Three Barihunks regroup for holiday concert and CD

Nate Stark, Brian James Myer and Gabriel Preisser

Back in August, we featured barihunks Nathan Stark, Gabriel Preisser and Brian James Myer who were performing "The Three Baritones" concert for Opera Orlando's annual "Opera in the Park" concert. Now they're back for a "Three Baritone Christmas" concert and a new CD of holiday favorites. The CD will be out by Nov 21st and available for purchase on CD Baby, iTunes and Amazon.

They will be performing on the other side of the country in Bellevue, Washington at Resonance in the SOMA Towers on December 1st and 3rd. Tickets are available HERE for the first show and HERE for the second performance. They will also be performing music from opera and Broadway.

Brian James Myer will be appearing with Opera San José as Figaro in Rossini's Barber of Seville from November 12-22 and Ponchel in Kevin Puts' Pulitzer Prize-winning opera Silent Night from February 11-24. Fellow barihunk Colin Ramsey will be singing Basilio in the Barber of Seville, while the cast of Silent Night includes a veritable feast of barihunks and hunkentenors, including Kirk Dougherty as Nikolaus Sprink, Ricardo Rivera as Lt. Audebert, Matthew Hanscom as Lt. Gordon, Kyle Albertson as Lt. Horstmayer, Colin Ramsey as Father Palmer, John Lindsey as Jonathan Dale, Nathan Stark as General Audebert, Christopher Bengochea as Kronprinz, Branch Fields as William Dale and Vitali Rozynko as the British Major.

The Barihunks in Bed calendar, which celebrates our 10th Anniversary is now on sale. Get your copy before the holiday rush by clicking on the lulu button.

Interview with stars of Cincinnati Opera's "Silent Night"

Gabriel Preisser (Photo: Provided/Opera Philadelphia, Dominic Mercier)

As the Cincinnati Opera gears up to be the latest company to present Kevin Puts' Silent Night, the Cincinnati Enquirer sat down and interviewed three of the leading baritones from the production. Here is the interview with Craig Irvin, Gabriel Preisser and Andrew Wilkowske.

You were all in the world premiere at Minnesota Opera in 2011. Tell us about your characters.
Preisser: I play Lt. Gordon, the Scottish lieutenant who proposes the truce. I think he’s the kind of person who’s trying to do the right thing. He doesn’t go into it wanting to fraternize, but his troops are exhausted and he’s told they’ll be home for Christmas. The Scottish, I assume, have no idea why they’re fighting. It’s not their war. Yet there they are. So when he sees these German soldiers singing Christmas carols, and the bagpipe player jumps up on the trench, he has no choice but to say we need to have a truce.
Irvin: I’m Lt. Horstmayer, the German, who has to deal with Sprink (a private who is an opera singer), who’s questioning him all the time and going into no-man’s land, where Horstmayer feels he’ll be killed any moment.
Wilkowske: My character is Ponchel, the aide-de-camp of the French lieutenant. He’s the comic relief. … In an opera that’s about people getting killed all the time, it’s nice to be the guy who gets to have a couple of jokes. He carries an alarm clock to remind him that he used to have coffee every day at that time with his mother.
Irvin: In the Muppet opera version, we decided he’s Fozzie.
Preisser: In the “MASH” version, he’s Radar O’Reilly.

[Read the entire interview at the Cincinnati Enquirer]

Performances are on July 10 and 12 and tickets are available online.

Silent Night to make European debut at Wexford; Canadian debut in Montreal; Continues in U.S. in Cincinnati

Ian Beadle (right)

Kevin Puts' Pulitzer Prize-winning opera Silent Night is getting its long-awaited European debut at the Wexford Opera Festival from October 24-November 2. The cast is a mix of Europeans and Americans, with two singers who have been featured on this site, Matthew Worth as Lieutenant Audebart and Quirijn de Lang as the lovable Poncel. There are also a few singers in the cast new to this site. 

