Harry T. Wilks Artistic Director Evans Mirageas calls Charles Parsons a “lifelong ambassador to the Opera.” Parsons began attending Cincinnati Opera productions in 1952, when the company was called Cincinnati Summer Opera and performed at the Cincinnati Zoo, at the age of eleven. Later in his life, he wrote A Celebration of Cincinnati Opera, a book which chronicles the history of this company from its very beginnings. This episode is in memory of Charles Parsons, who passed away on July 20, 2018 at the age of 77.
Show notes:
Aida, Madama Butterfly, The Barber of Seville were featured in the 1952 season
Parsons references Samson et Delilah with Claramae Turner & Kurt Baum
Parsons tells a legend involving Kurt Baum in a Metropolitan Opera production of Il Trovatore
Parsons references Act II of Tosca (“Quanto?”)
Fausto Cleva was the conductor of Cincinnati Summer Opera for 29 years at the Zoo
Lucia di Lammermoor was performed in Cincinnati Opera’s 1954 season
Parsons mentions The Medium by Gian Carlo Menotti
Alms Hotel is a historic Cincinnati hotel (and now a residential apartment building)
Parsons mentions the Vienna State Opera Ballet performing Bartok’s The Miraculous Mandarin with the Cincinnati Symphony during the Opera’s season at the Cincinnati Zoo
Sherrill Milnes, baritone
The tenor Parsons criticizes is named Eddy Ruhl
Sea Thorn by Henry Humphreys is based on the story of Phaedra
Parson quotes a section from George Santayana’s A Sense of Beauty
Nell Rankin, mezzo-soprano
Anthony Stivenelo provided costumes for many Opera productions in the Zoo days
The Magic Flute at the Zoo featured sets from Indiana University
L'amore dei tre re ("The Love of the Three Kings") is an opera by Italo Montemezzi
Parsons’ recommended operas:
Best opera to start: Carmen
Best opera for its simplicity: Madama Butterfly
Best opera to portray everyday life: La Bohème
Parsons is currently rereading the complete works of T.S. Eliot
Parsons enjoys watching the National Geographic, SyFy and Food Network channels
Parsons enjoys Thanksgiving at The Golden Lamb in Lebanon, OH
Parsons enjoyed learning Gregorian chant at CCM (University of Cincinnati, College-Conservatory of Music)