{"id":122262,"date":"2026-03-04T10:27:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T15:27:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=122262"},"modified":"2026-03-05T15:55:28","modified_gmt":"2026-03-05T20:55:28","slug":"interview-director-stephen-carr-conductor-gordon-gerrard-talk-glenn-gould-school-spring-opera-serenata-italiana","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2026\/03\/04\/interview-director-stephen-carr-conductor-gordon-gerrard-talk-glenn-gould-school-spring-opera-serenata-italiana\/","title":{"rendered":"INTERVIEW | Director Stephen Carr &amp; Conductor Gordon Gerrard Talk About The Glenn Gould School Spring Opera: Serenata Italiana"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_122264\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-122264\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-122264\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Copy-of-Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2026-03-04T101926.561.jpg\" alt=\"L: Conductor Gordon Gerrard; director Stephen Carr (Photos courtesy of the artists)\" width=\"1200\" height=\"628\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Copy-of-Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2026-03-04T101926.561.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Copy-of-Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2026-03-04T101926.561-300x157.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Copy-of-Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2026-03-04T101926.561-1024x536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/Copy-of-Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2026-03-04T101926.561-768x402.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-122264\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">L: Conductor Gordon Gerrard; director Stephen Carr (Photos courtesy of the artists)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The Glenn Gould School Spring Opera is an annual treat for Toronto audiences where they can feast on fresh young voices in fully staged productions, and catch the stars to be of the opera world. Performances take place March 18 and 20 in Koerner Hall.<\/p>\n<p>This year, GGS is presenting a program titled Serenata Italiana. It features two Italian comedies: Puccini\u2019s Gianni Schicchi, and the rarely performed La cambiale di matrimonio by Rossini. The production is directed by <strong>Stephen Carr<\/strong>, and conducted by <strong>Gordon Gerrard<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>LV talked to Carr and Gerrard about the production.<\/p>\n<h3>Rossini\u2019s La cambiale di matrimonio<\/h3>\n<p>Rossini\u2019s La cambiale di matrimonio, or The Marriage Contract, is a comedy in one act. He wrote it in just a few days at the age of 18 as a student at the Liceo Musicale in Bologna, and it represents his first professional opera.<\/p>\n<p>Rossini worked with libretto by Gaetano Rossi that is based on a play by Camillo Federici, written in 1791, along with an existing libretto by Giuseppe Checcherini written for the 1807 opera Il matrimonio per lettera di cambio by Carlo Coccia. Rossini\u2019s opera made its premiere in November 1810 in Venice.<\/p>\n<p>While the opera is rarely performed today, listeners will recognize the duet \u201cDunque io son\u201d, which he later reused in The Barber of Seville (Act I).<\/p>\n<p>The story takes place in 18th century London, and interestingly, concerns a marriage contract that has been received by Tobias Mill, an Englishman, and Slook, a Canadian businessman. Slook arrives in London, and Mill intends to marry him to his daughter Fanny. Fanny and her lover Eduardo Milfort, however, have other ideas, and comedic mayhem ensues.<\/p>\n<h3>Puccini\u2019s Gianni Schicchi<\/h3>\n<p>Puccini\u2019s comic one-act opera Gianna Schicchi was written between 1917 and 1918, and premiered at New York\u2019s Metropolitan Opera in 1918. The composer wrote the opera to the libretto by Giovaccino Forzano, based on a brief incident that is mentioned in Dante\u2019s monumental work Divine Comedy.<\/p>\n<p>The opera is the third and final part of Puccini\u2019s Il trittico, or The Triptych, a set of one-act operas with diverse themes that he intended were to be presented together. Today, Gianni Schicchi is typically performed on its own, and is the most popular of Puccini\u2019s Il trittico.<\/p>\n<p>The story concerns Gianni Schicchi de&#8217; Cavalcanti, a Florentine knight who lived in the 13th century. He is one of the real historical figures mentioned in Dante, and his story takes place in the Inferno, Canto XXX. There, Dante visits the Circle of Impersonators. He witnesses an attack on a man, and he is told that the attacker is Gianni Schicchi, who was condemned to Hell due to his impersonation of Buoso Donati, a wealthy patriarch, and another real historical figure. Donati\u2019s death ignites a search for his will by greedy relatives.<\/p>\n<p>Puccini\u2019s opera uses a version of The Divine Comedy that includes an appendix with a commentary by an anonymous Florentine source. It involves Schicchi in the writing of Donati\u2019s will, and the ensuing machinations. Dante, who was a Florentine, and who traced the lineage of his wife Gemma to the Donati family, turned Scicchi into a villain of the story.<\/p>\n<p>The opera features one of the best known arias in the opera world, \u201cO mio babbino caro\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Julia Kennific, Soprano, and Gennady Grebenchuk, Baritone, perform in Mozart\u2019s Die Zauberfl\u00f6te at the 2025 Glenn Gould School Spring Opera 2025:<\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/xJTjakuNfMs?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<h2>Stephen Carr<\/h2>\n<p>Stephen Carr has an extensive background in opera and education. He is a former Director of Development and Engagement for Toronto City Opera, and he teaches at the University of Toronto&#8217;s School of Music and the Royal Conservatory of Music in downtown Toronto.