"Don Pasquale" (2017)

Written by Gaetano Donizetti

Directed by William Ferarra

Lighting Design by Sam Brown

Costume Design by Lloyd Cracknell

University of Oklahoma School of Music

DON PASQUALE - 1/8”=1’0”

OU's 1960s Hollywood version of 'Don Pasquale' translates well

NORMAN — OU's University Theatre and School of Music delivered a light and charming version of Gaetano Donizetti's “Don Pasquale” Feb. 9-12 at the Reynolds Performing Arts Center on the University of Oklahoma's Norman campus.

Originally performed and set in 1843 Italy, the comic opera was based on stock characters from commedia del arte: the foolish old man, the clever wife, the sly doctor, the earnest young man, etc. Artistic director and conductor Jonathan Shames, with stage director William Ferrara, have set OU's version in 1960s Hollywood. It translates very well; the same stock characters were the basis for sitcoms like “I Love Lucy” and “That Girl,” to name only a few.

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The story was "narrated" by a set of animations projected on the back screen. Designed by Uldarico Sarmiento in a recognizable allusion to 1960s television, the projections created a locale for each scene and filled in the narrative between the scenes. Scenic design by Nathan Hatfield referenced the same period style, and Lloyd Cracknell's costumes added the finishing touch.

- Anna Holloway, For The Oklahoman