Cruzar la Cara de la Luna
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José “Pepe” MartínezMariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán Music Director |
José “Pepe” Martínez was born in Tecalitlán, Jalisco, Mexico, and joined his first mariachi band as a violinist at the age of twelve. He began writing music when he was nineteen years old, and in 1966 formed his own mariachi ensemble, Mariachi Nuevo Tecalitlán. In 1975, he joined Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, and his work with that ensemble established him as a composer and arranger, marking a new era for Mariachi Vargas and creating a sonic style that has become synonymous with el mejor mariachi del mundo-the best mariachi in the world. “Somos Novios” and “El Cascabel” are two of the first songs Martínez arranged for his new group; original works such as “Violín Huapango,” “Lluvia de cuerdas,” “Mexicanísimo,” and “Viva Veracruz” with its rapid violin ricochets-a Martínez signature-followed. Today, Martínez continues writing, learning, performing, and breaking new ground in the creation of mariachi music as the music director of Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán. Cruzar la Cara de la Luna was his first opera
José “Pepe” Martínez nació in Tecalitlán, Jalisco, México, y se unió a su primer mariachi como violinista a la edad de doce años. Comenzó a escribir música a los diecinueve años, y formó su propio mariachi en 1966, Mariachi Nuevo Tecalitlán. En 1975, se integró al Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, y fue en ese grupo donde se consolidó como compositor y arreglista, marcando una nueva era para el Mariachi Vargas con un nuevo sonido que ha sido sinónimo de el mejor mariachi del mundo. ”Somos novios”y “El cascabel”son dos de las primeras canciones que Martínez arregló para su nuevo grupo; piezas como “Violín Huapango,” “Lluvia de cuerdas,” “Mexicanísimo” y “Viva Veracruz,” con rápidos acentos de violines-el sello de Martínez-siguieron. Hoy en día, Martínez continúa escribiendo, aprendiendo, presentándose y abriendo camino en la creación de música de mariachi como director musical del conjunto. Cruzar la Cara de la Luna es su primer ópera.
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Leonard FogliaStage Director |
LEONARD FOGLIA (Librettist / Director) is a theater and opera director as well as librettist. He directed the world premieres of Moby Dick, (Dallas Opera, San Francisco Opera etc.- filmed for PBS), Everest (Dallas Opera, etc.); Cold Mountain (Santa Fe Opera, etc.); The End of the Affair (Houston Grand Opera, etc.); Three Decembers (HGO, etc.); It’s a Wonderful Life (HGO, etc.); Stonewall (New York City Opera). His production of Dead Man Walking was produced by New York City Opera and continues to be seen across the US and has played Teatro Real in Madrid and The Barbican in London.
For Broadway he directed: Master Class with Zoe Caldwell, Patti LuPone and Audra McDonald, Wait Until Dark with Marisa Tomei and Quentin Tarantino, Thurgood with Laurence Fishburne (filmed for HBO), The People in the Picture, On Golden Pond with James Earl Jones, The Gin Game with Cecily Tyson and Mr. Jones. Off-Broadway: Anna Deavere Smith’s Notes From The Field (filmed for HBO) and Let Me Down Easy (filmed for PBS).
As an opera librettist, he wrote and directed Cruzar la Cara de la Luna/To Cross the Face of the Moon with composer José “Pepe” Martínez which premiered at Houston Grand Opera, A Coffin in Egypt with composer Ricky Ian Gordon which also premiered at HGO, El Pasado Nunca Se Termina/The Past Is Never Finished, with composer Martínez which premiered at Lyric Opera of Chicago; El Milagro Del Recuerdo / The Miracle of Remembering with composer Javier Martinez which premiered at HGO. His “mariachi operas” have played across the country and on three continents.
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Choreographer |
Arizona Opera audiences will remember Choreographer Keturah Stickann from Orfeo ed Euridice in 2012. Ms. Stickann has served as choreographer for Cruzar la Cara de la Luna at the Houston Grand Opera, Le Théâtre du Châtelet, and the Lyric Opera of Chicago. A stage director in her own right, Ms. Stickann will direct Don Quichotte for the San Diego Opera in March 2014. Other highlights include directing Flight for Opera Fayetteville, Rigoletto for Opera Memphis, The Tales of Hoffman and Manon for Knoxville Opera, Don Pasquale for Opera in the Heights, La tragédie de Carmen for the Janiec Opera Company, Madama Butterfly for Opera Santa Barbara, and directing and choreographing The Pearl Fishers for the Sarasota Opera.
