A Grand Night for Singing in Oswego

Event Description

        

Contact: Mack Richardson, Artistic Director, Oswego Opera Theater, (315) 638-0674

 

“A Grand Night for Singing in Oswego”
Planned for April 12th at the American Foundry

Broadway Performer Craig Schulman and Opera Singer
Eleanor Paunovic to Headline Oswego Opera Theater Event  

OSWEGO, New York (February 22, 2013) - Broadway star Craig Schulman and famed opera singer Eleanor Paunovic, both former students of SUNY Oswego, will perform at the American Foundry in Oswego with pianist Dan Riddle on Friday, April 12th at 8 pm.
 The Oswego Opera Theater production entitled, “A Grand Night for Singing in Oswego”, will feature the music of several different popular Broadway shows including Showboat, Carmen, Phantom and Les Miz, as well as recognized opera performances, according to Oswego Opera Theater Artistic Director Mack Richardson.
 Tickets are $50 per person and available online at http://oswegoopera.ticketbud.com/grand, or payable by check to Oswego Opera Theater, P.O. Box 3039, Oswego, New York 13126.
 A sponsor reception and dinner is planned for 6 pm that evening, with doors opening for those guests at 5:30 pm. People attending the show only can arrive at 7 pm for general admission seating. 
 “Craig Schulman’s Oswego Opera Theater performance in Oswego last March, truly blessed the hundreds in attendance at the Foundry,” said Richardson. “This year, we welcome Craig and pianist Dan Riddle back to Oswego, with famed opera singer Eleanor Paunovic, for what should be an equally incredible performance.”
 “We are extremely excited to share ‘A Grand Night for Singing in Oswego’ with the Central New York community, and are looking forward to wonderful evening,” he added.
 Mr. Schulman is the only performer in the world who has played the title roles in Leslie Bricusse and Frank Wildhorn’s Jekyll and Hyde, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera, and nearly 2000 performances as Jean Valjean in Les Misérables, both on Broadway and worldwide.  He has also held the roles of Che in Evita, Tyve in Fiddler on the Roof, and Archibald Craven in The Secret Garden just to name a few.  He sang Don Jose in Carmen at Opera Carolina, Opera Memphis and in Colorado.  Mr. Schulman also had the honor of singing with Sherrill Milnes and Mignon Dunn at Opera Memphis’ 40th Anniversary Gala Concert.  He also has both created and produced the “Broadway Nights Concert Series”, “Craig Schulman sings Heroes, Monsters & Madmen”, and “Craig Schulman on Broadway”.
 He is married to well-known New York City vocal teacher Monica Robinson and together they have two sons and a daughter.  Mr. Schulman affectionately dedicates each performance in remembrance of his daughter Jenna.
 Eleanor Paunovic has gained international fame for her opera and chamber music performances.  This past season alone, she sang at Lausanne Mozart Festival, on tour with Colonge and Bonn, Germany with the Zurcher Sing-Akademie, and at the Tonhalle, (Symphony Hall) Zurich in Bach’s Christmas Oratorio.  She recently received critical acclaim for her voice and stage presence after a performance singing Handle’s Messiah.    Paunovic has also sung alto solos in the Monteverdi Vespers, with local authenticBaroque Orchestra La Scintilla.  Last summer in Oxford, England she sang at Christ Church Cathedral with the Matheus Kantorei of Luzern. 
 A native of Fort Covington, a Northern New York border village of 900 residents, Ms. Paunovic currently lives in Zurich, Switzerland with her husband Grujica Paunovic and two small children. There she sings Opera and Chamber Music while directing the children’s music at St. Andrew’s Anglican Church.  She also enjoys the Great American Songbook and will often perform the old standards for local Zurich organizations. 
 Ms. Paunovic received her B.A. in music at SUNY Oswego then continued on to her receive her M.M. in voice from, New England Conservatory in Boston where she lived for a few years.  While there, Ms. Paunovic sang with the Handel and Haydn Society under Christopher Hogwood among other Baroque Ensembles. 
 After her performance in Oswego, she flies back to Zurich to perform in Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem, which is conducted by Charles Dutiot.  Her son will also be involved in the production by singing with the Zurich Boys’ Choir.
 Much like Mr. Schulman and Ms. Paunovic, Dan Riddle has performed all over the world.  Originally from Dallas, Texas, Mr. Riddle attended school at Juilliard in New York City, where he received both his B.A. and M.M. in piano.  He later went on to receive a double degree in piano and opera conducting from Vienna Hochschule, while studying abroad on a Fulbright Grant.
 While he worked on Broadway, Mr. Riddle conducted Les Miserables, Mamma Mia, The Light in the Piazza, Into the Woods, A Class Act, Oklahoma, Aida, Sunset Boulevard, Bombay Dreams and Titanic.   At Penn State, he has conducted Kiss Me Kate, Peter Pan, Cabaret, Parade, She Loves Me, Urinetown, The Boyfriend, Sunday in the Park with George, Company, 1776, Baby, Camelot, Grey Gardens, Ordinary Days, Big River, The Wiz, Grand Hotel and Sweeny Todd.  He has also conducted at the National Theater of Taiwan, St Louis’ MUNY, Hartford Symphony, Indiana University’s School of Opera as well as others.
 In addition to the numerous plays Riddle has conducted, he is also a world famous pianist.  Mr. Riddle has performed as a soloist with the orchestras of Cleveland, Dallas, Cincinnati, Monte Carlo, Cairo, Egypt and many others.
 For more information on the event, sponsor information, and/or the Oswego Opera Theater please call (315) 638-0674 or (508) 737-6115; visit Facebook: Oswego Opera Theater Events; www.oswegoopera.org; or email OswegoOpera@aol.com.