 |
|
 |
|
The Opera Company of Philadelphia, like
most other opera companies around the world, needs to cast small, non-singing
roles in some of the productions it mounts. So it turns to supernumeraries,
or supers: people without formal operatic training who receive a small
fee for playing these bit parts (see below for more details).
Supers may not sing, but add an indispensible flavor to the scenes they are in by virtue of the costumes they wear, the props they manipulate and the pantomimic gestures they use to evoke different incidental characters. Perhaps the quintessential role for a super is the guard or soldier wielding a spear, but over the years supers have also gotten to act out a wide range of unusual parts, often interacting with the principal singers in crucial ways on stage. The need for supers varies from show to show, so particular supers may go for months or even a year without getting a call to perform. It all depends on whether or not a super fits the casting requirements of the operas in the Company's current performance schedule. The Company uses men and women of all ages, and sometimes children as well. The Company has also recently started recruiting volunteers to act as stand-ins for principal singers and chorus members during technical rehearsals. These volunteers are called lightwalkers --- not because they balance high above the stage on a thin rope, or engage in duels using glowing Star Wars sabers! Rather, they help the director and his or her technical assistants to see how different possible lighting designs will look when real live human beings are standing under the lights. Lightwalkers move into the various positions that the singers take during the opera, following the prompts of the director or stage manager. The time commitment for this job is definitely less than that required for a full-blown supernumerary role, so it's a golden opportunity for anyone who's too busy to go to a lot of rehearsals, but who still wants to really help out the Company and learn a little about how operas are staged. Anyone who is interested in becoming a super (or a lightwalker) can submit an application to the Company. |
