Friday

Opera is back at Goshen College as “Hansel and Gretel” by Engelbert Humperdinck is set to open this weekend Friday at 7:30 p.m. Though based on a well-known fairytale, this show is anything but simple. 

Employing larger-than-life props, whimsical costumes and giant puppets, Amy Budd, director, said that the show seeks to create the atmosphere of a children’s pop-up book. 

The childish theme doesn’t mean that this show is taking its work any less seriously than any other show at GC. One facet of the cast is a four person team of puppeteers whose entire focus is on the puppet and assisting with a few scene transitions. 

Additionally, even though they are playing children in the show, Aysia Adkins, senior music major, playing Gretel, and Cal Swartzendruber, senior biochemistry major playing Hansel, have worked hard to develop the mature vocals needed for an operatic singing style. 

Adkins was personally excited by the decision to opt for an opera rather than a traditional musical: “I have been working on developing my classical voice technique, including opera, so I was really excited that this particular skillset of mine would have a place on the main stage this semester.”

Beyond being a return to genre for GC, this show will also be the first fully family-friendly show that GC has hosted in several years. Budd said that there may still be a few spookier moments for parents to keep an eye out for, but that overall kids should not feel worried to attend. 

Originally a German production, GC’s performance will showcase the English translation of Humperdinck’s work, and will have subtitles displayed on stage to make sure that the audience can fully follow along. 

 When considering what your average student might get out of this adaptation, Swartzendruber said that there are a lot of takes on this story that make things darker, more frightening, or even a little weird. But “this is something that you can come to laugh at and then hopefully feel better afterwards.”

Budd, Adkins, and Teo Kingsley, stage manager, expressed the show’s sense of childish wonder and playfulness. Adkins said,  “It’s been super fun to be a kid again, exploring the woods!”

“It’s a very cute play. Very delightful, lots and lots of whimsy,” Kingsley said. 

Budd also believes that children will enjoy seeing aspects of themselves reflected in the titular characters. She says, “What is most consistently fun throughout this performance is the sibling dynamics of handling Gretel.”  

Breanna Nickel, associate professor of Bible and religion, is personally very excited to come and see the show. She recently saw an opera in Chicago and has been looking forward to “Hansel and Gretel” ever since. 

She emphasized the hard work that both students and her colleagues have put into preparing the show, and expects that it will be reflected in the final product.  

As Kingsley, Adkins, Swartzendruber, Nickel and Budd all concluded, “Come and see the show.”