Three talented young singers will soon set out on The Santa Fe Opera’s annual Spring Opera Tour with performances in 12 communities in New Mexico and Texas.  Beginning April 3 in Ruidoso and ending in Midland, Texas, on May 1, the singers will offer free public concerts as well as daytime performances for students.  Participants in this year’s tour are soprano Ashley Logan, tenor Jon-Michael Ball, baritone Michael Nyby, and pianist and music director Kirt Pavitt. 

The performances for students will be an adaptation of Donizetti’s delightful comedy The Elixir of Love.  The opera tells the story of the young farmer, Nemorino, who is hopelessly in love with the beautiful, rich landowner, Adina, and the lengths he goes to win her hand.  In adapting the piece for the tour, director Kathleen Clawson has updated it to a modern Western setting.   

The public concerts will include the adaptation of The Elixir of Love as the first half of the program.  The second half is comprised of popular arias and songs as well as such favorites as Shenandoah and Home on the Range.  The concerts are free and everyone is welcome.      

Ashley Logan was a Music Fellow at Tanglewood in 2008 where she appeared in A Little Night Music with the Boston Pops.  In 2007 she was a member of the Merola Program of the San Francisco Opera.  Originally from Princeton, New Jersey, Ms. Logan holds a Masters Degree from the University of Cincinnati, College Conservatory of Music.  Jon-Michael Ball has appeared as Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Pang in Turandot, and Frederic in The Pirates of Penzance with the Orlando Opera.  A graduate of the Manhattan School of Music, he has performed in many productions with the school’s Opera Studio, most notably, in the world premier recording of Lee Hoiby’s A Month in the Country for Albany Records.  A native of Olive Branch, Mississippi, he was a Santa Fe Opera apprentice singer in 2006 and 2008.  Mr. Nyby recently made his debut with the Vancouver Opera.  A native of Hamilton, Ontario, he earned a Masters Degree in opera performance from the University of British Columbia.  He will return to Santa Fe as an apprentice singer during the 2009 season.

Kirt Pavitt enters his thirteenth year as music director and pianist for the Spring Tour.  His ability for assembling interesting programs well-tailored to each year’s artists ensures varied, informative and friendly concerts.  Pavitt takes pride that after many years, the tour is welcomed each season in as many towns and cities as is possible to visit.

The 2009 Spring Opera Tour is supported by First Community Bank; The Guilds of The Santa Fe Opera, Inc.; New Mexico Arts, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs; the City of Santa Fe Arts Commission-1% Lodgers’ Tax; and the National Endowment for the Arts.

For information about daytime performances for students, contact Education Director Andrea Walters at 505 986 5928 or awalters@santafeopera.org.  The Spring Opera tour is a project of The Santa Fe Opera’s Education and Community Programs Department.

2009 Spring Opera Tour Concert Schedule
Sunday, April 5        Farmington    Henderson Fine Arts Center        3:00 PM
Wednesday, April 8    Albuquerque    KiMo Theater                7:30PM
Monday, April 13    Lubbock    Hemmle Recital Hall            7:00 PM
Thursday, April 16    Alamogordo    Flickinger Center            7:30 PM
Friday, April 17        Clovis        Town Hall                7:00 PM
Sunday, April 19    Taos        Taos Center for the Arts            6:00 PM
Monday, April 20    Santa Fe    Scottish Rite Masonic Temple        7:00 PM
Thursday, April 23    Socorro        Macey Center                7:30 PM
Sunday, April 26    Hobbs        Watson Hall                3:00 PM
Tuesday, April 28    Roswell        Anderson Museum            7:00 PM
Friday, May 1        Midland    Wagner-Brown Hall, Allison Fine     7:00 PM
                                                                         Arts Building, Midland College