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History of Pocket Opera
Donald Pippin, Artistic Director
Pocket Opera presents professional performances of operatic works in intimate, intelligible productions at affordable prices.
Donald Pippin's approach to opera is to tell the story in the clearest manner possible. He once said that there is "a whole category of operas where, if you don't know the story on the way to the theatre, you won't know it on the way home, either." With Pocket Opera presentations it is really possible to know the plot of the opera on the way home. Pippin brings the story to life via his nationally recognized English versions of opera libretti, in which he translates the spirit of the work rather than word by word, with complete fidelity to the composer's musical intentions.
For some operas, Pippin provides a personal spoken introduction to the opera or its individual acts and scenes that offers a setting for and some explanation of the story. For others his English version of the libretto carries the entire story and drama; no narrative or introduction is needed.
Pocket Opera is a theatre of the mind and of the heart. Productions are staged with minimal costuming and without sets, using only the few practical props (a bench, a desk, a door, ...) that are essential to convey the story. A few operas, for which staging would add little or nothing to the interpretation of the story, are performed concert style. Through the use of Pippin's singable translations and narration, through accomplished vocalists and small chamber orchestra, Pocket Opera presents the essence of opera -- affordable, accessible opera of the highest musicality for contemporary audiences.
The Handel repertory is Pippin's one concession to original languages. In his words, "The arias are set pieces with no action, just generalized feelings of love, jealousy, and revenge. English doesn't enhance anything and it takes away musically. All the drama lies in the recitatives." These he dispenses with and substitutes his own narrative between Handel's arias and ensembles, sung in their original Italian.
Pocket Opera performances are accompanied by the Pocket Philharmonic, a chamber orchestra of eight to fifteen musicians, led by Donald Pippin from the piano.
Professionally trained singers perform for Pocket Opera. Pocket Opera alumni may be found in opera houses around the world. Singer Auditions are held in San Francisco each fall.
DONALD PIPPIN: Piano man makes opera Pocket-sized by Joshua Kosman, Chronicle Music Critic, Monday, April 22, 2002 Donald Pippin, the founder, director and one-man band behind Pocket Opera, has been delighting Bay Area audiences for 25 years with his lithe, elegant versions of the operatic repertoire. In his heart, though, he considers opera something of a sidelight. "My first love," he confides, "is the piano." Nonetheless, Pippin has been laboring away at this sidelight for a quarter- century, producing an astonishing 58 English translations of operas both familiar and obscure. Read the article on sfgate.com - San Francisco Chronicle online. |
Baby Grand Many cities have grand opera, but only San Francisco has POCKET OPERA. These past 24 years, budget impresario Donald Pippin has staged in miniature over 75 productions - some classic warhorses, others bona fide rarities - usually in his own English translations, leading a chamber orchestra and narrating from his piano. To attend is to experience opera not as formal spectacle but as congenial musical theater. Stylishly sung by excellent local casts, the productions not only open up the often forbidding world of opera to newcomers, they afford die-hard aficionados a chance to hear unfamiliar works in English. -- by Dana Gioia |
