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WHAT: "Carmen" by the Asheville Lyric Opera
WHEN: 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday
WHERE: Diana Wortham
Theatre, Pack Place, Pack Square
HOW MUCH: Tickets cost $28, $37, discounts for children, students and groups
INFORMATION: 257-4530
ON THE NET: http://www.ashevillelyric.org/
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ASHEVILLE - There are many reasons why the Asheville Lyric Opera is poised to hit a grand slam when it presents "Carmen" Friday and Saturday nights at Diana Wortham Theatre at Pack Place.
Start with the opera itself - one of the big ones, with memorable music, action and romance. And then, there's the cast, including Cheryse McLeod as Carmen and David Malis as Escamillo (he doubles as guest director).
And upfront is former Asheville Symphony conductor Robert Hart Baker, leading the Asheville Lyric Opera orchestra. It's his first appearance here since last April, when he concluded his 22-year stint with the symphony. The ingredients combine to spell artistic blockbuster.
"Carmen" is something that the Asheville Lyric Opera has wanted to do for a while, said company founder David Craig Starkey. "There are certain (works) that a company can do early on, and others, you have to wait for the right time, for the parts to come together."
Now the Lyric is at that level, Starkey said. The return of Baker brings yet another element to Bizet's story of a beautiful gypsy, caught in a love triangle between a military guard and his commanding officer. As so often is the case in grand opera, don't expect a happy ending.
Baker was arguably Asheville's premier artistic leader for more than 20 years, building the Asheville Symphony into a major musical force until he and orchestra management announced his departure for reasons never made public. After a search for a new conductor, the symphony just named Daniel Meyer to fill the job starting this fall.
It's a bit odd to be back in a city he knows so well, and yet to no longer live here, Baker said. "I frequently say, 'I'm home,'" he said. "I know every nook and cranny of Asheville. It shows I haven't gotten it out of my system."
After conducting his last Asheville Symphony concert, Baker and his wife, Barbra, moved to York, Pa., where he has long conducted that city's symphony (he also conducts the St. Louis Philharmonic, and has taken a new job directing the Harrisburg, Pa., Choral Society.) "We live on a seven-acre farm, with Barbra and all the horses and animals (they brought from Asheville)."
From the start, Baker has been heavily involved in the Asheville Lyric Opera. "The relationship with Bob and the symphony, that was one of the pinnacles, the founding moments of the company," said Starkey. "He has passion and talent for opera." Baker conducted the opera's first production, "La Boheme," in January 2000, then reprised that role for the Lyric's January 2004 version.
He serves today as the Lyric's principal guest conductor, a relationship that will maintain his musical ties with the city. "Carmen" is a personal favorite, as it was of his late teacher, the famed conductor Leonard Bernstein. He's more than a little excited about his star, McLeod, a mezzo-soprano and Greensboro native who is making her debut with the Lyric. "She is made for it, a stunning vocal talent," said Baker.
Joining her are Mallis, a baritone who is no stranger to Lyric audiences, and Jonathan Hodel and Jordan Gumucio, who were both in "La Boheme" last year.
Opera is hot in Asheville, a fact proved by last weekend's packed house for "Aida" performed by the touring company Opera Verdi Europa. More than 2,000 fans turned out for that production presented by Asheville Bravo Concerts. "I would say that nationally, (opera) is about the only growth area in the arts," said Baker. "Symphonies are having a harder and harder time drawing young people to concerts. You can't beat the visuals (in opera) and that the stories are understandable."
This production of "Carmen" will be sung in French (with projected supertitles), but the dialogue will be performed in English.
"It has some of the top 10 hits of opera," Starkey said of the music, including the toreador song that is familiar even to those who don't know classical music.
As for Baker, when "Carmen" is over, it's back to York and his other engagements. He'll be back next season to lead the Lyric but is uncertain if and when he'll again conduct the Asheville Symphony.
"That is really up to the ASO," Baker said. "I have offered to come back. Daniel Meyer is available for all the concerts next year, and I know that he wants his hands on the orchestra as much as possible. I don't know if they have the room or budget to have other conductors in the next season or two. They probably want him to get established. We'll leave it at that."
Cutline:
Ewart Ball/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Robert Hart Baker is back in Asheville to conduct the Asheville Lyric Opera's production of "Carmen." Baker is pictured with two of the opera's singers, Cheryse McLeod and Jonathan Hodel.
Box:
Story in song
What: "Carmen" by the Asheville Lyric Opera
When: 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday
Where: Diana Wortham Theatre, Pack Place, Pack Square
How much: Tickets cost $28, $37, discounts for children, students and groups
Information: 257-4530
On the Net: http://www.ashevillelyric.org/
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