Ian Beadle, a graduate from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, performs William Dale on the Scottish side of the war. He recently finished a year in the English National Opera’s Opera Works program and performed as part of The Big Barber Bash at the London Coliseum.

His operatic roles have includes Belcore in Donizetti's Elisir d’amore at the Wexford Festival Opera, the Imperial Commissioner in Puccini's Madama Butterfly at Opera Holland Park, Crébillon in Puccini's La Rondine at Go Opera, Leporello in Mozart's Don Giovanni with Sinfonia D’amici, Guccio in Puccini's Gianni Schicchi at Opera Holland Park and Morales in Bizet's Carmen with Co-Opera Co.

Jamie Rock

Irish baritone Jamie Rock sings the role of Gueusselin on the French side of the war. He has performed the roles of Figaro in Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro, Sid in Britten's Albert Herring, Papageno in Mozart's The Magic Flute, Schaunard in Puccini's La Boheme, Dancaire in Bizet's Carmen, Tarquinius in Britten's Rape of Lucretia and General Belliard in the world premiere of the original version of Prokofiev's epic masterpiece War and Peace. He has performed with the Wexford Festival Opera, Opera Theatre Company, Opera Ireland, Opera North, Grange Park Opera, Opera de Bauge and British Youth Opera.

He is also a member of the vocal ensemble Quartet. The group, under the patronage of Malcolm Martineau, is made up of graduates from the Alexander Gibson Opera School who draw on years of conservatoire training to explore a range of music and look for new ways of presenting the vocal repertoire.

Jamie began his studies at the Royal Irish Academy of Music and continued his studies at the Royal Academy of Music and the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama . He is an alumnus of the OTC Young Artist Programme (Dublin), Wexford Festival Opera Young Artist Programme, Leeds Lieder+ Young Artists, Oxford Lieder Young Artists and Josephine Baker Trust. 

Tickets are available online.

Daniel Okulitch (left) and Joseph Lattanzi (right)

Silent Night, which has been performed to great acclaim in Minneapolis, Philadelphia and Fort Worth, now heads to the Cincinnati Opera and north of the border for its Canadian debut.

The Cincinnati cast includes many singers familiar to the piece, including the powerful voice of Craig Irvin as Lt. Horstmayer, Gabriel Preisser as Lt. Gordon and Andrew Wilkowske as Ponchel. New to the cast are Joseph Lattanzi as Gueusselin and Phillip Addis as Lt. Audebert. There are only two performances of the opera on July 10 and July 12. Tickets are available online.

Addis also will be performing Lt. Audebert in the Canadian premiere from May 16-23 at the Opéra de Montréal. The cast includes a barihunk favorite in the Lieutenant Horstmayer of Canadian Daniel Okulitch. Tickets go on sale in August 2014, so mark your calendars.

Gueusselin

Gueusselin and Phil

Barihunk Feast in Fort Worth: Pearl Fishers and Silent Night

Photos by Rachel Parker

The Fort Worth Opera Festival, one of our favorite stops on the opera circuit, kicked off the season with a stunning production of Bizet's Pearl Fishers featuring barihunks Lee Poulis as Zurga and Justin Hopkins as Nourabad. We should also mention that hunkentenor Sean Panikkar, of Forte fame, adds to the beefcake fest AND sings Nadir's beautiful aria "Je crois entendre encore."

Any opera directed by John de los Santos promises to be entertaining and an oft-static work like Pearl Fishers needs the touch of someone who can direct AND choreograph. De los Santos' non-stop action in the Mikado at the Festival in 2011 had audiences rolling in the aisles. We've heard that his dance scenes are magnificent. Throw in a shirtless Lee Poulis with his pants hanging low on his torso and you have an operatic feast for the eyes and the ears.

Justin Hopkins and the dancers from Fort Worth Opera's Pearl Fishers

The opera is the story of two men who fight over the same woman, make up and then fight over her again when she reappears. In between there is one of the most famous duets in all of opera and a beautiful aria for the girl Leïla. One of the men gives up his life to save Leïla and his friend. This was reality TV before reality TV.

