Barihunks star in NY premiere of Britten's Owen Wingrave

Michael Weyandt and Robert Balonek

Barihunks Robert Balonek and Michael Weyandt will alternate the title role in Benjamin Britten's Owen Wingrave at The Little Opera Theatre of New York from May 9-May 12. The performance is being billed as the New York premiere of the opera. Performances will be at the GK Arts Center in Brooklyn and tickets are available online.

Owen Wingrave, which premiered in 1970, tells the story of a committed pacifist born into a renowned military family.  Despite strong disapproval over his beliefs and desperate to maintain the love of his would-be bride, Owen Wingrave is determined to prove his inner strength – even if it leads to his own demise.

Britten was a deeply committed pacifist, which traces back to his early life, particularly during his years at Gresham’s, his public school in Holt, Norfolk. He was know as a sensitive young boy who abhorred violence and bullying. World War I had cast a huge shadow over Britten’s generation and it was felt nowhere more keenly than at Gresham’s.  Britten was born a year before the onset of WWI  where the U.K. and its colonies saw 887,711 killed in action between 1914 and 1918. 100 boys from Gresham’s alone lost their lives.  His school formed one of the first branches of the League of Nations Union, which was designed to foster peace and prevent future conflict. The school also banned corporal punishment.

Britten's most famous pacifist composition is his War Requiem.

Morgan Pearse discusses his career

Morgan Pearse in Owen Wingrave

Australian barihunk Morgan Pearse has become a reader favorite since first appearing on this site in 2011. We've followed his young career, as he's won singing competition, continued honing his craft in London and making a splash on stage, including his popular "crack" performance in Handel's Imeneo.

He recently wrapped up a successful run in Britten's Owen Wingrave with the Sydney Chamber Opera. He sat down with Sylvia Rosenblum of East Side 89.7 FM's "Arts Wednesday" to discuss his career. Listen to the entire interview HERE.

Pearse will be competing in the prestigious Wigmore Hall/Kohn Foundation International Song Competition next week. We'll be following him and a number of other amazing baritones. Click HERE to listen to Pearse sing Schubert's Im Fruhling.

Reader Submission: Benjamin Appl

Benjamin Appl

German barihunk Benjamin Appl recently caught the eye of a reader while performing in the Guildhall School of Music's production of Britten's Owen Wingrave. Apparently, he wasn't the only one who found Appl both vocally stunning and visually attractive. The review in Bachtrack stated, "As Owen, Benjamin Appl’s voice was clear and strong, and he’d certainly be employed by Abercrombie and Fitch..."

ClassicalSource.com described him as "tall, blond and in Prince William mould." Even the oft staid Financial Times wrote, "Benjamin Appl’s Owen makes a handsome, quietly composed centrepiece."

It's been a busy year for the young singer, who in addition to Owen Wingrave has performed as Chevalier des Grieux in Massenet's Le portrait de Manon, Conte Almaviva in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro and Aeneas in Purcell's Dido and Aeneas. He made his professional debut with the Berlin Philharmonic singing lieder by Mahler at the Ravinia Festival, as well as at the International Festival Heidelberger Frühling singing Beethoven's An die ferne Geliebte, followed by his debut at Rheingau Musik Festival with Wolf's Italian Songbook.

A set of lieder from Benjamin Appl: 

Before studying at Guildhall, he received his musical training with the Regensburger Domspatzen. He studied with Edith Wiens and Helmut Deutsch at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Munich as well as at the Bayerische Theaterakademie.

In 2002, Benjamin Appl was awarded a Special Prize by the Bavarian Broadcasting Corporation for his outstanding interpretation of 20th Century works. In 2003 , he was a prize winner of the "Bundeswettbewerb Jugend musiziert." In 2012, he was awarded the Schubert Prize by the Deutsche Schubert - Gesellschaft.

Emerging Barihunk: John Chest

Emerging barihunk John Chest was born and raised in Greenville, South Carolina. He's the latest in a long line of barihunks to land at the esteemed Merola Opera program in San Francisco.

Chest is only two years removed from finishing his Bachelors in Voice Performance at Bob Jones University. He ended up in Chicago where he studied with the former baritone David Holloway at the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University. Holloway may have played a role in the talented baritone ending up as part of the Santa Fe Opera Apprentice Program. While in Santa Fe he began working on what will undoubtedly become his signature role, Benjamin Britten's "Billy Budd." Of course, he may end fighting for that title with Mike Nyby, a current Santa Fe Apprentice who has been featured on this site.

Chest first came to our attention when we received an email from a fellow performer at the Chicago Opera Theater, where he covered Owen Wingrave for the equally hot Matthew Worth.

Chest's first role with Merola was Guglielmo in Mozart's Così fan Tutte, where he stole the show and appeared shirtless. When he wraps up in San Francisco, he'll head to Munich and join the Opernstudio at the Bayerische Staatsoper.

We're trying not to end this post with cheap jokes, like "We want more Chest" or "This baritone always sings with Chest voice." Obviously, we failed.

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The Popular Matthew Worth

[Top photo of Matthew Worth backstage after Owen Wingrave; Bottom photo from Rape of Lucretia at Chatauqua]

Matthew Worth is clearly popular with readers of Barihunks. He has had the most hits on this site for over a week. Unfortunately, all good things must come to and end and the run of Owen Wingrave at COT is over.

However, Matthew Worth will be singing more Britten this summer as he reprises his stunning performance in Rape of Lucretia at the Chatauqua Institution School of Music, where he will also sing Eugene Onegin. If you're near Atlanta, you can see him with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra perform the Carmina Burana and the Barber of Seville.

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Last Chance for Matthew Worth's "Owen Wingrave"

[Photo Credits: ALL PHOTOS BY LIZ LAUREN; Top photo inlcudes Robin Leggate, second photo includes Mason Baker (boy) and Blake Montgomery, third photo includes Kevin Anderson, bottom photo is a screen cap from WGN TV]

Today is your last chance to see Matthew Worth perform in Benjamin Britten's timely opera "Owen Wingrave." As an enticement to those of you within traveling distance of the Windy City, here are some more pictures, courtesy of the Chicago Opera Theater. If you haven't been to one of their performances, you are missing great singers and wonderful productions on a limited budget. They may not be the Chicago Lyric Opera, but they can pack the same punch as their bigger counterpart. And when was the last time you saw Owen Wingrave in a big house?

For more information visit: http://www.chicagooperatheater.org/tix/season/wingrave.html

You can watch Matthew Worth perform "If I Loved You" from Rogers and Hammerstein's "Carousel" at: http://www.chicagooperatheater.org/news/2009previews-WGNmidday.html

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