Padraic Costello, countertenor (credit: Gary Payne, 2014)
Three Music Department members spent their summer singing with Opera NEO, a program for developing young artists in San Diego, California.
Soprano Martina Bingham, lecturer in music, voice, and UH alumna, sang the role of Second Lady in Mozart’s The Magic Flute, in a production that transformed the ladies into figures from the Spanish Inquisition. Guarding the fortress as Armored Guard was baritone Anthony Feliciano (BM, Voice, in progress). Countertenor Padraic Costello (MM, Voice Performance; MA, Ethnomusicology, in progress) sang the role of Ottone in Handel’s Agrippina. Although Agrippina tells a story that is centuries old, Opera NEO’s clever contemporary interpretation demonstrated just how easily the political turmoil of the past can be translated into our world today.
Students studying in UH Mānoa’s voice area enjoy a variety of standard and specialized courses in vocal literature, pedagogy, and performance; in addition, offerings like Hawaiian Chorus and Hawaiian Hula and Chant provide our students with world-class experiences beyond the Western tradition, unique to our Pacific Rim location. University faculty and students enjoy a rich tradition of professional sacred and secular performance opportunities and appear regularly with organizations like Hawai‘i Opera Theatre, Diamond Head Theater, and Hawai‘i Symphony Orchestra. Many of our students also participate in Hawai‘i Opera Theatre’s Mae Zenke Orvis Opera Studio, a training program for young artists.