Rain threatened to cancel an enchanted evening of opera and Broadway tunes in Marine Park, on the evening of Wednesday, August 6th, but partners and sponsors of the concert and the elegantly dressed musical artists moved instruments and equipment into the Carmine Carro Community Center, located at 3000 Fillmore Avenue, where chairs were set up and quickly filled.
It’s a good thing that most people brought lawn chairs with them expecting an “al fresco” concert because the center ran out of seating, and people had to use their own chairs. There was a short delay and then the Regina Opera Company took the stage, mesmerizing a packed house. This was the sixth concert in a series of Marine Park summer concerts sponsored by Assemblywoman Jaime Williams.
Francine Garber-Cohen, Regina Opera president, and opera and concert producer, eloquently introduced the operatic and instrumental selections as well as the musical artist(s) performing. They performed excerpts from famous operas like La Traviata, Marriage of Figaro and La Boheme.
Victoria Ulanovskaya, pianist, made hearts rise and fall with her technique and abilities and did an amazing job supporting the musical artists. Mikhail Parkhomovsky drew everyone in with his first solo violin performance of the evening, “Valse Sentimentale.” It was hard to not be surprised when soprano Yujin Zeng belted out that first high note in “E Strano; Sempre libera.”
All performers were not only impressive musical artists but phenomenal actors and actresses as well. They portrayed every emotion with facial expressions and body movements. Tenor Paolo Buffagni and baritone Robert Garner depicted a tense scene from La Boheme Act 4, and the looks of tenderness and love exchanged between Garner and soprano Audrey DuBois Harris during “Silvio, a quest’ora” from I Pagliacci made everyone’s heart leap.
This is not the first year that Regina Opera Company has performed for the Marine Park Summer Concert Series, and it’s not the first time they’ve converted rigid music/art lovers into fans of the opera. For more information, visit reginaopera.org.
New spectators to the Marine Park Concert Series made sure to get their free raffle ticket. Three excited winners claimed their wine raffle prizes donated by Sotheby’s International Realty.
These amazing concerts are free and open to the public. Williams along with sponsors Kings Plaza, Nick’s Lobster House, Marine Park Alliance, Vincent R. Cervone and Associates, Marine Park Hardware and others in partnership with NYC Parks, Millennium Development and the Marine Park Community Association make these popular summer concerts possible.
The concerts are held in Marine Park every Wednesday night (with a rain date of Thursday) at 6:30 p.m. on the lawn near the bocce court. Bring your friends, family, a chair, blanket and a camera to record the memories! For more information, call 718-252-2124.
Photos by Kari Lleras and Linda Steinmuller
