by College of the Arts
December 2nd 2024
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Valencienne (March Steiger, center) and the Grisettes let loose at Chez Maxim's in PSU Opera's "The Merry Widow" (2024). Photo by Chad Lanning
Portland State Opera tied for second place in Division IV of the National Opera Association’s 2023-2024 Opera Production Competition for their Spring 2024 production of “The Merry Widow.”
The 2023-2024 NOA Opera Production Competition cycle included 84 entrants divided into Undergraduate and Graduate levels with eight total divisions based on production size and budget. Portland State Opera was placed in Division IV, one of the four Undergraduate divisions, tying for second place with Michigan State University Opera Theatre.
The creative team included director Dan Wallace Miller and PSU Opera Director Kelley Nassief, artistic director; Chuck Dillard, DMA, music director; Ken Selden, conductor; Carey Wong, set designer; and Peter West, lighting designer. Portland State’s rendition of Franz Lehár’s enduringly popular operetta, with libretto by Viktor Léon and Leo Stein, reimagined the Belle Epoque favorite in glamorous early-1960s Paris, with a nod to the classic Hollywood movie musical.
“It is a great honor to receive our second consecutive national award amid such incredible music programs around the country,” Kelley Nassief said. “Our students, faculty, crew and creative team work very hard to bring high quality productions to serve our city! Our production of “The Merry Widow” brought a fresh, youthful spin on a beloved classic, and we are honored to have received this recognition at a national level.”
Portland State Opera also placed in last year’s 2022-2023 NOA Opera Production Competition, earning third place in Division IV for their production of Mozart’s final opera, “The Magic Flute.”
The National Opera Association (NOA), founded in 1955, “champions excellence and innovation in the performance, scholarship, and pedagogy of opera.” The prestigious Opera Production Competition’s aim is to “further the organization’s mission by encouraging and rewarding creative, high quality opera productions at academic institutions and music conservatories.”