Dan Kempson in Milwaukee's Hydrogen Jukebox

Dan Kempson in Hydrogen Jukebox

On Friday March 14th, the Skylight Music Theater in Milwaukee will present Hydrogen Jukebox, Philip Glass' opera set to the poetry of counter-culture poet Allen Ginsberg. The text deals with a variety of topics from the 1950's through the 1980's ranging from the sexual revolution, eastern philosophy, drugs, the environment, the threat of nuclear destruction, Iran-Contra scandal and meditation. The six vocal parts were thought to represent six archetypal American characters- a waitress, a policeman, a businessman, a cheerleader, a priest, and a mechanic.

Unlike other Glass operas that deal with social issues, Hydrogen Jukebox is sung in English. In other operas, he has used languages unfamiliar to most opera-goers, including Sanskrit for Satyagraha, ancient Egyptian for Akhnaten, Latin for the CIVIL warS, or just numbers and syllables in Einstein on the Beach.

Hydrogen Jukebox at Skylight Music Theater

The baritone lead in this production will be sung by barihunk Dan Kempson and directed by the brilliant Ted Huffman. As was the case when he performed it at the Fort Worth Opera Festival in 2011, he'll be showing off some skin, as you can see from the pictures.

According to Allen Ginsburg, "The title Hydrogen Jukebox comes from a verse in the poem Howl: "...listening to the crack of doom on the hydrogen jukebox..." It signifies a state of hypertrophic high-tech, a psychological state in which people are at the limit of their sensory input with civilization's military jukebox, a loud industrial roar, or a music that begins to shake the bones and penetrate the nervous system as a hydrogen bomb may do someday, reminder of apocalypse."

Skylight Music Theater will perform the piece eleven times between March 14-30 and tickets are available online. The remainder of the cast includes Erica Schuller, Kristen DiNinno, Michael Scarcelle, Megan Williams and Ben Robinson.

Mark Womack

Mark Womack: Conquering opera and musical theater

 

Oklahoma native Mark Womack is one of a number of barihunks who has previously been suggested to us, but somehow fell through the cracks. The versatile singer  has made his mark in both opera and musical theater. He is another of a long line of baritones who performed in Baz Luhrmann’s production of La Bohème where he sang the role of Marcello.   

Other operatic roles have included Friedrich Bhaer in “Little Women” with Syracuse Opera,  Escamillo in “Carmen” with Utah Festival Opera, Sharpless in “Madama Butterfly” with Sarasota Opera, the title role in Don Giovanni with Anchorage Opera, Count Almaviva in “Le Nozze di Figaro” with Mississippi Opera and Mercutio in Roméo et Juliette. 

His musical theater credits include Billy Bigelow in “Carousel,” Edward Rutledge in “1776,” Sky Masterson in “Guys and Dolls,” Captain Von Trapp in “The Sound of Music,” Curly in “Oklahoma” and Joseph Cable in “South Pacific.”   

In 2001 his schedule is primarily on the operatic stage, singing the Papageno in the Magic Flute, Guglielmo in Cosi fan tutte with Skylight Opera, Don Giovanni at the Utah Opera Festival and Germont pere at the Knoxville Opera. Unfortunately, his portrayal of Frank Chambers in “The Postman Always Rings Twice” was a victim of the Sacramento Opera being the latest company to shut its doors.

Here he is performing from the musical "1776":

 

Michael Mayes

It looks like the physical appearance of baritones is getting appreciated beyond Barihunks. Michael Mayes' own artist management company, ANA Archuleta, starts his bio with this tantalizing tidbit:

Michael Mayes is making waves in the opera world for his command of the stage and attractive masculine presence.

Mayes has been singing smaller roles around the country, but has recently graduated to playing lead roles including Marcello at Skylight Opera in Milwaukee.