Kate Benedetti
Arts & Entertainment Editor
Students, faculty and Jackson residents of all ages flocked to the production of the Benjamin Britten opera “Noye’s Fludde” hosted by Union’s music department last weekend.
The capstone of Union’s Benjamin Britten Centennial Celebration, “Noye’s Fludde” was performed Feb. 8 and 10 at First Baptist Church.
Dr. Chris Mathews, department chairman, estimated as many as 140 people were involved in the production, including about 50 Union students, who served as stagehands, cast members and the majority of the orchestra, including the string ensemble and handbell choir.
The one-act opera, the second full-length opera Union has produced during Mathews’ four years as department chairman, retells the Genesis story of God flooding the Earth.
Cast members sang all of their lines, but the similarity to European high culture ends there.
“Noye’s Fludde” was adapted from a medieval miracle play, which was a public performance staged to familiarize the poor and illiterate with Bible stories.
“[The opera] is eclectic in its musical expectations,” Mathews said.
He explained that Britten, an early 20th-century British composer, wrote the roles of the stage performers and a minority of the musicians to be filled by professionals, while the rest of the roles were intended for amateurs and children.
“There are more difficult parts and there are more accessible parts,” Mathews said.
A committee from St. Mary’s Catholic School provided the costumes, colorful cotton robes and head coverings for older cast members and hooded animal outfits for the children’s chorus.
The one-act performance also was highly interactive, requiring the audience to stand and sing hymns printed in their bulletins as accompaniment to some of the scenes.
In one of the opera’s most memorable moments, Noye, played by senior vocal performance major Greg Hines, and his family welcome to the two-dimensional wooden ark a flood of 53 children, all dressed as animals ranging from lions to skunks.
Students involved auditioned for their parts last spring and have been working toward the performance ever since.
Freshman art and music major Grace Carbonell of Jackson joined the production as the second principal violinist in Union’s string ensemble. She said one of the biggest challenges was remaining focused among all the mayhem of a big production.
“The music itself wasn’t that challenging, but putting it together with all the lights flashing and the little kids running around … It was kind of distracting,” she said with a laugh.
Carbonell added that she spent about 10 hours practicing each week.
The most rewarding aspect of being involved, Carbonell said, was seeing the entire department work together.
“It’s not often that the singers get to work along with the musicians,” she said.
Each member of the ensemble was seated next to a member of the youth orchestra, ranging from the fifth to the 12th grade. The arrangement allowed the college students to share tips and encouragement with younger musicians.
Carbonell said she hopes to participate in similar productions in the future.
“I enjoyed playing the music that we played,” she said. “Benjamin Britten is a fun composer.”
