This past summer my husband began his new job as assistant administrative director for Chautauqua Opera. I had a gig in South Carolina, but had a few weeks free to join him there mid-summer. What I found was that even though I wasn’t there as a singer, I was instantly enveloped into the “Chautauqua Family” that exists both in the opera company and in the larger institution of which it is a part.
My first day on the grounds of the Chautauqua Institution, I was taken aback by the uniqueness of the place—lovingly restored Victorian mansions line neat streets, with a fountain in the central square and boats moored all along the lake in placid waters. The people, though, are the most remarkable. Children whiz by on bikes, and as you walk past others, you overhear snippets of conversations about topics as varied as politics, poetry, and opera. It’s like you’re transported to an idealized time in America, where children can go largely unsupervised in a safe environment and there’s always a good conversation to be had, something new to be learned and, perhaps most importantly to me, many flavors of locally produced ice cream.
Founded in 1874, the Chautauqua Institution began as an ecumenical retreat and training center for Sunday school teachers. Since then, it has grown to include the well known opera company; a theatre company; a music school; a nursery school; children’s activities; a gym; a golf course; literary arts series with famed authors; the oldest continuous book club in the nation; theme-of-the-week lectures with speakers from Julie Andrews to Sherry Turkle—an expert on technology’s effect on human behavior, to Jim Lehrer—presidential debate moderator and longtime PBS news anchor; as well as an interfaith lecture series. Oh, they also have classes in subjects ranging from ceramics to Alexander Technique to sailing. The philosophy of life-long learning and keeping mind and body healthy contributes to a truly unique place to produce opera.
It’s a great place to be on vacation—but it’s an equally amazing place to be an employee. The singers and staff do have a running joke, however, because of their busy schedule: “Wait—there’s a lake?!”
Despite their busy schedule and not often being able to participate in much of the daily activities, the opera company runs by the same principles as the institution: treating people with respect and trying to provide a supportive and nurturing environment. “I think of this as my professional family,” Music Administrator and Chorus Master Carol Rausch notes. She also adds that there is significantly less turnover in staff, resulting in a group that offers real support to each other through family and health issues and that meets socially in the off-season.
Artistic Director Jay Lesenger comments that most of the coaches have been there for many years and that it is “like a family reunion at the beginning of summer.” He notes that the benefit of familiarity in the staff allows them to jump right into their work in a way that makes new people feel comfortable with staff veterans. He also says the mutual respect among the artistic staff, and that a lot of promoting from within, keeps familiar staff there. “We call ourselves Opera Camp,” he says.
Aside from the staff treating each other like family, there’s an additional, even more notable aspect to Chautauqua Opera: the company’s family-friendly policy invites singers and staff to bring their families with them when they come to perform. In the 2012 season, former Artistic Director Lizzie Cheslock brought her baby, Julia, whose delightful smile graced the office and rehearsals regularly.
Why can family members come along? Part of it is because of the Institute itself—it is by nature a family-friendly environment, with lots of activities for children, from the Boys’ and Girls’ Club to the Youth Activities Center and daily classes. As Lesenger observes, the sort of “paid family vacation” attracts terrific artists. Rausch also notes that the spouses and families are part of the package with the singers.
One veteran Chautauquan, baritone Todd Thomas—whose credits include the Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and nearly every major opera company in the United States—brings his family each time he comes to Chautauqua. He has been coming there as a singer “forever, really!” He first sang as an apprentice in 1986 and 1987 and has been returning as a principal artist for many years. He has brought his wife and children every year except his apprentice years. Thomas says, “It is very important for me that . . . there’s some kind of opportunity to bring my family . . . Jay [Lesenger] is extremely family friendly.”
Thomas notes how unusual it is; some other companies are not nearly as inviting. He feels that by including the family members, Lesenger makes them lifetime Chatauquans. When spouses can attend lectures and children can participate in activities, why wouldn’t they want to come back? Thomas’ son has his New York State boating license because of Chautauqua—even though they neither live in New York nor have a boat!
Lesenger tries to include families whenever possible. Many times he knows the artist personally or from another professional situation, and they bring their family their first season. At other times, first-timers wish they had brought their kids and they bring them with when they return for another season. Lesenger says that people who have children are used to distractions and know how to deal with it. Their children are never in the way, and he is happy as long as the work is done. “I have rarely met an artist where their child wasn’t their first priority and everything else second,” he says.