<\/p>\n<p>Stephen was an Associate Professor of Opera and Musical Theatre Studies at the Eastman School of Music for eight years, and was Associate Artistic Director of Eastman Opera Theatre. He has also taught as a member of the faculty of the Interlochen Summer Arts Institute, and he is a Visiting Professor of Musical Theatre at the Senzoku Gakuen Conservatory of Music in Tokyo.<\/p>\n<p>The stage director and professor is currently a PhD candidate at York University.<\/p>\n<h2>Stephen Carr: The Interview<\/h2>\n<p>Stephen Carr is no stranger to GGS productions. He directed the Glenn Gould School Opera two years ago as well.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt is still some of the same students,\u201d he says, \u201cworking with these incredibly talented students.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s part of the appeal of the gig. \u201cI love working with students,\u201d he adds. \u201cIt\u2019s always fun to discover the pieces along with students at this age. You\u2019re not only discovering the pieces with them, but hopefully creating an experience as a template [for] how they\u2019ll approach opera in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Often, as a stage director, he works with veteran opera singers who\u2019ve performed any given work several times over. Working with students offers a fresh perspective.<\/p>\n<p>Even so, as an experienced opera professional, like many, he wasn\u2019t familiar with the Rossini work before this show.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis Rossini is a new piece for me. It\u2019s been kind of a journey to discovery for all of us,\u201d Carr says.<\/p>\n<h3>Comedic Opera<\/h3>\n<p>While people outside the performing arts may assume that comedy is somehow easier to tackle than heavy drama, the opposite can also be true.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAbsolutely,\u201d Stephen says. \u201cThese are two genuinely funny operatic comedies. It\u2019s been such a great escape to lean into these comedic operas,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think comedy is difficult. Comedy is so much about timing,\u201d he explains. \u201cIt\u2019s about timing. And in opera, everything about the timing is dictated by the music.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It offers a distinct challenge. \u201cIn opera, you\u2019re often extending a joke, or you\u2019re waiting for a joke to happen in the music.\u201d It may not feel entirely natural. In a play without music, those moments can be tweaked to the individual performance.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Rossini is also recititavo,\u201d he points out. It includes sections of recitative, or a singing-speech technique. The challenge is to make those lines feel as conversational as possible, while also conforming to the timing of the music. It\u2019s an excellent learning opportunity for the GGS vocalists.<\/p>\n<h3>Working With GGS Students<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve had so much fun in the rehearsal room,\u201d he says. \u201cThey\u2019re going great.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Staging was the most intense portion of rehearsals. \u201cWe had to stage basically both of these pieces in one week,\u201d he says. \u201cNow we\u2019re able to go back and explore the characters. Now we can breathe.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019s enjoying the process, and working with the Glenn Gould School vocalists.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey\u2019re so extraordinarily talented. It\u2019s fun to meet them at this point, knowing that they have this whole career ahead of them,\u201d Carr says. \u201cThey\u2019re just about to take off. It\u2019s extraordinary to me that they can put on operas at GGS.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He credits the school\u2019s staff for finding titles that are well suited to the specific cohort of students each year. <strong>Adrianne Pieczonka<\/strong> is Vocal Chair and Head of the Vocal Department. As such, she is responsible for casting the Spring Operas each year (among other things).<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know how she does it,\u201d Carr says. \u201cNot only [are the works] just appropriate, but they\u2019re perfect for them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Working with students poses its own set of criteria. \u201cWith students, you\u2019re very much aware that it\u2019s as much about the process. For me, that means it&#8217;s not about compromising anything,\u201d he says. \u201cNever compromising the quality of what they do, but what\u2019s really important is what they\u2019ve learned.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Working with conductor Gordon Gerrard is part of the fun. \u201cHe\u2019s great. It\u2019s fun to work with him,\u201d Stephen says. He was looking forward to the opportunity after seeing other GGS productions Gerrard was involved with. \u201cI was really excited to work with him.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Gordon Gerrard<\/h2>\n<p>Canadian conductor Gordon Gerrard grew up on a farm near Brandon, MB into a family where his mother played piano, his father was a country music lover, and his grandmother led the local church choir. He began studying piano at age seven, and learned repertoire by listening to cassette tapes. By high school, he had made the decision to pursue music professionally.<\/p>\n<p>He has worked with orchestras across Canada, including in Vancouver, Quebec, Toronto, Victoria, London, Kitchener-Waterloo as well as opera companies in Calgary, Hamilton, and Edmonton.<\/p>\n<p>Gerrard is particularly passionate about working with emerging artists, and has done so at Calgary Opera, the Atelier Lyrique de l\u2019Op\u00e9ra de Montr\u00e9al, the Banff Centre, Opera Nuova (Edmonton), UBC Opera (Vancouver), Opera McGill (Montr\u00e9al) and the Glenn Gould School (Toronto).<\/p>\n<p>Since 2016, he\u2019s served as Music Director of the Regina Symphony Orchestra, where he\u2019s worked with both traditional and contemporary repertoire, including works that explore social issues and community engagement.