photographs by Barry Wisdom |   Smokey Robinson may not have been singing about the titular character of Giuseppe Verdi's 19th-century opera "Rigoletto" in his and the Miracles' "The Tears of a Clown," but the hunchbacked court jester rivals Pagliacci as one of least funniest fools in popular culture – ranking right up there with Ashton Kutcher. Mean and prone to mockery, Rigoletto has earned few fans in the court of the Duke of Mantua. When the Duke becomes enamored of Rigoletto's daughter, Gilda, the clown stops mocking and starts plotting to do away with Gilda's sleazy suitor. What follows is a series of twists and turns en route to a three-tissue finale. For a complete synopsis,

For ballet enthusiasts and those new to the experience, this is one presentation that should not be missed. Ron Cunningham’s “The Nutcracker” is a traditional interpretation of the ballet he’s been directing for 24 years in Sacramento. Visually stunning sets create the scene for a ballet performance that will delight young and old alike. Accompanied by the Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra, this holiday classic boasts performers of all ages, with over 500 children, including Molly O’Dell,10, playing Clara. O’Dell’s enthusiasm is infectious as she, along with her Nutcracker Prince, takes the journey from a joyous Christmas Eve into an enchanting dreamland. The first act is charming and

Marc Feldman resigned as executive director of the Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra on June 9. Following his resignation, Feldman and the Philharmonic have released official statements, which can be found below. Former Sacramento Philharmonic Executive Director Jane Hill is returning as interim director July 5. She retired in 2007 after about five years with the Philharmonic, the organization’s financial officer, Marta Quinn, said. Feldman also worked at the Philharmonic for about five years, starting in 2007 before Hill left. A native New Yorker, Feldman spent much of the last two decades working as a bassoonist and concert organizer in France, Italy, Portugal, Canada and the United

The Sacramento Opera exceeded its funding goal of collecting $122,000 in individual donations by Thursday night, and the upcoming season is no longer in jeopardy. “It’s a go,” said Rod Gideons, General Director for the opera company. “We did just over $135,000, so we were really, really pleased.” Approximately $39,000 in additional donations is needed to see the season out, but Gideons said he is confident that will be raised, and the company has the course of the season – which stretches into 2012 – to raise those funds. “Most likely, when we send out our subscription renewal forms, that’s when we’ll get that,” he said, adding that those forms will likely go out at the end of the month

The Sacramento Opera managed to collect more than $20,000 in gift pledges from private donors over the weekend, bringing the total funding needed for next season to $14,642. “I’m very hopeful that we’ll collect the rest,” said Sacramento Opera General Director Rod Gideons. “We just put out the word, and people have really been responding.” The board of directors will decide Thursday if enough money has been raised to proceed with the coming season, Gideons said. So far, $117,358 has been pledged. After canceling its last two shows of the season – “The Magic Flute” and “The Postman Always Rings Twice” – the opera is trying to raise enough of the $175,000 it needs in order to ensure the

Representatives of the Sacramento Opera unveiled their plan for saving the company in a presentation Thursday night for supporters of the only professional opera in the Sacramento region. Rod Gideons, Sacramento Opera general director, and Michael Nelson, president of the board of directors, shared the stage at Antiquité Maison Privée in Midtown. During the two-hour presentation, they outlined “what’s happened, what’s changed and what’s next” for the Sacramento Opera. “We have no cash reserves, no endowment, and we’ve been entirely dependent on ticket sales up to this point,” Gideons told the audience of more than 60 opera subscribers and supporters. If something doesn’t happen – and ha

The Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra's (SPO) performance of “Basically Beethoven” took place at the Community Center Theatre on Saturday night. On an almost clear night with a full moon shining, aficionados made their way to the theatre with their path illuminated by the bright light of the moon. Marc Feldman, Executive Director, of the SPO came on stage to welcome the audience. After thanking the SPO Board of Directors and Target for their season sponsorship he thanked the Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission for their sponsorship of the evening’s concert. Feldman went on to say “The Sacramento Philharmonic over the last few years has brought many artists from around the world to p

The Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra (SPO) hosted a Dress Rehearsal of the French Flair concert at the Sacramento Community Center Theatre. The rehearsal, called Backstage Jazz Bistro, was held on Friday night and the French Flair concert played on Saturday January 22. Guests were greeted as they entered the Community Center. A few of us were greeted by Judee Daniels, CFRE, Director of Development for the Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra. We were told we could sit anywhere and watch the rehearsal. Somebody mentioned that a good area to sit was around row O. Judee gave more instructions to turn our cell phones off. “Enjoy the performance; you’ll be hearing more about what’s happening bac

Kicking off its 10th year, the Sacramento French Film Festival has invited French composer Raymond Alessandrini to direct an orchestral accompaniment for its first film/concert, which will be performed by the Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra. “It’s something we’ve never done before. It’s quite exceptional,” said French Film Festival Executive and Artistic Director Cécile Downs. The show will be held at the Crest Theatre on Jan. 29 and 30. “It’s a very big event for us,” Downs said. “We (often) have guests, but usually they are just coming to present a film that is already finished. Having the composer of the score coming is more exceptional.” The film to be shown is a 1928 silent film

For the Sacramento French Film Festival, 2011 is a milestone year: one of the most acclaimed film festivals in town will celebrate its 10th year. This special anniversary will be held at the Crest Theatre on June 17-26 but the team of the SFFF has planned other events to make 2011 the year of French cinema in Sacramento and it all starts this month with a prestigious and one-of-a-kind “Cinema-Concert”, featuring a silent comedy with live orchestra. On January 29th and 30th, The SFFF will bring to Sacramento the North-American Premiere of Un Chapeau de Paille d'Italie (An Italian Straw Hat), directed by renowned French filmmaker René Clair, with a new musical score. For this first-time eve

Photographs by Barry Wisdom   Whether you’re continuing a lifelong Christmastime tradition or you’re a new “Black Swan” fan who’s come late to the ballet-appreciation party, there is something for everyone in Sacramento Ballet’s alternatingly funny and passionate, but always mesmerizing and magical “The Nutcracker,” which opened Friday evening at the Sacramento Community Center Theater. Blessed with live accompaniment of Tchaikovsky’s familiar score by the spectacular Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra, there is much that can be considered divine about this delicious holiday chestnut. In addition to philharmonic director Henrik Jul Hansen’s sure baton, reasons to leap for joy include Sa

Sacramento’s Community Center Theater hosted the opening of the 14th season of the Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra. Guests for the opening night, dressed in proper attire, were eager to kick off another year of great music entertainment. The show for the night was entitled Fire and Romance. For this opening night an outreach was made to the Armenian, Ukrainian and Russian communities by featuring music from their rich cultural heritage. The evening’s concert was a great kick-off to the 2010-2011 season. Mr. Michael Morgan was the conductor for the evening. Making his Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra (SPO) debut was violinist Mikhail Simonyan. Ola Herasymenko Oliynyk, playing the bandu

The Sacramento Opera presented Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata to a full house Friday night at the Community Center Theater. From the opening number, the audience was captivated by lead Karen Slack (soprano), who played Violetta Valery, and Alexander Boyer (tenor), who played Alfredo Germont. Conducted by Timm Rolek, the Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra accompanied the cast in the two-and-a-half-hour performance. Slack and Boyer's voices complemented each other, bringing the dramatic storyline to life. La Traviata follows Valery, a courtesan, and Germont, a respectable young man, as they fall in love and later feel the pain of being torn apart by Alfredo's father, Giorgio Germont, played

The Sacramento Opera will present the famous, heart-wrenching opera La Traviata at the Sacramento Community Center Theater Friday. The popular opera was written in the mid-1800s by Giuseppe Verdi, who based his tale off the widely successful novel, La Dame Aux Camélias, by Alexandre Dumas. Though Dumas's book is written as a tragedy, adaptations of the novel, such as with La Traviata and recent films "Camille" and "Pretty Women," have been retold as a love story. La Traviata is a romantic play set in the 19th century following the relationship of well-born gentlemen Alfredo Germont, played by Tenor Alexander Boyer, who is in love with a beautiful courtesan named Violetta Valéry, played