News Release For immediate release New opera gets under way NCO schedules auditions for “Jorinda” The Amy Ferguson Institute announced recently that their production company, Nelson Community Opera (NCO), will hold auditions next month for the principal solo roles in their November, 2015 world premiere of the new Canadian opera, Jorinda, created by Nelson-­‐based composer, Doug Jamieson. Jamieson, who is also serving as the production’s musical director, explained that the auditions for the solo roles will take place on Saturday, November 22nd in Nelson. “We will only audition for the soloists at this time. Auditions for the chorus and also for puppeteers will be held in the Spring of 2015. Since Jorinda is scored for soprano, mezzo, contralto and tenor roles, baritones and basses are not required,” Jamieson noted. “As part of the audition, we will be asking singers to learn and perform segments from Jorinda as well as performing a song of their choice. More information about Jorinda including the music singers will be asked to learn for the audition can be downloaded from the “Productions” page on the AFI website at www.amyfergusoninstitute.ca,” Jamieson concluded. Producer, Marty Horswill, reported that planning and preparations for the production have been underway for several months and will move into active construction this fall, beginning with building the puppets which form the esthetic foundation for all the other elements of the production that will follow. “Doug Jamieson, the composer of Jorinda, and our musical director will be sharing the overall artistic director function with Geoff Burns, our stage director. They will both be on hand for the auditions,” Horswill said. “In addition to Doug and Geoff other members of our production team include: Simone Varey, puppet master and Dave Ingraham, lighting designer.” “Using puppets for an adult audience in a major production like an opera requires much more preparation than a simple “Punch and Judy” type puppet show” said puppet master, Simone Varey. “We are planning to use three different forms of puppet in the production and each of the major puppet characters may require several versions of each form. The show also requires a number of puppets for the minor characters in the story. When all the various puppets have been completed we can then begin the process of auditioning, training and rehearsing the corps of puppeteers needed to bring the puppets to life on the stage.” “We are taking a multi-­‐layered approach to the design of the opera,” stage director, Geoff Burns explained. “The use of puppets has allowed us to explore a variety of ways to use visual imagery to tell the story. The complex interaction of lighting, set design, projected images, and the puppets themselves give us a rich pallet with which to work. We hope this will complement the orchestra and vocals to create an intriguing and original experience,” Burns concluded. Singers wishing to audition for Jorinda should contact musical director, Doug Jamieson, at (250) 551-­‐2017 or by e-­‐mail at [email protected] by November 7th to schedule an audition time. -­‐ 30 -­‐ For further information contact: Marty Horswill, producer E-­‐mail: mar-­‐[email protected] Tel: 250-­‐352-­‐2595 www.amyfergusoninstitute.ca