A NIGHT AT THE OPERA
Stephanie Mitchell learns about opera, Germany and olives.
Georgia Jamieson Emms wants to show that opera can be enjoyed by anyone. She started her company, Wanderlust Theatre, as a way for her and her friends to perform and on Saturday it’s bringing its second production, Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro, to New Plymouth’s 4th Wall Theatre.
‘‘If you’ve never tried it before, this is a good one. It’s not overwhelming and it’s funny. It’s a bit more palatable for people who aren’t sure about opera,’’ she said.
Jamieson Emms rewrote the script from Italian to English.
She said the only way was to transform it from something old and unrelatable was to write it herself.
‘‘I just sat down, opened the score, and started to write it in English. I worked out with the director the most important plot points and characters and chopped bits out and made it snappier.’’
Jamieson Emms also catered it to New Zealanders.
‘‘I sat with my rhyming dictionary creating funny, silly rhymes, and gags for New Zealand audiences. I wanted New Zealand audiences to be like ‘oh, this was written for us’.’’
The South Wairarapa native said this version of The Marriage of Figaro is a great opera for beginners.
She urges people to just go to the opera before deciding whether they like it or not. She also said she prides herself on making the shows affordable.
‘‘Our most expensive ticket is around $35 - big operas are around $100.’’
Each town that The Marriage of Figaro goes to involves the local community and in New Plymouth they will be calling on a group organised by vocal teacher Lisa Rangi. ‘‘Lisa has organised a group of ladies who will be in the audience and pop up for the chorus.
‘‘In Hamilton we had year six and eight students and in Napier we had some golden oldies, so every show is different.’’
Jamieson Emms says she was raised on ‘‘a diet of Julie Andrews’’. She always wanted to be a singer so studied vocal training at university and was surrounded by opera.
‘‘When you are surrounded by something it is hard not be inspired by it so I started thinking ‘I could do that’.’’
Upon leaving university she started to notice her options as an opera singer were limited.
‘‘I realised that if I want a career I had to leave New Zealand.’’
So she went to Germany with her partner, broke into the scene over there, and was forced to become fluent in German.
‘‘My job contract was in German, all e-mails were in German, and everyone spoke in German so it was a sink or swim situation.’’
She moved back to New Zealand in 2013 and started Wanderlust Theatre.
She said once you’ve fallen in love with opera you stay that way.
‘‘It’s a bit like olives,’’ she laughed.
‘‘It’s an acquired taste but once you love olives you never go back.
‘‘I liked olives as a child though so maybe I was a bit odd to begin with.’’
❚ The Marriage of Figaro is on Saturday April 21 at 7.30pm and Sunday April 22 at 4pm. Tickets are available from www.4thwalltheatre.co.nz