Oakland University To Have A Night of Drama and Opera, 1/17

The Music Program at Oakland University is inviting area music and drama lovers to a night at the opera to help chase away the Michigan mid-winter blues.

At 6 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 17, and at 8 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 19, university performers will present a Puccini double bill designed to transport audience members to a world where glorious music expresses all the multi-hued shades of art and life.

Voice students will perform "Suor Angelica" and "Gianni Schicchi" - one a traditional operatic drama without the happy ending and the other a comic masterpiece. "Suor Angelica" will be sung in Italian with projected English supertitles, while "Gianni Schicchi" will be sung in English so that the humor can be fully understood and appreciated.

Nicolette BookUnder the direction of Assistant Professor of Music Drake Dantzler, vocal performance major and Troy High School graduate Nicolette Book will sing the title role of Angelica. Constantine Novotny, who will sing Gianni, is also a vocal performance major and attended Walled Lake Northern High School. After their graduation from OU, both plan to continue their vocal education and pursue careers in operatic performance.

The Thursday OU Opera performance is part of the university's Arts-After-Work season and tickets are "pay what you wish." Tickets for the Saturday performance are $18 for general admission and $10 for students. All tickets may be purchased ahead of time with no service fees. Visit oakland.edu/tickets for additional details.

Both performances will take place in Varner Recital Hall on the campus of Oakland University. Ample, free parking is available. For interactive and printable campus maps, visit oakland.edu/map. For more information about the performances, visit oakland.edu/mtd or call (248) 370-2030.