Lögberg Helmskrigla, The Icelandic Community Newspaper

Vinland Traveller to tour NL

ST. JOHN'S, NL - A new opera based on the Vinland sagas will tour Newfoundland this spring. The composer, Dean Burry, was commissioned by Memorial University of Newfoundland's Opera Roadshow.
The opera, The Vinland Traveller, is to be staged in schools and performed by students. It will travel approximately 16,000 km throughout Newfoundland and Labrador , including a stop at L'Anse aux Meadows.
Dean Burry says the subject is a natural fit. "There's become, I think, a kind of kinship between Iceland and Newfoundland," he says.
Burry, who grew up in Gander , NL but now lives in Toronto , ON , is no stranger to mythology and world literature. His previous operas have been based on Egyptian myths, tales from the Brothers Grimm, and even J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, the latter of which also featured many young performers.
Of The Vinland Traveller, he says, "I wanted to find a subject that was definitely something that Newfoundlanders would identify with, but was also not so regional that nobody else would. And so I went to these Icelandic sagas, the Greenlanders' Saga and the Saga of Eirik the Red ... You can't get really more classic literature than the Icelandic sagas."
Though the location of Vinland itself is disputed, there is no doubt that the Norse reached Newfoundland, thanks to the ruins at L'Anse aux Meadows. His home province may not be Vinland, where the Norse found grapes, but he says with a laugh, "No, grapes have never grown in Newfoundland; but then again, 'Greenland' is not very green, either."
He anticipates a good response from the audiences and his young performers: "I'm writing an opera for young people and there are 'vikings' in it - it's something which immediately appeals."
The opera focuses on Thorfinnur Karlsefni and Gudrid Thorbjarnardóttir, as well as their son Snorri, the first European child born in North America. He was attracted to the story of Gudrid in the Vinland sagas, a strong female character from an era in literature when such figures were rare. Also, he says the world of the vikings was changing - the discovery of new lands and the conversion to Christianity contributed to a transformation of the Norse worldview.
Similarly, he hopes to challenge his audiences with a new look at vikings, by examining the various perspectives of pagans, Christians and those caught in the middle. "Obviously 'viking' has a certain connotation," he says. "I've used the term 'viking' in this opera, mainly because this opera is very much about breaking down stereotypes."
A tour outside of the province is only tentative at this point, but he hopes to show it across Canada, and perhaps even see the work translated into Icelandic and taken to Iceland.

-David Jón Fuller

Opera Visits Newfoundland

There is a new sound being heard in the outports of Newfoundland. Mingling with the traditional music of the Island is the music of Mozart. The company, called The Opera RoadShow, is an ensemble of music students from Memorial University of Newfoundland.

The Opera RoadShow is an educational outreach component of Memorial University's Opera Theatre. For the past two years, the voice majors have spent a week each fall traveling to schools in and around the city of St. John's. During that time, they have had had the privilege of introducing hundreds of young people to the joys of opera in live performance. This year, The Opera RoadShow has expanded its directive and is making opera extensively available to students across Newfoundland. The five-week tour traverses some 6500kms and performs from St. Anthony in the northwest to Burin on the province's southeastern shore.

In addition to the educational benefits young audiences receive, this innovative outreach is unique in providing experiential learning to students of university age. It offers a valuable learning experience to MUN undergraduates while providing a paid summer position.

The Opera RoadShow's repertoire choices are age appropriate. The current touring production is a contemporary setting of The Three Little Pigs. This engaging work was created by American composer John Davies. It draws together arias and ensembles from Mozart's most popular operas and blends them into a comical telling of the familiar fable. Teaching guides are forwarded to schools prior to the presentations.

Beginning with an informal discussion about music, opera, and different styles of singing, performances conclude with an extended question and answer period. The audience/artist post-performance interaction had proved to be a thrilling and heart-warming experience for the members of The Opera RoadShow troupe.

The Opera RoadShow Tour is a collaborative effort between The Department of Education, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador; Memorial University; and the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council. Pending continuing funding, The Opera RoadShow begins rehearsals for spring 2005 this September. Performance dates for this year's tour are May 3, 2004-June 4, 2004.

Composer/Librettist Notes of World Premiere, May 6, 2006

In selecting The Icelandic Sagas as a source for a new opera, I was attempting to find connections between my own Newfoundland culture and the greater world. The Vinland Sagas really do represent both classic world literature and tantalising historical facts that connect two lands. Iceland and Newfoundland are separated by a vast ocean and yet share so many similarities. Their geography and culture inspired the music of The Vinland Traveler - the echoes off cliffs on the shore, the smell of a summer bog on the Northern Peninsula, the supremely powerful lift of a great wave and the laughter and rhythm of an old-time scoff and scuff. Growing up I sometimes felt that we Newfoundlanders were in the middle of nowhere, but working on The Vinland Traveler has reminded me that we are truly in the middle of it all.

