California State University Chico - Record Yearbook (Chico, CA)

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THE BCD!-IEMIAINI CI RL Wallace Matthews as Count Arnheim A few in the cast of The Bohemian Girl were caught by the camera. From left to right they are: Juanita Kendricks, con- tralto: Helen Canevari, soprano, who took the part of the Gypsy Queen: Idell Christopher, so- prano, as Buda: Evelyn Ensign, soprano. played the important part of Arline: and Warren Behnke, tenor, who was the ro- mantic Thaddeus. CAST OE CHARACTERS Count Arnheim, Governor of Presburg. r..., W allace Matthews Thaddeus, a proscribed Pole. ......................... Warren Behnke Florestein, nephew of the Count. ......... .....,. . Jack Taylor Devilshoof, Chief of the Gypsies ...... ,..... . Archie Hooper Captain of the Guard .--H ...,...,........ ....,,.. A .,.t, G ail Moore Arline, daughter of the Count- As child. ............... ..------. ...... G ,....,.... .Mary Joanne Berry Twelve years later. ............,.......,t......,,.... Evelyn Ensign Buda, her attendant falso understudy for Arlinej ,.....,,.,........t.............,......... Idell Christopher Queen of the Gypsies.- ....... A ...... ..,,t... . Helen Canevari Understudy .... - t..... - nn-- .o....... ......,. J uanita Kendricks Soldier ,.............. . ......,...,............................. ,---.John Berger Servants ....,. ..,..... . Jane Hauck, Jewel Behnke, James Burns Choruses. ....................................,........ A .... A Cappella Choir A well balanced and spirited chorus created a splendid musical background for the singing leads, who told in song the story of the loss of the beautiful young Arline from the spacious court of her father: the Count Arnheimg her gay and happy life with the Gypsiesg her romance with Thaddeus, a young Polish noble-man, who is a fugitive from his Austrian political enemies, and nnally her restoration to royalty. The opera is in four acts with act one taking place in the country estate of the Count Arnheim, near Presburg. Act two shows the outskirts of Presburg where the Gypsies are encamped. Act three is the interior of Count Arnheim's castle showing the hall of justice and in the final act the interior of the castle is shown. From the courtyard scene of Count Arnheim in the first act to the marble halls of the last, realistic stage settings enhanced the charm of the story. Musical observers were of the opinion that the performance surpassed any of the five operas given at Chico State. Miss Ruth Rowland directed the opera. Under the direction of Mrs. Alberta Potter Greening, the orchestra accompanied the singing leads and the choruses. Robert Douglas Hume was production director. The choruses were composed of members of the A Cappella Choir, which earned the distinction of being one of the finest choirs that Miss Ruth Rowland has directed at Chico State. The success of the opera has virtually assured the production of another opera next year. l a,mm ,w

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MELCDDIC MELODIES It was the pleasure of the spring A Cappella Choir this year to present the Hrst broadcast over the newly installed chimes system in the library tower. Ninety-Hve voices carried old favorite Christ-mas carols to the local community over the amplifying system. W Opening the A Cappella musical season a program was given at the Home- Coming Day banquet. Following this the choir rendered several selections at the Teachers' Institute, held in the Sacramento Memorial Auditorium on November 25. The surpassing of their excellent performance given in Sacramento last season marked the choir as one of the outstanding groups that Director Miss Ruth Rowland has conducted. Both the choir and Miss Rowland were highly compli- mented upon their excellent work. t On December 12, the choir presented the seventh annual Messiah that has been given during the Christmas season. In spite of the Hood conditions, which cut Chico off from the surrounding com-munities, one of the largest crowds ever to attend a Messiah greatly enjoyed the presentations of Handel's familiar oratorio. Soloists for this occasion were: Warren Behnke, Evelyn Ensign, La Verne Grell Priberg, Timothy McCarthy, and Ruth E. Rowland. Balfe's opera, The Bohemian Girl, was one of the biggest musical events undertaken by the college choir. Its overwhelming success should encourage more performances of this type. The brilliant chorus scenes with noblemen, soldiers, gypsies, retainers, and peasants add a richness of color and tone to the scenes that one could not forget. Following the opera the group sang several choruses for the Convention of the Federation of Women's Clubs. In observance of National Music Week the choir expected to leave on their annual concert tour which was to include performances at Oroville, Biggs, and Marysville Junior College: however, the tour was cancelled at the last moment. Closing a most successful year, the A Cappella Choir rendered vocal numbers at the baccalaureate, held on June 5, and the commencement exercises held in the College Auditorium on June 9. The choir is composed entirely of Chico State students. The only require- ment for joining the chorus is a desire to sing and be in it. Each year new members are added due to the increased popularity of the program. The A Cappella Choir in the fall semester had the unique privi- lege of being the iirst to broad- cast over the newly installed chimes in the library tower. Traveling to Sacramento, the choir sang before the Teachers' Institute and presented a program that won the acclaim of the audi- ence. The annual Messiah was given during December. Pictured below is the well known A Cappella Choir. This particu- lar shot of the choir was taken during their participation in the popular opera, The Bohemian Girl. Grouped in the center of the picture with Miss Ruth Rowland, director, are the sing- ing leads, Evelyn Ensign. Idell Christopher, Helen Canevari, Warren Behnke, Archie Hooper, and Wallace Matthews. ra: x :s s ima -is a We S Q s mg a R :E , I E -'N E-3 s an l 'asv is e s