Opera CdA opens with ‘Pirates’ in July

Opera Coeur d’Alene is preparing a varied program of events in the late summer and early fall.

First up is a concert performance of the classic Gilbert & Sullivan operetta “The Pirates of Penzance” on July 13 – performed during a cruise of Lake Coeur d’Alene. The cast includes popular Spokane soprano Dawn Wolski; Jadd Davis, the new artistic director at Coeur d’Alene Summer Theatre; Curt Olds, a Montana native fresh off a one-night-only performance at Carnegie Hall of “Guys and Dolls” (with Nathan Lane and Megan Mulally); and Opera CdA’s artistic director Aaron St. Clair Nicholson as the Pirate King. Set sail at 6 p.m. Tickets are $65 tickets for table seating and hors d’oeuvres, $50 general admission (includes hors d’oeuvres).

Then in September, the company will stage Giacomo Puccini’s “The Girl of the Golden West” on Sept. 12 and 14 at the Schuler Performing Arts Center on the North Idaho College campus. Showtimes are 7 p.m. Sept. 12 and 2:30 p.m. Sept. 14. The show will be in Italian with English supertitles. Tickets are $29-$59.

Then on Sept. 15, Opera CdA will set sail again on Lake Coeur d’Alene for the Opera Bash, marking the company’s 15th year. The principals and company will be on hand for an evening of music, food and drink. The events start at 6 p.m., and tickets are $65 and include hors d’oeuvres, wine and beer.

Individual tickets to these events go on sale Monday through the Opera Coeur d’Alene website, www.operacda.com, or by calling (800) 418-1485, ext. 1.

Duke signs on for ‘My Fair Lady’

Also in the Lake City, Coeur d’Alene Summer Theatre has one bit of casting news to announce: Patty Duke will play the role of Mrs. Higgins in CST’s “My Fair Lady” July 10-27 at the Kroc Center in Coeur d’Alene.

Duke, of course, is the Oscar-winning star of the 1962 film “The Miracle Worker.” She’s performed on Broadway and has three Emmy Awards to her name. She has lived in Coeur d’Alene for years – under her legal name, Anna Pearce. Her only previous work with CST was in 2012, when she participated in a staged reading of “Over the River and Through the Woods” alongside Dennis Franz, Ellen Travolta and Jack Bannon.

In a news release, artistic director Davis said he can’t wait to work with Duke.

“Over the last decade I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with some ‘big names’ in the industry, but nobody who carries the living legend torch quite like Patty does,” he said. “However, it’s not her fame that has me so thrilled, it’s her heart.” 

Tickets to CST’s new season are on sale now. Call (208) 660-2958 or visit www.cdasummertheatre.com for details.