Events - Event View
This is the "Event Detail" view, showing all available information for this event.
If the event has passed, click the "Event Report" icon to read a report and view photos that were uploaded.
Wisdom Circle - LA Opera with Ron Streicher
About this event
Ron Streicher from LA Opera presents: "Clothes Make the Man"
Gender-identity recently has come to the fore as an issue facing contemporary society, challenging previously held conceptions of what it means to be a "man" or a "woman." However, in the world of opera, gender identity has always been with us: in fact, in the early days of the theatre, when women were forbidden to appear on the stage, female roles were portrayed by young men.
In the mid-17th Century, however, as religion-dominated governments relaxed their prohibitions and the theatre world became more enlightened, women not only became actors in their own right, they turned the tables and began assuming the roles of adolescent men. These "trouser roles" — which heretofore had been performed by castrati or counter-tenors — now were given to adult mezzo-sopranos because their voices were stronger and more capable of being heard over the orchestra.
This change in attitude toward men and women on stage also gave rise to an unquestioned convention in opera: whenever someone wears a disguise, none of the other characters will recognize him (or her) but will accept the disguise at face value.
In this talk, Ron will examine the whole range of "gender-bending" in opera, including the various ways in which men and women exchange roles — and costumes.
Event Contact(s)
Talia S Karu
Category
Village-Run Event
Registration Info
Registration has closed - Event is past
Payment In Full In Advance Only
Invalid Quantity