-Dean Burry

Vinland Press Release

NEWS RELEASE
Memorial University of Newfoundland
Opera RoadShow takes Newfoundland saga to youngsters throughout province

May 5, 2006

For the first time, opera students at Memorial's School of Music will venture into Labrador as part of their annual RoadShow, which sees them perform around the province for primary and elementary school audiences.

Dr. Caroline Schiller, director of opera at the School of Music, created the Opera RoadShow to give music students a professional touring experience, while introducing youngsters to the pageantry, drama and music of opera. The touring company consists of seven students and alumnus Calvin Powell, who returns from Toronto to lend his baritone to the production.

This is the third year for the tour, but the first time the operatic entourage has been able to fly performers and sets in and out of Labrador communities, thanks to a commitment from Air Labrador to cover the cost of those flights - a gift of about $50,000.

"Our initial goal was that within three years we would be able to have offered this tour to every school district in the province - and now we have," Dr. Schiller says. While not every school has been able to accommodate the opera, the RoadShow has performed for over 10,000 children, some in very remote areas.
The provincial government and the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council are also supporting the endeavour.

"It amazes adults that 200 children would be interested in sitting and listening to opera, but the kids really become engaged," Dr. Schiller says, noting that in years past, cards, emails and drawings have attested to how much the kids enjoyed the show.

The Air Labrador Opera RoadShow Tour 2006 will perform The Vinland Traveler, created by Dean Burry. Burry was raised in Gander and now lives in Toronto. "People often ask me how I became an opera composer coming from Newfoundland. While it's true I couldn't exactly pop down to the Gander Grand Opera House on a Friday night, there was always access to a great deal of theatre and music," Mr. Burry says. "Story-telling through music and drama? I think that's the core of the Newfoundland spirit."

Mr. Burry also wrote Isis and the Seven Scorpions, which the Canadian Opera Company is touring in Southern Ontario, and The Brothers Grimm, which will hit its 200th performance in a production by the Saskatoon Opera Association. "I am thrilled to be bringing this opera to Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. In Ontario, I have seen the effect that this kind of work can have on a young audience, all the while thinking, 'How can I get this home?'" Memorial commissioned The Vinland Traveler based on the Vinland sagas, to give young audiences insight into their province's heritage. As Burry notes, there's even a puffin singing a traditional jig and reel.

The Air Labrador Opera RoadShow Tour takes off with an invitation-only launch in Petro-Canada Hall on May 6. Some public performances will be scheduled in St. John's in May.

Opera Roadshow Takes to the Air

A young audience enjoys its first experience with opera during last year's RoadShow.

When School of Music students take opera on the road this spring, they'll also take to the air, thanks to a generous donation from Air Labrador. The Air Labrador Opera RoadShow Tour 2006 is a unique venture that sees a company of undergraduate music students perform throughout the province for primary and elementary school audiences. Dr. Carolyn Schiller, the director of opera in the School of Music, came up with the concept as a way for her students to experience professional touring, while introducing youngsters all over the province to the pageantry, drama and music of opera.

The touring company consists of seven students and alumnus Calvin Powell, who agreed to return from his Toronto life because a baritone was needed. These eight are responsible for all aspects of the tour, from performing to props.

This is the third year for the tour, but the first time the operatic entourage has been able to venture off-island. That means, in addition to the thousands of kilometres they'll log on the road, performers and sets will need to fly in and out of Labrador communities. Air Labrador has committed to covering the cost of all flights - a gift of about $50,000. "Our goal was, within three years, to be able to say that we've offered this everywhere in the province - and now we can say that," Dr. Schiller says.

While not every school has been able to accommodate the opera, the RoadShow has performed for over 10,000 children, some in very remote areas.

"It amazes adults sometimes that 200 children would be interested in sitting and listening to opera, but the kids really get engaged," Dr. Schiller says, noting that in years past, cards, emails and drawings have attested to how much the kids enjoyed the show. "If you introduce something like this to a child at an early age, they can develop a lifelong appreciation. And who knows, it may tweak an interest in a child who has the talent to pursue it, but might never have been exposed to it."

This year, the RoadShow will perform The Vinland Traveler, created by Gander-native Dean Burry. Memorial commissioned the original opera, based on the Vinland sagas, so that it could also offer young audiences some insight into the province's history and heritage. According to Jennifer O'Neill, development officer for the School of Music, Air Labrador's gift is in addition to support from Iron Ore Company of Canada, the provincial government, CBC and the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council.

The (ironically named) Air Labrador Opera RoadShow Tour takes off in early May with an invitation-only launch in Petro Canada Hall on May 6, followed by public performances in St. John's in May.
-Leslie Vryenhoek