Apprentice at the Opera

  For artists studying their chosen medium at the university level, there is a certain sense of anxiety that seems to balloon the closer the student is to graduating. In a world with many good artists and a limited amount of opportunities, they're about to enter-cue foreboding music-the no-man's land between advanced training and working full-time as a professional. Like many artists, Bill Florescu had to work a stint as a waiter before launching into his professional career as an opera singer. Now general director of Milwaukee's Florentine Opera, Florescu developed the Florentine Opera Studio Program to offer a full season of artist-in-residence employment for singers who are just starting their professional journeys.

  Responding to a national advertisement for auditions, artists vied for only four spots in the Florentine Opera Studio Program, one for each major voice category. The company selected soprano Greer Davis-Brown of Chicago, mezzo-soprano Colleen E. Brooks of Cincinnati, tenor Rafael Luquis of Bayamon, Puerto Rico, and baritone Todd von Felker of Chicago as participants in the 2008-09 Florentine Opera Studio.

  Unlike many artist apprenticeships, the Florentine Opera pays its singers to participate in the program and covers their housing expenses. Studio artists sing supporting roles during the opera season while also helping the company achieve its main stage, educational and outreach goals. In addition to studio concerts and an in-school touring opera program, the artists will perform at donor functions and education initiatives. They will be given the opportunity to perform with established opera singers, as well as the chance to participate in classes and coaching sessions led by visiting artists. These opportunities not only bolster the studio artists' résumés and provide valuable experience, but they also give the singers valuable momentum in their careers.

  The relationship between the Florentine Opera Company and its studio artists is a symbiotic one. While the artists are given substantial opportunities, the company also benefits from the young singers. They are valuable representatives for the Florentine, giving the company a proud face at civic events.

  The Florentine Opera Studio artists will make their debut in a recital hosted by Florescu and accompanied by Maestro Joseph Rescigno, the Florentine's principal conductor and artistic advisor.

  "For lack of a better term, it's like a greatest-hits concert," Florescu explains. "It will be a nice representation of classic repertory, including pieces like the quartet in the Opera Rigoletto, well-known arias from Mozart and Verdi, as well as some lighter opera favorites like Strauss."

  Much like the Florentine's summer performances at Alterra at the Lake, the inaugural concert will be casual and welcoming. The general ticket price is $35, far less expensive than the cost to take in one of the Florentine Opera's mainstage performances. The forum serves to introduce these singers to the general public, but Florescu expects the concert will also break down the well-worn stereotype of the fat opera singer in Viking horns. The inaugural concert won't be like a fully staged opera, but, with its inexpensive ticket price, informal setting and balanced repertoire of operatic pieces, the Florentine Opera Studio Artist Inaugural Concert will be an excellent introduction to the 500-year-old art form.