New opera company reviving a genre
IT IS NO secret opera isn’t very popular these days, but that isn’t stopping the folks at Opera Undressed from trying to appeal to a new and younger audience with a modern take on classical music.
“In the audience you look around and pretty much 79 per cent of them have grey hair,” says Chrissy Shannon, producer and co-founder of Opera Undressed.
“No one in our generation likes classical music unless they are classical musicians. The general population is not interested anymore.”
The project began when Shannon and her friend, Noosa Al-Sarraj, were in a rock cover band together. At the time, Al-Sarraj was in law school, but she decided to put school on hold when Shannon encouraged her to start singing opera again.
“That way, [she] could revive her passion for this genre and make it exciting for [those] friends who never supported the cause, because nobody cares about classical music,” says Shannon.
Growing up, Shannon was aware her interest in classical music was unusual for someone so young, but her passion for the music and ability to understand what about opera is so unappealing to her peers are what’s driven Opera Undressed forward.
Banding a group of artists together, including visual artist Ariane Beauchamp and pianist Nick Rogerson, Opera Undressed’s mandate is to remedy the genre’s current state and create intriguing, engaging shows.
“[We] started collaborating and created a program that would be exciting for people to watch [who] wouldn’t ever go and buy tickets for an opera, and certainly wouldn’t go see a classical recital in a church. So our shtick is: ‘Instead of drinking grape juice from a church pew, you can enjoy a pint from a bar stool while you watch our show’,” explains Shannon.
The assortment of artists allows Opera Undressed to provide more than a musical performance, which they hope will draw in bigger crowds.
“Last time [during the show Beauchamp] had white drapes around [the models’] waists and she would paint on their physical bodies and on the drapes and it was just a beautiful, live painting show,” explains Shannon.
The group experimented with venues in order to create a vibe that will attract a younger audience.
“We did a summer series. We actually did it at the [U of O] in Tabaret Hall,” explains Shannon.
“This time we decided to try Fat Tuesdays, which is a bar in the market. We decided to try [it] because it’s a good venue to have dinner and drinks and it’s very casual.”
Opera Undressed is also attempting to break down the barriers that prevent young people from appreciating opera and classical music by looking at ways other companies have adapted their shows to suit a new audience. They’ve partially modelled themselves after other performances that use digital screens to break down the language barrier.
“[Al-Sarraj] will be performing some [of the songs in] their original languages, but there is also modern opera, which is in English. I translated the pieces for the program, so the theme is going to be very clear, plus you’ll have the translation.”
Opera Undressed has altered the typical organization of a classical music production. Operas are usually performed with one composer’s works and done in one time period, but this production company has decided to abandon that rule.
“The first part of the performance has to do with sex and love, so we picked songs from 300 years to songs that were composed within the last 50 years, just because they sound a certain way and evoke a certain emotion.”
Check out Opera Undressed at Fat Tuesdays on Nov. 27 and Dec. 1.
—Written by Elena Armenakis,with files from Sofia Hashi
