COURTESY HAWAII OPERA THEATRE
Laura Corina Sanders
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Opera is usually considered to be adult fare — it’s usually in some foreign language, it’s often long and the plot convoluted — but Hawaii Opera Theatre is delving into a family-friendly production this week with “The Secret Garden.”
Based on the 1911 novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett, “The Secret Garden” tells the story of Mary Lennox, a young girl who survives a cholera epidemic and is sent to live with relatives in an English country house. There, she learns of a secret garden.
“ ‘The Secret Garden’ is a heartwarming, feel-good story — just what we need right now — and the music does an amazing job of blurring the lines between what we consider opera and musical theater,” said HOT General Director Andrew Morgan in an email.
Singing the lead role of Mary will be up-and-coming soprano Laura Corina Sanders, a Filipina American singer who studied in Shreveport (La.) Opera’s Resident Artist Program and the Eastman School of Music. Male lead Colin Craven will be sung by local tenor Taka Komagata, who starred as Goro in HOT’s staging of “Madame Butterfly” in April. The production also will feature keiki dancers from Ballet Hawaii, using costumes from its Hawaii-based production of “Nutcracker.”
The creators of the opera, composer Nolan Gasser and librettist Carey Harrison, will be on hand, but this is a HOT production, with direction by Karen Tiller and set design by David Hunt. Maestro Elizabeth Askren will make her debut conducting the HOT orchestra.
The show, which lasts about 2 hours and 20 minutes, will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Friday and 4 p.m. Oct 16 at Blaisdell Concert Hall. Tickets are $30 to $135. For more information, call 808-596-7858 or visit hawaiiopera.org.
