The Elixir of Love

September 19 & 21, 2014
George White Studio at Pittsburgh Opera

Maria Sensi Sellner, Artistic Director & Conductor
Andrew Nienaber, Stage Director

​Cast: Lindsay Ohse, Christopher Lucier, Patrick McNally, Kevin Glavin, Rebecca Shorstein

​WINNER of the 2015 AMERICAN PRIZE for Opera Performance

"...the most fun at an opera you will ever have!... Stage director Andrew Nienaber has cleverly set the opera in a 1950s nightclub called “Adina’s Cabaret.” A portion of the audience members sit at café tables (light snacks provided, cash bar in the lobby), the orchestra is arranged like a big band, and the ensemble, dressed in black and white, doubles as the cabaret’s waiters and waitresses. There is a small stage with a microphone, but otherwise the nightclub setting is the set. The majority of the action takes place in, around, and at the tables. The result is utterly, fabulously engaging: the energetic young cast swirls among the tables, interacting and flirting with members of the audience, and using not only music and voice but also body language and facial expression to create vivid, playful characters.... A number of playful touches raise the production’s fun factor... But above all, it’s our immersion in the action that makes the evening such a delight. Now that I’ve experienced it, I want ALL my opera to come in surround sound."  - W. Arons, The Pittsburgh Tatler