A frequent collaborator of stage director Leonard Foglia, Keturah Stickann is the Movement Director/Choreographer of Moby Dick , which has been seen at the Dallas Opera, the San Francisco Opera, Washington National Opera, San Diego Opera, Calgary Opera and State Opera of South Australia.
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Octavio MorenoLaurentino |
Mexican-American baritone Octavio Moreno received his Doctorate degree in Music by the University of Arizona. Moreno participated in the young artist program at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia, followed by the Houston Grand Opera Studio. Moreno won first place in the Linus Lerner International Opera Competition in 2018, third place in the 2008 Eleanor McCollum Competition for Young Singers and represented Mexico in the 2009 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World Competition and the 2010 Paris International competition, as well as third place in the Carlo Morelli Competition in Mexico City. Moreno Made first place in both 2001 Mariana de Gonitch competition in Cuba and 2004 Premio Ciudad Trujillo in Peru.
Moreno has participated with the Chicago Lyric Opera, New York City Opera, Houston Grand Opera, San Diego Opera, Arizona Opera, Bellas Artes Opera in Mexico City, and the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris, France among others. Moreno premiered the role of Moncada in Zorro, Xihuitl in the second Mariachi Opera El Pasado Nunca Se Termina, and the role of Laurentino in the first mariachi opera Cruzar la Cara de la Luna. Ha has also sung Marcello in La Bohème, Tonio in Pagliacci, Zurga in Les Pêcheurs de Perles, Don Alfonso in Mozart’s Così fan tutte, Vronsky in Anna Karenina, John Proctor in The Crucible, Germont in La Traviata followed by Malatesta in Don Pasquale, Enrico in Lucia di Lammermoor and the title role in Verdi’s Rigoletto, Sourin in Tchaikovsky’s The Queen of Spades, and Belcore in Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love, to name just a few. Moreno made his Symphonic debut performing with the San Antonio Symphony in the Estancia ballet, singing the Baritone Solo.
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Cecilia DuarteRenata |
Soloist in the Grammy Winning album Duruflé: The Complete Choral Works. Praised by The New York Times as "A creamy voiced mezzo-soprano," Mexican born, Cecilia is a versatile singer that has performed around the world singing different music styles, from early music to contemporary music and jazz.
Cecilia has been greatly recognized for creating the role of Renata in the first Mariachi Opera Cruzar la Cara de la Luna with the famous Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, commissioned by Houston Grand Opera in 2010. Cecilia has taken this opera to stages such as the Houston Grand Opera, Châtelet Theatre in Paris, France; Chicago Lyric Opera, San Diego Opera, Arizona Opera, The Fort Worth Opera, Teatro Nacional Sucre, in Quito, Ecuador, New York City Opera , and El Paso Opera. Since then, Cecilia has created other roles for world premieres of chamber operas and new works, such as Jessie Lydell in A Coffin in Egypt, (HGO and the Wallis Annenberg Center in L.A.); Gracie in A Way Home (HGO and Opera Southwest ); Harriet/First Responder in After the Storm (HGO); Alicia in Some Light Emerges (HGO); Alma in Houston Grand Opera’s first web opera series Star-cross’d, and more recently Renata in El Milagro del Recuerdo with HGO.
Operatic roles include Zerlina in Don Giovanni, Loma Williams in Cold Sassy Tree, Isabella in Rapaccini’s Daughter, Sarelda in The Inspector, Tituba in The Crucible, and Maria in Maria de Buenos Aires, among others.
Cecilia is active in early music, being a seasoned artist with Ars Lyrica Houston, Mercury Houston, The Bach Society Houston, and performed at the Fesitval ensemble in Stuttgart, Germany, and the Festival de Música Barroca de San Miguel de Allende, México. More recently, she joined Kaleidoscope Vocal Ensemble, performing early and contemporary music.
Recordings include Soloist in the Grammy Winner album Duruflé: The Complete Choral Works with Signum Records; Cruzar la Cara de la Luna, with Albany Records, NY; a special appearance in Encantamiento, an album with music by Daniel Catán, and coming up, her first solo album Reencuentros, an album of Latin American songs.
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Brian ShircliffeMark |
San Antonio native Brian Shircliffe has performed with numerous opera companies including Houston Grand Opera, Dayton Opera, Lake George Opera, Pine Mountain Music Festival, Opera Vista, and Opera in the Heights. His recent roles include Zurga in The Pearl Fishers, Dumdum in Hagen’s Vera of Las Vegas, Don Carissimo in La Dirindina, Guglielmo in Così fan tutte, and the Celebrant in the Houston premiere of Bernstein’s Mass. Shircliffe recently made his opera directorial debut with Opera Piccola of San Antonio. In 2007, he won both third place and the Audience Choice Award in the Dallas Opera Guild Vocal Competition. He holds a master of music degree from the University of Houston Moores School of Music and teaches voice at San Jacinto College.
