SIMONE BOCCANEGRA

Norwegian opera production Oslo

OH THE PAUSE .. THE PAUSE

My association with the Norwegian opera in Oslo is one of my fondest, and treasured relationships in my operatic career. If not for Bjorn Simensen, ( The long standing director of the Norwegian opera )  giving me the chances he did when he did, I may not have stayed in opera at all. My first operatic experience in Oslo was a beautiful production of Verdi's Simone Boccanegra. My cartoon tradition had not really yet become a tradition. Later I would never leave for a production without my full armed assortment of professional paper and drawing utensils. However in the early Oslo years it was always sort of a "last minute" thought. I remember the paper and the pens I found for these cartoons were not of the greatest quality. Still, a couple of these cartoons remain some of my favorites. They were good enough I guess to be printed in the local newspaper, as well as the theater paper.

I believe the director's name was Pierre LaChance! ( I will have to check on this. He was originally a circus tight rope walker) His production of Boccanegra was already highly received in Brussels. He was a very kind, and warm person to work with. Part of the charm was that he could only speak English with a VERY heavy French accent. He would say things like .. "We have rehearsed but terrific!" ...  or the favorite catch phrase of the production when things went wrong ... "Leetle by leetle." 

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