by Antanas Meilus
Music ’09

Antanas Meilus

Prior to coming to Salem State College as an undergraduate in 2004, my experience as a singer had been primarily in musical theater productions. As I wrestled with what I wanted to do with my principal instrument, I experimented with art songs and more serious musical theatre repertoire. In the process of my experimentation, I was stunned at my progress. After studying with various voice teachers, I was eventually assigned to my current teacher, Ms. Andrea DelGiudice, who proceeded to introduce me to the world of opera.

With her guidance, I secured an audition for a young artist program at the International Lyric Academy in Viterbo, Italy. To my surprise, the program not only accepted me but also cast me in the comic role of Monostatos in their production of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s The Magic Flute. The academy also granted me a partial scholarship; however, I needed to secure funding for the rest of my tuition. The Music Department and the Office of the Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences offered me the additional assistance that made this opportunity possible.

As soon as I was cast, I began intensely to study the score of The Magic Flute. The score presented some trouble for me since I did not have as much experience with German diction as I had with other languages associated with opera. At the suggestion of my voice teacher I enlisted the services of Elaine Smith Purcell in helping me to learn this entire role. After many months, I was becoming Monostotos; a foolish, angry, and lonely servant to the high priest Sarastro.

Soon enough the day came when I flew out of Logan Airport and about ten hours later landed in Leonardo da Vinci – Fiucimino  airport in the very warm and humid Roman air. It was only a few hours later by bus that we entered the medieval city walls of Viterbo. This city earned its reputation as a refuge for many popes from 1200 to the 16th century. The leaders of the city have maintained much of this city’s old-world charm with pockets of modern conveniences including internet cafes, cellphone boutiques, and movie theaters.

This city is the home of Viterbo ArteMusica, a cultural organization that aims to imbue the community with the arts in music, theatre, film, and opera. I became a part of two arms of the organization during my eight week experience: the Tuscia Opera Festival and the International Lyric Academy. The academy consisted of many other singers from ages 15-30 who were there for intensive study in opera from Korea, China, Malta, Australia, and both coasts of the United States. We would comprise the bulk of the singers in the cast of The Magic Flute. The Mozart production, along with concert versions of La Boheme by Giacomo Puccini, and Rigoletto and Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi, were the main parts to the festival. The majority of the performances took place in a beautiful square the Piazza San Lorenzo.

The Magic Flute in the Piazza San Lorenzo

It was in this square that The Magic Flute came alive with full orchestra under the baton of Stefano Vignati and the vision of Cinzia Gargarella.

The festival did not stop there. We also traveled far south to near Naples, visiting the mountain towns of Campobasso, Agnone, and Valmontone. Along with other professional Italian singers and students from the academy, I gave more than twelve performances on the road. This was a true taste of what a professional singer’s life would be. The experience was very enlightening to me.

Outside of the singing, my most invaluable exposure was to the Italian way of life. The Italian day centers most commonly around family and around the local community which is evident by Italians’ daily lifestyle. People would wake early as the sun came out, take a break from around noon until 4pm, and go out with the entire family to walk the town. The built-in time for rest and family was amazing to me and it took me a while to completely understand why there was a huge amount of silence in the day . Too many times in the United States we do not take the time for rest or to really engage in some family time. Too quickly in the U.S. we are pushed towards things like television— in Italy there are only 4 channels—or working a 60-hour work week where we do not have the time to devote to our own endeavors. Being able to stop and take a breather is one of the healthiest things you can do for yourself. That is how I made it through so many performances and master classes and long rehearsals.

The singular piece of advice I could pass on from this entire experience is to strive for excellence through balance. I worked very hard to learn this role and learn the staging, though I learned more about life from the Italian people. Work when you need to, no more and no less, and take the time to create, imagine, and love.

This article is part of ASpect’s May 2009 issue, Undergraduate Research.