Morgan Pearse joins husband and wife team for Elixir of Love

Morgan Pearse

Australian barihunk Morgan Pearse will be joining the New Zealand husband and wife team of Pene Pati and Amina Adris as Belcore in a run of Donizetti's The Elixir of Love. The all-Antipodes cast will perform the opera in Auckland on May 31, June 2, 7 and 9, and in Wellington on June 23, 26, 28 and 30. This will be Pearse's first time ever singing in a Donizetti opera.

Pearse recently made his solo Wigmore Hall recital, where he sang Six Songs by Johannes Brahms, Richard Strauss' Vier Lieder, Opus 27 and Samuel Barber's settings of James Joyce's poetry.

Pene Pati has become a best-selling classical music artist as part of the group Sol3 Mio. He met his wife while singing across the globe at San Francisco's prestigious Merola Opera Program. He has made Nemorino's aria "Una furtiva lagrima" a bit of a calling card.

Morgan Pearse sings the serenade from Handel's "Aci, Galatea e Polifemo":

Pearse's character of Belcore is a cocky Army sergeant, who takes an immediate liking to Adina. He puts his charms into high gear and quickly asks Adina if she’ll marry him, only to have the wedding delayed when military service beckons.

Donizetti wrote some 70 operas during his career, ranging from comedies like Elixir to tragedies, including the famous "Tudor Trilogy" of Anna Bolena, Maria Stuarda and Roberto Devereux.  In 1832, Donizetti set to work with librettist Felice Romani on his latest commission based on an existing French text about a love potion, Le philtre (The Potion) by Eugène Scribe for this new opera’s libretto. Le philtre had already been set to music by Daniel-François-Esprit Auber, but multiple uses of the same text was common at the time.

The story of the opera reflects Donizetti's own life, in that the composer’s military service was bought by a rich woman, like Nemorino, so that he did not have to serve in the army.

Teddy Tahu Rhodes to head Sweeney Todd cast in New Zealand

Teddy Tahu Rhodes and Antoinette Halloran in Sweeney Todd

Kiwi barihunk Teddy Tahu Rhodes will star in the new co-production of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd between New Zealand Opera and Melbourne's Victorian Opera. The production comes to New Zealand following a successful run in Melbourne in July, 2015. It will be performed at The Civic in Auckland  from September 17-24, the St James Theatre in Wellington from September 30 – October 5, and at the Isaac Theatre Royal in Christchurch from October 12-15. Tickets are available online. 

Joining Teddy Tahu Rhodes in the cast is Australian soprano Antoinette Halloran as Mrs Lovett,   Phillip Rhodes as Judge Terpin and Amelia Berry . Two of the singers are also alums of San Francisco's Merola Opera Program, which has featured a number of New Zealanders in their training program, including barihunk Hadleigh Adams, soprano Amina Edris and tenor brothers Pene Pati and Amatai Peti. Tenor James Benjamin Rodgers will sing Anthony Hope and baritone James Ioelu will sing Jonas Fogg.

Set in 19th century England, Sweeney Todd follows a murderous barber who, in order to take revenge on a corrupt judge who banished him, conspires with a local baker who is in desperate need of fresh meat for pies. 

Following his run in Sweeney Todd, Rhodes will be part of a Royal Caribbean opera cruise taking in Sydney, Mare Island and Noumea. He'll be joined by legendary soprano Kiri Te Kanawa, David Hobson, Cheryl Barker, Peter Coleman-Wright and members of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Bookings are available online.