OSU Opera Theatre to present performances of Georg Friedrich Händel’s Rinaldo

Tuesday, February 22, 2022

Media Contact: Mack Burke | Editorial Coordinator | 405-744-5540 | news@okstate.edu

The Oklahoma State University Opera Theatre will present the Georg Friedrich Händel-composed "Rinaldo" at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, March 4, and Saturday, March 5, in The McKnight Center for the Performing Arts.

This opera will be presented in three acts with libretto by Aaron Hill and Giacomo Rossi. The full production will be sung in Italian. The cast and orchestra are comprised of students from the Michael and Anne Greenwood School of Music and the Department of Theatre. The performance will also be live-streamed and can be viewed by going to insideosu.com. 

Credits include: stage direction from Steve Sanders; Dr. Thomas Dickey conducting; and music direction from Megan Barth Argo with assistance from April Golliver-Mohiuddin. Händel’s "Rinaldo" is rarely performed and OSU is excited to bring this story of love, war and redemption to its campus. 

"Rinaldo" (HWV 7) was first composed in 1711. It is the first Italian language opera by any composer written specifically for the London stage. The libretto was prepared by Giacomo Rossi from a scenario provided by Aaron Hill. The opera was first performed at the Queen's Theatre in London's Haymarket on Feb. 24, 1711.

The original production was set at the time of the First Crusade and was loosely based on Torquato Tasso's epic poem Gerusalemme liberata (Jerusalem Delivered), and its staging involved many original and vivid effects. The OSU production will feature a modernized theatrical storyline while remaining centered around love, battle and redemption.  

Handel composed the music for "Rinaldo" quickly. In the years following the premiere, Handel frequently introduced new numbers, discarded others and transposed parts to different voice ranges. Rinaldo's spectacular vocal and orchestral passages make it one of Handel's most frequently performed operas. Of its individual numbers, the soprano aria "Lascia ch'io pianga" has become a particular favorite and is a popular concert piece.  

The cast will feature: Dylan Aaron from Stillwater; Kennedy Conrad from Bethany, Oklahoma; Dominique Cannon from Stillwater; Brennan Lacy from Stillwater; Christian Diaz from Frisco, Texas; McKenna Collier from Mansfield, Texas; Alicen Criner from Houston; Liz Calandra from Floral Park, New York; Dakota Norman from Cushing, Oklahoma; Cassie Andel from Ardmore, Oklahoma; Mike Bullington from Keller, Texas; Analisa Gallegos from Corpus Christi, Texas; Darcy Golla from Tulsa; Hayley Hitt from Muskogee, Oklahoma; Rachel Ralston from Jenks, Oklahoma; Charlotte Sams from Tulsa; Lauren Reece from Stillwater; Adeline Skillman from Stillwater; Vanessa Washburn from Trophy Club, Texas; and Ken Beard from Stillwater. 

Tickets can be purchased online at music.okstate.edu, at McKnightCenter.org, or at the McKnight Center for the Performing Arts Box Office. The Box Office can be reached at 405-744-9999. Box Office hours are Monday-Friday, 9 a.m-4 p.m., and two hours before the performance. General admission is $12, seniors $10, and students $7. Ordering tickets in advance is highly recommended. 

OSU Opera welcomes donations for future production funding and student scholarships. Donations can be made through the OSU Foundation at osugiving.com or by calling 405-385-5100. For more information, contact April Golliver-Mohiuddin at 405-564-4961.