Cinballera Salon: The Medium and Songs of Spain at Villa Montezuma

On October 21, the third Monday of the month, join us at the Villa Montezuma at 7 PM for Songs of Spain, plus an hour-long chamber opera, The Medium!

Instead of the usual evening of assorted songs, the next Cinballera Salon will feature a performance of a chamber opera, Gian Carlo Menotti's The Medium. The second half of the program will be like our usual Salons, with the theme Songs of Spain in honor of Dia de los Muertos and All Hallows Eve.

One evening each month, Cinballera hosts its own monthly opera night, Cinballera Salon: Opera at the Villa! We're collaborating with the historic Villa Montezuma Museum at 1925 K Street, San Diego in the historic Sherman Heights Historic District. October will be Salon's seventh month.

We call this series Cinballera Salon because it is a loving tribute to the musical salons of years past, when friends would gather in lovely parlor to enjoy sharing music for an evening. Hosted the third week of the month, each evening will have a different theme. Music on the program will include opera arias, art songs, and other classical vocal music, performed by talented operatic singers from throughout the region. There is a special emphasis on duets, trios, and other ensembles, to recreate opera scenes in an intimate setting.

The first time we walked into the Gothic Victorian mansion, the Villa Montezuma, we thought that it would be a perfect place to put on The Medium. We're very excited to present our artistic take on this opera about spiritualism and the danger of spoofing the supernatural.

The opera will be fully staged and costumed to fit this intimate venue. The Villa itself will be one of the key players. The cast will include five singers, one ballet dancer as a mute character, and the excellent Michele Scanlon on piano. The music of Menotti is particularly good with piano only, since the piano is a key instrument in his orchestrations.

The second half of the program will be the usual opera night with the theme Songs of Spain. We'll have many lovely arias and art songs in Spanish, as well as selections from famous operas set in Spain, like Carmen.

To make the event more festive, we'll have a costume contest during the intermission. Come as your favorite character from an opera. We'll give a special prize to the most creative costume.

There are no tickets, just admittance with a donation at the door. of $25 or more per person. Cinballera Entertainment is 501(3)c, so all donations are tax deductible. All the proceeds benefit the two non-profit organizations, Cinballera and Friends of the Villa Montezuma, Inc, and pay the performers involved.

Email admin@cinballera.org to reserve your spot!

Join us on this musical journey celebrating Spain and spiritualism!