Asheville Lyric Opera (ALO) is a professional, non-profit

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

company located in

Asheville, North Carolina Asheville ( ) is a city in Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. Located at the confluence of the French Broad River, French Broad and Swannanoa River, Swannanoa rivers, it is the county seat of Buncombe County. It is the most populou ...

. Its repertoire encompasses styles ranging from the comedies of Mozart and Rossini to the classic Verdi and Puccini dramas as well as classic

musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatre, theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, ...

works. Founder David Craig Starkey served as General and Artistic Director until 2016. The 500-seat Diana Wortham Theatre, built in 1991, has been the company's home since 2001. ALO is a member of

Opera America __NOTOC__ Opera America (stylized as OPERA America) is a New York–based service organization promoting the creation, presentation, and enjoyment of opera in the United States. Almost all professional opera company, opera companies and some semi-pr ...

. Dean Anthony was announced as the company's new Artistic and Producing Direction beginning with the 2019/2020 Season.

History

Asheville Lyric Opera was founded in 1999 by the baritone David Craig Starkey.Asheville Lyric Opera
Our History
Retrieved 9 December 2014. In its first full season (1999–2000), the company presented Puccini's ''

La bohème ''La bohème'' ( , ) is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions '':wikt:quadro, quadri'', ''wikt:tableau, tableaux'' or "images", rather than ''atti'' (acts). composed by Giacomo Puccini between 1893 and 1895 to an Italian libretto b ...

'' in conjunction with the Asheville Symphony Orchestra. Past performances have included guest singers, conductors and directors who have performed across the U.S. and internationally. Soprano Susan Dunn gave a recital as part of the company's first season in 1999, and in 2001, the company presented Rossini's ''

The Barber of Seville ''The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution'' ( ) is an ''opera buffa'' (comic opera) in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based on Pierre Beaumarchais's French comedy ' ...

'' with Rockwell Blake in the role of Count Almaviva. The company began touring with their 2003/2004 season and has brought productions to Indiana, Georgia, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. The 2006–2007 season saw an expansion to three full opera productions along with an "education opera" performance for local schools. The Tenth Anniversary Gala in 2009 featured guests Angela Brown, soprano, Tonio DiPaolo, tenor, and David Malis, baritone, joined by the Asheville Lyric Opera Orchestra and Chorus conducted by Principal Guest Conductor, Robert Hart Baker. Other notable artists who have appeared with the company through opera co-productions and recitals include Angela Renée Simpson, Talise Trevigne and Stephen Mark Brown. Conductors who have led recent ALO productions include Timothy Myers, Robert Franz, Keith Chambers and Daniel Meyer. By 2012 the company had presented over twenty-five full operas and numerous concerts across Western North Carolina. The 2012/2013 Season featured Verdi's '' La traviata'' with soprano Elizabeth Caballero as Violetta, Puccini's ''

Tosca ''Tosca'' is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900. The work, based on Victorien Sardou's 1 ...

'', and a concert by tenor Lawrence Brownlee The 2013/2014 Season included ''

Don Giovanni ''Don Giovanni'' (; K. 527; full title: , literally ''The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni'') is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Its subject is a centuries-old Spanish legen ...

'', ''

Die Fledermaus ' (, ''The Bat'', sometimes called ''The Revenge of the Bat'') is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée, which premiered in 1874. Background The original literary source for ' was ...

'', and '' South Pacific''. The production of ''Die Fledermaus'' was performed in English with the script adapted to fit the cultural and historical background of Asheville. This production also marked a new collaboration with the Symphony of the Mountains of Kingsport, Tennessee ALO also presents educational programs and operas for children across the region, and offers student internships in arts administration, music business, and performance.

Past seasons

*2013–2014 ''

Pagliacci ''Pagliacci'' (; literal translation, 'Clowns') is an Italian opera in a prologue and two acts, with music and libretto by Ruggero Leoncavallo. The opera tells the tale of Canio, actor and leader of a commedia dell'arte theatrical company, who mu ...