There are additional performances on April 27 and May 2 and tickets are available online.

Dan Kempson, Lt. Gordon in Fort Worth's Silent Night

If two barihunks isn't enough for you, then you'll enjoy the next opera at the Fort Worth Opera Festival, which has four bariunks.  Kevin Puts' Silent Night will be performed on May 4 and 10 with barihunks Dan Kempson as Lt. Gordon, Aaron Sørensen as the French General, Craig Irvin as Lt. Horstmayer and Morgan Smith as Lt. Audebert.

Aaron Sørensen, the French General in Silent Night: "Il est mignon!"

The opera is based on the screenplay Joyeux Noël by Christian Carion and recounts a miraculous moment of peace during one of the bloodiest wars in human history. On WWI’s western front, Scottish, French and German officers defy their superiors and negotiate a Christmas Eve truce. Enemies become brothers as they share Christmas and bury their dead.
 
You can listen to the entire opera online at composer Kevin Puts' website. 

Silent Night to air on PBS

Liam Bonner in Silent Night

The barihunk-laden production of Kevin Puts’ Silent Night from the Minnesota Opera will be broadcast nationally on PBS on Friday, December 13 at 9pm ET (check local listings). The opera was the first commission of Minnesota Opera’s New Works Initiative, a landmark program designed to invigorate the operatic repertoire with an infusion of contemporary works.

The Minnesota Opera presented the world premiere of Silent Night in November 2011 with a cast that included barihunks Craig Irvin as Lieutenant Horstmayer, Gabriel Preisser as Lieutenant Gordon,  Mike Nyby as William Dale, Liam Bonner as Lieutenant Audebert, Troy Cook as Father Palmer, Joseph Beutel as the British Major, Ben Wager as the General and Andrew Wilkowske as Ponchel.

Silent Night is conducted by Minnesota Opera’s Music Director Michael Christie and staged by Academy Award-winning director Eric Simonson. The opera was recently honored with a regional Emmy nomination.

Quartet from Silent Night:

Silent Night was co-produced with Opera Philadelphia, who presented the work in February of this year. It now travels to the Fort Worth Opera Festival on May 4 and 10 with barihunks Dan Kempson, Craig Irvin and Morgan Smith.

The opera is based on the screenplay Joyeux Noël by Christian Carion and recounts a miraculous moment of peace during one of the bloodiest wars in human history. On WWI’s western front, Scottish, French and German officers defy their superiors and negotiate a Christmas Eve truce. Enemies become brothers as they share Christmas and bury their dead.
 
You can listen to the entire opera online at composer Kevin Puts' website. 

Gabriel Preisser's new CD and upcoming performances

Gabriel Preisser

We first started following Gabriel Preisser three years ago when an opera insider wrote us and told us to keep an eye on the then 26-year-old singer. At the time, he was headed off to be a studio artist in his native state of Florida. The buzz about this gifted young singer really picked up steam as he scored a series of critical successes in regional houses. His big break came when the Minnesota Opera and Opera Company of Philadelphia cast him as Lieutenant Gordon in the world premiere of Kevin Putz’s Pulitzer Prize winning opera Silent Night, which he'll be reprising at the Cincinnati Opera on July 10th and 12th, 2014. 

He's gone on to make quite a name for himself in contemporary opera, singing the title role in Robert Aldridge’s Elmer Gantry, Tom Joad in Ricky Ian Gordon’s The Grapes of Wrath, and Riolobo in Daniel Catan’s Florencia en el Amazonas all at the Moores Opera Center; Antonio in Daron Hagen’s New York Stories at Kentucky Opera; John Brooke in Mark Adamo’s Little Women and the Shoe Salesman/Puppet role in Dominick Argento’s Postcard from Morocco both at Pensacola Opera.

