aiir Daily Uar Mrrl
Bringing opera to the masses
Festivals shows are
varied, affordable
BY BENNETT CAMPBELL
SENIOR WRITER
When opera is the topic of dis
cussion. names like Wagner. Mozart
and Verdi all come to mind.
But while Europeans have long
dominated the art form, each sum
mer Chapel Hill and Carrboro host
an event that brings opera closer to
home —and perhaps makes it easier
for local residents to understand.
The Long Leaf Opera Festival,
which began Wednesday and runs
until June 29. presents its annual
series of English-language operas,
focusing on American composers.
The events are hosted by UNC's
Memorial and Gerrard halls and
the Arts Center in Carrboro.
“Not only do we tell our stories
in English, hut we tell American
stories," said Jim Schaeffer, Long
Leafis executive director. “The opera
‘Regina’ that we open with is about
the post-Civil War South and the
problems of greed and over-ambition
that can tear families apart. That's
something we still see today, with
examples like Enron and Tyco."
The festival will feature the
works of eight American composers
whose stories all have the potential
to hit home with audiences previ
ously unfamiliar with opera.
Ricky lan (Gordon’s “Orpheus and
Euridice" is a prime example. His
version of the classic Greek myth
features N.C. native Elizabeth Futral
iis Euridice, who succumbs to a mys
terious disease. Orpheus is played by
Gram my-nominated clarinetist Todd
Palmer, who originally asked Gordon
to compose a piece for him.
“I was caring for a lover who was
sick, so it was a difficult time, and
I couldn't really come up with any
thing." Gordon said.
“But finally one night 1 was
sleeping and I woke up at one in
the morning and had an image of
Todd as Orpheus. I ran to the dining
Focus goes to general election
BY DEVIN ROONEY
STATE & NATIONAL EDITOR
Hillary Clintons Saturday con
cession in the Democratic primary
contest has opened the door for the
general election to begin.
Barack Obama can now cam
paign directly against John
McCain, unfettered by the throes
of an epic primary contest.
Most experts expect the race to
focus more intently on the political
issues at the heart of the election.
UNC political science professor
Tom Carsey, said he thinks the cam
paign will change in two ways.
“The campaign will move for
ward on two fronts," he said. "It will
focus on policy differences but it’s
also going to focus more contin
ue to focus more broadly on change
versus not change."
The substantive policy differ
ences between McCain and Obama
will allow for a more digestible dis
course about those issues.
“Obama will be speaking about
these issues in terms of change in a
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CONTRIBUTION f ROM THE LONG LEAf OPERA
Grammy-nominated Todd Palmer performs as Orpheus (with clarinet) in "Orpheus and Euridice." The opera
also features North Carolina native and soprano Elizabeth Futral, as well as Doug Varone and Dancers.
room table and started writing out
this story with Orpheus as a reed
player and Euridice dying of a mys
terious virus."
Stories like that of Gordons, along
with the accessibility of the operas,
an* w hy organizers said attendance
has climbed every year since the fes
tival was founded in 1999.
i-i, i ;
high brow kind of thing, all the
European operas, that only the
wealthy could attend - that was a
major stumbling block for regular
people." said Long Leafs founding
music director Benjamin Keaton.
“We felt that American and
English composers were being
neglected," Keaton said. “It’s
improving, and I think that’s
because we’ve been working on it."
new direction and McCain’s going
to be talking about these issues in
terms of knowledge," Carsey said.
Obama's campaign might even
l>aint McCain's policy as outmoded.
Carsey said.
“The policy differences will be
used to highlight that and reinforce
that message of changing direc
tion." he said.
Carsey said McCain is trying to
capitalize on his longer political
resume.
“1 think the McCain campaign is
hoping to raise doubts about Obama,
as either haring wrong ideas or hav
ing not enough experience," he said.
Carsey said this boils down to
a distraction from the candidates'
policy positions.
“The McCain camp is try ing to
draw a little bit of the focus on the
individuals."
The issues that consistently rank
as highly important in polls include
the economy and Iraq, and Carsey
said that emphasis will be reflected
in the campaign.
This summer's operas, such as
Mark Blitzstein's “Regina." are a
way for the uninitiated to get a first
taste of opera. Keaton said.
“1 always think of the opening
opera as the highlight, because
’Regina' is a very important opera
about money-grabbing people after
the Civil War. Eventually, it's their
■■dmvntajUl,; rcallv think
'Regina' is the best for first-timers.
It's very accessible and it has some
gorgeous music in it as well."
And Gordon is proof that not
only can this summer’s series bring
opera to local residents, but that it’s
an opportunity for the composers
themselves to bring new life to old
works like “Orpheus and Euridice."
“One of the great privileges of
being an artist in this world is that
“I think there’s going to be a
great deal of attention on the
economy. I think there will be a fair
amount of attention on the war in
Iraq." he said.
Another issue that cropped up
during the primary was race.
Although the Obama campaign
made efforts to keep the dialogue
away from race, Carsey said it con
tinued to reappear.
“I think it's going to be a subtext
throughout the summer and fall
campaign." he said. “I do not expect
the Obama campaign to be making
a big deal about race or focusing a
lot of attention on being the first
African-American nominee, but
the press is certainly going to talk
about that."
