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10.7.2009

The Cleveland Orchestra presents fully staged performances of Così fan tutte at Severance Hall in March 2010

Music Director Franz Welser-Möst to conduct Mozart’s comic opera on March 2, 4, 6, and 8, 2010

CLEVELAND, October 7, 2009 – The Cleveland Orchestra brings Mozart’s comic opera Così fan tutte to Severance Hall for four performances of a fully staged production from the Zurich Opera. Music Director Franz Welser-Möst conducts the production, which he previously led in Zurich in collaboration with stage director Sven-Eric Bechtolf, set designer Rolf Glittenberg, and costume designer Marianne Glittenberg. An international cast of soloists appears with the Orchestra for the production, which will be performed in Italian with projected English supertitles. Members of the Cleveland Orchestra Opera Chorus, prepared by Robert Porco, will appear as soldiers, servants, and sailors in Mozart’s “dramma buffa” (comic drama).

Singers Malin Hartelius, soprano (Fiordiligi); Anna Bonitatibus, soprano (Dorabella); Martina Janková, soprano (Despina); Javier Camarena, tenor (Ferrando); Ruben Drole, baritone (Guglielmo); and Oliver Widmer, bass (Don Alfonso) all appeared in the Zurich production. The entire principal cast of singers is reunited for these four performances at Severance Hall. More details on the production will appear in later releases.

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When Franz Welser-Möst led the Zurich production, Marinella Polli wrote in Corriere del Ticino:

“It was a great musical evening above all because of the magic baton of Franz Welser-Möst, who offered a powerful reading of this tragicomedy in two acts, offering at the same time a powerful reading of Mozart’s genius as well.”

With Franz Welser-Möst, the Orchestra has re-established itself as an important operatic ensemble. Together, they gave five sold-out performances of Dvořák’s Rusalka at the Salzburg Festival in 2008. Last spring, Mr. Welser-Möst and The Cleveland Orchestra gave four sold-out staged performances of The Marriage of Figaro in Cleveland, marking the return of staged opera to Severance Hall for the first time in decades. Così fan tutte continues a traversal of the remarkable three operas created by Mozart with librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte. In 2011, the Orchestra and Mr. Welser-Möst will complete the set with staged performances of Don Giovanni at Severance Hall.

The Lincoln Center Festival and The Cleveland Orchestra recently announced that beginning in 2011, the Orchestra and Franz Welser-Möst will appear every other year at the Lincoln Center Festival, performing concerts in the first year and subsequently – in 2013 and 2015 – performing as the pit orchestra at Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater for productions of the Vienna State Opera, where Franz Welser-Möst becomes general music director in 2010.

Biographical information and photographs available upon request.

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Malin Hartelius’s appearance with The Cleveland Orchestra is made possible by a gift to the Orchestra’s Guest Artist Fund from the Kulas Foundation.

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The Cleveland Orchestra’s 2009-10 season at Severance Hall is sponsored by UBS. Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of The Cleveland Orchestra, the firm currently sponsors several other outstanding symphony orchestras, such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra and The Philadelphia Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS’s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.

“UBS is proud of our ongoing relationship as Season Sponsor of The Cleveland Orchestra,” said Marten Hoekstra, CEO, UBS Wealth Management Americas. “Supporting the arts is ingrained in our corporate culture and we view our partnership with this internationally renowned orchestra as a reflection of our ongoing commitment to communities where we live and work.”

TICKET PRICES: $68-$222

TICKET SERVICES: The Severance Hall Ticket Office is located in the Smith Lobby. The entrance and 15-minute Ticket Service parking are along East Boulevard. Single tickets for all concerts in the 2009-10 season are now on sale.

Severance Hall Ticket Office Hours: M-F 9-6; Sat. 10-6. Closed Sundays and major holidays, except for those days with performances, when the Ticket Office opens three hours prior to the performance start time.

To charge tickets by telephone on American Express, Discover Card, MasterCard, and Visa, call Cleveland Orchestra Ticket Services at (216) 231-1111 (Cleveland) or 800-686-1141 during the regular ticket office hours listed above. Subscriptions and single tickets are also available through The Cleveland Orchestra’s website at clevelandorchestra.com. The website offers secure ticket transactions with any major credit card and provides complete concert listings.

PARKING: For evening subscription concerts at Severance Hall, night-of-concert parking can be purchased for $10 per vehicle, when space permits, in the Campus Center Garage (the underground garage located directly behind Severance Hall). Pre-paid parking for the Campus Center Garage can be purchased in advance through the Ticket Office at the cost of $14 per concert (this includes City of Cleveland parking tax and handling fee). The pre-paid parking ensures patrons a parking space, but availability of these pre-paid parking passes is limited.

For further information, or to order pre-paid parking, patrons should call the Cleveland Orchestra Ticket Office during regular office hours at (216) 231-1111 or 800-686-1141. Pre-paid parking passes are also available through The Cleveland Orchestra’s website at clevelandorchestra.com.

CALENDAR LISTINGS:

Sunday, February 28, 2010, at 3 p.m. at Severance Hall
Music Director Franz Welser-Möst will discuss Così fan tutte with members of the cast. Free, but reservations are required. Call (216) 231-1111 or 800-686-1141.

Tuesday, March 2, 2010, at 7 p.m.
Thursday, March 4, 2010, at 7 p.m.
Saturday, March 6, 2010, at 7 p.m.
Monday, March 8, 2010, at 7 p.m.

Severance Hall, 11001 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland

THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA
FRANZ WELSER-MÖST, conductor

MOZART – Così fan tutte (“Women are Like That”)
Sung in Italian with projected English supertitles

Ticket Prices: $68-$222 – Call (216) 231-1111 or 800-686-1141, or order online at clevelandorchestra.com

Season Sponsor: UBS Guest Artist Fund: Kulas Foundation (Malin Hartelius)

Media Contacts: Jennifer Schlosser, (216) 231-7518/Email: jschlosser@clevelandorchestra.com; or
Ana Papakhian, Office: (216) 231-7476; Cell phone: (216) 370-2595/Email: anap@clevelandorchestra.com