L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MARCH 9, 2023 www.italoamericano.org 30 L'Italo-Americano SAN FRANCISCO ITALIAN COMMUNITY S a n F r a n c i s c o Opera celebrates i t s f i r s t c e n t u r y after its founda- tion in 1923 and welcomes everyone to join its staff and creative artists f o r m a n y e v e n t s a l r e a d y underway. San Francisco O p e r a ' s c e n t e n n i a l c o m - memorates the glorious past as well as its Italian origins and welcomes the commu- nity into an exciting new era. It was 1922 when Gae- tano Merola, a charismatic Neapolitan conductor who had visited San Francisco while traveling, first pro- duced Pagliacci, Carmen, a n d F a u s t a t t h e S t a n f o r d Stadium. Merola believed t h a t S a n F r a n c i s c o w a s ready to have its own opera company and began lining up supporters. In less than a year, the newly founded San Francisco Opera opened its first season on September 26 at the Civic Auditorium, with La Bohème starring Queena Mario and Giovanni Martinelli. Merola conduct- ed an orchestra of mostly San Francisco Symphony musicians and a chorus of 150 that he trained over the preceding year. Ten operas were presented over 13 days, including Puccini's relatively new triple-bill Il Trittico and Boito's daunting Mefistofele. A decade in, in 1932, San F r a n c i s c o O p e r a ' s n e w home, the War Memorial O p e r a H o u s e , o p e n e d o n October 15 with a perfor- mance of Tosca, starring C l a u d i a M u z i o a n d D i n o Borgioli, conducted by Mae- s t r o M e r o l a . A c t I w a s broadcast on the radio, with a growing excitement over the second night. The per- f o r m a n c e w a s r e l a y e d t o speakers in the Civic Audito- rium and the Civic Center Plaza. This first "simulcast" b y S F O w a s h e a r d b y a crowd of 20,000. W e t a l k e d t o T a d a n d D i a n n e T a u b e G e n e r a l Director, Matthew Shil- vock, also San Francisco O p e r a ' s s e v e n t h g e n e r a l Director, as he oversees all artistic and business aspects of the organization. D i r e c t o r S h i l v o c k , what kind of organiza- t i o n d i d y o u f i n d i n 2 0 1 6 , a n d h o w t h i n g s have evolved ever since? W h e n I c a m e i n t o t h e role, I had been here since 2005. I had a huge connec- tion with the company and people and knew well how it worked. It was a real joy to come into a company that I l o v e d s o m u c h a n d h a d experience with. That is not always the case when you come from inside an organi- zation. You program three, f o u r y e a r s a h e a d w h i l e developing an understand- ing of the audience and the company. I had the benefit o f c o m i n g i n t o t h i s r o l e working with the predeces- sor who had been here since 2005, too. It was a wonder- ful arc from one administra- tion into the new one, which allowed us to keep doing the work we were doing and go through a seamless transi- tion. Looking back at the pandemic, how did the S a n F r a n c i s c o O p e r a cope with these unex- pected changes? Once we had the under- standing that this was not to be just a few weeks' stop we prioritized a framework to keep paying employees. We couldn't pay everyone 100% o f t h e i r s a l a r y , b u t w e worked with the Board to pay people as much money as possible. Then, we looked into the way to share our work with the audience. For years, we captured the per- formance of the opera on camera. We worked with the Union Chambers to release the footage for free every weekend. It was a wonderful way to keep the energy of t h e c o m p a n y i n t e r m s o f production and music and remind people of the beauty that comes from our work. In the summer of 2021, we could not have a singer and a piano player in the same room, so it was challenging to create new things. We took advantage of what we could to keep creating and building, we went back into our costume shop and got ready for the reopening. We put together the Barbiere di Siviglia in Marin County u s i n g L E D p a n e l s , t h e orchestra on the side, and connected it with technolo- gy, so people could enjoy live opera safely. It was such a painful time for artists and c r e a t o r s , s u d d e n l y b e i n g unable to communicate with the world, yet it made us understand why this art is so important. T a l k i n g a b o u t t h e legacy of the San Fran- cisco Opera: which kind of elements have stayed the same and what has changed? The company was found- ed with passion, determina- t i o n , a n d q u a l i t y o f a r t : those were Gaetano Mero- la's driving principles. There were many opera companies at that time, but he wanted one in San Francisco. He was suppor ted by I tal ian businesses and put together a p r o t o t y p e o f w h a t t h e opera could be. One of the daughters of those business families became Merola's a d m i n i s t r a t i v e a s s i s t a n t . Since its foundation, the San Francisco Opera has been characterized by a deep pas- sion for making things hap- pen and it is still that way. I see the same hunger, pas- sion, and devotion of the beginning still today. Over a hundred years, things have become more complex: with each generation, they have c h a n g e d a n d y o u n e e d t o work harder and harder. In the '70s, only 10 people were working at the opera and now we have more than a thousand. There's a growing complexity happening over time. C a n y o u t a l k a b o u t some of the aspects that b e s t r e p r e s e n t y o u r vision as a Director? The two main elements are extraordinary quality and innovation. This is an organization that does that a t t h e h i g h e s t l e v e l o f artistry and capability. It's the reaffirming power of the o p e r a , b e i n g t r a n s p o r t e d into an emotional place that y o u d i d n ' t k n o w e x i s t e d . How do we find new ways to c o n n e c t w i t h p e o p l e a n d express art forms? It's the audience's innovation, and how you engage with people for new ideas and experi- m e n t a t i o n . T h a n k s t o B o h è m e O u t o f t h e Box, people experience the Bohème for free in an innov- ative way. We had the Travi- ata and recreated one act as an immersive experience, between the actual opera and the visit to the opera house. The Dolby ticket pro- gram, in partnership with the Dolby family, offers tick- ets at $10 for people who l i v e i n t h e B a y A r e a a n d have not been able to attend a performance for at least t h r e e y e a r s . T h e A r t i s t i c innovation comes with the program Instigators, which brings new ideas and possi- bilities for the company. We have people specialized in Virtual Reality, architecture, a p l a y w r i g h t , a c h e f , a n d each of them will explore the company and work on pro- totypes to bring to the audi- ence. We invest in research and development and have the privilege to tell the sto- ries in different ways - this e a r n s u s t h e t r u s t o f t h e community. Looking at 2023, what makes this year's cele- b r a t i o n s u n i q u e a n d worth attending? It's a pretty extraordinary testament to a community that we've been serving for a century. It's generosity, per- severance, and belief in the arts. An opera company is a community of creative tal- ents and people can show support. I hope people will be able to explore our pro- g r a m s a n d c e l e b r a t e t h e impact of our company in their own community. It's a magical experience. What makes you pas- sionate about opera and t h e S a n F r a n c i s c o Opera? It's the people as a whole. It's a place that I love. From where I sit, I see the stage, the backstage, and look at p e o p l e w h o m a k e t h i n g s happen. None of what we do is possible without the audi- e n c e a n d t h e p e o p l e w h o give back to the artists. It's a great privilege to be part of that. SERENA PERFETTO Luciano Pavarotti as Rodolfo in "La Bohème" at the San Francisco Opera, in 1967 (Photo: Margaret Norton) 100 years of San Francisco Opera between legacy and innovation

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