Nativo de San Antonio, Brian Shircliffe ha colaborado con varias compañías de ópera incluyendo Houston Grand Opera, Dayton Opera, Lake George Opera, Pine Mountain Music Festival, Opera Vista, y Opera in the Heights. Sus papeles recientes incluyen Zurga en The Pearl Fishers, Dumdum en Vera of Las Vegas de Hagen, Don Carissimo en La Dirindina, Guglielmo en Così fan tutte, y el Celebrante en el estreno en Houston de Mass de Bernstein. Recientemente Shircliffe debutó como director con Opera Piccola of San Antonio. En 2007, ganó tercer lugar así como la selección del público en la competencia de canto del Dallas Opera Guild. Tiene una maestría en música de University of Houston Moores School of Music y es maestro de canto en San Jacinto College.
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Brittany WheelerDiana |
A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Brittany Wheeler earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. She participated in the Young American Artist Program at Glimmerglass Opera, where she sang Spirit in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas. She was a member of the 2008 Wolf Trap Opera Studio program, and in 2007, she participated in the Opera Theatre and Music Festival of Lucca where she sang Beppe in Mascagni’s L’amico Fritz.
Nativa de Cincinnati, Ohio, Brittany Wheeler tiene bachillerato y maestría en música de University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Participante del Young American Artist Program en Glimmerglass Opera, donde cantó Spirit en Dido y Aeneas de Purcell. Fue miembro del programa Wolf Trap Opera Studio 2008, y en 2007 participó en el teatro de ópera y el festival musical de Lucca, donde cantó Beppe en L’amico Fritz de Mascagn.
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David GuzmanRafael |
David Guzmán began his professional singing career performing zarzuela at Teatro Colon in Bogota, Colombia, winning numerous awards in Colombian folk music festivals and operatic competitions. He now sings opera, oratorio, and zarzuela internationally. Recent credits include Haydn’s St. Nicholas Mass at Avery Fisher Hall in New York, his Carnegie Hall debut as soloist in Gonzalez’s Misa Azteca, and his Alice Tully Hall debut singing Mozart’s Vespers with Mid-America. Opera credits include Rodolfo in La bohèmeand Hoffmann in The Tales of Hoffmann for Opera in the Heights, Don José in Carmen with the Rapides Symphony Orchestra, Nemorino in The Elixir of Lovewith Divaria Productions, and Pang in Turandot with Coro Lirico in New Jersey. He also traveled to his native Colombia as a guest artist in De regreso a mi tierra: Three Colombian Tenors at the Teatro Municipal de Cali. Future engagements include a reprisal of Nemorino, as well as Beppe in Donizetti’s Rita, with Divaria Productions.
David Guzmán comenzó su carrera como cantante profesional realizando zarzuela en el Teatro Colón en Bogotá, Colombia, donde ganó numerosos premios en festivales de música vernácula colombiana y concursos de ópera. Hoy día canta ópera, oratorio, y zarzuela a nivel internacional. Sus logros recientes incluyen la Misa de San Nicolás de Haydn en Avery Fisher Hall en Nueva York, su debut en el Carnegie Hall como solista en Misa Azteca de Gonzalez, y su debut en el Alice Tully Hall cantando Vespers de Mozart. Otros logros operísticos incluyen Rodolfo en La bohème y Hoffmann en The Tales of Hoffmann para Opera in the Heights, Don José en Cármen con la Rapides Symphony Orchestra, Nemorino en El elixir de amor con Divaria Productions, y Pang en Turandot con Coro Lirico en New Jersey. También viajó a su nativa Colombia como artista invitado en De regreso a mi tierra: Tres tenores Colombianos en el Teatro Municipal de Cali. A futuro hará Nemorino y Beppe en Rita de Donizetti con Divaria Productions.
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Vanessa AlonzoLupita |
Houston native, Vanessa Alonzo created the role for three mariachi operas. She has performed with the greatest mariachi musicians in the world including Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan, Mariachi Los Camperos, and Mariachi Nuevo Tecalitlan. She studied mariachi and voice under the direction of the late Alfonso Guerra at the community-based program Multicultural Education and Counseling through the Arts (MECA). In 2019, Alonzo created the role of Lupita for the world premiere of Houston Grand Opera’s El Milagro del Recuerdo/The Miracle of Remembering, which is a prequel to Cruzar la Cara de la Luna/To Cross the Face of the Moon, the first mariachi opera in the world. Cruzar premiered in 2010 with Houston Grand Opera with the world renowned Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan.
