Puccini on the Brooklyn Waterfront
For Immediate Release
Date: August 1, 2007

Vertical Player Repertory
presents
IL Tabarro
an opera in one act by Giacomo Puccini

Performed on the deck of the historic oil tanker The Mary A. Whalen . Hosted by American Stevedoring Inc. At the Red Hook Marine Terminal, 70 Hamilton Avenue, corner of Hamilton Ave. and Van Brunt Street, Brooklyn, NY 11231

Performance Dates: Friday, September 7; Sunday, September 9; Friday,
September 14; Sunday, September 16, 2007. Rain dates: Saturday, September 8 & Saturday September 15

All performances start at sundown, approximately 7:00 PM. Opera admission $25
Cash bar available on the pier before and after the performance.

PortSide New York offers a Sunset Reception on the pier before each performance. Artisanal Food, Wine + Beer from Tini Winebar Café of Red Hook. Reception tickets benefit PortSide NewYork.
Time: 5:00 - 7:00 PM
Reception tickets: $35

Directions and Tickets for both events available through Smarttix (smarttix.com); 212 868 4444
 

Vertical Player Repertory (VPR), in collaboration with PortSide NewYork, presents Il Tabarro , Giacomo Puccini's steamy maritime opera about adultery and murder, in a site-specific production on the Brooklyn waterfront. The opera will be staged on the deck of the Mary A. Whalen , a retired oil tanker, and hosted by American Stevedoring Inc., operator of the Red Hook container port.

Il Tabarro is a searing portrait of the troubled marriage of a ship's captain and his restless wife. The psychologically acute libretto dramatizes the lives of the rough, hardworking people of the waterfront. Michele, the captain of the barge, is tormented by his young wife Giorgetta's coldness to him following the loss of their child. Giorgetta blames Michele for the harsh conditions of her life, and seeks escape in the arms of the stevedore Luigi. Evoking the endlessly rocking waves and the restless monotony of life on the river, Puccini's hypnotic score builds layer upon layer to the explosive, tragic climax.

VPR's production, set in Brooklyn and staged on the deck of the Mary Whalen in Red Hook, offers a dimension that cannot be found in any opera house: the excitement and mystique of a real working port. W ith stevedores and professional opera singers sharing the stage, surrounded by views of gantry cranes, containers, the lumber port, passing vessel traffic and a spectacular view of Governor's Island and the lower Manhattan skyline, this will be an unforgettable on-site experience for audience and performers alike.

VPR music director Peter Szep conducts the Vertical Puccini Orchestra. Beth Greenberg of The New York City Opera directs, with costumes by Dixie Rich. Judith Barnes, artistic director of VPR, described as “a young singer with an actress' sensibilities” in a Classical Singer Magazine review of VPR's production of Il Tabarro in 2006, sings the role of Giorgetta. Georgian baritone Zurab Ninua, who made his operatic debut at the Tbilisi State Opera House in Tchaikovsky's Queen of Spades, returns to VPR to reprise the role of Michele. In his company debut, tenor Christian Šebek, praised by The New York Times for a voice of “startling volume and richness” sings the demanding role of Luigi. Featured performers include Twila Ehmcke as Frugola, Aram Tchobanian as Tinca, Peter Ludwig as Talpa, and Heather Green as the young lover.

Vertical Player Repertory (VPR) came to prominence in The New York Times 2003 feature article, "Never Say Die in Indie Opera" written by opera critic Anne Midgette. Offering fully staged opera in alternative settings, with an emphasis on theatrical integrity and unconventional staging, VPR "has developed a following for its intense performances of unusual works." (The New York Times)

Since VPR's sold-out production of Il Tabarro in its intimate theatre last season (hailed by The New York Times for “some serious singing”), VPR has sought a way to stage this opera outdoors on the Brooklyn waterfront. PortSide NewYork, a young waterfront-themed non-profit in Red Hook, has provided the solution: the Mary A. Whalen , a retired oil tanker docked at the Red Hook Marine Terminal, one of the last container ports in New York City.

Carolina Salguero, Director of PortSide NewYork says “Hosting Il Tabarro fulfills one of our core missions—bringing together the marine industry and its inland neighbors. We seek creative ways to make the marine industry an attraction, so we were thrilled when VPR called, and even more thrilled that their plan to update this presentation would include 20th century maritime relevance.”

Based aboard the Mary A. Whalen , PortSide NewYork runs a diverse array of programs related to the waterfront. PortSide's plans include the conversion of the Whalen's cargo tanks to exhibition and function space, a larger maritime museum ashore and NYC's first maritime heritage trail. PortSide creates and hosts the only calendar of cultural activities in Red Hook and annually hosts NYC's only Kayak Valet event. Ultimate plans include moving the Whalen around the city with mobile programming events.

“American Stevedoring is proud to help the Vertical Player Repertory Opera and PortSide NewYork bring these performances to the Brooklyn Waterfront,” says Evan Thies, spokesperson for American Stevedoring, Inc.  “Ensuring public use of the waterfront and using it as a way to bring community together are priorities of ASI.  The use of our dock and this tanker to create a cultural space are an excellent example of how industry and community can co-exist in Brooklyn—and how we can use the waterfront to its full potential.”