It’s this recognition and emphasis on the importance of family life that makes singers like Thomas return year after year. His son, Sam, had a bicycle accident one summer. After being medevac’d to Buffalo for treatment, he was OK but did not look good. This was shortly after a production of Tosca, and he insisted on looking in a mirror. On seeing his bruises and stitches, he remarked, “Dad, I look worse than Cavaradossi at the end of Act II!” Every summer since this accident, one of their first stops is to visit Captain Mike at the fire station, who assisted him in the accident. The entire community becomes a family, says Thomas, and even those outside of the opera company are part of that larger community for his family.
With four children (Lydia, age 21; Gabby, age 16; Sam, age 13; and Noah, age 5), one would think Thomas would have to worry about them while in rehearsals—but at Chautauqua, there are rarely any worries. His wife and children have friends on the grounds. And the biggest frustration as a parent there? Scheduling. It is different from normal day-to-day life because it is summer and, unlike gigs where he can’t bring his family, he must spend some “self-centered” time working on a role, which is different from his normal time at home. But when scheduling is carefully organized and his children understand that he must spend some time on his role rather than going swimming, it is definitely preferable to have them with him.
While some other companies will deduct money from the singer’s fee to pay to house family, this is not the case with Chautauqua. Thomas says that most of his colleagues are happy with family housing provided, and this goes both for first-timers and veterans. Many of the singers’ children (including Thomas’ son, Sam) participate in the children’s chorus. With “a small army for a family,” Thomas says, it takes extra care to find housing that works—and the administration works hard to secure such housing. This past season, the Thomases were able to bring the family dog along, too.
“There’s a mentality [at Chautauqua] that . . . if married artists with children are with their families, they will sing better and they will be more dedicated,” Thomas says. Part of this is that it is easier to perform well if the singer is happy. For Thomas, that means being with his family. “This company is doing extra for me,” he adds, “[so] I’m going to do more [for them].”
Another aspect that attracts the best singers is that it is a relatively stressless company. “I don’t work well under stress,” Lesenger says. “People don’t need to be afraid to make mistakes—they can try things in rehearsal. You better have a sense of humor in a job like this.”
The company does quick work with many performances (almost daily!) on a tight budget, while at the same time ensuring the most interaction possible between professional artists and young artists. Even in the business of rehearsals, however, the atmosphere remains relaxed. “It’s a good place to heal from whatever slings and arrows life throws at you,” Rausch says. She believes this is in part because the Institution has always had a spiritual component, and that with so many other activities—symphony concerts, lectures, dance, etc.—it becomes a “family of endeavor.” Because of this tight interaction, there’s “no room for egos,” adds Rausch. “It doesn’t fit into today’s dynamics—for your company to grow and thrive.”
Lesenger points out that because the grounds are so small, the audience is used to knowing the performers. Many singers are surprised when someone comes up to them after a lecture or while walking along the grounds and comments on their performance. The audience tends to be well informed and they feel like the artists are part of the community. Lesenger says that there have been very few circumstances where singers encountered this unusual environment and did not want to come back.
Another familial aspect is the “Adopt-an-Artist” program. Families on the grounds adopt young artists—inviting them to dinner, allowing them to do laundry at their homes, bringing them notes and flowers to performances and, occasionally, as Lesenger laughs, marrying them off (one young artist married the son of her “opera mom”)! Many of the young artists stay in contact with their adoptive opera families and come back to the Institute for summer visits beyond the one in which they sang.
Chautauqua Opera goes to great lengths to make their singers and their families comfortable and able to enjoy a wonderful summer together. Despite a cutback in their funding during the recent economic crisis, causing the company to reduce its number of productions, they have not reduced the number of young artists or their family-friendly policies. “I hope that the administration of Chautauqua Opera remains a priority for the Institution,” Thomas says. It enriches not only the lives of the artists who sing there, but their families and the community around them as well.
While Lesenger says he has not thought of the accommodation of families in larger terms, it is notable that this company has weathered the economic crisis while maintaining this family environment. There are other companies who also welcome families, but it is the unique blend of opera company and supporting institution that makes Chautauqua work.
