Offenbach’s comedic opera "The Grand Duchess" coming to Wichita

Wichita Grand Opera closes out its 2015 season with a new production of Jacques Offenbach’s The Grand Duchess. The libretto of this opera boffe, a type of operetta, was written in French by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halevy. The Wichita production is sung in English.

The comedic opera is about a young Grand Duchess who has been raised to get her own way by her tutor and court chamberlain Baron Puck. The Duchess is betrothed to Prince Paul, but she doesn’t find him to her liking. The Baron, observing her unhappy state of mind over the affair, starts a war to amuse her. When she reviews the troops assembled before battle, she falls hopelessly in love with Private Fritz. Fritz, however, is deeply in love with Wanda. The Duchess rapidly promotes him, first to corporal, then to captain, and finally makes him the commander of the army, in an effort to gain his love.

Fritz and the army win the battle by getting the opposing army drunk. He returns and asks the Duchess for permission to marry Wanda at once. This upsets the Duchess to the point that she plots to assassinate him when he returns from his wedding.

The whole plan goes awry, with the Duchess finally deciding to marry Prince Paul after all. To quote her own words, “What can one do? If you can’t have those you could love, you must try to love those you can have.” Fritz goes away with his beloved to be a village schoolteacher.

Stage Director for the production is Shawna Lucey, the Conductor is Edward Lada.

Kaitlyn Costello stars in the title role as The Grand Duchess. A young, rising star, she was seen last season in St. Petersburg, FL, as Anita in West Side Story and as Ado Annie in Oklahoma! At Central City Opera.

Fritz is sung by Cullen Gandy. Last season, the tenor made his Los Angeles Opera debut opposite Renée Fleming in A Streetcar Named Desire, and was praised as “flawless” by the International Review of Music. 

Performances are October 16 and 18, at Century II Concert Hall. Tickets are available online at www.wichitagrandopera.org, and range from $40 to $95. You can also buy tickets by phone at (316) 262-8054, or in person at the Century II Concert Hall.

The Gayly – October 8, 2015 @ 7:45am.