On May 3 and 5, 2013 the North Carolina Opera brings you Verdi’s biggest operatic work, Aida, a sensational tale of war, romance, and intrigue that spans the gates of Thebes and the banks of the Nile. In the Old Kingdom of Egypt, a military commander—the unrequited love of the Pharaoh’s daughter—falls for an Ethiopian slave, forging a deadly love triangle. Aida bursts with all of the passion and conflict that make the operas of Verdi such enduring crowd-pleasers.
“One of the fascinating things about Aida is the paradox of grand versus intimate. We often remember or think of Aida in context of the large scale and famous tune of the Triumphal Scene. However, if you look at the rest of the opera you see that it is an intimate, gut-wrenching portrayal of difficult choices about loyalty to country, family and love. In reality, Aida is more like a chamber opera with one large scene, and a big orchestra!” says North Carolina Opera Artistic Director and Aida conductor Timothy Myers.
This semi-staged performance spotlights the dazzling voices of Issachah Savage, Leann Sandel-Pantaleo (the star of the North Carolina Opera’s production of Carmen last season), and international stage sensation Angela Brown, the expert Verdi heroine who caused The New York Times to sigh, “At last… an Aida.” Opera Now goes on to describe Ms. Brown “She has a powerhouse of an instrument, shimmering with colour and imaginatively used, and she knows how to take centre-stage.”
North Carolina Opera General Director Eric Mitchko adds “Conductor Timothy Myers, is a rising star in the world of opera, we look forward to watching him lead this internationally acclaimed cast. Our Aida, Angela Brown, is truly talented and has sung Verdi’s great leading ladies at the Met, Paris, Vienna, Venice, Munich, and Hamburg. Partnering her is great new tenor discovery in Issachah Savage. It’s an exciting cast that will enchant and captivate our Aida audiences.”
The public is also invited to join the North Carolina Opera for any of their community events leading up to Aida including pop-up Opera performances in unique venues and lectures on the music and story behind Aida. View out complete list of community event (many of which are free) online at www.ncopera.org/outreach.
Experience the excitement firsthand at one of our upcoming Semi-Staged performances of this breath-taking Opera. With performances on Friday, May 3 at Chapel Hill’s Memorial Hall at 8pm and on Sunday, May 5 at Raleigh’s Meymandi Concert Hall at 3pm. Tickets and information can be found online at www.ncopera.org or by calling the North Carolina Opera offices at 919.792.3850.