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We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused our valued customers. Please note that the LG 2.0 Cu. Ft. Over-The-Range Microwave (Web ID: 10143235) advertised as an add-on for the LG 3-Piece Appliance Package (10104190/10106478/10109262) found on pullout page 1 of the July 22 flyer is an LG product, NOT Samsung, as previously advertised. CORRECTION NOTICEFUTURE SHOP S t a r t i n g a t DENTURES $379 905-815-8208 LIMITED TIME OFFER $4 ea. 1 5 W ed n esd ay, Ju ly 27, 2011 O A K V ILLE B E A V E R w w w .in sid eH A LTO N .co m Singer creates opera for all in lead role By Dominik Kurek OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Oakville soprano Jennifer Sullivan is hoping to show young people, much like herself, just how enjoyable opera is with her upcom- ing performance. The 23-year-old will be perform- ing the principal role of Violetta in Giuseppe Verdis La Traviata, which opens in Toronto July 30. Were trying to make it acces- sible to people, to people my age and of all ages, because its some- thing that can be enjoyed and cele- brated, the Appleby College gradu- ate said. Opera has gone through varying changes in its time, the singer said. When it was first created, opera was a form of expression that peo- ple would go out and socialize, Sullivan said. Even in the times of Mozart it was scandalous, it was fresh, it was a popular thing and opera artists were the Britney Spears and the Maroon Five of our day. But at some point, the art form has changed. Now that its taken on this stuffy, archaic and really snobbish person- ality, musicians are thinking this isnt really what opera is about. Its not what opera is about because the subject matter is intense and its raw. It still applies to our society today. This is what the Summer Opera Lyric Theatre company, which is putting on La Traviata is hoping to convey. Among other things, to make the show accessible, the company is doing an English translated version of the Italian opera, which Sullivan admits creates a greater strain on the voice as the music was written for Italian dialogue. Furthermore, the company aims to keep true to the romance subject matter by using a younger cast. Some of this can be seen in the wider world of opera, especially now that operas are presented at movie theatres. Its changing, its evolving. Were trying to make it more popu- lar and its sort-of gone in a Hollywood direction, she said. Opera stars are now feeling the pressure to look like movie stars. Theres no longer this idea of the fat opera singer or the ugly opera singer. She said young attractive opera singers appeal more to audiences, especially in a romance perfor- mance about young couples. Despite the change to find attrac- tive performers, Sullivan said the quality of singing has not been decreased, because competition has increased. As musicians and as students especially, theres a lot more pres- sure to not only sound the part and perfect your voice and train your voice, but you also need to train your body and your look and look the part. Sullivan added she has been noticing more young people in the audience lately. Despite already having a principal OPERA STAR: Oakville soprano Jennifer Sullivan is performing as the principal role in La Traviata opera in Toronto, which opens Saturday, July 30. SUBMITTED PHOTO We're trying to make it accessible to people, to people my age and of all ages, because it's something that can be enjoyed and celebrated. Soprano Jennifer Sullivan See Singer page 16