Happenings at Skylark - September 2021

95 Days to the Opening of Amahl and the Night Visitors

Skylark Opera Theatre is excited to be back on stage this December to bring you a new holiday tradition! Amahl and the Night Visitors will be presented on the Andy Boss Thrust Stage at Park Square Theatre on December 4th & 5th, 11th & 12th, and 18th & 19th. This heartwarming story of a boy and his encounter with the three wise men is the perfect addition to a special holiday season. It's a great opera for the whole family to enjoy.

Tickets go on sale soon. Sign up to receive our email newsletter for more information. We hope to see you and your family and friends there!

Thanks for All the Skylark Memories, Launching 8/30!

Skylark Opera Theatre’s delayed 40th Anniversary continues with video clips of memorable moments from our archive. Skylark Memories will be posted on our Facebook page and on Vimeo every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday through September. The first Skylark Memory posts on August 30 at www.facebook.com/skylarkopera and on Vimeo. It’s our way of thanking you for making the wonderful memories from our Skylark productions possible.

Speaking of memories, here's one from Bob Neu, Skylark Opera Theatre’s Artistic Director: “My mind is filled with the memory of Skylark’s production of Franz Lehar's The Merry Widow starring Vicki Fingalson and Jeff Madison in 2010.

They are a multi-talented and happily-married couple whose outstanding talent is on par with their incredibly strong work ethic. The lead roles of Hanna and Danilo in The Merry Widow are difficult roles both musically and dramatically. Hanna and Danilo are a couple at war, who have a long history of an on-again-off-again romance. This is a tall order for any singing actor and I remember over and over again how hard Jeff and Vicki worked to fully explore and develop these complex characters. They had to call on all their acting skills in order to make these characters open, honest, acerbic, witty, funny and ultimately touching. I asked a lot of these two performers and I will always remember how hard they worked and how completely they delivered. This lives in my memory as one of my favorite and most fulfilling Skylark productions. And the next Hanna and Danilo I work with have some big shoes to fill!”

We love hearing about your memories of Skylark performances. Please share them with us. Our e-mail address is backstage@skylarkopera.org.

Skylark for Seniors is in the News

Skylark Opera’s series of Skylark for Seniors performances was featured in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune's lead arts article on August 22nd. Arts and culture reporter Jenna Ross reported on the efforts of arts organizations to reach isolated audiences during the coronavirus pandemic, musing whether or not those efforts will continue. The answer for Skylark is YES! Over 400 seniors have now enjoyed Skylark for Seniors performances that mix classical opera and music theater selections. We received community outreach funding from UCare that makes it possible for Skylark to schedule more performances into the fall.

Give to the Max Day Coming in November

Skylark Opera Theatre is thriving and continuing to offer our unique take on opera and music theater because of our wonderful donors and sponsors. We receive donations all year long and we are grateful to each and every one of you. Our donors know that ticket sales alone do not cover the expense of staging a production like Amahl and the Night Visitors in the beautiful Andy Boss Thrust Stage at Park Square Theatre or programs like Skylark for Seniors.

Give to the Max Day, coming up on November 18th, is another great opportunity to support Skylark Opera. We have a goal of raising $2,000. Promoting Skylark Opera Theatre as a great non-profit worthy of support among your friends who appreciate opera and music theater as much as you do will help us reach that goal.

We are looking for a corporate partner to match our fundraising goal so that your contribution on Give to the Max Day will double. Do you know of a business that would sponsor our challenge? We would love to talk with them. Our email address is backstage@skylarkopera.org

Skylark Connections

Skylark’s Artistic Director, Bob Neu, will be in Boise, ID in September and October directing Franz Lehar's The Merry Widow for Opera Idaho. Joining him will be Skylark alum Cecilia Violetta Lopez in the title role of Hanna. The Merry Widow, the tale of a fabulously wealthy woman’s quest for love, was a Skylark production in 2010.

Skylark board member Jack Neveaux put his theater talents to work this summer, first serving as the set designer for Seusssical the Musical by the 4Community Theater in July and then in August as a director for two of the six one-act plays (DMV Tyrant by Christopher Durang and Post Its by Paul Dooley) presented during the company’s first ever One Act Festival. The plays were staged outdoors in Maple Plain, Delano and Rockford parks.

Skylark alum Laurel Armstrong, in addition to performing in Skylark for Seniors this summer, is adding her talents to Hopscotch: Plays about the Future. This series of short, one-act plays from 10 local authors is presented by Wonderlust Productions and will be performed at two St. Paul parks--Frogtown Park and Farm on September 4 & 5 and at Newell Park on September 11 & 12. Bring your lawn chair or blanket and explore what a positive future might look like, all while being entertained by Twin Cities artists.

Another Skylark Connection, Jackson Atkins, our web support guru, participated in The Songwriters & Musicians of Carver County Vol. VII CD Release Concert & Art in the Park celebration August 22nd in Carver. The CD is released annually by the Art Consortium of Carver County to recognize and celebrate local songwriters. Jackson is a featured songwriter on the CD.