Evenings in Quarantine: The Zombie Opera

We were overjoyed by the effusive response we received last night at our Five-Year Anniversary Party at Mr. Smalls theater! It was a delight to see so many familiar faces, recounting so many memories, and welcoming new audiences young and old! It is nothing short of heart-warming to hear stories of the ripples created by our strange little project, and it was enchanting to see the amazing new cut of the Fall 2011 DVD edited by Chris Galgon (http://www.chrisemilyvideo.com/). For those interested, please stay tuned for pre-order information!

We are eternally grateful to the staff at Mr. Smalls, particularly Shaunden and Sabrina, who made the evening run so splendidly, and to Liz and Mike for hosting us. We also want to recognize Bob Miller, Emily Swora, and Jordan Speranzo, and David Egyud who joined us on stage to perform a few Zombie Opera favorites. Another special thanks to Marjorie Rishel, Matt Kucic, Marylou Lenhart, and Jim Newsome, who forewent unencumbered revelry to help us run the production part of the event.

Another delightful surprise was the response we received to the introduction of new and recent projects, including two world premieres.

• “Waltz de Chocobo, featuring the Bwack Choir” is a piece arranged by Bonnie Bogovich for the fan cover album entitled Materia: Final Fantasy VII Remixed, which will be released and available for download on Friday, October 9th. The album is comprised of conceptual arrangements of Final Fantasy VII music that range in style, tone, and instrumentation, chosen by and tailored to the strengths and interests of each composer.
• “The Fireflower Duet,” performed by Liz and Bonnie, is a parody of Lakmé’s famous Sous le dôme épais, re-lyricized as a duet between Link and Zelda (disguised as Sheik) for the new project, Super Smash Opera. The show features an original plot featuring the cast of the Super Smash Brothers games, and is set to the music of Opera’s most famously recognizable tunes.
• “The Pitch,” performed by Liz Rishel, Jordan Speranzo (both Zombie Opera Alums), Sean Lenhart, and William Strom, was written for a new project entitled Steam ~ or ~ The Specters of the Knox Mill, which is a steampunk ghost story set in Industrial Revolution Pittsburgh. The project is currently in production, and is promoting its upcoming fundraiser on November 20, the Steampunk Ball and Fashion Cotillion, also at Mr. Smalls Theater.

A joyous night for all, we are grateful to everyone who came out to help make this event special!