A fun, lighthearted romantic comedy that tells the story of wealthy, young widow Hannah Glawari and playboy Count Danilo Danilovitsch, childhood sweethearts who must overcome their pride, pettiness, fortunes, titles and stubbornness to be together — “The Merry Widow” stages how to live life with laughter.
The Flora L. Thornton Opera Program presented the operetta Feb. 22 and 24, in Smothers Theatre. Franz Lehár composed the 1905 operetta in German, but many shows, including this one, perform English translations, according to the show’s website.
“The orchestration was so beautiful for the show,” sophomore Jamison Rosales, an audience member, said. “It just kind of complemented each other really well.”
Rosales, a Musical Theatre major, worked on the set and knew many of the cast members. She said the actors wore handmade costumes, and the scenic construction crew hand-painted each of the marble tiles onstage.
Pepperdine holds an annual student opera the weekend before spring break, and an endowment from Flora L. Thornton supports part of the expenditure, Keith Colclough, the stage and vocal director, said. Students — and sometimes faculty — have the opportunity to audition in the fall semester for a role in both the musical theater and opera performances in the spring.
“We get a wide range of experience levels — folks who’ve done Broadway tours and 20 productions and then folks who’ve only ever sung in a choir — and we throw them all together in an opera,” Colclough said. “It’s really cool to see how they feed off of each other, how they learn from one another and how much their hard work — how much they just transform during the production.”
First-year Nicholas Gerding, who played Njegus, the major-domo of the Petrovenian Embassy, said the show was his first time performing opera.
“It’s always a good time doing something very difficult all together,” Gerding said. “It’s a sort of collective effervescence of joy.”
Junior Payton Ballinger, who played Hannah Glawari, the merry widow, credited her team for her success. She said she performed in past Pepperdine operas “H.M.S. Pinafore” and “Le Nozze di Figaro.”
“It was a grueling process, but it was so worth it,” Ballinger said.
Producing a stellar opera involves hours upon hours of commitment from the entire team. Students rehearsed from 6 to 10 p.m., six days a week, and Colclough himself averaged 61 hours a week, he said.
Vocally demanding, opera requires optimal care for one’s voice, junior Jace Vendelin, who played Vicomte Cascada, an Italian diplomat, said. Vocal health includes eating, drinking and sleeping properly.
“Opera is a very vocally heavy and vocally challenging genre to sing in,” Vendelin said.
Miara Williams and Emma Hirte, members of the ensemble, said maintaining one’s mental health is also critical to performing.
“There’s a lot to work on and a lot to think about all the time,” Williams said. “You just have to be mindful of still taking time for yourself.”
Students must memorize their lines on their own time outside of rehearsal, sophomore Hannah Root, ensemble member and cover for Hannah Glawari, said.
“It can be a lot on top of the other classes, but it was totally, totally worth it,” Root said.
A song titled “Women” was an audience favorite — the crowd’s boisterous laughter and loud applause signaled their approval. The all-male cast of characters confusedly questioned and shared their exasperations about their female love interests.
“Yeah, it’s just a riot,” Vendelin said. “It’s such a good, fun song — the audience clapped along tonight, and that was just great energy.”
Opera Versus Musical Theater
Typically, operas are unamplified, meaning actors do not have a microphone, and there is no dialogue, Colclough said. The differences between opera and musical theater challenged performers new to the genre to grow.
“It was a little relentless,” Gerding said. “It’s a different ballgame than musical theater. I hate to compare the two because they’re so different, but opera is a different game musically and technique-wise.”
“The Merry Widow” is an operetta — somewhere between an opera and a musical — because it contains short scenes of dialogue, Colclough said. Smothers Theatre’s design requires microphones.
“The style of singing is totally different,” Ballinger said. “The way you have to move yourself onstage is completely different because you have to be faced out. It’s a different beast than musical theater.”
“We’ve got an awesome team,” Colclough said. “I’m really grateful for all the folks who chip in.”
The cast, orchestra, production staff, set crew, faculty and donors behind “The Merry Widow” put on an amazing show — but more remarkable is their gratitude for one another.
“A couple things that I hope for: one is that folks have a good time,” Colclough said. “Also, that they’re able to see the really incredible talent that our students have. They are really the ones who make the show happen, and we’re only as good as they are.”
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Contact Madison Luc via email: madison.luc@pepperdine.edu
