SUMMER OPERA ACADEMY
Lyric Theater of Crete is announcing its 3rd edition of summer opera academy.
We are delighted to announce MAGIC FLUTE by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
The opera will be presented in German with Greek surtitles. The spoken text will be in German.
Period: 4-15 August
Cost: 900 euros for the main roles and 500 euros for the secondary roles
The participants bear on their own the costs of accomodation, food and travel
Application fee: 50 euros which is deducted from the cost in case of selection.
The applicants will be informed within 10 days from the end of the deadline of application about the result of the evaluation of their application.
Main Female roles
Pamina
The Queen of the Night
Papagena
Secondary Female roles
Three Ladies
Main Male roles
Tamino
Sarastro
Papageno
Monostatos
Secondary Male Roles
Speaker of the temple
First Priest/First man in armour
Second Priest
Second man in armour
The academy will take place in Heraklion, Crete and will include a staged opera performance with a chamber instrumental ensamble as well as a gala concert with piano accompaniment. The opera performance will include a local choir.
The lessons and rehearsals will be daily, in two sessions, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.
The performances will have professional audio and video recording.
All soloists need to have memorised their role prior to their arrival.
In order to apply please end us an email at info@lythec.org including:
- CV
-Link with a recent video recording of 2 arias.
-Receipt of the tranfer of the application fee
-Role/s that you are applying for
OUR TEAM
OUR VENUE
Manos Hadjidakis Open Air Theater is built inside an important archaeological monument of the 17th century, the Venitian walls that are sourounding the old town of Heraklion.
It can sit around 450 people and is one of the most attended open'air venues of Heraklion.
Our Team
BERISLAV JERKOVIC
Berislav Jerković, PhD, associate professor at Academy of Arts in Osijek. He teaches Voice, Opera Studio, Conducting. Graduated in MA's in Voice, Choral conducting and Music Pedagogy. Postgraduate studies of Voice (Universities in Zagreb and in Graz) and doctoral study at University in Zagreb. Sang many solistic roles in operas: Don Giovanni, Gianni Schicci, L’elisir d’amore, Rigoletto, Cosi fan tutte, Un ballo in maschera, La boheme, Eugene Onegin, I Pagliacci, The Magic Flute, Carmen, La sonnambula, The Marriage of Figaro, Tosca, La servapadrona, Ero the Joker, Il segreto di Susanna etc.
Performed with many orchestras and gave numerous solo recitals in Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, Hungary, Jordan, North Macedonia, Germany, Austria, Greece, Slovakia, Italy, Spain, Venezuela, USA, Belgium, China, South Africa …
Worked with the Croatian Baroque Ensemble at performances of the old music masters (Caccini, Rameau, Campra, Handel, Bach, Monteverdi…)
Arts and Science researcher, article publisher, participated in conferences and congresses in Bologna, Paris, Marlborough, Beijing, Rochester, Thessaloniki, Brisbane, Princeton, Vienna. Leads master classes and professional seminars for singers, conductors, choir and vocal ensemble leaders Works also as a conductor, performing on concerts with choirs, vocal and instrumental ensembles in Croatia and abroad. Finally, he received many awards - as a soloist as well as a conductor. Artistic director of Opera Pannonica ensemble and International singing competition Lav Mirski, Croatia. Author of the books Singing class curricula (2019) and Contemporary singing education(2021). He is the head of the Music department at Academy of arts in Osijek.
MELISANDE SINSOULIER
French pianist Mélisande Sinsoulier is a versatile and sought-after artist. She has been seen on Canadian and European scenes as a soloist, collaborative pianist and chamber musician. Recent appearances include performances at the 21C Music Festival in Toronto, Toronto Summer Festival, Toronto Nuit Blanche Festival, the Sacred Music Festival in Quebec City, Heraklion Nuit Blanche Festival, Heraklion Sacred Music Festival, Casa dei Mezzo Chamber Music Festival (Greece),…
Mélisande has been noticed for her “sensitivity, attentiveness, and most of all the beautiful sounds she made on the Steinway”... [Her playing is] “the kind of accompaniment that transcends piano accompaniment and puts the piano part on a level with the singing without fighting the singer”... [with] “complete mastery”... “colourful sounds” and “quite inspired pianism”.
She is a laureate of various competitions including the Gwendolyn Williams Koldovsky Prize in Accompanying, the Paris Scriabin Competition, the Albert Roussel International Competition (France), the Jeunes Musiciens Chamber Music Competition (Belgium) and a recipient of numerous awards.
She holds a Bachelor in Piano Performance, Chamber Music and Accompaniment from the Conservatoire National de Musique de Rennes (France), a Master Degree in Piano Performance, Piano Pedagogy and Chamber Music from the Conservatoire Royal de Musique de Bruxelles (Belgium) and she furthered her studies in the Graduate Department of Collaborative Piano at the Faculty of Music of the University of Toronto (Canada).
Her mentors include Robert Plantard (France), Pierre Froment (pupil of Alfred Cortot), Romano Pallottini (pupil of Lazar Berman), Evgeny Moguilevsky (pupil of Heinrich Neuhaus). More recently, her growing passion for poetry and her fascination for the marriage of words and music have motivated her to seek advice from Art Song specialist Steven Philcox (Canada). She was privileged to play for world renowned artists such as Warren Jones, Martin Katz, Jacques Rouvier, Soile Isokoski, Catherine Winn-Rodgers and Barbara Hannigan.
