On the eve of UBC Opera’s season premiere, Director Nancy Hermiston reflects on staging a production in the middle of a pandemic — and a flood
Graphic: Miles Linklater/UBC Opera
By Prof. Nancy Hermison
These are extraordinary times for all of us and nothing in life seems simple anymore. Certainly, producing opera in this COVID-19 pandemic is not an easy task but we felt it was a very important task for all of us. Not only is it an essential and mandatory part of our student’s opera education, but it is an essential element of our cultural life at UBC and in Vancouver.
Keeping our distance, singing with masks, lots of handwashing and disinfectant wipes, and being extra careful not to come to rehearsals or performances if you even have the slightest hint of a sniffle, while trying to always maintain a positive attitude during these difficult times, is all part of daily life in COVID times. Safety plans and revisions of safety plans, revisions and more revisions, waiting, hoping, along with great frustration — all are part of producing opera in COVID times.
Watch Il viaggio a Reims live online from the Chan Centre on Oct. 16th, 17th, and 18th
Instead of having our usual 65 singers on stage we are juggling the space so that there are no more than 15 singers at a time. Learning how to communicate emotions and relationships at a three-metre distance is stretching all the acting and singing technique we have. However, in the end, the joy of being together on the operatic stage once again overshadows all of the trials and tribulations of getting there. We were all truly moved and ecstatic to be performing on the stage of our beloved Old Aud once again!
All seemed to be going well until another unexpected catastrophe occurred — the unthinkable! At 5:45 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 9, due to a technical failure, a curtain of water flooded out from the deluge system over the proscenium of the Old Aud. The stage piano was totally destroyed. The stage and orchestra pit were completely flooded; the Greenroom was also totally flooded, in addition to water damage to other basement areas. Thanks to the quick thinking of our Vancouver firefighters, who luckily found some plastic and covered the Steinway Grand, this wonderful old instrument, situated in the Greenroom at the time, only suffered minor water damage and is able to be saved.
Repairs have already begun and as heartbreaking as this damage is, it could have been much worse. We will do our best to keep you informed as repairs progress.
But we must not forget that Rossini’s wonderful music can span any distance and any difficulty. His opera Il Viaggio a Reims is no exception. With the talent and energy of our UBC singers, that beautiful opera, with its daredevil coloratura, beautiful melodies and rich ensemble writing, will carry you out of this pandemic woe. We hope that this opera will give you some joy and that soon we will be able to welcome you in person to our performances once again.
The show will stream live online from the Chan Centre on Oct 16th, 17th, and 18th at 7:30 p.m. Pacific Time. Please join us from wherever you are!
I would like to thank the administration and staff of School of Music, the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts and the Faculty of Arts. In particular I want to express my deepest gratitude to Assistant Dean Gerald Vanderwoude for his tireless work in finding us a venue for our performances this weekend. He and his team have been — and still are — spearheading the safety plans for the Faculty of Arts and are dedicated to making certain that the student learning experiences and safety are of the highest possible quality during these difficult times. In the midst of that mammoth job, he found time to ensure that the opera performances and education of our students could continue. He made it possible for us to present our performances this weekend at the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts. We will be forever grateful to him.
I also applaud and have great admiration for the courage of the students, faculty and staff of UBC Opera and our internationally renowned guest conductor, David Agler. Together we are making sure that the show will go on!
