The Mexican tenor will play Don Diego de la Vega at the world premiere of the opera El Zorro, with the Fort Worth Opera, in Texas.
Original Article by JUAN CARLOS TALAVERA 01/28/2020 05:00
The Mexican tenor César Delgado (Guadalajara, 1986) will make the world premiere of the opera Zorro, scheduled for April 26 with the Fort Worth Opera, in the United States, where he will play Don Diego de la Vega, best known for his secret identity, Zorro, one of the most important fictional heroes of modern culture.
The work was created by Mexican-American composer and librettist Héctor Armienta and will feature two more performances, on April 28 and 30, accompanied by Mexican mezzo-soprano Guadalupe Paz.
"I will have the enormous privilege of giving life to the star role in the opera Zorro, sharing credit with mezzo Guadalupe Paz, which will make this premiere a great event for Mexico," he explains in an interview with Excélsior, after the last end Weekend will win the third edition of the PALCCO Opera National Singing Contest 2020, in Guadalajara.
"I believe that Maestro Armienta has made a creation very attached to the original story, preserving that duality of the character, who on the one hand is a romantic man, handsome and very humanized, in the figure of Don Diego de la Vega; and on the other, that of the people's hero."
"In the score, the character is visibly appreciated, clearly describing those lines that belong to Diego de la Vega, when he sings and in which the hero expresses himself."
For the young tenor, who is considered one of the promises of Mexican talent, Zorro is a character easily adaptable to the opera.
"More than an operatic role, Zorro has the great quality of being a diversified character, that is, of being able to be taken to television, to the big screen, to the comic, to the opera and to be part of the literature. Let's say he is a very noble character with whom people feel very identified, a very humanized hero."
This opera is based on the pulp fiction novels by writer Johnston McCulley, he says.
However, this opera has a highly explosive character and will feature the stage direction of Octavio Cárdenas, who is committed to a montage full of romance, danger and suspense, to reveal one of the most iconic characters in pop culture.
In addition to the mezzo-soprano Guadalupe Paz, who will act in the role of Carlotta de Obragón, the cast will be composed of the Mexican baritone Óscar Velázquez, who will play Moncada; the soprano Gabriella Enriquez, as Ana María Soza; bass Prosper Makhanya playing Sergeant José María Gómez; the mezzo-soprano Bridget Cappel, like Toypurina; and Judith Rodriguez, like Luisa.
HE WILL BE CAVARADOSSI
The tenor also anticipates that this year he will return to Mazatlan to participate in the great Evening of the Arts, within the framework of the Mazatlan International Carnival, under the direction of the artistic director Enrique Patron de Rueda.
And then he will debut in the role of Mario Cavaradossi in the concert version of Tosca, with the Xalapa Symphony Orchestra, sharing credits with the Mexican soprano María Katzarava, under the direction of Patron de Rueda.
"The role of Mario Cavaradossi is one of the dream roles of all tenors, one of the great characters of Puccini's romantic works par excellence. So it will be an honor to sing this debut in Mexico, in concert version, with the OSX, under the direction of the best director of Mexican Opera, Enrique Patron de Rueda, sharing credit with the great María Katzarava," he explains.
"So there is no better opportunity to reach this debut, which I am sure and, I hope, will be one of my 'workhorses' in some years," he adds.
Why has he decided not to work fixedly with an opera house? He is questioned. "I have preferred to work as a freelance with my agents in the United States and Europe, because, although I have received an invitation from three opera houses in Germany for a fixed contract, for now the agenda has not allowed me to accommodate."
Is it part of a plan? "I consider that I am at the stage where it is very important to make myself known, try to make a career and have a presence in the largest number of theaters possible, so a fixed theater is not a decision that should be taken lightly, there are many factors to consider: as a repertoire, projection and the economic issue."
Finally, he talks about the recent award he won in the third edition of the PALCCO 2020 contest.
"Winning this contest has caused me a very special satisfaction, because after nine years of living outside Guadalajara, of which seven I have lived in New York, coming to sing to my hometown, it has been a very enriching experience and is a bit break the rule that no one is a prophet in their land," he explains.
For this contest, Delgado participated with arias like Ecco la casa...Torna ai felici di, from the opera Le Villi and Nessun dorma, from the opera Turandot, both by Giacomo Puccini, and was chosen at different stages by an integrated jury by Armando Gama, Lourdes Ambriz, Isidoro Ramos and Flavio Becerra.
So far, the tenor has already won important prizes, such as the first place in the 2015 San Miguel Opera Contest, the first 2017 Sinaloa International Singing Contest, among others.