The Inspector EXPOSED

During intermission at Wednesday evening’s performance of The Inspector, something dramatic happened.

The curtain stayed up.

What? Why!?

The curtain stayed up, because we presented BLO Exposed, which is a conversation designed to bring you closer to the opera.

At BLO’s Wednesday night shows, we round up a few individuals involved with the production and have a live conversation about what it’s really like behind-the-scenes at the opera.

We also scour Facebook and Twitter for your questions (@bostlyricopera, #bloexposed) and answer them live. BLO Exposed is really all about you.

This past Wednesday’s performance was great fun. David Angus, BLO’s Music Director and conductor of The Inspector, Sandra Kott (concertmaster), and Craig McNutt (percussion) answered questions from quite a few people in the audience.  

Here are a few of the questions and answers you may have missed:

 

It took John Musto about two years to write the music and work with Mark Campbell on the libretto. John & Mark then made some edits to the story after the first staging at Wolf Trap. When it arrived at BLO though, some of the edits didn’t flow together smoothly. So, John, the cast, and artistic team worked together during rehearsals to make it even more effective. Since the premiere the piece has gotten new character names, a replacement aria and a bunch of little nips and tucks to make it a much tighter piece. 

SandraKott, BLO’s concertmaster, has been playing professionally for 20+ years. She started in the 1970’s in Sarah Caldwell’s Opera Company of Boston and has since worked around the country. She’s been the concertmaster for the Atlanta Opera and currently serves as concertmaster for Boston Classical Orchestra.

CraigMcNutt, percussionist, has been playing music professionally for about 20 years.  In addition to BLO, he has played for Boston Modern Orchestra Project, OperFrankfurt, and Théâtre desChamps-Élysées.

 

John Musto is composer, pianist and improviser. He’s particularly prolific in art song and has written and performed many with his wife, soprano Amy Burton. He’s also written four operas The Inspector, Bastianello, Later the Same Evening, and Volpone with librettist Mark Campbell. Musto studied at Manhattan School of Music as a pianist (not a composer!) and has written a number of solo piano works. He lives on the upper west side of Manhattan with his wife and their son, a heavy metal guitarist.

Earlier this year, John appeared at BLO’s Signature Series at the MFA and treated the audience to dazzling improvisations on themes and styles from The Inspector. 

 Aw, thanks, Susan! Good times are in abundance for The Inspector!

The official BLO Exposed “half-time show” begins next season with Madama Butterfly. Those sets promise to be gorgeous, and it’s going to be fascinating to watch what goes on behind the curtain during intermission.

Whether we’re onstage or online, it’s your BLO. We’re here to help you get closer to the opera you love. That’s why we’re on Facebook and Twitter year-round. If you have a question about opera, strike up a conversation right now!