NewsRelease

UNCG Carries on Tradition with ‘Amahl and Night Visitors’
Two singers come full-circle in return performances

GREENSBORO — Undergraduate music majors Steven Martin and Wade Elkins haven’t sung the part since they were in middle school. Yet, as they listen to their young counterparts sing the heartfelt songs of the crippled boy, Amahl, they can’t help but to quietly sing along.

Friday through Sunday, Nov. 15-17, the School of Music and Musical Arts Guild at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro will bring “Amahl and the Night Visitors” back to the stage for the seventh time since 1993. It will mark a role reversal for former Amahls Martin and Elkins, who were touched by Gian Carlo Menotti’s story years ago and will now return singing the role of the page, servant to three kings.

The 1951 television opera is about a poor, crippled boy who lives alone with his mother. One day they are paid an unexpected visit by the Wise Men, who are traveling to see a child believed to be the King of Kings. When their wealth proves too great a temptation for Amahl’s mother, conflict brews.

“It’s a fabulous introduction to opera for young people,” music director David Holley said, noting its appeal as an English presentation and short 50-minute length.
The story has made a significant impact in the lives of singers who have portrayed Amahl, including Holley. When he organized an Amahl reunion a few years ago, everyone who came brought along their homemade crutches. When he asked them to pose for a picture, everyone automatically tucked their right foot behind their left in a limping posture.

The School of Music will share the holiday story with area children during two outreach performances this year, which he expects will draw a total of 3,000 students.
Although Holley said he never envisioned the production as a recruiting tool, for Martin, being Amahl and working with UNCG was a large factor in his choice to study voice at UNCG.

“It’s powerful,” said Martin, who portrayed Amahl in UNCG’s productions of 1995 and 1996. “There are some things in here that make you want to cry. I don’t think you can get tired of this.”

This year, the role of Amahl will be shared on alternating performances by Brennon D. Gindelsperger of Gibsonville and Mike Vine of Greensboro.
Gindelsperger, an 11-year-old Faith Baptist Academy student, has performed many roles with Elon University, including Winthrop in “The Music Man,” David in “RAGS,” and Colin in “The Secret Garden.” He also performed “The Music Man” with Paramount Theatre Gallery Players. He has appeared with the Elon Jazz Group and sings with the Men of Faith Quartet at his church.

Vine is a sixth grader at Greensboro Academy. He has been seen on the UNCG stage as Kurt in “The Sound of Music” and John Darling in “Peter Pan.” He has also performed the roles of the Gingerbread Man in “The Gingerbread Man” and Johann in “It Happened in Hamelin” with GSO Children's Theatre. This fall Vine made his debut with the Greensboro Opera Company as a member of the children's chorus of “La Boheme.” In addition to these stage credits, he has recorded for Kindermusik International, sings with the Greensboro Youth Chorus, and plays the drums.

The remainder of the cast will include Mother (Nicole Asel and Allison Bailey), Kaspar (Reginald Hayes and Jeffery Maggs), Melchior (Sidney Outlaw and Charles Stanton), Balthazar (Josh Alexander and Jeffrey Carlson) and the page (Elkins and Martin). Joining the cast will be UNCG dance students Jason Roach, Jennifer Sherman, and Ashley West, and a chorus of more than 30 UNCG students, led by chorus master, Randy Price. Renee Janette Sokol is the stage director.

In accordance with Menotti’s wishes, Holley casts only boys in the role, which is sometimes assigned to a girl for convenience of accommodating the upper register vocals. This year, he auditioned half a dozen young singers recommended to him by local music community contacts. One of the boys was discounted after his voice unexpectedly changed. It is a risk Holley takes for authenticity, while the music remains a challenge to the young boys who tackle it.

Initially intimidated by the work’s difficulty level, Vine said, “I was looking through the notes and thinking ‘Now I’ve got the part, is it going to be impossible to do?’ ”
Elkins, however, has confidence that the next generation of Amahls will do the part justice.

“Both the Amahls are very good this year. They’ve got great voices and they’re wonderful on stage,” he said, “and that’s comforting.”
UNCG first presented the opera under the guidance of former faculty member William McIver, who sang as Amahl on television 1952-55. His vision, Holley said, “has colored the way we have done it since.”

“Amahl and the Night Visitors” will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and at 2 p.m. on Sunday in Aycock Auditorium. Tickets are available through the UNCG box office, with locations in Aycock Auditorium and the School of Music, or by calling (336) 334-4849, weekdays from noon to 5 p.m. Prices are $13 for adults, $11 for senior citizens and $5 for students. For more information about School of Music events, visit www.uncg.edu/mus/.   ###