Alberta Vocal Arts hosting it’s New Year tradition operetta, Johann Strauss’s Die Fledermaus

It's difficult to start a holiday tradition, but nonetheless, that’s exactly what Alberta Vocal Arts has been trying to do for the past three years.

For the third year in a row all the same performers are back for Alberta Vocal Arts’ annual production of Die Fledermaus written by Johann Strauss.

Artistic and executive director Kathleen Morrison says the operetta changes slightly each year to keep it fresh for Calgary audiences.

“It’s kind of like a musical but for opera so there’s spoken dialogue in English and our sung pieces are in German,” she said.

“Basically, it’s the story of Eisenstein and his wife,” she added. “He’s going to jail, her lover’s arriving, everyone’s getting a lighthearted revenge -- they all end up at a party, they drink too much champagne and they all end up happily ever after.”

Intimidating art form

Morrison knows opera can be intimidating for some but the cast helps the audience understand what the story is about before the production.

“We do a pre-show chat beforehand, we tell you what to listen for, what’s going to happen, what you’re going to see and tell you who are all the players involved and what they’re doing,” said Morrison.

“People have told us that our productions are iconic and that they didn’t expect to have as much fun as they did at the opera,” she added, “so we’re really starting to change people’s minds and I think that this is really going to be a strong tradition.”

Aaron Durand plays Frank and says while the cast only have a short time to rehearse, he wouldn’t miss it.

“Best way to start off a new year surely,” he said. “It’s so fun, we’re able to play off each other in some incredible ways purely because we know each other so well.”

Rare English opera

Durand says it rare to perform in English on stage for an opera. He’s used to many other languages.

“You get German, you get French, you get Italian, especially Italian,” he said. “I’ve done Czech, I’ve done Russian, even a little bit of Mandarin.”

Durand says supporting the arts in hard economic times is important for everyone in the community.

“Like the old saying goes, food makes hunger - it’s not the other way around,” he said. “So what Kathleen is doing here is cooking and cooking consistently and more people gather around and that’s what creates human culture -- so this is deeply enriching, in my opinion, for the city and I would love to see other cities and other companies do the same.”

Honouring Strauss’s vision

Calgary Vocal Arts music director Carlos Foggin said Die Fledermaus was first performed in 1874 and it’s his job to make sure that the production doesn’t vary much from what Strauss originally intended.

“I wish we were back in that time honestly, with no phones and no TV,” he said. “When this was the only entertainment, this was the TV, this was the Netflix at the time.

“Now we live with headphones and earbuds so (an operetta) that’s not paying minuscule pennies to artists and is actually live (that) the (audience) can react to in real time is a real blessing for both the musicians and for the singers on stage.”

This year’s production is at the Heather Edwards Theatre at Contemporary Calgary that seats close to 200 and performer Jason Cook says it’s a treat to see the audience while he’s on stage.

“You do feel that more connection with the audience,” he said. “That really drives that performance forward, you get to see the reaction or that joke landed or that emotion landed.”

Die Fledermaus runs January 8-10, with tickets available for $30 each.

“I want to bring opera to the people,” said Morrison. “I know it’s tough out there, but in times when they are tough, you need beautiful art so we’re lucky to have a lot of supporters.

“We’re lucky to have lots of grants and support from the government and our local government as well so that I can keep the ticket prices down.”

Learn more about the production here.