehall Arts Centre, Pippin for Whistler Summer Theatre and The British Columbia Festival of the Arts.

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MICHAEL GIANFRANCESCO, assistant designer

Michael is curently studying theatre design at Concordia University. Since moving to Montreal, he has founded the Montreal Student Performing Arts Network in conjunction with Centaur Theatre. Orchestral credits include musical productions of West Side Story, Cabaret, Carnival, Quilters and most recently the Montreal premiere of Sondheim's Assassins. As a visual artist, Michael has received several awards for his work in mixed media sculpture and installation, and was a finalist in the 1995 YTV Youth Achievement Awards. Michael is looking forward to acting as Assistant Musical Director and Head Scenic Artist for Concordia's upcoming production of Into The Woods.

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SUNG TAEK CHUNG

In 1991, Sung completed a Bachelor of Science degree and in 1995, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology (Honours) at the University of Manitoba. He is currently studying voice at the University of Toronto's opera school. Sung is a member of the Manitoba Opera Association chorus, and the Winnipeg singers, and recently received the Anne Craine Memorial Scholarship from the Opera Division of the Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto.

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BARBARA HANNIGAN

A Nova Scotian soprano, Barbara received her Bachelor Music in Vocal Performance in 1993 (University of Toronto), where she studied with Mary Morrison. Other training includes studies at The Banff Centre (1994), the Guildhall School of Music and Drama (1994-95), and the Royal Conservatory of the Hague (1995-96). Barbara has been featured with orchestras and chamber ensembles througout North America and Holland, performing in styles ranging from baroque to contemporary music. Opera roles include the Queen of the Night (Opera Atelier, Toronto) Anne Truelove in The Rake's Progress (Banff) and the title role in Janacek's The Cunning Little Vixen (Royal Conservatory, The Hague). Upcoming performances include concerts with the Asko and Ives Ensembles (Amsterdam), the Utrecht Baroque Consort (Amsterdam) and musicians of the Steve Reich Ensemble (Copenhagen.)

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ANDY MORRIS

Andy Morris is a percussionist presently living in Toronto. While he enjoys freelancing opportunities with the likes of Nexus, Arraymusic, Toronto Symphony, New Music Concerts and the Esprit Orchestra, recently his focus has been more intimate ensembles. He is a co-founder of the music theatre company Zebra Schvangk and a member of the Flaming Dono Dance and Drum Ensemble. Andy also regularly appears as a duo with master drummer Fred Kwasi Donyo of Ghana. For the past seven years he has performed as a member of the Evergreen Club Samelan which recently released a CD titled Palace on the Artefact label.

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CLAIRE FRANCES MUIR

Claire's recent credits include Cassandra in Trojan Women and Mother in Ring Round the Moon (Studio Theatre), Sarah in Mirror Game and Margaret in Dawn Quixote (Globe Theatre/Regina) and various characters in a recent four month tour of Theatre Calgary's Cyrano de Bergerac. She was last seen as Clare in Benedetta Carlini (Next Fest at Theatre Network). Claire is a member of Fight Directors Canada, has just completed a National Workshop in Stage Combat and is a 1995 graduate of the University of Alberta's Bachelor of Fine Arts Acting Program.

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PATRICIA O'CALLAGHAN

Born and raised across the Canadian North, Patricia settled in Toronto to obtain her Bachelor of Music at the University of Toronto. Contemporary music theatre, Mozart and cabaret have since become her passions. She is a co-founder of the interdisciplinary company Zebra Schvangk, which has performed many world premieres. European credits inlcude Bach and Rossini masses and excerpts from Le Nozze di Figaro. Patricia is presently completing a CD of songs by Parlenc, Satie and Weill. Upcoming roles include Bessie in Weill's Mahagonny. Patricia was a 1995/96 recipient of a Chalmer's Performing arts grant.

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KATERINA PAPADOLIAS

Katerina completed her Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance (Honours) at the University of Toronto. She furthered her studies at the Tanglewood Music Centre and at The Banff Centre, where she participated in the Dramatic Integration Program and performed in Hear Me Out! Katerina's first brush with contemporary music came when she appeared as alto soloist at the National Art Centre's world premier of Henze's Moralities. Recent roles include the First Witch in Dido and Aeneas, Rita in Rita and the Queen of the Night in Die Zauberflöte.

