One of the six singers is mezzo-soprano Mack Wolz, a graduate of Boston Conservatory now living in Phoenix, Arizona, where they perform with Arizona Opera. It is director Baryshnikov’s vision of a “call and response,” says Vernatter, between the modern, natural world of the dancers and the ancestral world of the singers. The singers appear in the film via footage shot during the recording sessions and provide the contrast between the worlds of the spiritual ancestors, represented by the singers, and the seven dancers, whose movements communicate the story. In August, six opera singers gathered in Mechanics Hall in Worcester to record the a cappella score. David comes from a choral background so he responded immediately to the ensemble nature of this work,” Vernatter says. “He was really moved and inspired by compositional style. Vernatter credits BLO music director David Angus for selecting “Svadba,” with its richly textured rhythmic harmonies rooted in traditional Balkan folklore and music, for the film. “Svadba” streams exclusively on starting January 28. Director Shura Baryshnikov weaves the ethereal score with the movements of seven dancers in the story of a bride’s intimate gathering with her girlfriends on the eve of her life-altering wedding. It’s a dynamic a cappella opera for six voices by internationally produced contemporary composer Ana Sokolović, who was born in Serbia and immigrated as a child to Quebec, Canada where she still lives.
The BLO’s latest film, “Svadba” (the Serbian word for wedding), was shot on Truro’s Ballston Beach in October. “We wanted pure cinematic work, not to replicate what a live stage performance would be,” says Bradley Vernatter, the BLO’s acting general and artistic director. First came the partly animated “Fall of the House of Usher” last January then, in June, the BLO-commissioned opera miniseries “desert in,” which featured prominent queer characters and storylines.
When the 2020 COVID shutdown demanded that performance organizations devise new approaches to delivering art to audiences, the BLO distinguished itself by creating original, opera-based cinema. Sarah Pacheco, Sasha Peterson, Victoria Awkward, Emily Jerant-Hendrickson and Jay Breen. Photo David Angusīoston Lyric Opera (BLO) is known for its adventurous interpretations of both classical and contemporary opera. “Svadba” dancers on Ballston Beach, Truro, Mass.
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