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Arts & Entertainment

Riverbend Opera Company Performing in Potomac

An opera will be performed at Parthenon Concert Hall in Potomac on Friday.

The Virginia-based Riverbend Opera Company will be making a stop to perform in Potomac to tell the tale of a not-so-traditional love story.

The opera company will be performing “The Tales of Hoffman” at the Parthenon Concert Hall in Potomac on June 10. 

“The Tales of Hoffman” was written by German-born French composer Jacques Offenbach in 1881. Based on the short stories of a writer named E.T.A. Hoffman, the opera is a love story that doesn’t end happily ever after, but rather tragically, instead. The protagonist must choose between the bottle, the muse, and the woman he loves, who has now become interested in another man.

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First performed in Paris, the opera has remained popular for more than a century, and many of its songs have been used in movies such as the Academy Award-winning “Life is Beautiful,” as well as Woody Allen’s recently released “Midnight in Paris.”

The Riverbend Opera Company, which is in its third year, has about 35 members, including Kevin Courtemanche, Catherine Wethington, Alisa Kieffer, Melissa Chavez, Linda Kiemel, Jose Sacin, Daryl Ott, John Boulanger, Stephen Stokes and Albert Niedel, all of whom will be performing in “The Tales of Hoffman.”

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“We have the most amazing cast of professional opera singers,” said Company manager John Turner.

Turner said some of the performers in the play are members of the Washington National Opera and lead tenor Courtemanche is a member of the Metropolitan Opera chorus in New York.

The performance will be held at the Parthenon Concert Hall, which is the studio of Potomac resident Chrissellene Petropoulos, an opera singer who now teaches vocal lessons.

“We call it the ‘Parthenon of Potomac’ because it looks like the Parthenon—built in honor of my Greek roots,” Petropoulos said.

Turner said “The Tales of Hoffman” will be the opera company’s first performance in the hall, which he called “a beautiful space.”

Petropoulos also had high praises for Turner.

“John is a wonderful and passionate man who goes after his dreams and has created this company for singers,” she said. “He too is a singer and it is a delight to know him.” 

The Tales of Hoffman will include pianist Bradley Rinaldo, chorus master Molly Khatcheressian, a string quartet, chorus and soloists.

The opera company will also be having performances on June 14, 7:30 p.m. at St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C., and June 19 at 5 p.m. at the Providence Presbyterian Church in Fairfax.

 

The Tales of Hoffman will be at 7:30 pm on Friday, June 10 at the Parthenon Concert Hall, 9201 Harrington Drive. Tickets for the Potomac performance are $25 for adults, $18 for seniors, $10 for students. To purchase tickets or for more information, call 703-869-3637 or visit the website.

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