Arts & Entertainment
Making Mozart Fun
Culture for preschoolers and their parents presented by the Martinez Opera.
Mozart is really fun. Opera lovers since the 18th century have known this, of course, but a fresh-faced group of youngsters learned it for themselves Friday morning at a special Martinez Opera performance.
The production was part of the company’s ongoing “Culture for Kids” program, which provides “educational entertainment” to preschoolers. Nearly 300 kids – most under the age of 5 – along with their teachers, moms, dads and other family members, packed into Veterans Hall to see the latest program, written by Martinez Opera executive director Maria Billingsley, directed by Cesare Curzi and accompanied by pianist Chun Mei.
Billingsley and company gave them a production they won’t soon forget. “Papageno’s Search for Love” was a 40-minute show drawn mostly from Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” and featuring the opera’s colorful bird-catcher, Papageno, as he searched for his one true love – a typical boy-meets-girl story, only the boy wore a big feathered tail and a very funny hat. Baritone Jason Sartan had the kids laughing, clapping and singing along from his first entrance.
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The production introduced characters and arias from other operas – Orlofsky (Kathleen Moss) from “Die Fledermaus” by Johann Strauss II, Cinderella (Dalyta Koda) from Rossini’s “La Cenerentola,” and Olympia (Beverly Peatross), the wind-up doll from Offenbach’s “Tales of Hoffmann.”
Eventually, after much comical business, goofy jokes and a bit of explanation (“What’s an aria? It’s just like a song”), Papageno found happiness with Papagena (Maria Janus).
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Billingsley proclaimed the event a success. Programs such as “Papageno’s Search for Love” create the opera audiences of the future, she said.
“We love doing these shows for preschool kids,” said Billingsley. “This is the age when they absorb the most information.”
Curzi, a longtime opera director, agreed. “At this age, opera is something absolutely new to them,” he said. “Nothing compares to a live production. We get them participating and the excitement of doing something together is great for them.”
A brief survey of the audience confirmed it – the kids were enchanted. “I liked the bird lady best,” Elsie Jones, 6, said of Papagena. Her mom, Julie Jones, had three kids in attendance. “They really liked it,” she said. “I think we’ll be hearing echoes of the show at home – they all like to sing.”
Amy Anderson, at the show with her preschooler, Paige, also brought her 7-month-old, Leah. “I wasn’t sure how she’d do,” Anderson said of the baby. “But she was happy through the whole show. She seemed to really like it.”
Friday’s performance was sponsored by the Bernard E. & Alba Witkin Charitable Foundation, the Kiwanis Club of Martinez, the Martinez Community Foundation and Shell Oil products. For more information about Martinez Opera, visit www.mtzo.com.
