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50 years of opera

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Opera Idaho’s Second Decade (1983 – 1992)

By Ellie McKinnon

Boise Civic Opera Presidents

June Fitzgerald, 1983

Dr. Charles B. Supplee, 1984-1985

Karma Echols, 1986

Robert C. Huntley, Jr., 1987-1989

John P. Borgwardt, 1990

Michael C. Winter, 1991

Unknown, 1992

By 1983, Boise Civic Opera was 10 years

old. Professionalism was increasing

within its talented ranks and audiences

were happily responding. That year, the

company decided it was time to leave

the name Boise Civic Opera behind and

retitled itself as the Boise Opera.

The eighties provided a roller coaster

ride in the financial sector that affected

philanthropic funding for the arts.

Despite waning financial support,

however, there was a big sun in the

sky for the arts: the long anticipated

performing arts center. The Morrison

Center was nearing completion. In the

spring doors opened to the spectacular

new center. Within it were two theaters,

a recital hall, and considerable rehearsal

and practice space. The gorgeous 2037

seat auditorium was equipped with the

latest in theatrical technology. Boise

Opera chose two operas for

their debut, Donizetti’s Lucia di

Lammermoor and the everpopular

Carmen.

But, performing in the Morrison

Center came with a stiff price

tag. In 1984 the company made

a series of decisions as they

mulled over options for bringing

down production costs. They

From left to right:

A.J. Balukoff, Mike Wetherall, Wetherell, and Laura R. Nielsen

considered operas with smaller sets that

could allow use of alternative smaller

venues like Boise State’s Special Events

Center. The Morrison Center’s Governing

Board, aware of the financial issues

facing local performing groups, created

a fund that would defer a considerable

amount of the costs for local cultural

groups that hoped to perform in the

exquisite hall in the future.

The opera company decided to mix

things up a bit by offering grand opera

alternately with operatic concert

performances featuring internationally

known opera stars. In 1985, Boise

audiences heard mezzo-soprano

Marilyn Horne in concert, and later

were treated to the beautiful opera

Madama Butterfly. Productions of

Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci took the stage

followed in March by Donizetti’s Don

Pasquale. In the spring, famed operatic

baritone Sherrill Milnes performed in

concert.

In the succeeding season the Boise

Opera audience responded favorably

to Giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata and

Engelbert Humperdinck’s fairy tale

opera Hansel and Gretel. The company’s

repertoire was expanding as its positive

reputation grew. In 1987, Idaho

Governor Dirk Kempthorne identified

the Boise Opera as an important

element in the city’s cultural life – so

important in fact that he declared the

week of February 8th as “Boise Opera

Week.” In March audiences heard

Operatic Highlights in concert.

The 1988-1989 season marked the

company’s 15th anniversary. That year

the company celebrated with two

locally produced classics, Puccini’s tragic

opera Tosca and Mozart’s captivating

The Magic Flute. Two visiting companies

completed the 1988-1989 season -- the

acrobatic Peking Opera and the San

Francisco Opera Center Singers. The

latter’s performance was a mix of grand

opera and Broadway classics.

Opera Idaho celebrated the state’s

Centennial year with Franz Lehar’s

lilting The Merry Widow and a revival

of the opera A Season for Sorrow

composed by local musician C. Griffith

Bratt. The 1989-90 season also

included two special events. The first

event kicking off the season was a

trio of performances by the Ash Lawn

Highland Opera theater from Virginia.

This performance of light-hearted

dramas was performed outdoors and

included a 45-minute intermission

during which opera goers could enjoy a

picnic dinner in a nearby

4

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