March 21, 1998: Come to Me at The University of Texas
Live Performance of the aria, with multimedia performance elements and choreography by artistic director Bryan Green, as part of the Austin Dance Ensemble presentation of Dracula and Other Works at the McCullough Theatre at The University of Texas at Austin. $12 admission.
The press release:
High brow, high tech, high Texas
CYBERSPACE and Austin, Texas — The world’s first tele-collaborative Internet opera will burst into song on March 21st, 8:00 p.m. from the McCullough Theater on The University of Texas at Austin campus. honoria in ciberspazio, is the cyberopera recently selected as a semi-finalist by the Global Information Infrastructure (GII) Arts and Entertainment Awards along with ABCNEWS.com, ESPN SportsZone, and the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago.
Under the artistic direction of Bryan Green, virtual and sensually real dancers tell the operatic story of hope-filled humans passionately attracted to their digital lovers. The cyberopera is a tale of Internet love incorporating high-tech stage sets and advanced Internet-based information delivery systems driven by the opera’s cyberspatial plot.
As a GII Semi-finalist, honoria in ciberspazio has been distinguished for innovation, producing real and valuable results, and for powerfully demonstrating the potential of the Internet that we hear so much about. Vice president Al Gore has cited the GII Awards program "An innovation that is vital to our country’s future."
The cyberopera’s original libretto integrates common and not-so-common experiences of people who send their electronic avatars out onto the Infobahn. The opera’s content reflects the chaotic and emotional situations that one finds in electronic social exchanges in virtual communities, mailing lists, and chat rooms. Cyberopera impresaria, Madelyn Starbuck, also known as honoria, tells us that operatic themes are all over cyberspace.
"There’s deceit, transgender, mythmaking, drama, tragedy, and comedy," she says.
"The opera’s plot is a product of the highest and purest form of collaboration" says the cyberopera’s director of operations, Richard MacKinnon, "by using electronic communication, it is blind to contributors’ location, appearance, politics, gender, ethnicity, sexual preference,religion, or other lifestyle choices."
As an important high-technology hub, Austin is the perfect incubator for this particular opera because the cyberopera is designed to celebrate the social impact of rapidly evolving technologies. "We have brought opera to the Internet," says Starbuck, "Now we are going to bring the Internet to the opera."
MacKinnon and Starbuck are seeking to infuse the cyberopera’s development with venture capital and corporate sponsorship as each production showcases high-tech information delivery in the service of high art.
The honoria in ciberspazio "Come to Me" aria, featuring soprano Janet Davidson in the role of honoria, will be performed in conjunction with Austin Dance Ensemble’s collage of performative works. Tickets are available through UTTM by calling 477-6060.
Since 1995, honoria in ciberspazio has benefited from The University of Texas at Austin infrastructure to develop the cyberopera’s design in which electronic communication theory and high operatic standards are woven together in an artistically innovative showcase for the rapidly changing technological delivery of information. honoria in ciberspazio is currently a non-profit project under the umbrella of Women and Their Work in Austin, Texas. The target audience of honoria in ciberspazio encompasses anyone who has ever fallen in love.