Public ticket sales open Feb. 6 for the Shepherd School of Music’s spring opera production of Giuseppe Verdi’s “Falstaff,” marking a milestone moment for the school with its first staging of the beloved comedy and its largest opera orchestra to date.
Performances are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. April 17, 2 p.m. April 19 with an added third performance at 7:30 p.m. April 21. All performances will be held in Rice University’s Morrison Theater at Brockman Hall for Opera and feature reserved seating.
The production features a cast of 33 students and a 60-piece orchestra conducted by Miguel Harth-Bedoya. Led by an entirely Houston-based creative team, the production brings together students and faculty from across Shepherd’s vocal and orchestral programs.
“Falstaff,” Verdi’s final operatic masterpiece, is loosely based on Shakespeare’s “The Merry Wives of Windsor” and “Henry IV.” The opera follows the lecherous and egotistical Sir John Falstaff as he attempts to solve his financial problems by simultaneously courting two wealthy women who happen to be close friends. Deception, revenge and comic chaos ensue, all underscored by Verdi’s sparkling score.
Sung in Italian with English surtitles, “Falstaff” is often celebrated for its wit, ensemble-driven storytelling and rapid-fire musical pacing. At Shepherd, the production also reflects the school’s continued interest in pushing toward what faculty describe as the forward edge of opera through modern, industrial and conceptual approaches to staging.
“Because we have fewer than 40 opera students at the Shepherd School in any year, we must tailor our programming specific to the students we have,” said Joshua Winograde, director of opera studies. “In other words, we have the unique ability to build the repertoire around our world-class singers and feature them in roles that allow them to showcase exactly what they do best. The reason we can do a piece as notoriously difficult as ‘Falstaff’ right now is because of this specific group of students in front of us. It’s their fortuitous alignment of rare voice types, high-level musicianship and dramatic chops that allow us to select a classic which hasn’t been possible here until this moment.”
The production is directed by Matt Hune, artistic director and co-founder of Rec Room and a Houston-based director known for nontraditional and immersive performance work. His vision shapes the conceptual and visual language of the show.
“Our production of ‘Falstaff’ will take place throughout various locations within a country club. ‘Falstaff’ is full of unhinged men who act like boys and women who know how to use that to their advantage,” Hune said. “The opera thrives in a world that confuses tradition with permission, and a modern country club felt like the perfect place to stage that contradiction. It’s a space shaped by history and ritual but also by indulgence and entitlement. Verdi’s comedy is enormous and absurd, but it’s also incredibly precise about how power, desire and social games actually operate.”
Harth-Bedoya, distinguished resident director of orchestras at the Shepherd School, will conduct the 60-person orchestra and will also offer preshow talks one hour before curtain in the Tudor Patrons’ Lounge on the parterre level. The talks are open to all opera ticketholders on a first-come, first-served basis.
“This will be my first time conducting a Shepherd School opera orchestra, and to do it with the largest pit ensemble in the school’s history is extraordinary,” Harth-Bedoya said.
Tickets are required for all performances. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit the Shepherd School of Music website. Discounts are available for Rice alumni and current faculty, staff and students.