Europe or Bust
Houston Grand Opera plans Paris trip To Cross the Face of the Moon with mariachiopera
Scence from "To Cross the Face of the Moon"Photo by Felix Sanchez
Jose "Pepe" Martinex
Houston Grand Opera is Paris bound.
HGO announced late Thursday that it will open the 2011-12 season at the prestigious Théâtre du Châtelet in late September with six performances of Cruzar la Cara de la Luna (To Cross the Face of the Moon).
Houston's opera company had commissioned the world's first mariachi opera from composer and writer José "Pepe" Martínez, music director of Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, and acclaimed Broadway director and author Leonard Foglia. When it premiered last November in Houston, it drew stellar reviews. CultureMap critic Theodore Bale called it "a stunning, emotional work."
The Paris performances will include the HGO cast mezzo-soprano Cecilia Duarte and baritone and HGO studio alumnus Octavio Moreno.
“Here at Houston Grand Opera we are dedicated to producing and presenting high quality, unique, risk- taking productions that challenge, engage and entertain,” HGO Anthony Freud said in a statment. " We continue to build new connections with people in the community we serve, marrying our contemporary reality with their cultural heritage. Being invited to present this work at Théâtre du Châtelet is a fantastic achievement and everyone at HGO is proud to be involved.”
The Paris HGO opera appearance is a swan song for Freud, who joins the Lyric Opera of Chicago as its new chief in October.
Performances will take place Sept. 23-27.
Freud had championed the opera as a way to reach new audiences — a goal also favored by Théâtre du Châtelet director Jean-Luc Choplin.
HGO made a previous opera trip to France in 1996 to present a production of Porgy and Bess at the Théatre de la Bastille.
