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Show U PREPARES FOR PRODUCTION OFJARMEN Bizet's ever popular "Carmen", tale of gypsy passion, will open Friday in Stadium bowl at 8:45 p.m. as the second feature of the annual University of Utah Summer Sum-mer Festival. Kitty Carlisle, motion picture, radio and opera star, will sing the title role. Since her arrival in Salt Lake City, she has amazed critics, reviewers and behind-the scenes personnel with her dramatic dram-atic talents. In private life the wife of Moss Hart, noted playwright play-wright and librettist, Miss Car-j Car-j lisle brings to the role a rich voice and a commanding stage presence. Robert Rounseville, who has just completed singing the lead in "The Great Waltz," will portray por-tray Don Jose, jealous suitor of Carmen. Mr. Rounseville made his operatic debut in New York City in the same role and was hailed by Time magazine and countless ether reviewers as the t.f:..,j' e 4U n r ..... ville has been widely acclaimed for his role as Johann Strauss Jr. in "The Great Waltz." Theodor Uppman, personable baritone from the Pacific coast and winner of the Atwater Kent auditions in 1947, will take the part of Escamillo the toreador. A veteran of the G I entertainment unit in Europe after the invasion invas-ion of France, Mr. Uppman has sung with the San Francisco and Los Angeles Opera companies and was heralded by one coast reviewer as the best and most engaging baritone to reach national na-tional prominence since Nelson Eddy. Music for the production, to be sung in English, is under the direction of Maurice Abravanel, who has directed "Carmen" in at least 10 countries. The energetic maestro has spent many hours rehearsing the orchestra and correlating cor-relating the chorus which is also under his supervision. Especially imported for several dance sequences which have been added to the show are Roland and Jerry Vasquez, both of the San Francisco Ballet Co., who have been touted as one of the finest brother and sister acts in the modern mo-dern dance theatre. Dancing will be directed by William F. Chris-tensen, Chris-tensen, Utah born choreographer of the San Francisco Opera Co., who choreographed "The Great Waltz." Dr. C. Lowell Lees, director of the show, has converted the 120 by 70 foot stage used in The Great Waltz to the Bizet production. produc-tion. Carmen has more scene-changes scene-changes than the Waltz and the stage, designed by Vern Adix, University theatre set technician, was built for rapid transformation transforma-tion and maximum sound repro-I repro-I duction. |