Crested Butte Music Festival: Verdi’s Falstaff

Crested Butte Opera Studio

Todd Thomas (Falstaff, Guest Artist)

Ben Bloomfield (Falstaff, Artist-In-Residence)

CBMF Symphony Orchestra

Brian Garman, conductor

Joshua Major, Director

WHY GO?

• Falstaff, which is based on the Shakespeare play of the same name, is widely considered a comedic masterpiece
• Verdi wrote this opera, his last, when he was approaching 80
• Leonard Bernstein championed a revival, which popularized the work

The Crested Butte Opera Studio, CBMF Symphony Orchestra, conductor Brian Garman and director Joshua Major join forces to bring Verdi’s comedic masterpiece, “Falstaff,” to the Festival. The title role will be shared by Ben Bloomfield, who starred in last year’s “Gianni Schicchi,” and the noted American baritone Todd Thomas, who has been widely praised for his performance of the role. A recent rave from Opera News proclaimed, “It’s hard to imagine there are many better Falstaffs working on North American stages today [than Todd Thomas].”