AUDITIONS / DC-area - Do you want to be part of a WORLD PREMIERE OPERA!? Do you love OPERETTA?

Do you want to be part of a WORLD PREMIERE OPERA!? Do you love OPERETTA?

The Forgotten Opera Company (Victorian Lyric Opera’s contemporary arm) presents AUDITIONS for a double bill of Arthur Sullivan’s Cox and Box, and the world premiere of a new one-act opera, Brides and Mothers, composed by D.C. native Sean Plueger with libretto by Laura Wehrmeyer Fuentes.

Director: Deborah Grossman / Music Director: Francine Krasowska

***All roles are OPEN and UNPAID***

AUDITIONS -- September 14, 3-6pm (appointment required)

LOCATION -- Bethesda Presbyterian Church, 7611 Clarendon Rd, Bethesda, MD 20814
SIGN UP -- https://www.theaterforms.com/FOC/CBBM/auditionform/
CALLBACKS -- September 15, 3-6pm (by invite only)
*Men (for Cox & Box), please prepare an aria by, or in the style of, Gilbert & Sullivan. Women (for Brides & Mothers), please prepare an aria and recitative from opera or operetta. Accompanist will be provided. Those auditioning for Cox and Box may be asked to read.

ABOUT THE SHOWS:

Cox and Box, or, The Long-Lost Brothers, is a one-act comic opera with a libretto by F. C. Burnand and music by Arthur Sullivan, based on the 1847 farce Box and Cox by John Maddison Morton. It was Sullivan's first successful comic opera.

James John Cox - BARITONE, renter
John James Box - TENOR, renter
Sergeant Bouncer - BASS, landlord

A relatable character study for the 21st century, Brides and Mothers looks at the complexity of mother/daughter relationships from a new angle. Sean and Laura’s previous collaboration, Do Not Disturb, was praised as “wonderfully witty”. Brides and Mothers, their third operatic collaboration, is poised to be a modern-day classic.

Bride 1, SOPRANO - Excited to host the event of a lifetime, with all the pictures to prove it.
Mother 1, MEZZO - Down-to-earth and practical. Doesn’t understand why her daughter needs to make such a fuss over herself.
Bride 2, MEZZO - Modest and understated. Marrying her girlfriend, very much in love.
Mother 2, SOPRANO - Image-conscious and hyper-feminine. Has always envisioned a traditional wedding with her daughter as the center of attention.

PRODUCTION SCHEDULE REHEARSALS: Rehearsals will be held in Takoma Park and downtown Bethesda
Approx. 2-3x per week, weeknight evenings, weekend afternoon - dates and times TBD
First day of rehearsal: TBD, possibly not until October.
TECH WEEK: November 2 - November 8 (~3 rehearsals, TBD: piano run, sitzprobe, dress rehearsal in Bethesda)
TECH DRESS: November 9, 2pm at the performance venue

PERFORMANCES:November 9 at 8pm and November 10 at 2pm

PERFORMANCE VENUE: MC Cultural Arts Center, 7995 Georgia Ave, Silver Spring, MD

DISCLOSURES:
* Singers will be expected to learn their parts on their own. Music rehearsals will be for putting parts together
* Actors may need to help move set pieces (furniture, screens)
* This production is accessible to actors who use a mobility device.
* Singers must be 18+

QUESTIONS: Visit www.vloc.org for more information or contact Denise Young via email victorianlyricopera@gmail.com or by phone at 301-576-5672

High School Students Do Better In Science, Math And English If They Also Take Music Lessons

FORBES
Jun 25, 2019

High School Students Do Better In Science, Math And English If They Also Take Music Lessons

Eva Amsen, Contributor, Science
Writing about the overlap of science and art

Schools are under constant pressure to make budget cuts, and music programs are often first on the chopping block. Now, an extensive study from the University of British Columbia in Canada shows that students who took music lessons in high school performed better in subjects such as English, science, and math.

A new study suggests that students who take music lessons in high school perform better at science, math and English. GETTY

The researchers collected data from over 100,000 students at public high schools across the province of British Columbia. This covered all the students who graduated between 2012 and 2015. More than 15,000 of them were taking music lessons during their time in high school.

Comparing the test scores of students who took music classes with those of their peers, the musicians got higher grades in a range of different school subjects. Research like this has been done before, but the current study is much larger, and took into account other factors that may have affected the results. For example, perhaps students who took music classes were encouraged to do so because they already had good grades. Or perhaps students were more or less inclined to study music depending on their socioeconomic background, which could also affect academic scores. The research team corrected for these factors in their data analysis, and they still found a clear effect of music lessons on academic performance.

Not only did music students perform better than non-musicians, but students who played an instrument did even better than those who sang. This could be related to the level of involvement with music. “Learning to play a musical instrument and playing in an ensemble is very demanding," says Martin Guhn, one of the researchers involved with the study, "A student has to learn to read music notation, develop eye-hand-mind coordination, develop keen listening skills, develop team skills for playing in an ensemble and develop discipline to practice.”

This is not the first study to link music lessons to school performance, but several of the previous studies didn’t correct for students’ prior performance or for socioeconomic background. One paper that’s often mentioned in the context of the link between music practice and academic success is a 2008 article showing that Nobel Laureates in the sciences were more likely to have a musical hobby than other people (including other scientists). But they collected data from a range of different sources that were very difficult to compare, and of course the group of Nobel Laureates was only small.

This UBC study, on the other hand, includes data from comparable groups - students of the same age in the same schools in the same geographical region - and rules out a number of other factors that could explain why music students performed better academically.

What this study doesn’t tell us, though, is why music makes these students perform better, but the research paper mentions a few possible explanations. Several studies link music practice with neurological changes that improves certain brain functions. This could explain how studying music affects memory or planning skills, for example. But the researchers also consider that there is a possible motivational factor: Students who take music lessons see a tangible result from practice - they get better - and they might apply that to their other work. And finally, the non-competitive team aspect of making music together could strengthen students’ social development, which would also help them in other areas.

Whatever the reasons may be, it seems like a good idea to continue to provide music education in high schools.

Eva Amsen
I’m a freelance science writer, focused on stories behind the research. My writing about the intersection of science, art and culture has appeared in Nautilus, The Scientist, Hakai Magazine and other places. I’ve also spent a decade working in science outreach and community engagement for academic groups and publishers. I have a MSc in Chemistry from VU University Amsterdam, a PhD in biochemistry from the University of Toronto, and a seat in the violin section of an amateur orchestra in London.

Two For A Song - Plus One! July 12 & 13, 2019

CREATIVE CAULDRON

2019 Summer Cabaret Series

"Two for a Song Plus One”

with Doug Bowles and Alex Hassan
and guest Jennifer Timberlake

Friday, July 12 at 8pm and Saturday, July 13 at 8pm

Doug Bowles and Alex Hassan are back at the Cauldron with more laughter, merriment, touching songs and stories from the Great American Song Book. Joined by actress and singer, Jennifer Timberlake, the warblers and pianoodler will introduce you to some amazing lost and forgotten songs of the 20s and 30s that may become your new favorites. You’ll likely want to sing along on a few beloved standards as well. 

Lauded by luminaries like Michael Feinstein, Vince Giordano, Ethan Morrden, and movie critic Leonard Maltin, and featured around the globe and in broadcasts of NPR and the BBC, they are sure to please with their virtuosic and spirited interpretations of this exciting American musical style. 

Two nights with distinctly different flavors – perhaps tickets to both? 

“You Can’t Go Wrong with Two for a Song!"

BUY TICKETS

Creative Cauldron, 410 South Maple Avenue, Falls Church, VA 22046