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While you�re getting a kick out of Chabrier ���Ét�Ǿ�����, �������� Opera Theater will be getting a workout.  

That is to say, while you�re laughing, smiling, and humming along to the school zany opera season opener Nov. 16 and 17, �������� opera students will be doing everything possible to make it all look easy.  

�I have to keep reminding myself that there are no �off� moments,� said soprano Shira Ziv, who plays Aloès. �It been really challenging but also really helpful.�  

The reason there are no �off� moments is that this ���Ét�Ǿ����� takes place not in Kulas Hall, which is currently undergoing renovation, but � for the first time � in Westfield Studio Theater, a 150-seat black box in .  

There, in a space within the nation second-largest performing arts complex, actors have no place to hide. Everything they do is plain for all to see, even when they�re not singing or in the spotlight.  

In a venue like Westfield, �The audience is right there with you,� said tenor Nicholas Schneider, who plays King Ouf. �There no disconnect. It the most wonderful feeling in the world.�  

�We have to centralize our energy and learn to communicate with an audience,� added mezzo-soprano Caroline Friend, who plays Lazuli.   

Much of that communication entails comedy � an art in itself, and one that can make some young singers uneasy.  

Not this crew. JJ Hudson, interim artistic director of �������� Opera Theater, said ���Ét�Ǿ����� this season in part to give these particular �etoiles� (�stars�) a chance to shine in a setting for which they are uniquely well suited.  

They�re perfectly happy making fools of themselves, comfortable switching back and forth between the original French and English, if doing so helps the comedy land effectively and wins over opera skeptics.  

�When you have such theatrical actors, as we do now, the opportunity to do this work is ripe," Hudson said. �This is a really great opportunity to reach a different audience.�  

It an opportunity they plan to seize in every way.  

To complement their performance in a professional venue,  the company is also taking a professional, unified approach to costume and set design, employing a confectioner's color palette to underscore the king delusions and stunted development.  

The production features a scenic design by Jerome Wills, lighting design by Dave Brooks, and costumes by Esther Haberlen, costume director of Great Lakes Theater.  

�Every scene, every entr�acte, it so delicious,� Friend said. 

Later this season, �������� Opera Theater returns to Playhouse Square with a much different work, one that will pose a whole other set of musical and theatrical demands: Mozart Don Giovanni.   

In the meantime, the company can hardly wait for ���Ét�Ǿ�����. From this special, uniquely challenging production, students expect to learn a great deal and, in the process, make some new fans.  

�I feel 100-percent comfortable telling people that they will enjoy this show,� Ziv said. �It a work that might start their journey in opera. They should be laughing and really enjoying it.� 

Saturday, November 16 

7pm | Westfield Studio Theatre, Playhouse Square 

Sunday, November 17 

3pm | Westfield Studio Theatre, Playhouse Square 

�������� Opera Theater 

JJ Hudson, director 

Harry Davidson, conductor  

�������� Orchestra 

CHABRIER   ���Ét�Ǿ����� 

Tickets: $30 

Playhouse Square Box Office: or 216.241.6000 

�������� Opera Theater is supported through gifts from the John P. Murphy Foundation and Michael Frank and the late Pat Snyder.