BON APPÉTIT! Comes to the Dallas Opera, 2/9

By: Sep. 20, 2012
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The Dallas Opera has announced that mezzo-Soprano Susan Nicely will portray twentieth-century culinary icon Julia Child in composer Lee Hoiby's BON APPÉTIT! The one-act operetta, with a libretto by Mark Shulgasser and support from The Perot Foundation Education and Community Outreach Programs, is based on two episodes from Julia Child's popular cooking show in which she concocts a chocolate cake.

This opera premiered in 1989 at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., with actress Jean Stapleton originating the role of Julia Child. The title, of course, is based on Child's signature close of each of her Emmy™ Award-winning broadcasts from a kitchen that now resides in the Smithsonian Institution's Museum of American History.

The Dallas Opera is presenting two FREE performances of BON APPÉTIT! (sung entirely in English – except for the title) at the Dallas Farmers Market Demonstration Kitchen, located at the corner of South Harwood Street and Marilla Street in Downtown Dallas, on Saturday, February 9, 2013 (11:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.). However, seating is limited and RSVPs are requested. To secure your seat for a taste of this rarely performed modern work, call 214.443.1000 or reserve your seat online at http://dallasopera.org/rsvp.

Julia Child is a household name who has attracted fans and imitators for more than a generation since the 1961 publication of her groundbreaking cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Her unique style was notably spoofed in a famous parody by comedian Dan Aykroyd on "Saturday Night Live" and she was recreated by actress Meryl Streep in the 2009 movie hit Julie & Julia, based on a best-selling book by Julie Powell.

The exuberant-yet-pragmatic chef, whose explanations of French Cuisine revolutionized the middle-class American kitchen, was known for such comments as "If you're alone in the kitchen and you drop the lamb, you can always pick it up-who's going to know?" and "The only time to eat diet food is while waiting for the steak to cook." Despite (or perhaps because of) her refusal to bow to conventional nutritional wisdom, Child lived to the age of 91; and this past summer, the 100th Anniversary of her birth was celebrated-with lots of butter and cream-by foodies and non-foodies alike.

"A terrific chef, like a great opera singer, is a genuine artist; one who imparts their own individual flavors to every dish" explains Dallas Opera General Director and CEO Keith Cerny.
"For half a century, Julia Child's recipes, like an outstanding performance, have never failed to fill us with delight. The Dallas Opera's goal, beginning with the talented Miss Nicely, is to assemble just the right ingredients for a day of delicious music-making at The Farmers Market."

Just last season, mezzo Susan Nicely made a memorable appearance as the loyal Annina in Verdi's LA TRAVIATA, her seventh principal role for the company. Journalist Mark-Brian Sonna of Pegasus News praised her performance, saying, she "has a way of singing that is enchanting to the ears." Her portrayal of the eccentric 'French Chef' in Atlanta prompted critic Pierre Ruhe of the Atlantic Journal Constitution to write: "With Susan Nicely's lovely mezzo-soprano, precise diction and sharp acting; Nicely plays Julia Child with a devilish twinkle making this highly amusing short opera a delight."

She will be accompanied by pianist Mary Dibbern, Music Director for Education and Family Programs at the Dallas Opera.

"While we strive to meet or exceed the highest expectations in every TDO production," says Dallas Opera Chief Marketing Officer and Director of Community Outreach Jennifer Schuder, "we view these more intimate performances outside the Winspear-whether at the Wyly Theatre or at the Dallas Farmers Market-as a fantastic chance to attract fresh, new audiences and erase outdated stereotypes.

"Opera can be slim, portable and accessible," she adds. "When people encounter opera in unexpected places and discover they can genuinely relax and have fun with it-that's our foot in the door."



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