Wickedly Broadway Ignites OPAS Season 18 Opening Day with Multiple Standing Ovations

The Oconee Performing Arts Society (OPAS) opened its 18th season in

spectacular fashion at this year's version of Broadway Sings for OPAS, titled Wickedly Broadway. With three veterans from Broadway's most popular musical, Wicked, the sold-out afternoon concert drew multiple standing ovations from an ecstatic and appreciative audience, setting the tone for a blockbuster OPAS season ahead. 

The well-curated and perfectly paced program delivered a sweeping celebration of both classic and contemporary Broadway. It was an afternoon of soaring vocals, witty storytelling between numbers, and the kind of electric, room-filling energy that only live performance can deliver.

Headliners Talia Suskauer (Elphaba) and Alli Mauzey (Glinda) impressed the audience with a dynamic mix of duets and showstopping solos, traversing between beloved classics from South Pacific, Funny Girl, and My Fair Lady, to more contemporary songs from The Lion King, Les Misérables, Beauty and the Beast, and of course, Wicked!

The impressive lineup of guest artists also featured a solid performance from Nathaniel Hackmann (Les Misérables, Back to the Future), whose rich baritone and commanding stage presence drew rousing applause. "Out There" from Disney's Hunchback of Notre Dame was a first-act showstopper.

At the podium, conductor Evan Roider, the music director and conductor of Wicked, led the OPAS Philharmonic Orchestra, creating an authentic sound rarely heard outside of Broadway. Kudos to OPAS for continuing to bring the excitement and sounds of a full orchestra to Lake Country.

The concert got off to a rousing start with a special surprise when OPAS Artistic Director, Doug LaBrecque (Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables , and ShowBoat) stunned the crowd by belting out Circle of Life, igniting the room and helping to spur the afternoon's electric atmosphere.

Many in the community know Mr. LaBrecque as the head of OPAS, but with frequent solo visits to over 125 Symphony Orchestras under his belt, it is easy to see why he was one of the most in-demand Broadway vocalists of his generation. He narrated a heartfelt tribute to his frequent collaborator Marvin Hamlisch, who was instrumental in helping to create OPAS.  His off-the-cuff comment, "Marvin would be so pleased to see where we are now," drew rousing applause. Local favorite and former OPAS Youth Chorus member, Helen Garcia-Carreras, joined the two stars of Wicked for a poignant and musically solid performance of one of Mr. Hamlisch's most successful and dramatic songs, "At the Ballet" from his Pulitzer Prize-winning musical, A Chorus Line. OPAS provided complimentary tickets to local students and OPAS Youth Chorus members who roared in approval after Ms. Garcia-Carreras completed the trio.

Broadway Sings for OPAS, in its fifth year, continues to deliver at a remarkably high artistic level, with world-class musicians and the authentic sound of Broadway, right here in Greensboro!