ASU Opera Comes To Blowing Rock

Appalachian State University Opera Theatre, part of the Mariam Cannon Hayes School of Music at ASU has teamed up with the Mariam & Robert Hayes Performing Arts Center, the Blowing Rock Stage Company, and the ASU School of Theatre and Dance to present two operas by Gian Carlo Menotti, The Telephone and The Medium. The program will be presented at the beautiful Mariam & Robert Hayes Performing Arts Center in Blowing Rock for four performances starting March 29.
This unique collaboration brings the acclaimed music and theatre educational programs of Appalachian State University, together with the professional talents of the High Country’s only professional theatre company and allows them to work together in the premiere performing arts venue in the area.
The Telephone, an opera buffa (or comedic opera), is the story of a young couple whose primary conflict involves this “wonderful” invention.  Lucy is obsessed with talking on the telephone, and Ben, her boyfriend who desperately wants to propose to her, can’t seem to capture her attention because of this obsession.
  The Medium could be described as a psychological drama. According to Menotti, “It describes the tragedy of a woman caught between two worlds, a world of reality, which she cannot wholly comprehend, and a super-natural world in which she cannot believe.".
  These productions feature outstanding singers from the ASU School of Music and will be fully staged by Dr. Joseph Amaya, professor of voice in the Mariam Cannon Hayes School of Music,with musical direction by Dr. Jim Anderson, director of orchestral activities in the School of Music. Scenic, Lighting and Costume design will be provided by the professional staff at the Blowing Rock Stage Company.
This production will be the first operas ever performed at the new Mariam & Robert Hayes Performing Arts Center, which has been acoustically designed to allow full enjoyment and natural sound enhancement for theatre, orchestra, vocal and opera performances.
Performances are Thursday through Saturday, March 29, 30, and 31 at 8:00 p.m., with a Sunday matinee, April 1 at 2 p.m., all at the Mariam and Robert Hayes Performing Arts Center at 152 Jamie Fort Road in Blowing Rock. Tickets are $18.00 for adults and $9.00 for students and can be purchased through the Hayes Center website at www.HayesCenter.org or by calling the box office at 828-295-9627.