Chilean mezzo-soprano to interpret Theodorakis works
A rising international opera star will be interpreting two landmark works by Greek composer Mikis Theodorakis in Athens on Thursday, March 27.
Chilean mezzo-soprano Maria Isabel Vera (photo) will perform the composer’s “Canto General” and “Romancero Gitano” at the Athens Concert Hall. While the former is based on poetry by Chile’s Pablo Neruda, the latter features the poetry of Spain’s Federico Garcia Lorca.
The Athens Concert Hall performance marks the 110th anniversary ofNobel-laureate Neruda’s birth as well as 40 years since the completion and first rendition of the Greek composer’s “Canto General.”
The performance features maestro Loukas Karytinos leading a 15-member orchestra, baritone Haris Andrianos and pianist Tatiana Papageorgiou. Sakis Todoulos will narrate.
Vera’s Athens debut follows appearances at the New York Met, the Finnish National Opera in Helsinki and the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, among other venues.
The vocalist was born in Santiago in 1977, with her hometown’s municipal theater serving as a debut venue for the young artist to gain experience in roles which included Fenena and Eboli in Verdi’s “Nabucco” and “Don Carlos,” respectively.
In 2007, the artist was selected to represent Chile in the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World Competition, where she reached the final. The same year she enrolled at the prestigious Juilliard Opera Center in New York.
The Athens concert, co-organized with the Thorax Foundation, comes with a charity angle. A portion of the evening’s proceeds will benefit the Holy Metropolis of Ilion, Acharnes and Petroupoli and its soup kitchens.
Tickets range from 15 to 80 euros. For more information, visit www.megaron.gr.
