Santa Fe Opera – Musical New Mexico
Santa Fe Opera theatre. Photo credit Robert Godwin.
Santa Fe Opera had been on my bucket list for years, and I finally got there last July. I’m happy to report that it was everything I’d hoped for and more.
BTW, what I’d hoped for included an authentic travel experience (as well as world-class opera). As I’ve mentioned here before, two of my favorite ways of connecting with the local culture when I travel are touring local gardens and attending performing arts events.
Recently my friend Mary Anne Curray wrote about going to the opera in Spain, and I previously have written about summer season concerts in Warsaw.
Santa Fe Opera patrons can see the lights of Los Alamos in the distance.
Stunning setting, gorgeous theatre
We saw Don Pasquale. I’d seen it before, but never a performance that would compare with the open-air version I enjoyed at The Santa Fe Opera. The music and staging were terrific and the isolated northern New Mexico setting added volumes to the drama.
The theatre is located 15 minutes outside of Santa Fe on what was once a sprawling dude ranch. J. Robert Oppenheimer and others associated with the Los Alamos Laboratory stayed here from time-to-time while they were working on the Manhattan Project.
In the 1950s the property was purchased by John Crosby who went on to found The Santa Fe Opera in 1957. Today, 2128 patrons enjoy state-of-the-art facilities and the lights of Los Alamos sparkling in the distance.
The Santa Fe Opera was founded by John Cosby in 1957.
How Santa Fe Opera stays in the black
“Our company’s DNA is from John Crosby,” one enthusiastic fan explained. “He believed in artistic daring and financial prudence. We continue to produce new and rarely performed operas, as well as standards – and we’ve always operated in the black.”
Santa Fe Opera’s apprentice program helps the company balance the budget. Every year, about 1,000 talented young singers apply for the upcoming season. The 40 men and women who are chosen perform in the ensemble and receive coaching and voice lessons, as well as a stipend. The Opera helps them find housing and welcomes their families to swim in the old dude ranch pool, so it’s no wonder the program has long been known as “the world’s greatest summer camp for singers.” A parallel process selects 75 technical apprentices who work on costumes, props, sets, and lighting.
Not only do the chorus members come from far and wide, more than 40% of the audience comes from outside New Mexico. In addition, lead singers, conductors, and directors – who appreciate the company’s openness to new ideas – travel to Santa Fe Opera from all around the globe.
The Buffet Preview Dinner is served under a tent at Santa Fe Opera.
July 9, 2014
The Santa Fe Opera theatre is located only seven miles north of town, but I wasn’t taking any chances. We left the Inn on the Alameda way earlier than we needed to and easily found parking amongst happy groups of tailgaters. When they learned we were newbies, cheerful greetings and champagne toasts flowed freely.
Santa Fe Opera patrons have raised tailgating to a high art.
Santa Fe Opera offers prepared Tailgate Picnics, but we had chosen the Preview Buffet. At the entrance to the dining patio, we were greeted by a volunteer host, shown to a table, and introduced to our fellow diners. The six of them – from Michigan, Arizona, and Oklahoma – were already a cocktail ahead of us. All of them are serial attendees – for many years – and, I think, donors. Dinner was served buffet style, and we enjoyed the talk about Don Pasquale by an opera expert during dessert.
By coincidence, we bumped into some of our new friends and chatted during the interval…which is about as “local” as I’ve ever felt when attending an event in an unfamiliar location for the first time.
It was such a beautiful night. The opera was wonderful and the setting was positively magical. The wind came up a little during the second act, but I just cuddled up in my pashmina and enjoyed the show.
Opera patrons in the plaza outside the theatre before Don Pasquale.
The 2015 season
From July 3 to August 29 – The Santa Fe Opera Summer Festival Season will include the world premiere of COLD MOUNTAIN, plus THE DAUGHTER OF THE REGIMENT (Gaetano Donizetti), LA FINTA GIARDINIERA (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart), SALOME (Richard Strauss), and RIGOLETTO (Giuseppe Verdi).
In August, Santa Fe Opera’s productions are performed in repertory, so you can see each of these five operas one right after the other. While you’re on the web site figuring out the schedule, you may also want to book a backstage tour and make plans for dinner.
They’re waiting for you…the Daughter, the Gardener, Salome and the others. They know you love opera and you’ve never seen it performed on a world-class stage in the middle of nowhere.
Enjoy,
Category: opera, USA Southwest
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Sounds like a wonderful experience, Elizabeth!
Great article, Elizabeth. Thank you for sharing the info.