World-class performance opportunities abound for students in both The Crane School of Music and the Department of Theatre and Dance at SUNY Potsdam. The Crane Opera Ensemble is thrilled to present its first live production since the global pandemic as it stages an operatic double-bill of twentieth century works.
In collaboration with the Department of Theatre and Dance, The Crane Opera Ensemble and Crane Chamber Orchestra presents a double bill examining deception, grief, and unmet expectations. First, Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht’s Mahagonny Songspiel. Mahagonny is the fantasy city of decadence, drinking, drugs, and debauchery, with strong parallels to Berlin during the “golden years” of the 1920s Weimar Republic (during which the work was composed). However, once they arrive, its residents learn it doesn’t quite live up to the hype. Music includes the “Alabama Song” as covered by The Doors and many others.
Second is Gian Carlo Menotti’s supernatural ghost story; The Medium. The opera explores the heavy cost of deception and prioritizing fear. In this English language thriller, a fraudulent psychic who exploits peoples’ grief for money encounters the unknown. Her uncontrollable fear leads to terror, turmoil, and death. The Medium is double cast.
November 11 - 14 in the PAC Proscenium Theatre. Tickets are available via the CPS box office (in person at the Performing Arts Center lobby, (315) 267-2277). You can also purchase tickets online.
This spring, the Crane Opera Ensemble presents Zazà Ruggiero’s passionate opera about infidelity, passion, and deception. Zazà opens March 24 and runs through March 27, 2022 in the PAC Proscenium Theatre.
View Production Poster (PDF)