Carsey said even if the issue isn’t
talked about it will be there.
"It’s going to be at or directly
below the surface for the next five
months." he said.
Contact the State i? National
Editor at stntdesk(u unc.edu.
News
Upcoming shows
► June 13,8 p.m., Memorial Hall
► June 14, 8 p.m., Gerrard Hall
► June 20,8 p.m., Memorial Hall
► June 21,8 p.m., Gerrard Hal!
you get to channel your particular
pain, your story , your joy, into your
work, whereas very often people
have experiences and they have
nowhere to put it," Gordon said.
And Schaeffer said Long Leaf
aims not only to bring accessible
operas but to make the entire opera
experience more comfortable.
“We're not your typical opera
company." he said. “Ifyou want to
come and watch in Birkenstocks
and shorts, you’ll fit right in."
Contact the City Editor
at citydeskta unc.edu.
Are you currently experiencing
§3) PAIN jvjß
around one or both of your lower (w|/J
WISDOM TEETH?
UNC School of Dentistry is presently enrolling healthy subjects who:
IF are non-smokers between the ages of 18 and 35
ff have pain and signs of inflammation (pericoronitis)
around a lower wisdom tooth (3rd molar)
Participation requires three visits. Benefits for participating include:
F free initial treatment of painful problem
F a free dental cleaning
ff up to $50.00 payment for your time
ff free consult regarding options for 3rd molar treatment
If interested, please contact: Tiffany V. Hambright, RDH
Clinical Research Coordinator • Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery
919-966-8376 or Tiffany Hambright@dentistry.unc.edu
you will be contacted within 24 hours.
ALL THE PASSION,
INTRIGUE AND
HEARTBREAK YOU'D
EXPECT FROM A
19-DAY AFFAIR. ffcj/! r ,
Jp 1 M gfoan.-th Futr.i
2008 Long Leaf Opera Festival:
Two and a half weeks of performances featuring nationally known
artists like Elizabeth Futral, Christine Weidinger and Doug Varone and
Dancers, among others. All operas written and performed in English.
When you hear it, you'll understand.
06m r
■ festival
JUNE 11 - JUNE 29
MEMORIAL HALL. UNC CHAPEL HILL
koreberi tickets: '4O-20/ adults *io/chhd*en
Proud sponsor of the 2008 Festival 919-843-3333 LONGLEAFOPERA.ORG
THURSDAY, JUNE 12. 2008
BOG to select
next leader at
Friday meeting
Also will discuss
UNC Tomorrow
BY DEVIN ROONEY
j STATE & NATIONAL EDITOR
The UNC Board of Governors
I soon will have anew leader. Jim
Phillips, the current chairman,
j has reached the end of his term,
and the board will vote Friday to
elect his successor.
UNC Board of Governors mem
ber Steve Bowden said the election
will mark the end of an effective
tenure.
"He’s been an excellent chair
man," he said.
But Bow den and Phillips weren’t
strangers when they began working
together on the board.
“The relationship working
with him now is positive, I guess,
because it was positive before,"
Bowden said.
The Friday election will follow
Thursday’s board meeting, which
will feature policy discussion on the
progress of UNC-system President
Erskine Bowles’ brainchild, the
UNC Tomorrow program.
The program aims to focus the
UNC system campuses on guiding
future university development to
meet the needs of N.C. citizens.
Norma Houston, executive direc
tor of UNC Tomorrow, said she
won't be getting too in-depth with
the board in her presentation.
“What the board will get on
Thursday morning is an overview of
the campus's Phase I reports from us
and an outline of major issues that
we’ve identified, and then an update
on the proposed process." she said.
The discussion scheduled for the
Thursday meeting won’t necessi
tate any action by the board.
Houston said the presentation is
intended simply to keep the board
involved in the UNC Tomorrow
process.
ATTEND THE MEETING
Time: 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. today;
9:30 a.m. Friday
Location: General Administration
Building
Info: www.northcarolma.edu/con
tent.php/bog/meetmgdates/index
htm
Bowden said everyone on the
board has been engaged in the
process thus far.
Houston said that in addition
to maintaining involvement, the
presentation will be a way to get
feedback from the board. They
will be able to help her align the
program's growth with the board
members’ vision.
Bow den said the UNC Tomorrow
leaders have done a great job work
ing to plan the system growth.
"The execution up to this point
has been outstanding."
The presentation alsc > will focus on
the next steps for UNC Tomorrow.
1 louston said the first step is to
address concerns expressed by the
schools in their responses to the
program goals.
One issue most of the system
campuses need to address i.s increas
ing reallocation of internal funds to
keep spending low. she said.
She added that one of the ways
they plan to resolve concerns is via
video c.ftnwmrt
The ridtx > a inferences will address
stumbling blocks that can come up
on multiple system campuses.
Some of the topics were request
ed by system campuses, such as the
inclusion of 21st century skills in
the classroom and minority stu
dent achievement.
“We are still in the scheduling
stage; we have worked on identifying
the initial topics for those," Houston
said.
Contact the State i£ National
Editor at stntdexk(u unc.edu.
7