The UGA Opera Theatre will present Gaetano Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore (The Elixir of Love) at the university’s Fine Arts Theatre on Feb. 14 and 15 at 8 p.m., with a special matinee performance on Feb. 16 at 3 p.m.
“Once we chose Valentine’s Day as the opening night of our opera, I knew we had to do something special,” said UGA Opera Theatre Director Frederick Burchinal, the Wyatt and Margaret Anderson Professor in the Arts in the UGA Hugh Hodgson School of Music. “I wanted to offer L’elisir to the community as the perfect romantic outing. We try to alternate our production schedule between dramas and comedies, and this certainly falls into the latter category.”
Tickets for the program are $18, $5 for students. They are available at the UGA Performing Arts Center box office at 706-542-4400 or online at pac.uga.edu. The production will feature the UGA Opera Theatre and Opera Orchestra led by special guest conductor Maestro Imre Palló.
Premiered in Milan in 1832, L’elisir d’amore explores the effects of a “magic” potion upon the love triangle of the endearing rube Nemorino, rakish sergeant Belcore and wealthy beauty Adina. The production features UGA students Joseph Michael Brent as Nemorino, Evan Tyor as Belcore, Elisabeth Slaten as Adina, Avery Draut as her friend Giannette, and Christopher Voss as Dr. Dulcamara, purveyor of the eponymous potion.
For this production, Burchinal enlisted the assistance of guest stage director Jennifer Bakst, who has presented numerous theater and opera productions in Germany and the U.K.
