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Knoxville Opera Returns to the Tennessee Theatre with Boito's "Mefistofele"

knoxvilleopera.com

Melony Dodson talks with bass-baritone, Hidenori Inoue and soprano, Abigail Santos Villalobos

Knoxville Opera returns to the Tennessee Theatre with its first mainstage production since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. The production is Arrigo Boito's Mefistofele, which tells the iconic story of "good versus evil." This grand-scale opera features a chorus of over 100 singers, an on-stage orchestra, brass choirs placed throughout the theatre, scenes rising from the orchestra pit, and, of course, stunning costumes, sets, and soloists. Boito's music is romantic and dramatic, with lush orchestrations, similar to the style of Verdi. Due to its large size, Mefistofele is rarely performed and is sure to be a special treat for those who attend.

Morning Concert host, Melony Dodson, spoke with two of the soloists: bass-baritone, Hidenori Inoue (singing the role of Mefistofele) and soprano, Abigail Santos Villalobos (singing the role of Margherita), to get to know them and their characters a little better. Their stories of how they became professional opera singers are fascinating and surprising!

Tickets and additional information are available at https://knoxvilleopera.com

Melony calls the beautiful mountains of Boone, N.C., home, although she was born near Greensboro, N.C. There’s just something about those Blue Ridge Mountains that got in her blood and never left after she moved there to attend Appalachian State University (ASU). While at ASU, she majored in piano performance and music therapy and began to cultivate a love for accompanying and for collaborating with other musicians. This soon led her to earn a master’s degree in collaborative piano at the University of Tennessee, which she attended from 2006-2008.
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  • The Monday program starts off with "Mystery Melody Monday" inviting listeners to identify the music selected. "First Friday" is Melony's request show heard morning's on the first Friday of each month. Listeners can send in requests via email to mgdodson@utk.edu or by phone at 865-974-5541, or send them on our Facebook page. Composers Datebook airs at approximately 10 a.m. Note: playlists are not posted during fund drive weeks in the spring and fall.
  • WUOT's afternoon classical music program airs from 1-4 p.m. each weekday. Classics for Kids airs Mondays at 3 p.m. (rpt. of previous Saturday's show)NOTE: Playlists are not posted during fund drive weeks in the fall and spring.