She reprised the role of Lupita in Cruzar La Cara De La Luna across the United States, in cities such as El Paso Opera (2019); Houston Grand Opera, New York City Opera, and Teatro Nacional Sucre in Quito, Ecuador (2018); Fort Worth Opera (2017); Arizona Opera (2014); as well as the 2013 tri-city tour with San Diego Opera, Houston Grand Opera, and Lyric Opera of Chicago. Additionally at Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, France in 2011.
In 2015, Alonzo created the role of Juana in Lyric Opera of Chicago’s El Pasado Nunca Se Termina/The Past Is Never Finished, which she also performed at Houston Grand Opera and San Diego Opera. She reprised the role at Fort Worth Opera in their 2019 season. Alonzo was invited to perform with Grammy Award winning Mariachi Los Camperos for the Houston Grand Opera Ball in 2019.
In 2020, she captivated the audience at the Fort Worth Rodeo representing Fort Worth Opera. Alonzo was an opening act for Graciela Beltran in Arlington, Texas. She was awarded Grand Champion Vocalist Award in the Mariachi Vargas Extravaganza national vocal competition. Her travel and performing credits include tours to Ireland, Mexico, Norway, and Vietnam. In 2002, she performed for the opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. Television credits include El Show de Cristina on Univision as a participant in Festival de Rancheras and an appearance as a finalist on Estrella TV’s Tengo Talento, Mucho Talento in season 4.
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Saúl ÁvalosChucho |
Saúl Ávalos was born in Ciudad Victoria in Tamaulipas, Mexico, and began singing at the age of six. His father taught him to play several string instruments, including the jarana, guitar, and violin. He studied music at the State University of Tamaulipas, which he entered at age fifteen. In his position as director of Mariachi Victoria, he accompanied various artists such as Marco Antonio Solis, Joan Sebastian, and Maribel Guardia, as well as several Houston artists. He served as music director for Houston’s All Saints Church and has taught mariachi music in several Houston area schools through Multicultural Education and Counseling through the Arts (MECA).
Saúl Ávalos nació en Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas, México, y comenzó a cantar a los seis años. Su padre le enseñó a tocar varios instrumentos de cuerdas, entre ellos la jarana, guitarra y violín. Estudió música en la universidad del estado de Tamaulipas, a la cual ingresó a la edad de quince años. En su puesto como director de Mariachi Victoria, ha acompañado a varios artistas como Marco Antonio Solís, Joan Sebastian, y Maribel Guardia, así como varios artistas de Houston. Fue director para la Iglesia de Todos los Santos de Houston y ha sido maestro de música mariachi en varias escuelas de Houston a través de Multicultural Education and Counseling Through the Arts (MECA).
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Juan MejiaVictor |
Juan Mejia’s local theater credits include Angels and Demons, The Samaritan Woman, and everything at Rice University. He studied acting at Talento Bilingüe de Houston (TBH), and has gone on to perform a variety of roles with TBH, including Miguel in Bocon (Big Mouth) and Otto in Houston Speaks. Other credits include Antonio in El Poder de los Hombres (The Power of Men), at La Cuadra Theater Company, Sandra Pari’s film Papá No Me Dejes (Papa Don’t Leave Me), and a theatrical version of the poem “El Credo” by Ricardo Lopez Mendez. Mejía began his career in El Salvador where he made his stage debut at age seventeen as Leonardo in Federico García Lorca’s play Bodas de Sangre (Blood Wedding) at the National Institute of Cabanas.
Lo logros locales de Juan Mejía incluyen Angels and Demons, The Samaritan Woman, and everything en Rice University. Estudió actuación en Talento Bilingüe de Houston (TBH), y ha desempeñado varios papeles con TBH, entre ellos Miguel en Bocón y Otto en Houston Speaks. Otros papeles incluyen Antonio en El Poder de los Hombres, en La Cuadra Theater Company, la película Papá No Me Dejes de Sandra Pari y una versión teatral de el poema “El Credo” de Ricardo López Méndez. Mejía comenzó su carrera en El Salvador donde debutó sobre el escenario a la edad de 17 años como Leonardo en la obra Bodas de Sangre de Federico García Lorca en el Instituto Nacional Cabañas.