'' and '' Suor Angelica'' (double bill), Opera Winter Gala, ''

'', '' South Pacific'', ''

''.List sourced from Asheville Lyric Opera
Past Seasons
Retrieved 9 December 2014. *2012–2013 '' La traviata'', Taste of Opera, ''

'', ''

Carousel A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (International English), or galloper (British English) is a type of amusement ride consisting of a rotating circular platform with seats for riders. The seats are tradit ...

'' *2011–2012 ''

Madame Butterfly ''Madama Butterfly'' (; ''Madame Butterfly'') is an opera in three acts (originally two) by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It is based on the short story " Madame Butterfly" (1898) by John Lut ...

'', The Asheville Christmas Show, ''

Cosi fan tutte COSI (), officially the Center of Science and Industry, is a science museum and research center in Columbus, Ohio. COSI was opened to the public on 29 March 1964 and remained there for 35 years. In 1999, COSI was moved to a facility, designed ...

'', ''

The Sound of Music ''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, '' The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. ...

'', Taste of Opera *2010–2011 ''

The Magic Flute ''The Magic Flute'' (, ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. It is a ''Singspiel'', a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue. The work premiered on ...

'', Christmas Concert, '' Brundibar'', ''

'', Taste of Opera *2009–2010 ''

The Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' (, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premiered at the Burgtheater in Vienn ...

'', ''

Hansel and Gretel "Hansel and Gretel" (; ) is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm and published in 1812 as part of ''Grimms' Fairy Tales'' (KHM 15). Hansel and Gretel are siblings who are abandoned in a forest and fall into the hands of a witch ...

'', Christmas Concert, ''

Don Pasquale ''Don Pasquale'' () is a Gaetano Donizetti opera buffa, or comic opera, in three acts, with an Italian libretto completed largely by Giovanni Ruffini as well as the composer. It was based on a libretto by Angelo Anelli for Stefano Pavesi's oper ...

'', ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the O ...

'' *2008–2009 ''

Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

'', '' Gianni Schicchi'', Opera Concert, ''

Rigoletto ''Rigoletto'' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the 1832 play '' Le roi s'amuse'' by Victor Hugo. Despite serious initial problems with the Austrian censors who had c ...

'' *2007–2008 ''

'', '' Down in the Valley'', ''

Lucia di Lammermoor ''Lucia di Lammermoor'' () is a (tragic opera) in three acts by Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian-language libretto loosely based upon Sir Walter Scott's 1819 historical novel '' The Bride of Lammermoor''. ...

'', ''

'' *2006–2007 '' The Elixir of Love'', '' Amahl and the Night Visitors'', ''

The Merry Widow ''The Merry Widow'' ( ) is an operetta by the Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian composer Franz Lehár. The Libretto, librettists, Viktor Léon and Leo Stein (writer), Leo Stein, based the story – concerning a rich widow, and her countrymen's ...

'', '' La traviata'' *2005–2006 ALO Opera Gala, ''The Magic Flute'', ''Madame Butterfly'' *2004–2005 ALO Opera Gala, ''Carmen'', ''The Marriage of Figaro'' *2003–2004 ALO Opera Gala, ''Amahl and the Night Visitors'', ''La bohème'', ''Don Pasquale'' *2002–2003 ALO Opera Gala, ''Amahl and the Night Visitors'' and '' Gift of the Magi'' (double bill), ''Cosi fan tutte'' *2001–2002 ''The Barber of Seville'', ''Amahl and the Night Visitors'', '' Annie Get Your Gun'', ''La traviata'' *2000–2001 ALO Opera Gala, Live from Broadway, ''Amahl and the Night Visitors'', ''Madame Butterfly'', ''

Pirates of Penzance ''The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, W. S. Gilbert. Its official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 3 ...

'' *1999–2000 Live from Broadway, ALO Opera Gala, ''La bohème'', ''Pagliacci''

References

External links

Asheville Lyric Opera Official website
{{authority control American opera companies Culture of Asheville, North Carolina Musical groups established in 1999 Tourist attractions in Asheville, North Carolina Performing arts in North Carolina 1999 establishments in North Carolina