Gabriel Preisser

We also just learned that he'll be singing in the double bill of Francis Poulenc's Les Mamelles de Tiresias and Kurt Weill's Mahagonny Songspiel with America's hottest new company, Opera Parallèle in San Francisco. The photo at the top of the page was taken at the recent photo shoot for the production.

Gabriel Preisser sings Soliloquy from Carousel:

If you can't make it to San Francisco or any of his upcoming performances [check out his schedule], you can listen to this hot new talent on his new CD "Being Alive," which features arias, lieder, Italian songs and the best baritone music from Broadway. You can listen to samples, but the CD or download the music at CD Baby.

Popular barihunks lead upcoming Cincinnati Opera season

Andrew Garland working out in his Barihunk tee-shirt

The Cincinnati Opera has announced its casting for next season and it is delightfully laden with some of opera's most popular barihunks. Fans of Daniel Okultich can see him twice, as the former Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music graduate appears as Escamillo in Bizet's Carmen and as Giove in Cavalli's La Calisto. Andrew Garland will also appear in La Calisto as Mercurio.

La Calisto will run from July 17-27, 2014 at the Corbett Theater in the School for Creative and Performing Arts near Music Hall. The cast also includes male soprano Michael Maniaci as Endimione, Jennifer Johnson Cano as Diana/Destino, Alexandra Deshorties as Giunone, Aaron Blake is Pane/Natura and bass Nathan Stark as Sylvano.

Fans of Andrew Garland can purchase his amazing CD American Portraits at the GPR Records website. It includes songs by Stephen Paulus, Jake Heggie, Lori Laitman and Tom Cipullo. You won't be disappointed!

Andrew Garland

Okulitch will be opening the season in Bizet’s Carmen on June 12th and the cast includes Stacey Rishoi in the title role, William Burden as Don José, Jessica Rivera as Micaela and Nathan Stark as Zuniga.

Gabriel Preisser backstage in Philadelphia for Silent Night

July 10 and 12 they will be presenting the Pulitzer Prize-winning opera by Kevin Puts, Silent Night, which is filled with baritones. The performances will take place near the 100th anniversary of the outset of World War I. A number of baritones are reprising roles from the productions in Minnesota and Philadelphia, including Gabriel Preisser as Lt. Gordon, Craig Irvin as Lt. Horstman and Andrew Wilkowske as Ponchel.

Also in the cast are Thomas Blondelle as Nikolaus Sprink, Erin Wall as Anna Sorensen, barihunk Phillip Addis as Lt. Audebert and the gifted young tenor Thomas Glenn as Jonathan Dale.

Acclaimed "Silent Night" to open in Philadelphia with an army of barihunks

Regular readers might recall that we generously covered the debut of Kevin Puts' Pulitzer Prize-winning opera "Silent Night," when it premiered at the Minnesota Opera in 2011.  It featured a veritable army of barihunks including Troy Cook, Gabriel Preisser, Ben Wager, Michael Nyby and Craig Irvin, all of whom posed for a picture that we posted [see below].

Five of the barihunks from that production are reprising their roles at Opera Philadelphia opening on February 8th and running through February 17th. They include Craig Irvin as Lieutenant Horstmayer, the German commanding officer; baritone Liam Bonner as Lieutenant Audebert, the conflicted French commander and his aide-de-camp Ponchel sung by Andrew Wikowske; baritone Gabriel Preisser as Lieutenant Gordon; and, Troy Cook as Father Palmer.

Troy Cook, Gabriel Preisser, Ben Wager, Michael Nyby and Craig Irvin

Tenor William Burden stars as the drafted opera singer whose voice inspires peace among adversaries and soprano Kelly Kaduce as his love interest, Anna Sørenson. Kaduce also happens to be married to a barihunk in real life, Lee Gregory.

