Vincerò – The Italian Opera Experience – The Wonders of Opera Wonderfully Shared

By Ernest Kearney —  “Vincerò” is the closing term cried by the “Unknown Prince” that concludes “Nessun Dorma” from Giacomo Puccini’s opera Turandot, arguably the best known aria in the world.

It means “I will be victorious.”

And it would not surprise me if that was also the battle cry of Gene Sticco in his presentation of wonders for the operatic art unshackled from the stifling formality of the opera house and the throngs of old money ticket holders.

In his introduction to the show, Sticco definitely gives the best description of opera I’ve ever heard, calling it a musical art form in which the human voice was treated as another “instrument” in the composition.  And in which replacing the spoken word with an emotional honesty conveyed in song, “made us look beyond the masks.”

What follows is a series of opera’s greatest hits, stripped of the grandiose costumes and excessively extravagant stage scenery and set in the context of a party and centered on some flirtatious squabbling.

Germán Gholami, Diana Silova, Asuka Uchida and Natalja Sticco are the real deal, and frankly I cannot remember when I’ve heard such stunningly powerful singers on a stage the size of the McCadden Theatre.

For those unfamiliar with opera, the intimacy of the McCadden allows a rare introduction to the magnificence of the art.  To those, like myself, that have a laymen’s appreciation of opera, it offers an extraordinary opportunity to simply luxuriate in its beauty.

I’m sure it would please, to no end, all those involved with this splendid production to learn that at the performance I attended, I sat next to a husband and wife from the neighborhood who had never been to an opera, but decided to leave their comfort zone for a new experience.

Vincerò” to you, Mr. Sticco

And a PLATINUM MEDAL.

Platinum Medal - via The TVolution

‘Vincerò – The Italian Opera Experience’

playing during Hollywood Fringe Festival 2022

HFF’22

AT

VENUE

WHERE: McCadden Place Theater
1157 N. McCadden Place
Hollywood, CA 90038

PERFORMANCE DATES
Saturday June 18 2022, 5:30 PM
Thursday June 23 2022, 8:00 PM
Saturday June 25 2022, 4:30 PM


Running time: 50 minutes
TICKET PRICE: $15.00


https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/7555

***

Written by

An award-winning L.A. playwright and rabble-rouser of note who has hoisted glasses with Orson Welles, been arrested on three continents and once beat up Charlie Manson. His first play, "Among the Vipers" was a semi-finalist in the Julie Harris Playwriting Competition and was featured in the Carnegie-Mellon Showcase of New Plays. It was produced at the NPT Theater in Ashland, Oregon and Los Angeles’ celebrated Odyssey Ensemble Theatre. His following play, “The Little Boy Who Loved Monsters” was produced at The Hollywood Actors Theater, where he earned praise from the Los Angeles Times for his “…inordinately creative writing.” The play went on to numerous other productions including Berlin’s The Black Theatre under the direction of Rainer Fassbinder who wrote in his program notes of Kearney, “He is a skilled playwright, but more importantly he is a dangerous one.” Ernest Kearney has worked as literary manager or as dramaturge for among others The Hudson Theater Guild, Nova Diem and the Odyssey Ensemble Theatre, where he still serves on the play selection committee. He has been the recipient of two Dramalogue Awards and a finalist or semi-finalist, three times, in the Julie Harris Playwriting Competition. His work has been performed by Michael Dunn, Sandra Tsing Loh, Jack Colvin and Billy Bob Thornton, and to date, either as playwright or director, he has upwards of a hundred and thirty productions under his belt, including a few at the Bob Baker Marionette Theater as puppeteer. Kearney remains focused on his writing, as well as living happily ever after with his lovely wife Marlene. His stage reviews and social essays can be found at TheTVolution.com and workingauthor.com. Follow him on Facebook.

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