Author Description

In Staging Scenes from the Operas of Mozart: A Guide for Teachers and Singers, opera director and scholar William Ferrara offers the perfect resource for the dramatic preparation of opera scenes for directors and student performers. Topics include the study and research, rehearsal planning, blocking, characterization, and costuming for Mozart's operas. He surveys basic concepts of opera acting and directing, along with a step-by-step guide to the rehearsal process. While much has appeared on the history and musical performance practice of the operas of Mozart, no guide to the directing and performing of his operas--with simple, concise staging instructions, and practical information concerning casting, props, and costumes--has yet seen publication.Featuring over 100 illustrations, including suggested costume designs, Ferrara breaks new ground for student and scholar, peformer and director alike, as he walks readers through the staging of Mozart's operas. The first part of the guide focuses on the preparation of the scenes, comprising five chapters on the organizing of the opera class staging the work, a description of the job of the director, a step-by-step review of the rehearsal process, a set of five exercises for researching and analyzing the scenes, and a vocabulary for actors and directors. The next four sections of the book consist of detailed staging guides for a selection of scenes from Mozart's most frequently performed operas: Le Nozze di Figaro, Don Giovanni, Così fan tutte, and Die Zauberflöte. The introduction to each scene includes a brief discussion of the story and characters, suggestions for costuming, and minimal set and props. The heart of this guide is the text of the scenes with acting translations, embedded with line-by-line acting notes and blocking directions. This work is thus designed to be used as a script by the actors in improvisation and blocking rehearsals and is especially useful for recitative rehearsal. Intended for college and uni