Her communicative personality and passion for her art have led her to positions as a pedagogue and collaborator at York University in Toronto (Piano instructor for Undergraduate students, Pianist for Concert Choir, Chamber Choir, Men’s Choir and Women’s Choir), Faculty of Music of University of Toronto (Pianist for German Lieder Class, French Mélodie Class, Oratorio Class, Women’s Choir and Private Singing Studios), Conservatoire National de Musique de Rennes (Piano instructor, Pianist for Private Singing Studios, Pianist for Ballet and Contemporary Dance Classes). In parallel, she maintains an active private teaching studio.
HEATHER TAN
A Pasta Hack That Will Transport You to Rome
MANOS CHRISTOFAKAKIS
Manos Christofakakis is a talented bass from Greece who has been praised for the warmth of his voice and his acting skills. His extensive vocal range allows him to interprete roles extending from basso profondo to bass-baritone. Since June 2021 he has added to his performance repertory 8 operatic roles and has performed in 5 different countries. He has appeared in opera festivals, theaters and concert halls in Europe and has been distinguished in international competitions. Moreover, he is the artistic director of the Lyric Theater of Crete.
His artistic interests include theatrical lighting design, stage direction, stage design and argentinean tango dancing and he has participated in productions in the capacities of the aformentioned fields.
Among his recent operatic roles are Bluebeard, from Béla Bartók´s opera "Bluebeard´s Castle" by the Lyric Theater of Crete (December 2022), Figaro, from Mozart's "Marriage of Figaro", in two different productions, one by Lyric Theater of Crete in Heraklion and Siteia (August 2022) and one by Opera Panonnica at KMD Theater in Dubrovnik (June 2022), the title role from Mozart's Don Giovanni in Apollon Theater in Syros, produced by Teatro Grattacielo from New York & Sinfonietta Hellenica from Athens (April 2022), Simone from Puccini's “Gianni Schicchi” at Kolarac Concert Hall in Belgrade (January 2022), La Voce di Nettuno from Mozart's “Idomeneo” at the Cultural Conference Center of Heraklion in a co-production with Teatro Grattacielo from New York (November 2021), Guglielmo at Mozart’s comic opera “Cosi fan tutte” which he performed in several theaters in Croatia (Bjelovar & Vukovar) with Opera Pannonica Ensemble (September 2021) and also in Heraklion with the Lyric Theater of Crete (August 2021), Leporello at Mozart's “Don Giovanni” in an international tour that finished with a performance in Hungary with the Symphonic Orchestra of Szeged (June & July 2021) and later in KMD Theater in Dubrovnik (October 2021), the title role from Mozart's “Don Giovanni” at Vienna Opera Festival (2020), the title role from Xanthoulis' children opera “The Selfish Giant” that took place at the Cultural Conference Center of Heraklion (2020), Uberto at Pergolesi's “La Serva Padrona” by the Lyric Theater of Crete (2019) etc.
As far as his creative work is conerned, he recently co-directed and co-designed the stage of "Marriage of Figaro" in Heraklion and Siteia in August 2022 with Heather Tan in a production by the Lyric Theater of Crete that was part of the 2nd "Crete Festival" of the Region of Crete. Moreover, he directed in August 2021 the world premier of the original Greek opera "Voskopoula", composed by Dionysis Papamitsos, in a production by the Lyric Theater of Crete that was part of the festival "Crete one history 5+1 cultures" of the Municipality of Heraklion.
He has designed the lights of two Mozart's operas at KMD Theater in Dubrovnik, "Marriage of Figaro" in June 2022 and "Don Giovanni", in October 2021, the later together with Alexandros Politakis. Moreover, he designed the lights in an ancient Greek tragedy, Oedipus at Colonus by Sophocles in September 2021 and a contemporary theatrical mononlogue with live music, based on Yerma by F.G. Lorca in July 2022. In August 2019 he co-designed the stage at Pergolesi's Serva Padrona.
In January 2020 he participated in the International Solo Singing Competition Lazar Jovanović in Belgrade, Serbia and in October 2020 in Lav Mirski Internatinal Singing Competition in Osijek, Croatia and was awarded First Prize and Second Prize respectively as well as special prizes.
He has also performed recitals in several venues and festivals, such as the international chamber music festival Casa dei Mezzo at Makrygialos in Crete (2019). Moreover, he has sung Operetta, such as Piazzolla's tango-operetta "Maria de Buenos Aires" where he interpreted the role of El Payador, as well as Oratorio, with most recent performance at Mozart's Requiem at the Cultural Conference Center of Heraklion (April 2022).
He holds a master in Singing from the Academy of Arts and Culture of Osijek, that is a part of Josip Juraj Strossmayer University, under the supervision of prof. Berislav Jerkovic. He has graduated from Acropolis Conservatory in Athens, with Distinction and 1st Prize under the guidance of the tenor Zachos Terzakis. He has attended several masterclasses and seminars with distinguished singers and professors such as Mária Temesi, Vladimir Chernov, Dimitri Kavrakos, Victoria Loukianetz, Noe Colin, Berislav Jerkovic, Jesus Leon, Tassis Christoyannis, Katerina Tsagaraki and has attended opera academies (Vienna Opera Academy & Camerata Bardi Academy in New York, both with scholarship).
He has studied law. He graduated from Athens Law School of the National & Kapodistrian University. He finished two law masters, one in Athens Law School and one in Frankfurt’s Institute for Law and Finance and was a visiting master student at Columbia Law School in New York with scholarship.
DIMITRIS CHATZAKIS
Dimitris is one of the most sought after sound engineers in Crete and a real expert in classical music recordings. He has worked as a sound engineer in hundreds of productions and has recorded concerts, operas, clasical music festivals etc.