<\/p>\n<h2>Gordon Gerrard: The Interview<\/h2>\n<p>Gerrard is also familiar with some of the current cohort of Glenn Gould School vocalists. He mentions baritone <strong>Gabriel Klassen<\/strong>, (who performs in Rossini\u2019s La cambiale di matrimonio), and soprano <strong>Charlotte Anderson<\/strong>, who will be taking on the role of La Ciesca in Gianni Schicchi.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a wonderful group,\u201d he says \u201cOne of the things I love about coming to the GGS, is that it gives me a chance to meet the next cohort of wonderful young artists.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Working with them, he comes to know more than their vocal abilities, including their background and more. \u201cIt\u2019s really great to get a chance to work with them.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>The Operas<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s really great to get to work on these pieces,\u201d Gerrard says.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s his first time working on the Rossini, just as it is for the students. \u201cI don\u2019t think anyone is [familiar with it,]\u201d he laughs. \u201cIt\u2019s the first time for them getting to know Italian recitative,\u201d Gerrard adds. \u201cIt has it\u2019s own challenges. It\u2019s the first time tackling these first styles and types of pieces,\u201d he notes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGianni Schicchi is a really great piece. It\u2019s a complicated piece,\u201d Gordon explains. \u201cThe thing about Gianni Schicchi is that it\u2019s rhythmically complex. There\u2019s about a million words.\u201d The lightning speed of the Italian libretto, and learning how to function in these other languages is a big take away for the student vocalists.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo put it into practice in a piece like this \u2014 it\u2019s got a lot more words than La Boh\u00e8me.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>The Glenn Gould School<\/h3>\n<p>Like Stephen Carr, Gordon credits Adrianne Pieczonka for inspired programming and casting choices.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen I\u2019ve talked to Adrianne in the past, she\u2019s always looking for pieces that suit these particular students,\u201d Gerrard says.<\/p>\n<p>This year, she\u2019s chosen works that showcase the talents of all the artists involved.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s less of a star vehicle than other pieces,\u201d he notes of Gianni Schicchi. \u201cIt\u2019s a piece where the ensemble can shine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Working together is part of what the GGS vocalists are learning.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe other day in rehearsal we were talking about, of course you need to know your part, rhythmically, and the pitches, but a lot of the time you\u2019re doing it with six other people.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s about how your performance fits into the group, as opposed to the context of a solo aria.<\/p>\n<h3>The Operas<\/h3>\n<p>Comedy is approached differently in the two operas.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI would say one of the things about Gianni Schicchi it\u2019s \u2014 and this I think applies to a lot of Puccini \u2014 is that he leaves very little to chance,\u201d Gerrard explains.<\/p>\n<p>The Rossini is quite different. \u201cFinding the comedy, especially in the recitatifs, finding the comedy is more precise,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>It involves a particular awareness of timing, and of the other people on stage. \u201cI think actually it\u2019s a monumental challenge,\u201d Gordon says. \u201cYou\u2019re given much more freedom by the score itself, but it means you have to find it for yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He talks about the musical highlights of the works. \u201cOf course, everybody, when we get to the part that Gianni Schicchi, everyone will recognize \u201cO mio babbino caro\u201d,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere are these incredible ensembles in Gianni Schicchi that people might not know as well as they do with La Boh\u00e8me, it\u2019s just incredibly sophisticated, but it all makes so much sense,\u201d he says. \u201cGianni Schiacchi isn\u2019t done nearly as often as the other Puccini operas,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Rossini is a piece that was brand new to me as well. I\u2019m discovering it along with them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Its rarity means there are only a handful of existing recordings to work with, for example. \u201cIt\u2019s not like there is an accepted library of recordings that you listen to for reference,\u201d Gerrard notes.<\/p>\n<p>As the rehearsals progress, the focus changes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNow, it\u2019s the process of refining. We don\u2019t spend the same concentrated time now after we got that first intense week out of the way.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Performances<\/h2>\n<p>The Glenn Gould School Spring Opera: Serenata Italiana, featuring Rossini\u2019s La cambiale di matrimonio and Puccini\u2019s Gianni Schicchi, opens March 18, with a second performance on March 20.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Find tickets and information about the Glenn Gould School Spring Opera on March 18 [<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rcmusic.com\/events-and-performances\/the-glenn-gould-school-spring-opera-(6)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">HERE<\/a><\/strong>].<\/li>\n<li>And for the March 20 performance [<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rcmusic.com\/events-and-performances\/the-glenn-gould-school-spring-opera-(7)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">HERE<\/a><\/strong>].<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><em>Are you looking to promote an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/advertising\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"color: #0e101a;\"><u>event<\/u><\/span><\/a>? 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