Our latest inspirational bari-chunk to bari-hunk transformation is Puerto Rican Edwin David Vargas López. We saw him at the Nevada Opera last year where he was singing with Michael Mayes, who was our original bari-chunk to bari-hunk post. Mayes has inspired scores of singers to care for their bodies as well as they take care of their voices. Vargas credits Mayes for his amazing transformation and dedication to fitness training. "While I was covering barihunk Michael Mayes, he told me that my
career wasn't the way I wanted because of my size and that I had a great
voice and I should lose weight!," Vargas told us.
"This advice changed my life because now I have a new lifestyle. I feel
my voice easier. On stage I can move my body without feeling tired.
Generally I feel secure!"
Michael Mayes and Edwin David Vargas López
Vargas is currently getting his Masters Degree at the City
University of New York (CUNY), where he has sung Ford in Verdi's Falstaff and
Don Alvaro in Rossini's Il viaggio a Reims. He graduated from the
Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico, where he sang Don Giovanni at the Opera
Workshop , Schaunard in Puccini's La boheme, Count Almaviva in Marriage of Figaro, Dandini Rossini's La Cenerentola and King Melchior in Menotti's Amahl and the Night Visitors.
He has participated in the International Vocal
Arts Institute in Chiari, Italy and Puerto Rico. He made his American
debut with Nevada Opera in their production of Puccini's Madame
Butterfly as Yamadori and Sharpless, returning later to perform in their aforementioned Don Giovanni. In 2012, he sang a concert in Carnegie Hall with Remarkable Theater Brigade.
On December 6 and 7, he will sing Nick Shadow in Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress at the Conservatory of Music of Brooklyn College. Tickets are available online.
The upcoming performances of Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress at Teatro La Fenice will feature barihunks Alex Esposito as Nick Shadow and Michael Leibundgut as Father Truelove.
The versatile Swiss singer Michael Leibundgut last appeared at the venerable opera house in a very different 20th century piece, when he performed in Luigi Nono's Intolleranza in 2011. Leibundgut has established himself as an artist who is willing to push boundaries, singing everything from early music to techno mixes. Earlier this year, he made his US debut in the world premiere of Enjott Schneider’s
Robert Schumann's Traumreise at Symphony Space in New York.
Alex Esposito
Esposito has established himself as a favorite of the Venetian opera crowd, performing in Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro, Mozart's Die Zauberflöte, a New Year's Day concert in 2012 that was released on DVD, Wolf-Ferraris' La Vedova Scaltra, Mozart's Don Giovanni and Mozart's La finta semplice.
Performances of The Rake's Progress are on June 27 and 29, July 1, 3 and 5 and 16. Visit the Teatro La Fenice website for tickets and additional information.
At Barihunks, we find baritones to be sexy and seductive, like Douglas Williams. Could a face like this be a villain?
The beautiful, funny and gifted mezzo-soprano Kate Jackman penned a list of the "Top 10 Worst Opera Villains" for the wonderful blog Operagasm. Of course any list about villains will invariably include some baritones, as many composers consider it the perfect voice for devils, killers, rapists and evil husbands. In fact, six of her ten villains are baritones or basses. (For the record, we think the baritone voice is sexy, sultry, seductive and virile).
Falk Struckmann as Kaspar in Vienna
Her baritone and bass villains include Kaspar from Der Freischutz, of whom she writes:
I get it. You don’t want to go to hell. Understandable.
But tricking some poor, love-sick sap into shooting his beloved Agathe, just so you can get three more miserable years on Earth seems excessive. And how did that plan work out for you? She’s alive, everyone else is happy, and you are burning in a fiery pit for all eternity. Good game.
Barihunk Kyle Ketelsen as Nick Shadow in London
Nick Shadow from The Rake's Progress:
The Shadow Master. The Puppeteer. You pull the strings of poor, feckless Tom. You give him money, loose women, a bearded wife (that’s right, BEARDED), and a magic bread maker, and in doing so make him penniless, loveless, hopeless, and eventually lifeless (as in DEAD). You evoke ruin, disaster, and shame from the second you appear until the instant you sink back into the depths of Hades. You, sir, are a scoundrel.
Barihunk Marco Vratogna as Iago with Carlo Ventre as Otello in Frankfurt
Iago from Otello:
Much like the same-named, cartoon parrot in Disney’s Aladdin, you perch on Otello’s shoulder and spew deceit.
I get that you hate Otello and want him to suffer, but was it really worth going through this whole elaborate plan? Couldn’t you just off the guy and be done with it? And, honestly, what did Desdemona ever do to you? Why does she have to be collateral damage? You had to know that you were not going to walk away from this without facing the consequences.
But you didn’t care, did you? You are just a hateful little worm, aren’t you?
Stephen Costello as Faust) with barihunk Greer Grimsley asMéphistophélès in San Diego
Mephistopheles from Faust:
ATTENTION TENORS: OMG DO NOT ENTER INTO A CONTRACT WITH THE DEVIL!
Really, just don’t even talk to him. It’s not worth it and you will regret it in the long haul.
Take the story of Faust as a cautionary tale: He’s old; he has a lot of regrets. Suddenly, Mephistopheles appears and promises to make him young and virile in exchange for his soul. Stupid Faust agrees, and four acts later he is being dragged down into perdition.
Mephistopheles is just about as bad and scary as they come. Watch the Church Scene in the middle of the night and you’ll know what I’m talking about.
Lado Ataneli as Barnaba and Violeta Urmana as Gioconda in the stunning Pizzi production
Barnaba from La Gioconda:
Gentlemen, take note. When a lady tells you she is not interested in your advances, you should: a) Move on. Fish in the sea blah blah blah
OR
b) Attempt to woo her with the standard flattery, flowers, dinner, etc. She may eventually develop romantic feelings for you.
When a lady tells you she is not interested, you should NOT:
a) Denounce her blind, elderly mother as a witch in front of the entire town.
b) Drown said elderly mother in the Venetian canals.
Your lady will not love you for it and may just stab herself in the gut to get away from you.
And her #1 evil villain is, of course, Scarpia (who we have actually found to be quite sexy in some productions, which adds a whole different element to the seduction scene):
María José Siri as Tosca and Claudio Sgura as Scarpia at the Savonlinna Festival
Scarpia from Tosca Congratulations, Scarpia. You are the nastiest of the nasty characters in Opera.
Nobody likes you. Everyone was happy to see you die.
Why?
Well, let’s recap: You arrested a painter and had him tortured where his lover, a singer, could hear his screams. You then attempted to seduce the singer, like she’d be in any kind of mood for nookie when her lover is being tortured in the next room… and she could hear
his screams. You made her promise to give herself to you in exchange for his life, and then had him executed anyway.
Seriously, dude. If anyone deserved to get stabbed in the chest by a vengeful soprano, it’s you.
Contact us at Barihunks@gmail.com. We LOVE hearing from you!
We recently featured a post with Kyle Ketelsen talking about his upcoming performance in Robert Lapage's production of the Rake's Progress at Covent Garden. Here is a photo of Ketelsen in that production, where he is performing through February 10th. He then heads back to the United States to perform Mozart's Figaro at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
KYLE KETELSEN IN DON GIOVANNI KYLE KETELSEN Here is the Kyle Ketelsen interview from Music OMH. Ketelsen discusses his first Nick Shadow in the Rake's Progress at Covent Garden opening on January 22, 2010.
