Pepperdine Fine Arts Division Presents DIE FLEDERMAUS

Members of The Flora L. Thornton Opera Program will perform Johann Strauss's beloved operetta Die Fledermaus at Pepperdine University's Smothers Theatre on Thursday, February 21 and Saturday, February 23, 2019 at 7:30 p.m. at the Lisa Smith Wengler Center for the Arts.

Tickets, starting at $20 for adults, $16 for Pepperdine faculty and staff, and $10 for full-time Pepperdine students, are available now by calling (310) 506-4522 or visiting arts.pepperdine.edu.

Mistaken identities, love affairs, and lighthearted revenge are all tied together with the intoxicating rhythm of the Viennese waltz. Die Fledermaus is both nostalgic and progressive. It captures the charm of cosmopolitan Vienna and imagines what would happen if for just one night, we were free of the bonds of our social status. Pepperdine's production of Die Fledermaus is directed by Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Opera Keith Colclough.

Colclough directs the all-student cast, which features Danielle Adair, Bethany Adamski, Noah Archibald, Rebecca Calix, Jack Gerding, Brandon Gille, Joe Hebel, Andrea Hupman, Liam Nixon, Adrian Patiño, Alexis Raymond, Angelo Silva, Nathan Thompson, Emma Ujifusa, and Kaytlin Withers.

"Die Fledermaus is the kind of show that makes you want to get up and dance. Johann Strauss (ii), the "Waltz King," earns his title with a parade of intoxicating waltzes and polkas. The plot sustains a joyously cynical wit which makes the action bubble forth. If we play our parts well, the audience should have a hearty laugh and leave whistling their favorite tune of the night," said Colclough.

Sung in German with supertitles and English dialogue.

The Flora L. Thornton Opera Program at Pepperdine University has developed a reputation as one of the nation's leading undergraduate vocal programs. It features an annual fully-staged opera, a biennial summer intensive in Heidelberg, Germany, and master classes with top industry professionals. A one-million-dollar endowment from Flora Laney Thornton, one of Southern California's most beloved and honored arts philanthropists, ensures high-quality productions and often contributes scholarship aid for the summer opera program abroad. Pepperdine graduates have won scholarships to many of the nation's most prestigious graduate programs, including The Juilliard School, Yale Graduate Opera Program, Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music, Northwestern University, Rice University, and USC. Pepperdine graduates are now gracing the rosters of America's leading opera companies, including The Metropolitan Opera, Chicago Lyric Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Santa Fe Opera, San Francisco Opera, and Seattle Opera.

The Lisa Smith Wengler Center for the Arts at Pepperdine University provides high-quality activities for over 50,000 people from over 800 zip codes annually through performances, rehearsals, museum exhibitions, and master classes. Located on Pepperdine's breathtaking Malibu campus overlooking the Pacific, the center serves as a hub for the arts, uniquely linking professional guest artists with Pepperdine students as well as patrons from surrounding Southern California communities. Facilities include the 450-seat Smothers Theatre, the 118-seat Raitt Recital Hall, the "black box" Helen E. Lindhurst Theatre, and the Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art.