Barihunk Trio in New England premiere of Fellow Travelers; Coming to Arizona and Madison

Jesse Darden as Timothy Laughlin and Jesse Blumberg as Hawkins Fuller (Photo by Liza Voll)

The Boston Lyric Opera is presenting the New England premiere of Gregory Spears' Fellow Travelers from November 13-17. The cast will included the barihunk trio of Jesse Blumberg as Hawkins Fuller, David McFerrin as Senator Joe McCarthy and Simon Dyer in multiple roles. 

The remainder of the cast includes Jesse Darden as Timothy McLaughlin, Chelsea Basler as Mary Johnson, James Maddalena as Senator Charles Potter, Vincent Turregano as Tommy McIntyre, Brianna Robinson as Lucy and Michelle Trainor as Miss Lightfoot. Tickets are available online. 

Simon Dyer and David McFerrin

Fellow Travelers, which is set in Washington D.C. against the backdrop of the McCarthy-era "lavender scare," tells the story of Timothy “Skippy” Laughlin, an aspiring young journalist, and Hawkins “Hawk” Fuller, a handsome, profligate State Department official. A chance encounter with Hawk leads to Tim's first job in DC, and his first love affair. As his involvement deepens, Tim struggles to reconcile his political convictions, his religious beliefs, and his love for Fuller – an entanglement that will end in a stunning act of betrayal. The libretto is based on the novel by American novelist, essayist and critic Thomas Mallon.

Joseph Lattanzi as Hawkins Fuller and Jonas Hacker as "Skippy" McLaughlin

The opera is also being performed on the other side of the continent at the Arizona Opera with Joseph Lattanzi reprising the role of Hawkins Fuller, which he created at the Cincinnati Opera in 2016. The cast includes Marcus DeLoach as Senator Joe McCarthy, Thomas Cannon as Senator Charles Potter, Jonas Hacker as Timothy McLaughlin, Katherine Beck as Mary Johnson, Cadie Jordan as Lucy and Kaitlyn Johnson as Miss Lightfoot. Tickets are available online. 

The opera will also be performed next year at the Madison Opera with Ben Edquist as Hawkins Fuller, Sid Outlaw as Tommy McIntyre and Andy Acosta as Hawkins Fuller. 

 

Twitter Barihunk Submission: Simon Dyer

Simon Dyer

British Bass-Barihunk Simon Dyer, who recently performed the Bear in Walton's The Bear and Mr. Grinder in Sullivan's The Zoo at Odyssey Opera, was recently introduced to us via Twitter.

The singer, who began his studies at the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in England, is now based in the U.S. after having completed his studies at the Boston Conservatory of Music. He'll be returning to the school to perform The Immigration Officer in a rare American production of Jonathan Dove's comedic opera Flight at the Boston Conservatory of Music from November 19-22. The story is set entirely at an airport terminal, where a storm had stranded passengers, whose lives become a twisted plot of love, regret, injustice, sex, and boredom.

This Fall, he'll return to the U.K. to compete in the Wigmore Hall International Song Competition with the pianist Lindsay Albert. You can listen to him online HERE.

During his time in London, he performed with the Blackheath Halls Community Opera, Thrapston Plaza Opera, Oxbridge Opera and Go Opera. He performed the role of Death in the U.K. premiere of Gregory Rose’s Danse Macabre, conducted by the composer. In 2013, he performed with the Philip Glass ensemble for the 75th birthday celebrations of the composer at Barbican Hall in a performance of Koyaanisqatsi