When a creative team tells you their show is pop-and-punk-inspired, an opera by Rossini is not something that normally comes into one's mind. But that is exactly what the stage director Rachel Peake and set and costume designer Drew Facey wanted, and successfully achieved, with this season's Vancouver Opera In Schols (VOIS) tour Cinderella, while the delightful music of Rossini has fully blossomed under the flawless music direction of Kinza Tyrrell.
The tour van is shared by the stage manager Rebecca Craster, pianist Tina Chang, and singers (in the SATB order) Cat Affleck (the wickedly hilarious stepsister Clorinda and lending an arm to Tisbe), Erin Lawson (Cenerentola), Brian Lee (Prince Ramiro), and Joshua McFaul (Alidoro). Since there are only four singers in the ensemble, the role of Tisbe went to a puppet – with a full presence equal to its human counterparts. It even cat-fights with Clorinda! Sometimes magic does not require a wand. The ensemble simply enthralled the audience of the final dress rehearsal on September 11. The show is now on the road until the end of November.
~ Melissa Tsang, VOIS Manager
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