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CATHERINE PAVET

A resident of Paris, France, Catherine Pavet received a Licence de Musicologie at Université Sorbonne, Paris (1992), a DEUG de Musicologie at Université de Reims (1990). She has also studied at the Conservatoire National de Région de Rueil Malmaison. Most recently, she has performed in l'ATEM Théàtre des Amandiers de Nanterre, Vandoeuvre-les-Nancy at the festival Nouvelles Scenes de Dijon, a concert tour of Globokar's music at l'IUFM de St-Brieuc and the festival Densité de Verdun. In 1994 she formed a percussion trio to perform the repertoire of Jean Pierre Drouet, Georges Aperghis, V. Globokat and JF Piette.

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CURTIS SULLIVAN

Curtis obtained his Operatic Performance Diploma from the University of Toronto. He earned his music degree from the University of Western Ontario's Faculty of Music, and attended The Banff Centre for the Arts for a term of residence in the 20th Century Opera and Song Program. Most recently, he completed the 20th Century Song Program at the Britten-Pears School for Advanced Musical Studies in Aldeburgh, England. Curtis has performed with Opera Atelier, Guelph Spring Festival, Orchestra London, Banff Arts Festival, Vancouver Opera, Opera Lyra, Opera Hamilton, Edmonton Opera, Hamilton Philharmonic, the Toronto Chamber Society, Continuum, Amadeus Choir and the Elora Festival. He sang the role of Samuel in Pirates of Penzance with the Vancouver Opera, as well as Giuseppe Palmiere in The Gondoliers at the Stratford Festival.

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ERIKA LEE TANNER

Who the H . . . is Georges Aperghis? marks this soprano's second summer season at Banff. A current resident of Toronto, Erika has appeared as Lucy in Opera Anonymous' spring production of The Telephone, as Lucia in Toronto Opera Repertoire's Lucia di Lammermoor and as Olga in Toronto Operetta Theatre's Merry Widow. In her graduating year, Erika performed Carmina Burana with the University of Toronto orchestra. Her intrigue with contemporary music has led Erika to recital performances with composer Gary Kulesha and to the finals of the 1996 Eckhardt Gramattée Competition

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JOHN TESSIER

In 1995, John was the winner of the London Opera Guild Scholarship Competition, and in the same year he also took the Lawson Prize, London Music Scholarship Foundation. He is presently tenor soloist with First St. Andrew's United Church, London, Ontario, and has performed as soloist for Madrigal Singers, Guelph Chamber Choir, UWO Opera Theatre and the Banff Arts Festival (Stravinsky's Les Noces). John completed a Bachelor of Music degree (voice performance) at the University of Colorado, and is currently a candidate for a Master of Music degree (voice performance) at the University of Western Ontario.

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SHANNON UNGER

Shannon completed her Bachelor of Music at the University of Manitoba. She has been a chorus member with the Manitoba Opera Association, Winnipeg Singers, Winnipeg Baroque Ensemble and the CBC Hymn Sing chorus. Shannon has directed productions of The Beggar's Opera, The Old Maid and the Thief and Amahl and the Night Visitors with the New voices Opera Co. Her oratorio credits include solo work in Mendelssohn's Elijah and Handel's Messiah.

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MICHAEL WACHOLTZ

Originally from Englefeld, Saskatchewan, Michael has just completed the University of Alberta's Bachelor of Fine Arts (Acting) program. Recent credits include Melchior Gabor in Spring Awakening and Streetsinger/Smith in The Threepenny Opera (Studio Theatre) and a school tour of Decisions, Decisions for Edmonton's Concrete Theatre.

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RUSSEL WHITEHEAD

Russel holds degrees from Saskatchewan and Michigan. He was principal trumpet and apprentice conductor for the Saskatchewan Symphony (1986-1991) and a performer in numerous Banff Centre music theatre productions. In 1991 he founded The NowAge Orchestra, a company of artists dedicated to The Theatre Of New Music. Outside of seasonal teachings with The University of Alberta and Alberta College, and freelancing with the Edmonton Symphony, Russel pursues the world of New Music and the great variety of people, interests and stories it encompasses.

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