New Interview: Michael Chadwick of The Living Opera

by Shawn Parikh

A day at the opera: Having to dress up in tuxes and ball gowns to see an expensive, foreign language, two-hour concert about boring, fat people in lavish costumes and viking helmets, while sitting next to a bunch of old people and snobs. Did I leave anything out?

Interview with Michael Chadwick, Artistic Director of the Living Opera

These are exactly the stereotypes Artistic Director, Michael Chadwick, is trying to break. His company, The Living Opera, strives to make opera accessible to any normal human being. In his interview, he talks about their upcoming season which includes three American operas, inexpensive prices for great seats, educational programs, and the thrill of seeing an opera with characters that are so human in emotion.

After listening to the interview, and therefore, being intrigued to see an opera, try to catch one or more of their productions of Trouble in Tahiti/The Old Maid and the Thief, The Tender Land, Hansel & Gretel, and The Pirates of Penzance.