It’s opera like you’ve never seen, heard or experienced before, and two Biola alumni are on the front lines of its development. Winton White (‘05) graduated from Biola as a music major with an emphasis in tuba performance and music composition. He attended the San Francisco Conservatory after Biola, and as conductor for Beyond the Stage's production of “Carmen,” White brings to the production his experience in music and composition as the choral conductor.

Beyond the Stage (BTS), an independent collaborative arts company new to Los Angeles, presents a unique twist on Georges Bizet’s “Carmen,” an opera comique set and love story about the temptation and fall of a soldier, Don Jose, set in Spain.

"Mixing different forms of art and media."

While the genre of opera includes elements of dance and music, BTS and dance company Feel the Lights have partnered together to bring to the stage a mixture of classical music and modern dance. Furthermore, the elements of performance art, culinary art and the visual art of street performers add a delightful twist to this traditional piece.      

When colleague and fellow SF graduate Michael Smith, a director for BTS productions, approached White abut choral conducting, White said he gladly accepted the opportunity to work with a conservatory so innovative in involving the audience in the opera.

“I took interest in it because of their mission statement of going beyond,” White said. “[And] basically transcending the formality of traditional opera and theater … mixing different forms of art and media.”

After meeting with Smith and other production partners and hearing their need for hiring section leaders for the opera’s chorus, White contacted fellow Biola alumna Amanda Kadlubek (‘07) with this information.

Dance, visual arts and opera

Kadlubek, who graduated with a bachelor of arts in music with an emphasis in voice, auditioned and was brought on as the soprano choral section leader. Though she and White only spent a semester together at Biola, the connection they made proved valuable when this opportunity arose.

“When Winton told me about this production I almost fell out of my chair. … He was telling me that he was getting involved in this production which was combining dance and combining visual arts, and combining opera,” Kadlubek said. “And I was shocked because this was something I had been wanting to do ever since Biola.”

While studying at Biola, Kadlubek took a rhythmic movement class. It was this class, she said, that helped her not only use the art of dance in worship, but implanted the idea of incorporating the arts into opera.

“It was the best way that I could really get my whole body in worship,” Kadlubek said. “We would have gospel music playing while we did our dance and warmups, and I got to thinking, ‘You know what, I sound way better singing along to this gospel music sometimes than I do in a practice room.’ What if we combined dance and opera, and heck why not throw in visual arts? And just really get a full spectrum of emotional communication through these stories to the audience.”

Fostering an appreciation of all styles of classical music

This unique production is the first of this incorporation of visual and performance art that she has seen, Kadlubek said.

White, when asked how his time at Biola prepared him for his role in this production and in the world of performance, spoke of one professor who helped him first learn to appreciate classical music.

“Marlin Owen, with his music history classes he really does his best, and I think he succeeds in having people appreciate all styles within classical music,” White said. “I had zero interest in opera. If anything I — what’s the word? — detested it. But he made us watch opera videos. … I just needed to understand it. Because once you understand it you can appreciate it. And so that’s what happened. I gradually learned to appreciate opera. So I think thanks to Mr. Owen I was able to really appreciate, [and] therefore pursue this journey of trying to comprehend and understand what opera is about.”

While she praised Biola’s conservatory training and the excellence of the music program, Kadlubek gained more from her time at Biola in regards to her field from the classes that shaped her understanding of worldviews.

Learning about worldviews and how to stand out

“That was a brand new thing for me, coming to Biola; I had never thought about worldviews. … When I really started understanding worldviews, I began a journey of learning how to communicate with all kinds of different people. In the opera world and in the performing world, people are coming to the production with so many types of worldviews,” Kadlubek said. “I was really able to, through Biola’s education, meet people where they were at without assuming things.”

Being in the performing arts field is often a scary thing for Christians, Kadlubek said. However, both she and White spoke to the many opportunities for Christians to be different, to stand out and be effective witnesses in such a dynamic vocation.

“I think that’s the key thing, is loving people,” White said. “I’ve run across a few Christians who are just trying to win arguments. And I think that’s one of the more foolish things that you could do.” 

Standing out by learning to be humble

Humility is another effective way of standing out, Kadlubek added.

“People notice. People can tell on stage, too,” Kadlubek said. “I just did the Met auditions and people were telling me that when I went on stage there was a certain presence of humility. … So having the ability to be humble, which is only through Christ, that we can have that ability at all, it really stands out.”

“Carmen” opens on Dec. 1 for one night at Founder’s Center in Los Angeles. Parking is free and food trucks are plentiful. Tickets can be purchased at brownpapertickets.com or at the door.