Basalt Exhibition opening
It all started when the BRDG Project learned that there was an opera singer in their community who loved to collaborate.
In the summer of 2021, artists at the BRDG Project in Denver gathered to hear opera arias and ensembles performed by Kira Dills-DeSurra (Mezzo-Soprano), Leah Podzimek (Soprano), and Jessica Nilles Kressin (Piano). They not only listened to the music, but heard about the context of each individual aria or duet within the story of a full operatic work, the background of the operas and the composers, and more.
One month later, they delivered completed, new works of art to the gallery. Over 30 individual artists, working in their chosen medium and their own style, had internalized the emotion of the performance and expressed it in their artwork.
The project, dubbed INTERPLAY, was so successful that it is traveling throughout the state of Colorado.
INTERPLAY in Basalt
Over a dozen artists from the Roaring Fork Valley gathered last October to listen to opera at The Arts Campus at Willits. The original musical program comprised two thematic chunks - love/lust and loss/grief - of vocal works from throughout the ages. Arias and duets from the eras of Handel and Mozart, Puccini and Cipullo, showcased the breadth of operatic repertoire and musically highlighted the things that connect us all: emotion and storytelling.
Since that concert in October, the artists have been working on their own visual interpretations of the music they witnessed. Their new artworks will be on display from April 18th through May 20th at The ArtBase, and on April 18th there is a public celebration featuring live performances from Leah, Kira, and Jessica.
Opening Celebration Program - April 18, 2023
These pieces were selected because, while multiple artists were inspired by the program as a whole, there were also artists inspired by these particular songs!
The Song to the Moon from Rusalka by Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)
Habañera from Carmen by Georges Bizet (1838-1875)
Barcarolle from The Tales of Hoffman by Jacques Offenbach (1819-1880)
“My darling Jim” from Glory Denied by Tom Cipullo (1956-)
“Must the winter come so soon” from Vanessa by Samuel Barber (1910-1981)
“Donde lieta” from La bohème by Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924)
Click here for translations!
Original Program (October 2022)
Part 1 - Love is a rebellious bird
Habañera from Carmen by Georges Bizet (1838-1875)
“Meine Lippen sie küssen so heiss” from Giuditta by Franz Lehár (1870-1948)
Sull’aria from Le nozze di Figaro by W.A. Mozart (1756-1791)
“Faites-lui mes aveux” from Faust by Charles Gounod (1818-1893)
“Měsíčku na nebi hlubokém” from Rusalka by Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)
Barcarolle from The Tales of Hoffman by Jacques Offenbach (1819-1880)
Part 2 - Without regret
“Les chemins de l’amour” by Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)
“Tu che di gel sei cinta” from Turandot by Puccini (1858-1924)
“Must the winter come so soon” from Vanessa by Samuel Barber (1910-1981)
“My darling Jim” from Glory Denied by Tom Cipullo (1956-)
“Allerseelen” by Richard Strauss (1894-1949)
“Donde lieta” from La bohème by Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924)
Click here for translations!
About the Musicians
Leah Podzimek, Soprano
Hailed as “opulent and rich”, Soprano Leah Podzimek’s recent roles include Second Lady (The Magic Flute) with Opera Fort Collins and Princess Dora (The Three Feathers) with Opera Steamboat. She also works extensively through her business Luster Productions, performing in interactive, site-specific performances including “Interplay: Art + Opera”. Based in Denver, Ms. Podzimek received her Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from Wartburg College, and MA from Goldsmiths, University of London. While abroad she performed roles with OperaGold (Tytania/A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Giornata Opera (Suor Osmina/Suor Angelica), and Park Opera (Chloë/The Queen of Spades). She has received scholarships to attend and perform at the Aldeburgh Festival, Dartington International Summer School for Music, Abingdon School for Solo Singers, and OperaWorks in Los Angeles.
This season looks forward to performing Rosita & Fulang (Frida Kahlo and the Bravest Girl in the World) with Central City Opera, Mrs. Gleaton (Susannah) with Opera Fort Collins, taking “Interplay” to Steamboat Springs, and continuing to work with the Rocky Mountain Region’s premier new music group, The Playground Ensemble, as their core vocalist. She currently studies with Dramatic Soprano Alexandra LoBianco.
Kira Dills-DeSurra, Mezzo-Soprano
Kira Dills-DeSurra is a vibrant American mezzo-soprano whose magnetic stage presence communicates effortless charm and authenticity. Hailed as a nuanced singer and talented comedic stage actress (San Diego Union-Tribune) Kira cultivates skills in musical improvisation and circus arts as part of her broad-ranging palate of storytelling tools. She is a champion of new and rarely performed works and has appeared in many American premieres. She also cultivates skills in musical improvisation and circus arts as part of her broad-ranging palate of storytelling tools. She was a Resident Artist with Opera Colorado, where she performed Mercédès (Carmen), Rosina (Il barbiere di Siviglia), Flora (La traviata), Gertrude Stein (After Life), Cherubino (Le nozze di Figaro), Stéphano (Roméo et Juliette), and Hansel (Hansel and Gretel). She is also a graduate of the Chicago Opera Theater Young Artist Program.
Most recently, Kira showcased her “vocal and acting excellence” as the “consistently hysterical” (Marlowe’s Musings) Prince Orlofsky (Die Fledermaus) with Central City Opera and as Lola (Cavalleria Rusticana) with Opera Colorado. Hailing from Petaluma, California, Dills-DeSurra earned both a Master of Music and Artist Diploma from Roosevelt University: Chicago College of Performing Arts and a Bachelor of Music from the University of Southern California.
Jessica Nilles Kressin, Piano
Jessica Nilles Kressin, a native of Webster City, Iowa, did her doctoral work in Piano Performance at the University of Colorado Boulder.
Collaborative performances have been an important addition to Jessica’s musicianship. She has performed with many instrumentalists and singers, including Simon Estes, with whom she performed at the White House and in his “Roots & Wings” tour across the state of Iowa. In 2018, Jessica performed at Red Rocks Amphitheatre with other Wartburg faculty. Currently she is part of Duo Azure with soprano Ekaterina Kotcherguina, with whom she competed in Lyon, France in the Concours international de musique de chambre de Lyon.
She has extensive experience as an opera rehearsal pianist and coach, currently serving as music director and pianist at Breaking Glass Arts, a small immersive opera company based in Denver. Nilles Kressin frequently collaborates with singers at Opera on Tap events around the Denver area as well.