Saturday, November 4, 2023 | 7:30 pm | Port Theatre
How many opera and musical theatre favourites can you hear in one night? The best of Carmen, The Magic Flute, The Barber of Seville, Tales of Hoffman, Mamma Mia, Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables, Kinky Boots, West Side Story… and more!

CONDUCTOR: Les Dala

GUEST ARTIST: Malaspina Choir (Fiona Blackburn, Artistic Director)
Emma Parkinson, MEZZO-SOPRANO
Buwa and Ty Koch VOCALS

PERFORMANCE SPONSOR

PURCHASE TICKETS

PRE-CONCERT TALKS: 6:30 PM
CONCERT: 7:30 PM

Join us for our free pre-concert talks. One hour prior to the concert in the theatre lobby.

What to wear? Be comfortable. Dress in a way that works for you. If you feel like dressing up, do it and you won’t be the only one, we promise. If you prefer to be more casual you will fit right in as well.

Beverages served prior to concert and during intermission. You can pre-order your beverage before the concert.


Mobile phones are allowed to be on but must be set to silent.


We weclome you to clap when you like what you hear.

Les Dala
BIOGRAPHY

Conductor and pianist, Leslie Dala enjoys a multifaceted career spanning the genres of opera, symphonic music, choral and contemporary works. On the podium, he is known for his passionate, dynamic, and charismatic approach to music making. Named one of the top ten artistic leaders by the Vancouver Sun, Dala’s national profile has grown steadily with guest conducting appearances with orchestra and opera companies across the country. Internationally, he has conducted in Europe and in Asia and is a member of the music staff at the Santa Fe Opera.

Leslie holds the positions of Music Director of the Vancouver Bach Choir, the Associate Conductor and Chorus Director of Vancouver Opera, and the Music Director Emeritus of the Vancouver Academy of Music Symphony Orchestra. Recently he conducted Vancouver Opera’s production of Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman, the Canadian premiere of George Benjamin’s Into the Little Hill produced by Astrolabe Musik Theatre, and the world premiere of Frank Horvat’s Memories of Self Isolation with the Vancouver Bach Choir. As a pianist, Leslie recorded the complete Etudes of Philip Glass which is available on the Redshift label and on all of the major streaming platforms. It was named by CBC Radio as one of the top 21 Classical recordings of 2021. His 2022 recording of Nikolai Korndorf’s The Smile of Maud Lewis also made the CBC list for top 22 Classical recordings.

www.lesliedala.com

Emma Parkinson
BIOGRAPHY

Chinese-Canadian mezzo-soprano Emma Parkinson has performed across Canada and internationally, she has been hailed as “an outstanding voice” (La Scena Musicale). Emma performed in the world premiere of Chinatown with City Opera Vancouver, and in
the Canadian premiere of Du Yun’s Angel’s Bone with re:Naissance Opera and Sound the Alarm Music Theatre. Past seasons have seen Emma perform with Vancouver Opera as Jade Boucher in Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking, and with Pacific Opera Victoria in the Canadian premiere of Rattenbury. Emma has appeared with Burnaby Lyric Opera in the title role of Carmen, and, as Suzuki in Madama Butterfly. As an alumnus of the Atelier lyrique of Opéra de Montréal, she performed Orlofsky in Opéra de Montréal’s production of Die Fledermaus. In Europe, Emma debuted with Seefestspiele Berlin as Mercédès in Carmen, and performed a concert with Les Chorégies d’Orange in France. Her concert highlights include soloist appearances with the Alberta Baroque Ensemble, Vancouver Bach Choir, Kingston Symphony Orchestra, Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra, Montreal Symphony Orchestra, and the Orchestre Métropolitain, under the baton of Yannick Nézét-Seguin. Emma is excited to be making her debut with the Vancouver Island Symphony Orchestra.

@emmacparkinson

www.emmaparkinson.com

Buwa
BIOGRAPHY

British Columbia based, Nigerian performer Buwa is an artist you want to keep on your radar. Drawing influences from the late Whitney Houston, as well as Jill Scott, India Arie, Billy Porter, and Brenda Fassie – Buwa is an exciting contemporary soul artist, with pop and R&B sensibilities and a penchant for storytelling, for whom, music has always played an important place. Buwa channels his creativity into poetry and performance art appearing in various stage productions on Vancouver Island where he resides. Recognized for his infectious melodies, his versatile voice and captivating song writing, Buwa has released two EP: Olu [2019] and Road Signs [2016], along with handful of captivating singles. He uses his music and talents to change the way the world sees Africa

Ty Koch
BIOGRAPHY

Ty Koch is a young singer based in Vancouver, Canada that performs a variety of musical genres including musical theatre favourites, Classical artsong, crooner tunes, popular ballads, original songs with a blues vibe and vintage rock & roll! He began songwriting at the age 17 performing with his friends. Over the last few years, Ty has been working with several artists performing and recording at theatres, local clubs and festivals including the Nanaimo Big Band Festival and on two Rise Up Reality TV Tours which can be viewed on Roku TV. Ty has recorded and released two songs: Go to War and Waiting to Be Found.

For a decade Ty was a member of the highly acclaimed British Columbia Boys Choir where he had the opportunity to perform and tour to fantastic places around the world. “I did a road trip across Canada, from coast to coast, been to Costa Rica, Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, Scotland and throughout British Columbia numerous times.