OPERA SANTA BARBARA IS BACK FOR A LIVE DRIVE-IN OPERA OF DON PASQUALE

Opera Santa Barbara is excited to return to live productions with Don Pasquale, A Live Drive-In Opera, as the season opener for Concerts In Your Car at the Ventura County Fairgrounds. The only performance will be Saturday, April 10, at 7:30PM. This production marks the company’s second live stage performance after the successful live drive-in opera for Carmen in December. Come prepared to laugh, sing along, and keep that toe-tapping foot away from the gas pedal!

When it comes to combining beautiful melodies and vocal pyrotechnics with laugh-out-loud comedy, no one is a match for bel canto master Gaetano Donizetti, the composer of The Elixir of Love, Lucia di Lammermoor, and many other blockbuster opera house hits. In this hilarious new version directed by the irrepressible Josh Shaw, Founder of Pacific Opera Project, the titular Don Pasquale becomes “Donald Pasquale”, a film mogul in the Santa Barbara silent film business of the early 1920s.

“I’m thrilled to return to OSB with this light-hearted comedy set during the heyday of Santa Barbara’s motion picture business. Drawing from early comedians like Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, you can expect more bits, gags, goofs, and laughs than you’ve ever seen at the opera–just what we all need after a year in the pandemic,” said Shaw.

Rising stars soprano and Santa Barbara native Jana McIntyre, bass Andrew Potter, and tenor Matthew Grills will make their OSB debuts, effortlessly tossing Donizetti’s sentimental tunes and vocal acrobatics. Former OSB Studio Artist baritone Efraín Solís returns as the cunning Dr. Malatesta. Opera SB Artistic and General Director Kostis Protopapas conducts members of the Opera SB Orchestra.

“I’m very excited to work with this spectacular cast on this beautiful score. I have been looking forward to Jana and Andrew’s debuts, and I’m happy that we can still make them happen. I’m also looking forward to working with Matthew and Efraín, my good friend Josh Shaw, and to be reunited with our fearless production team and Opera SB orchestra,” said Protopapas.

The event will follow all CDC and State of California guidelines. Attendees can enjoy the live stage performance from the safe and socially-distanced comfort of their vehicles. Attendees can stay inside or by their vehicle as they are allowed to sit in folding chairs by their vehicle but must wear a face mask and maintain social distancing. The show will include a visual light show and multimedia entertainment across video jumbo screens. Sound will come through your car stereo, like a traditional drive-in theater on your FM radio. The opera will be sung in Italian with English translations projected on screen.

Tickets are on sale now at the Concerts In Your Car website. Each ticket is valid for one car. The number of passengers must not exceed the number of safety belts /seats in your vehicle, up to eight people. Car tickets start at $99.