Organization

Stage director

David Radamés Toro

Chorus master

David Hanlon

Set designer

Arnulfo Maldonado

Costume designer

Austin Opera

Minnesota Opera

Orchestra

Houston Grand Opera Orchestra

Austin Opera Orchestra

Conductor

Timothy Myers

Singer

Baritone

Daniel Noyola

Laurentino

Claudia Chapa

Lupita

Mezzo-soprano

Cassandra Zoé Velasco

Renata

Efraín Solís

Mark

Others

Trío Chapultepec

Soprano

Lily Guerrero

Diana

Daniel Montenegro

Chucho

Tenor

Efraín Corralejo

Rafael

Lighting designer

Carolina Ortiz Herrera

Sound designer

C  Andrew Mayer

Makeup artist

Melanie Steele

Cruzar la Cara de la Luna -  (To Cross the Face of the Moon)

Austin

United States

The Long Center

Cruzar la Cara de la Luna

Public

Private

To Cross the Face of the Moon

Approved

The first ever Mariachi opera, Cruzar la Cara de la Luna/To Cross the Face of the Moon, follows the two families of Laurentino, a Mexican man who has moved to the United States to work, even though that means leaving behind his wife Renata and son Rafael. Although he sends money home, and visits when he can, his choices have tragic consequences for his family left in Michoacán. Decades later, he lies dying. Now an elderly man, cared for by his American son Mark and granddaughter Diana, Laurentino questions the true meaning for him of ‘family’ and ‘home’ after a life straddling two cultures, a life in which he kept so many secrets from those he loved. Even as he draws his final breath, the two strands of his life finally come together in an emotional reunion, and Laurentino perhaps finds the answers he needs to rest peacefully.

Embroidered with the ultimate symbol of migration, the Monarch butterfly, Cruzar is set in Texas and Mexico in both the past and the present. José ‘Pepe’ Martínez’s groundbreaking score blends the unique sound of a Mariachi trio with a full opera orchestra in a new orchestration by David Hanlon. Martínez collaborated on the libretto with the eminent writer and stage director, Leonard Foglia, who also wrote the book and directed the premiere production.

This production of Cruzar will be the first full-scale opera to be supported by the new Butler Fund for Spanish Programming. It will also mark the next phase of the significant, ongoing cultural collaboration between Austin Opera and the Studio of the Ópera de Bellas Artes, the national opera company of Mexico.

The cast for Cruzar will all be performers from this internationally recognized young artist development program in Mexico City, performing alongside acclaimed U.S.-based artists, the Austin Opera Orchestra, and the Mariachi musicians of Trío Chapultepec. The trio comprises three much sought-after musicians from San Antonio—Vincent Pequeño, Israel Alcala, and William Carlton Galvez. Trío Chapultepec and the members of the Ópera de Bellas Artes Studio will also perform together in Austin Opera’s Bella Noche de Música concert at Waterloo Park in April 2023.


Conductor
    Timothy Myers

    Sarah and Ernest Butler Music Director

    David Radamés Toro
    Director

Cast

    Daniel Noyola*+
    Laurentino

    Cassandra Zoé Velasco*+
    Renata

    Claudia Chapa+
    Lupita

    Efraín Solís
    Mark

    Lily Guerrero*+
    Diana

    Daniel Montenegro*
    Chucho

    Efraín Corralejo*
    Rafael

    Trío Chapultepec*
    Mariachi Trio

Creative Team

    Timothy Myers
    Conductor
    David Radamés Toro
    Director
    David Hanlon
    Orchestration
    Arnulfo Maldonado
    Scenic & Costume Designer
    Carolina Ortiz Herrera
    Lighting Designer
    C. Andrew Mayer
    Sound Designer
    Melanie Steele
    Wig & Makeup Designer

English

Performance credits (Cast & Crew )

Cast

Crew

Ensemble

Co-Producer