Rehearsals Start Today!

Rehearsals for A Synonym for Love start today!! Somehow Ross, Ashiq and the team are going to turn this:

...into something you want to watch.

Break legs everyone!!

Maquettes!

Check out what our designer Julie Fox has in store for The Gladstone with A Synonym for Love:

Julie and the Volcano team commandeering
 the Melody Bar for a maquette showcase

Can you guess where in The Gladstone this will be?
It's not in one of the bedrooms...

Rough night...yeesh.

How about this one? Again, not in one of the bedrooms...

A man and a woman walk into a hotel...

Call for Volunteers!

Volcano and Classical Music Consort are looking for volunteers to help present A Synonym for Love at The Gladstone Hotel, and to get this site-specific opera moving.

We need volunteers to help us out with:

• box office
• front of house
• ushering
• production assistance/running crew
• harpsichord security (actually, though)

We'll need people helping on these pre-show dates:

• Friday, August 3 | 10:30am - 11:30am for a walkthrough
• Thursday, August 16 | 9:00am - 6:00pm for set up and tech rehearsal
• Friday, August 17 | 10:00am - 6:00pm for set up and tech rehearsal
• Half days on the 16th and 17th work for us too: 9:00/10:00am - 1:00pm or 2:00pm - 6:00pm

We'll also need help during the run, 5:00pm - 9:00pm on:

• Sunday, August 19 - Friday, August 24
• Sunday, August 26 - Friday, August 31

To register your interest in volunteering, please contact Volcano's Associate Producer, Meaghan Davis, at meaghan@volcano.ca. Include your full name, contact telephone number (mobile preferred, if you have one), the position(s) you're interested in, and all your available dates. If you can volunteer more than once, that'd be FANTASTIC!

All volunteers are eligible for a $40 credit for a 2012/13 Volcano training event, including inFORMING CONTENT and the 2012 Volcano Conservatory.

We hope you can help us out!!

A Ménage à Trois at The Gladstone

Volcano and CMC hosted an intimate Ménage à Trois at The Gladstone this weekend in support of the premiere of A Synonym for Love in August. The event featured very special guests Deepa Mehta, Russell Smith, and Andréa Tyniec, and a special sneak peek at the show with soprano Tracy Smith Bessette and music director Ashiq Aziz.

We'll have video of the performances posted soon. In the meantime, enjoy the photo highlights!

Soprano Tracy Smith Bessette and music director Ashiq Aziz
perform an aria from A Synonym for Love

Ross Manson, Deepa Mehta, and Russell Smith getting
excited about love triangles

Ross, Deepa, and Russell address the crowd

Violinist Andrea Tyniec

Russell Smith gives a lesson on love triangles between Surrealists

At The Gladstone

Ashiq's harpsichord...a beautiful instrument to get you in the mood

Photography by Julius Tapper.

Side Note: "Oh dang, it's singing."

A Synonym for Love is Volcano's first opera, so reading this article from the CBC about a Grade 5 class' first foray into the genre really struck a chord (pun!).

 

"This opera has done things for my class that I never expected," [teacher Susan] Reschny said. "In the last three months I have noticed an incredible change in how they address education. First of all, they take risks, they are not afraid of making mistakes, they go for it in the areas that are most challenging for them. They feel that they are a team, they feel that they support each other, and it has gone into every aspect of their education."

Read the full article here.

Early Bird Discounts!

Tickets are on sale for A Synonym for Love and we want to make sure as many people as possible can afford to see it:

DISCOUNTED SHOWS

August 21 & 22
$20 Under 30/Seniors/CAEA/CADA using the promo code OPERA30
$25 General Admission using the promo code GLADADV1

August 23 & 24
$25 Under 30/Seniors/CAEA/CADA using the promo code OPERAHAN
$35 General Admission using the promo code GLADADV2

Click here to book today.

Ticket holders must show ID at the door to claim the Under 30/Senior/CAEA/CADA discount.

Make a Night of It!

One the perks of site-specific performance is spending time in one of Toronto's hottest culture and hospitality venues.

The Gladstone boasts 37 artist-designed hotel rooms and fantastic bars and restaurants. A Synonym for Love ticket buyers can enjoy the best of what the hotel has to offer with pre-fixe dinner packages and room-booking discounts throughout the run of the show.

Pre-order a pre-fixe meal for before or after the performance, and book a room for only $169+tax. Visit the Tickets page of this blog for more details, or go to brownpapertickets.com and book now!