Liam Bonner sings Lieutenant Audebert's "J'ai perdu ta photo" 

Silent Night, which is based on the 2005 French film Joyeux Noel, recounts a miraculous moment of peace during one of the bloodiest wars in human history.   On World War I’s western front, weapons are laid down when Scottish, French and German officers defy their superiors and negotiate a Christmas Eve truce. Enemies become brothers as they come together to share Christmas and bury their dead.

Gabriel Preisser

Tickets and additional information is available online.

Also in 2014, the Fort Worth Opera Festival will give the regional premiere of the opera.

Have Some Coffee and a Silent Night with Gabriel Preisser

Gabriel Preisser

Gabriel Preisser returns to his native Florida to perform Bach's Coffee Cantata with the Orlando Philharmonic Symphony on December 10th. He'll be joined by soprano Ruthie Nelson under the baton of Christopher Wlikins. Tickets are available online.

This foray into baroque repertoire is a switch for Preisser, who has recently made a name for himself performing newer works. He recently created the role of Lt. Gordon in the world premiere of Kevin Putz’s Pulitzer Prize winning Silent Night with the Minnesota Opera. Preisser will reprise this role with the Opera Company of Philadelphia in February 2013, where he'll be reunited with fellow barihunk Liam Bonner who is singing the role of Lieutenant Audebert.

Liam Bonner sings Lieutenant Audebert's aria "J'ai perdu ta photo" from Silent Night:

Other upcoming engagements include Yamadori with the Orlando Philharmonic, baritone soloist in the Carmina Burana with the Atlanta Ballet, and El Gallo in the Fantasticks with Skylark Opera.

Support other emerging artist by purchasing your 2013 Barihunks Charity Calendar TODAY. All proceeds go to benefit young artist programs and young artists:

Minnesota Opera's Barihunk-laden "Silent Night"

Gabriel Preisser, Liam Bonner, Mike Nyby, Andrew Wilkowske & Ben Wager

The Minnesota Opera is one of the gems in the landscape of American opera houses. It doesn't always get the national notoriety that it deserves, but within music circles it is known for consistently strong vocal performances and their religious commitment to young artists and living composers.

The Minnesota Opera has premiered Oliver Knussen's "Where the Wild Things Are," Libby Larsen's "Frankenstein," Ricky Ian Gordon's "The Grapes of Wrath," and Bernard Herrmann's sole opera "Wuthering Heights." They've also presented the American premieres of Jonathan Dove's Pinocchio, Poul Ruders' "The Handmaid's Tale," Dominick Argento's "Postcard from Morocco," Rossini's "Armida," Laurent Petitgirard's "The Elephant Man," and Reinhard Keiser's "The Fortunes of King Croesus."



The latest premiere from the Minnesota Opera New Works Initiative is Kevin Puts' "Silent Night," which is based on the screenplay for Joyeux Noël by Christian Carion. The opera recounts a miraculous moment of peace during one of the bloodiest wars in human history. On World War I’s western front, weapons are laid down when the Scottish, French and German officers defy their superiors and negotiate a Christmas Eve truce. Enemies become brothers as they come together to share Christmas and bury their dead. Tenor William Burden, who has a place in barihunk history for starring shirtless opposite of Nathan Gunn in the production that gave rise to the term, stars as the soldier whose voice inspired peace among adversaries – if only for a day.

Canadian Mike Nyby plays Scottish soldier William Dale

The opera contains more sexy men than a World Cup soccer championship. There are four barihunks who have appeared on this site before, including Mike Nyby, Gabriel Preisser, Ben Wager and Liam Bonner. The world premiere was on Saturday, November 12 and there are additional performances on November 15, 17, 19 and 20, 2011. Visit the Minnesota Opera website for additional performance and ticket information.

Contact us at Barihunks@gmail.com

Don't forget that you can support young artists like those performing at the Minnesota Opera by purchasing our 2012 Barihunks charity calendar. All proceeds go to benefit young artists. The calendar features the hottest singers from six countries. Click HERE to purchase your own calendar or make it the perfect holiday gift.