Madison residents take part in opera performance
Madison’s Tonya Ware and Lynn Wentworth both took part in Opera Mississippi’s recent performance of “Die Fledermaus!” and said it was great fun to work with such gifted individuals.
Ware and Wentworth were part of the ensemble cast of the show on April 22 at Thalia Mara Hall.
Ware, who also works as executive director for Leadership Greater Jackson and State Project Director of ReadyNation MS in Madison, said she decided to audition for Opera Mississippi after telling the leaders in her Business Mastermind class that she wanted to try a new genre of music.
“I’ve recorded both gospel and jazz albums in the past,” Ware said. “What an awesome experience it has been to connect with so many gifted individuals and to be part of the push to get people out to shows again. I love that metro Jackson has so much to offer and Opera Mississippi is surely a highlight.”
“Die Fledermaus!” is described as the 1800s meet the 1980s, and gets its title from a humiliatingly drunken incident involving a man named “Dr. Falke,” a character whose friends refer to him as “The Bat.”
The story of the opera follows Gabriel von Eisenstein, who has been sentenced to spend a short time in city jail. He has put off jail as long as he can, but his sentence must start before the end of the calendar year. It is now New Year’s Eve and he must fulfill his sentence.
However, Dr. Falke (The Bat), who its still seeking revenge from his past drunken incident, suggests that instead of going to jail, Eisenstein should attend a party at a famous Russian Prince’s home, without his wife, Rosalinda.
To make things even more complicated, Rosalinda shows up at the party disguised as a famous Hungarian Countess and tricks him into seducing her. In the end, everyone in the party winds up at the jail the next morning to make fun of Eisenstein for falling into the trap set by Rosalinda and “The Bat.”
Lynn Wentworth said he and his wife Patti joined Opera Mississippi in 2015 when their friends Bill and Bobbye Henley “made us an offer we could not refuse.”
“They offered us to become board members of Opera Mississippi and the Natchez Festival of Music,” Wentworth said. “Patti chose Natchez and I picked the opera. We have learned so much about the opera, and the dedication and discipline of the people who produce and perform in the opera arena. Not only have we been educated but we have great fun working with our fellow board members, singers, and performers.”