Find out how No. 6 playwright TJ Young was inspired to write the play, why he chose the dinosaurs, favorite character interactions and more!
Come see No. 6 at The Studio, opening April 1st!
What is Holi?
Holi, also know as the Festival of Colors or Festival of Love, is a Hindu holiday that marks the start of Spring. It is celebrated in the 12th month of the Hindu calendar (Phagun). Like many holidays, Holi is a celebration of the triumph of good over evil. [1]
What is the origin of Holi?
Mentions of Holi date back as far as the 4th Century! In the 7th Century, the Indian Emperor Harsha wrote: “Witness the beauty of the great cupid festival which excites curiosity as the townsfolk are dancing at the touch of brownish water thrown … Everything is colored yellowish red and rendered dusty by the heaps of scented powder blown all over.” [2]
The most popular origin involves a sacrifice to save an innocent life. In Hindu mythology, there was a king who killed anyone who disobeyed him or worshipped other gods/beings. The king grew resentful of his sun who worshiped Vishnu instead. As a result, the king conspired to kill his own son. After many failed attempts, he conspired with his sister Holika; in the end Holika gives her own life for her nephew’s. [1]
How is Holi celebrated?
The celebration of Holi usually lasts for two day: Holika Dahan and Holi.
While Holika Dahan is marked with bonfires, the day of Holi sees people of all ages smear each other with dry or wet paint and get showered in powdered color and water.
Did you know?
Aljazeera: Holi Festival
Holi is celebrated in most parts of India, with each region having its own traditions. The celebrations in northern India tend to be more colorful and vivid while those in the south focus mainly on religious and temple rituals.
Common foods and drinks include: guijya, flaky pastries with dried fruit; malpua, deep-ried pancakes; rasmalai, a creamy dessert; and thandai, a sweet, spiced milk-based drink. [3]
About The Opera Locos
The Opera Locos is a comic opera show where five exceptional lyric singers perform some of the most well-known opera hits, sometimes combined in a clever and original way with rock and pop classics. The performance combines the best of clowning and opera to show off these fantastic entertainers in a production unlike any other!
The idea for the show was conceived and created by YLLANA, Spain’s award-winning comedy-theatre company.
The Cast
Edwin Parra, Countertenor/Contratenor
Edwin began his formal singing studies in 2011 at the UACH Faculty of Arts and was also a fellow of the SNFM Vocal Scenic Ensemble in Mexico City. He earned the First Place award at Ópera Durango 2016, and Countertenor of Mexico in the Olivia Gorra 2017 contest. He has sung the operatic roles of Nerone and Ottone from Monteverdi’s l’Incoronazione di Poppea; Cherubino from Le nozze di Figaro and The Cat from El gato con botas opera by Montsalvatge; he also performed Lumiere in the musical Beauty and the Beast.
María Rey-Joly, Soprano
Born in Madrid, María studied violin and piano and later graduated in singing from the Escuela Superior de Canto of Madrid. She completed her training in the masterclasses of Gundula Janowitz, Brigitte Fassbaender, Raina Kabaiwanska and Plácido Domingo. Her vocal personality makes her a highly versatile and flexible singer, allowing her to face a varied repertoire with roles from Mozart to Wagner! Highlights: Richard Wagner: Das Rheingold and Götterdämmerung (Woglinde), Die Walküre (Ortlinde and Helmwige); W.A. Mozart: Die Zauberflöte (Pamina and Erste Dame), Così fan tutte (Fiordiligi), Don Giovanni (Donna Anna and Donna Elvira), Don Pasquale (Norina); Leonard Bernstein: Candide (Cunegonde); Giacomo Puccini: La Bohème (Musetta), and many more.
Antonio Comas, Tenor
Born in Barcelona, Antonio made his debut with Massenet’s opera Herodiade at the Gran Teatre del Liceu where he went on to perform Strauss’s Il Capriccio and Puccini’s Turandot. In 2011, he premiered Amadeu, a musical by Albert Boadella about the composer Amadeu Vives, at the Teatros del Canal in Madrid (Ercilla Theatre Award for best actor). Highlights: Candide by Bernstein, Il Sequestro by Alberto García Demestres, La note d’acoté by Alfonso de Vilallonga, El Eclipse by Alberto García Demestres, Yo, Dalí by Xavier Benguerel, Shakespeare’s Richard III, among many more!
Mayca Teba, MezzoSoprano
Mayca is a soprano and Sevillian actress of great vocal and artistic versatility. Her repertoire ranges from Opera and Zarzuela to Musical Comedy, Jazz and Symphonic Rock. She began her lyrical career at the age of 20 at Maestranza Theatre in Seville with producer Pino Cuccia, singing Le Nozze di Figaro, Die Rossenkavalier, and many others. Highlights: Cosí fan tutte, Acis and Galatea, at López de Vega Theatre of Sevilla; Dido and Eneas at Isabel La Católica Theatre-Granada; Orpheus in the Underworld, West Side Story at The Sherman Theatre – Cardiff; Madam Butterfly at the Britten Theatre-London and at the Clonter Opera Theatre in Manchester.
Enrique Sánchez-Ramos, Baritone
Enrique was born in Aranjuez, Spain. He began his musical studies at age 9 at the Joaquin Rodrigo Music School of Aranjuez, Madrid and holds degrees in Solfeggio, Piano Teaching, and Choral Conducting. He made his operatic debut singing “Guglielmo” in Mozart’s Cosi fan Tutte. He has also performed in France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Brasil, México and Costa Rica. Since 2004 he has sung as baritone soloist with the early music ensemble Hyppocampus in the complete cycle of Bach’s Cantatas sponsored by Madrid’s Town Hall. Highlights: Orff’s Carmina Burana, J. Melchor Gomis’ opera Le Diable à Seville, Händel’s Agrippina, Gounod’s Faust, Händel’s Messiah, Delibes’ Lakmé.
