| | | |  | THE LESSON OF DAJI
I had the incredible privilege of premiering Alice Ping Yee Ho and Marjorie Chan's opera The Lesson of Daji in May with Toronto Masque Theatre. This new Canadian opera was my first full-scale opera in Canada and featured a Baroque ensemble (harpsichord, archlute, gamba, etc) with traditional Chinese instruments (pipa, erhu, gushing). We also presented John Blow's Venus and Adonis. Alice and Marjorie also received the Dora Award for Best New Opera/Musical for this piece.
My biggest surprise was the great reviews I received from a number of publications:
Derek Kwan has a lovely, high, firm tenor ideal for the cautious, sincere Bo Yi, drawn to love Da Ji in spite of the danger.
With his pleasant tenor, Derek Kwan (Shepherd/Bo Yi) held his own in both operas. More importantly, he brought key acting skills to the part of Bo Yi.
– Paula Citron, Opera Canada (Summer 2013)
There were some good performances, notably Derek Kwan as Bo Ji and Marion Newman as Da Ji. Both showed skill, artistry and versatility.
| |  | WINTERREISE PROJEKT
This year, I headed up a project called Winterreise Projekt- a collaborative exploration of Winter, Canada and the Other. I got to work with a dream team of amazing artists and friends, and thanks to generous grants from the TAC, OAC and CCA, we were able to do a series of explorations, including at Harbourfront HATCH in May 2013.
The project has since morphed into an extremely personal journey about my parents' death and my grief process. In October, I was able to make a trip to Khao Lak, Thailand to do research that will form the basis for the further development of this piece.
Stay tuned for more info! | |  | MR PARK VS DALE
I wrote my first opera! With Nicole Ratjen, I devised and wrote a 20-minute opera for the Lab Cab Festival in Parkdale in July for tenor and viola da gamba (played by the incomparable Jöelle Morton). This show was an experiment in mask, opera and site-specific theatre and featured an incredible rotating mask for 2 characters that Nicole designed. It also spawned the Park:LIFE project which aims to bring mask work to public spaces in Toronto as a way of interrogating how we view our surroundings. | |  | I CALL MYSELF PRINCESS
I had the immense honour of working with Jani Lauzon on her new piece for Native Earth's Weesageechak Festival. Based on the life of Tsianina Redfeather, this work-in-progress weaves together historical fact, present fiction, and the very real opera that was written about her.
HERE's a clip of Lionel's super cheesy and amazing love aria from the original opera. Recorded at Jani's house during a rehearsal with Kevin McGugan on piano. | |  | TAIPEI, TAIWAN
In September, I decided to take some R&R and visit Stewart in Taipei for 5 weeks. Little did I know how productive the trip would be: I ended up giving a Lecture/Recital and Masterclass at Hsinchu University of Education thanks to Professor Fanling Su, and I helped to open thinkers' theatre's cool new space with a demonstration of singing with Contact Improv. You can catch the video of how it went down HERE. | |  | RED KITE PROJECT
I love Theatre Direct and was overjoyed for the opportunity to work with them on this really special project. Lynda Hill brought up Jacqueline Russell of Chicago Children's Theatre, who is known for her pioneering work in creating theatre for children with autism. Together, we created and workshopped a piece specifically designed for children on the autism spectrum and it was truly one of the dearest projects I've ever had the pleasure to work on. The room was all love, and it is pure magic to see how these children respond to theatre in ways that are | |  | FENG YI TING
In June, I was the interpreter for Feng Yi Ting, a show that came to Toronto for Luminato. Directed by Atom Egoyan, this show was a fusion of various Chinese opera styles, Western Classical music, and Asian and Western theatrical forms. It was fascinating to be in the room with the Chinese artists, maestro Ken Lam, and Atom Egoyan: all incredible artists from such vastly different traditions. I learned a lot about Chinese operatic music forms, producing larger scale touring opera, and how to deal with divas! | |  | HANDEL'S MESSIAH I got to sing a couple of Messiah's this year in Oshawa and Owen Sound. It's been a few years since I've sung it, so it was great to give the old chestnut another crack. I also sang a few Bach Christmas Oratorios, and a number of small concerts that were a lot of fun. | | |
2014...
Who knows what this year will bring? But I'm excited to find out!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
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