It's time for one of my favorite #TCTheater summer traditions - Mixed Precipitation's Pickup Truck Opera! It's exactly what it sounds like - opera that operates out of a pickup truck. Well, sort of. Since the pandemic they've moved away from their "picnic operetta" with passed trays of food into this more portable show, driving all around the state in a 2011 Blue Ford pickup truck loaded with sets and props and instruments, bringing their unique brand of accessible and fun opera / pop music mashups to communities around Minnesota. In this year's Volume 5, they're mashing up Mozart's
Idomeneo, about the aftermath of the Trojan War, with pop music from '50s and '60s. And they also modernize the story and make it more modern and relevant. The result is pure joy, and just an absolute delight to experience! As one audience member described it, "it's part opera, part silly play." If that sounds appealing to you,
click here to find an outdoor location near you (continuing through September 14).
The story is more or less of the Romeo and Juliet variety - Prince Idamante (Joni Griffith) of the victorious Greeks (and son of the titular king) is in love with Ilia (Kaoru Shoji), daughter of Queen Hecuba (Debi Kilde) of the defeated Trojans. Many things are keeping them apart, including their warring families, the vow that King Idomeneo (Roland Hawkins II) made to save himself that inadvertently keeps him away from his son, jealous Electra (Jill Morgan) who wants Idamante for herself, some kind of slimy ooze running through the sewers, and those meddling gods who just don't like to see humans happy. But in this version of the story, love wins and peace is restored, and isn't that the story we need right now?!
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| the cast, band, and pickup (photo by Anne Hendrickson) |
Directed by Paul Coate, the show has a loose and playful feel; the cast seems to be having a great time which means the audience does too. And they make great use of each unique performance space, with long exits and entrances off into the distance. The dialogue is in modern English, as are the pop songs, but the opera is sung in the original Italian. There are no word-for-word traditional surtitles, just key phrases spelled out charmingly on banners, signs, or other clever devices. We may not get the exact meaning, but we get all of the emotions from this incredible cast of performers (also including Anna Pladson, Scotty Reynolds, Alex Yang), who sing unmiked, their gorgeous voices soaring through the summer air. They're accompanied by four musicians, who also get to play roles in the story - Music director Gary Ruschman on electric guitar (aka the god Apollo), accordionist Trevor Woggon (also a fierce Neptune), cellist Nick Miller (also the king's right hand man), and violinist Galina Đorđević (mother Zeus). It's really something to behold the way that they play classic opera and midcentury pop music with this instrumentation; it's truly beautiful and also really fun and accessible.
As a traveling show, the sets and costumes are fairly simple, but fun (which is really the key word here). Costumes are vaguely '50s era casual, with cute and whimsical props and set pieces (set design by Abby Palen, costume design by Rhiannon Fiskradatz). The pickup truck is even incorporated into the show, and the trailer serves as the bandstand.
This isn't a picnic operetta, but there is a brief break during which they pass around a refreshing beverage. And lots of people brought their own food to picnic on. Depending on the venue, they may also have food and drinks for sale as well. With a big crowd seated to watch the show, and people just randomly walking by enjoying this beautiful park, it really feels like a warm and welcoming community event. Two big takeaways from the opening speech by Artistic Director Scotty Reynolds and company members: "this is public art," which is becoming more and more endangered every day, and something we need to protect as an important part of a functioning society; and "arts jobs are real jobs!" We need our artists, and they need us. Go support these public artists in your community - tickets are on a sliding scale from $5 to $45 and they perform in the metro area and outstate Minnesota.