The Opera Locos performs at The Sharon at 7pm on April 9th!
Mardi Gras (French for “Fat Tuesday”), also called Carnival, is a Christian-affiliated holiday that is primarily observed on the last Tuesday before Lent. There are many popular regional Mardi Gras celebrations in Venice, Rio de Janiero, and New Orleans that span from Epiphany (the 12th day after Christmas) to Ash Wednesday (the start of the Easter Season).
The holiday was brought to North America as a French Catholic tradition by the Le Moyne brothers in the late 17th Century, when King Louis XIV sent the pair to defend France’s claim on the territory of Louisiane (parts of what is now Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama). On March 3, 1699, the brothers held a small celebration and dubbed their landing spot “Point du Mardi Gras”, just outside of modern-day New Orleans.1
Traditionally, revelers enjoy all the rich, fatty foods (meat, eggs, milk, and cheese) in their homes in preparation of 40 days of prayer and fasting.
Did you know? The word carnival also derives from the feasting tradition: in Medieval Latin, carnelevarium means to take away or remove meat (from the Latin carnem for meat).2
When the Spanish took control of the area in 1762, they banned Mardi Gras celebrations. The bans lasted until 1812, nine years after Louisiana became a state.2
In 1827, a group of students donned colorful costumes and danced through the streets of New Orleans, emulating the revelry they’d observed while visiting Paris. This lead to the first recorded New Orleans Mardi Gras parade ten years later, and the establishment of “krewes” (social clubs that help organize the parades) in 1857.2
Did you know? Rex, one of the oldest Mardi Gras krewes, established purple, gold, and green as the iconic Mardi Gras colors.2
In 1872, the Krewe of Rex chose the bead colors purple, green, and gold as a tribute to the visiting Russian Grand Duke Alexis Romanoff (rex is Latin for “king”). Purple stood for justice, green for faith, and gold for power. The original idea was to toss the beads to those in the crowd who exhibited these traits and the people who caught them were said to receive good luck for the coming year.3 Carnival’s improbable anthem, “If Ever I Cease to Love,” was also chosen, in part, due to the Duke’s fondness for the tune.1 (Each year a different “King of Carnival” is chosen, though the colors and anthem remain largely the same.)
By contrast, Zulu, the oldest traditionally African American krewe, began gifting coconuts to members of the crowd in 1910. Originally, the coconuts were left in their natural state, but they soon began painting and decorating them with glitter.4 The Zulu Coconuts are one of the most cherished Mardi Gras prizes.
Did you know? The mission of the Intergalactic Krewe of Chewbacchus is to save the galaxy by giving the disenfranchised, socially awkward, and generally weird masses access to the magical revelry of Carnival.
Krewe of Chewbacchus
In addition to throwing beads and other goodies, there are many Mardi Gras traditions including: wearing masks, decorating floats, masquerade balls, and eating King Cake.
“Flashing for beads”, however, is not an established tradition. This mostly occurs in the Bourbon Street area of the French Quarter, an area known for its strip joints. In fact, most parades do not weave through the French Quarter due to size restrictions, and the majority of Mardi Gras celebrations are family-friendly!5
[1] https://www.mardigrasneworleans.com/history/
[2] https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/mardi-gras
[3] https://www.history.com/news/9-things-you-may-not-know-about-mardi-gras
[4] https://www.history.com/news/from-king-cake-to-zulu-coconuts-the-history-of-6-mardi-gras-traditions
[5] https://www.mardigrasneworleans.com/history/traditions/flashing
Staff reporter Liz Coughlin had a great time at Urinetown, The Musical! Read more below:
Audiences may remember the fantastic performances of Jade, TroyElan, and Matthew in Pipeline, and Sage in the hilarious 9 to 5, The Musical – both shows produced by The Studio last year. Here are some things you may not know about these wonderful performers:
Where are you from?
Jade: South Florida
TroyElan: Georgia
Sage: Iowa
What have you been working on prior to No. 6?
Sage: most recently, Elvis in Million Dollar Quartet
Jade: Mama Euralie in Once on this Island at Slow Burn Theatre
TroyElan: I’ve been working on a feature film The Selector back in Atlanta
How long have you been performing?
TroyElan: I have been acting ever since my freshman year of high school. I was a little shy as a kid, but I have always loved being creative! I started out in dance classes. After I saw the local high school put on High School Musical, I made a plan to get into musical theatre. The musical part fell off a little after high school, but maybe one day!
Sage: I started performing in middle school. I was loud and loved attention so it was a natural fit!
What inspires you?
TroyElan: I am so inspired by my friends. Many of them have worked really hard towards their dreams and are really starting to see hard work pay off. We are like a team, continuously learning and lifting each other.
Do you have a motto or favorite quote?
Jade: This year’s theme is “He wouldn’t give it to me, if He didn’t think I could handle it!”
What about the production of No. 6 are you looking forward to the most?
TroyElan: I feel blessed to get back to work with a few friends. But I am really excited to tell a new story and share a new slice of life.
Sage: This will be my first non-musical in a long time; I’m looking forward to playing a meatier role than I have in awhile.
Read more about the play, No. 6 by T.J. Young
“The question’s not if we will weather this unknown, but how we will weather the unknown together.” –Amanda Gorman
*Production photos for 9 to 5, The Musical and Pipeline by Brian Sumner