Dallas Opera Presents LA TRAVIATA, 3/13-29

The Dallas Opera presents the third main stage production of the 2011-2012 "Tragic Obsessions" Season: Giuseppe Verdi's tender and bittersweet romance, LA TRAVIATA, opening Friday, April 13, 2012 at 7:30 PM in the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House at the AT&T Performing Arts Center in Downtown Dallas. This will be the first time Verdi's "Fallen Woman" has appeared on the Winspear stage.

This production, never before seen in Dallas, is made possible through the generosity of Dallas Opera production underwriters Joy S. and Ronald M. Mankoff and Mrs. William W. Winspear.

Subsequent performances of LA TRAVIATA are scheduled for April 15(m), 18, 21, 27, & 29(M), 2012. Single tickets start at $25. Contact the Dallas Opera Ticket Services Office at 214.443.1000 or purchase online, 24/7, at dallasopera.org.

Based on the play La dame aux Camélias by Alexandre Dumas fils (the Younger), this 1853 masterpiece overflows with some of the opera's most sensuous and beautiful melodies, the most memorable characters, and the most heart-rending drama, making it a popular favorite from that day to this, press notes state.

The Dallas Opera's LA TRAVIATA will star Greek Soprano Myrtò Papatanasiu in her American Opera Debut as the French courtesan, Violetta Valery. Miss Papatanasiu's recent engagements have included Nedda in Pagliacci at Zurich's Opernhaus, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni at the Vienna State Opera, and the title role in Handel's Alcina with the Stuttgart State Theater in Germany.

Romantically linked with Miss Papatanasiu's Violetta is tenor James Valenti, who last seduced Dallas Opera audiences in our critically acclaimed 2011 production of Verdi's Rigoletto. Mr. Valenti will be singing the role of the love-struck Alfredo Germont, a far cry from his last character on our stage. 

Making his Dallas Opera debut is French baritone Laurent Naouri as Giorgio Germont. Mr. Naouri's recent engagements include the role of Goulaud in Pelleas et Melisande at Madrid's Teatro Real, Sharpless in Madama Butterfly at New York's Metropolitan Opera, and the multiple roles of Lindorf/Coppelius/Miracle/Dapertutto in Les contes d'Hoffmann at La Scala in Milan.

"This is a remarkably beautiful production," explains Dallas Opera Artistic Director Jonathan Pell, "created by the renowned team of designer Allen Charles Klein and director Bliss Hebert, and I have wanted to bring it to Dallas since I first saw Allen's sketches.

"Furthermore, the singers at the heart of this Verdian masterpiece are among the best in the world. In the title role, we are thrilled to present Myrtò Papatanasiu, who has been compared to another Greek soprano famous for her portrayal of Violetta, Maria Callas, who will forever be intimately linked to the Dallas Opera. As her lover Alfredo, the American tenor James Valenti will bring warmth and a passionate yearning to the role, much as he did when he earned the 'Maria Callas Debut Artist of the Year Award' for his portrayal of Rodolfo in La bohème. Finally," adds Mr. Pell, "in the pivotal role of Giorgio Germont, opera lovers will experience the unique artistry of Laurent Naouri, one of France's foremost singers, in his eagerly anticipated Dallas Opera debut.

"How many reasons do you need to purchase a ticket? However many that is-we have many more."

American Mezzo-Soprano Amanda Crider will be making her Dallas Opera Debut as Violetta's closest friend, Flora Bervoix. Earlier this season, Miss Crider made her debut with Opera Omaha in Rossini's La cambiale di matrimonio.

Baritone Timothy Mix will make his Dallas Opera Debut in the role of Baron Douphol. Mr. Mix was the 2008 Richard Tucker Career Grant recipient.