Event Details
Saturday, October 12, 2019 | 8:00 p.m.
2019 Paderewski Lecture-Recital, feat. 3 Paderewskis
Alfred Newman Recital Hall, USC (see AHF on campus map)
3616 Trousdale Pkwy, Los Angeles, CA
Admission is FREE and open to the public (no RSVP needed)
Campus Parking: $14 – enter USC at McCarthy Way Gate, off of Figueroa St. just South of Jefferson Blvd. (Parking Structure X)
2019 Paderewski Lecture-Recital
3 PADEREWSKIS
An opera in One Act
Synopsis: At his grave, we meet three versions of Paderewski (one of them female): Ignacy the virtuoso pianist/composer, Jan the politician/founder of the Polish nation, and Paderewski the éminence grise / Paso Robles winemaker. Coming together and pulling apart, sifting through a lifetime of memories far too large for any one person, they summon the ghost of Antonina, their beloved long-dead first wife. In so doing, they summon the spirit of Poland itself. A compassionate opera about a man who changed the world not only through his music but through pure passion for life, whose memory instructs our own moment of political and moral crisis.
For this year’s Paderewski Lecture-Recital, the Polish Music Center has the great pleasure to present the latest draft of 3 Paderewskis, a new one-act opera hybrid created by playwright Oliver Mayer and composer Jenni Brandon, and directed by David Bridel.
Conceived of as part of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute’s Paderewski Musical Project in 2017, 3 Paderewskis celebrates the legacy of Ignacy Jan Paderewski as not only one of the world’s most famous turn-of-the-century musicians and a great patriot who was instrumental in returning Poland to the map after WWI, but also a husband, wine maker and lover of life. The PMC has supported this bold new opera throughout its development, from initial subject research to several draft performances at the Paderewski Festival in Paso Robles. Now in its full 60-minute iteration, 3 Paderewskis will be first performed at USC in Los Angeles on October 12 alongside a discussion with creators Mayer and Brandon, before it moves on to premieres in Poznań, Poland and at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.
Interweaving the complexities of Polish music and history with gorgeous original composition and reflections on modern political realities, 3 Paderewskis is a journey not to be missed—join us on October 12, 2019 at 8:00 p.m. at USC’s Newman Recital Hall for this exciting premiere event.
Artists
Creative Team:
Librettist – Oliver Mayer (USC School of Dramatic Arts, Associate Dean)
Composer – Jenni Brandon (USC Thornton School of Music, non-degreed alumna)
Director – David Bridel (USC School of Dramatic Arts, Dean)
Performers:
Antonina (Soprano): Katherine Powers
Ignace (Mezzo-Soprano): Maria Dominique Lopez
Jan (Tenor): Todd Strange
Paderewski (Baritone): Steve Pence
Chorus: Ariel Pisturino, Courtney Taylor, Omar Crook, E. Scott Levin
Ensemble: Central4 Piano Quartet
Producers:
Mark Seldis & Ian-Juan Williams
Crew:
Stage Manager: Seira Murakami
Costume Designer: Edina Hiser
Rehearsal Accompanist: Ron Barnett
Co-producers
This presentation is commissioned by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute and presented in collaboration with the Kosciuszko Foundation. Co-financing is provided by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland as part of the multi-annual program NIEPODLEGŁA 2017-2022. This project was originally commissioned in cooperation with the Adam Mickiewicz Institute as part of the international cultural program POLSKA 100 accompanying Poland’s centenary of regaining independence.
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