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46 FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | MAY 2025 On May 9, the Four Seasons Opera Club will present Gaetano Donizetti's La Fille du régiment. This will be the second Donizetti work presented by FSB Opera. We presented e Elixir of Love in April 2024. Like Elixir, this one is also a comedic work. Donizetti was a very popular opera composer in the early half of 19th century Paris. Donizetti premiered this opera in Paris on February 11, 1840 – this along with four other operas then currently in production. Five days later, fellow composer and music critic, Hector Berlioz ("Les Troyens"), complained, "Monsieur Donizetti treats us like a conquered country; it is a veritable invasion." The other Donizetti works already open in Paris at the time were Les martyrs, Le duc d'albe, Lucia di Lammermoor, and L'ange de Nisida (Rogers & Hammerstein and Andrew Lloyd Webber only ever had four shows on major stages at once!). e Daughter of the Regiment is known in the opera world as having the Mt. Everest of tenor arias. That is due to the nine high- Cs in the aria "A mes amis." It is viscerally thrilling to experience a superb male voice overpower the orchestra and venue hall with style and bravura. Our Tonio will be the reigning king of the high-Cs, the internationally acclaimed Peruvian tenor, Juan Diego Florez (my mother-in-law says he's easy on the eyes, too). It's a superb cast and our Marie will be the high tessitura French soprano, Natalie Dessay. Natalie Dessay is known for coluratura roles such as Lakme in the eponymous Leo Delibes opera where she sings well above C6 with ease and color in the aria, "Où va la jeune Hindoue." Ms Dessay retired in 2013, so you can only catch her on recordings now. But it won't only be the G#6s that will impress, but rather her great comedic antics and timing. She was a generous, self less operatic actress — a rare stage animal indeed. Our production is from the Vienna Staatsoper through the Royal Opera/Covent Garden and the chemistry of the leads was so well received that the Met brought that production stateside in 2008 to rage reviews. Some of our productions are challenging but this Donizetti opera is among the very approachable works in the opera canon due to a straight-forward story line and the wonderful music and performances. For more background, visit fsbopera.org. See you at the opera. ~ Harvey Toyama, admin@fsbopera.org, (951) 524-3765 Opera Club Classical Music Club We are classical music lovers with an interest in sharing our love of, knowledge about, and interest in, classical music. We meet on the second Thursday of each month at 7 pm in The Lodge Theater. We listen to and watch musical selections on the big screen. Each month we focus on a particular work or several selections of one composer. We also discuss current musical performances in the area. We welcome new members. Contact Steve Benoff at steve. benoff@verizon.net or (310) 413-4896. ~ Steve Beno We are dark for the month of May for both the classic lm and Wednesday western matinee. Look to June's Breeze for our showing of the e 1944 Academy Award winner for Best Picture: Casablanca. See you at the movies. ~ Paul Plamondon, 4seasonsmoviegroup@ gmail.com Classic Film Group Natalie Dessay as Marie Juan Diego Florez

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