Alyson Cambridge Helps Notorious RBG Continue Her Domination

Alyson Cambridge is escorted down the aisle by her father Richard Cambridge.

First it was the nuptials of David Daniels, then Angela Meade, and now Alyson Cambridge. Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, officiated the marriage of Alyson Cambridge to Timothy Eloe in the garden of the Anderson House in Washington, D.C. on May 30, 2015. "'Can anybody hear anything?' asked opera singer Alyson Cambridge, looking something far beyond statuesque in a white lace trumpet gown, as she and her almost husband, Timothy Eloe, try to fix Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s malfunctioning microphone. 'Noooooo,' was the collective answer from the wedding’s 100 black tie clad guests, sipping tall glasses of lemonade in the garden of the Anderson House. After a few minutes a new mike is found and Cambridge, an area native who’s appeared with the Washington National Opera, calls 'take two.' 'Okay, so we’ll start over,' said Ginsburg, who with frilly cuffs spilling out of her judge’s robe and thick black sunglasses looked as rock star as Prince. And the show goes on. It seemed appropriate for a relationship that started with the stage. In his personal vows, Eloe, a Chicago lawyer, said he first saw Cambridge, an

The soprano tears up during the ceremony officiated by Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

area native who’s performed multiple times with the Washington National Opera, on a 20-foot billboard for the musical Show Boat more than three years ago. Once the show’s Chicago run, which Eloe joked he’d seen more times than anyone else in the entire city, was over, Eloe told Cambridge he knew 'we were an us.' Cambridge, dabbing her eyes with a tissue handed to her by her maid of honor — Eloe’s 11-year-old daughter Christina — said she’d been surprised that a clean-cut former college football player turned out to be the perfect match for her 'slightly over the top personality.' After the rings — carefully guarded by Eloe’s two young sons, Daniel, 10, and William, 7 — Ginsburg wished the couple a lifetime of happiness 'serving each other and humankind in peace and hope.'" [Source] See a couple more beautiful photos taken by Erin Schaff of the Washington Post, after the jump.

Stars Come Out To Viennese Opera Ball In New York City

View image | gettyimages.com

Last night stars gathered at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel for The Viennese Opera Ball, an annual fundraising gala, in New York City. "The Viennese Opera Ball in New York is an annual charity gala held annually under the auspices of the United States-Austrian Chamber of Commerce. Dignitaries, Diplomats and Debutantes 'Open' the international Ball, long regarded as one of New York City’s 'greatest annual events,' garnering worldwide media coverage for over five decades. There is nothing formulaic about the event; with four generations of guests, the Ball reflects the universal appeal of Austria’s cultural and culinary treasures. The gala evening features Opera, Classical Music and Ballroom Dancing including, of course, Waltzing. One popular highlight is the Midnight Quadrille, conducted by a Viennese choreographer. Following an 8 p.m. champagne reception, the Ball runs from 9:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m., and includes a four-course dinner service. The 'Tanz Bar' (post-Ball party) follows from 1:00 to 4:00 a.m. and includes a full buffet supper with the Viennese Opera Ball's Signature Goulash Soup, as well as multiple venues featuring: a Jazz Band, Dance Band, DJ, Vienna Coffee House with Viennese pastries, and Casino. The Ball opens with the Grand March of Dignitaries and Diplomats. The ceremonial tone of the Ball Opening continues with the Presentation and Posting of the Flags by a West Point Color Guard. The Program continues with the Presentation of Debutantes (ages 16 to 25) and their dance Escorts (ages 18–30). A choreographed waltz routine by young ballroom dance couples (ages 18–30) is followed by a call for 'Alles Walzer!' (Everyone Dance!) and guests join the dancers for the first official waltz of the Ball. Peter Duchin and his Orchestra play continuous dance music throughout the Ball, stopping only for Program highlights or performances by the featured Opera singers." [Source] For more information about The Viennese Opera Ball, click here. See more photos of Alyson Cambridge, Sherrill Milnes, Linda Watson, Thomas Robert, Omar Sharif Jr., Amy Shoremount-Obra, Melissa Batalles, and more, after the jump.

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Alyson Cambridge Sings At 2014 Soul Train Awards In Las Vegas

Fresh from performances as Musetta in Puccini's La bohème at Washington National Opera, soprano Alyson Cambridge was in Las Vegas last night to sing at the 2014 Soul Train Awards along such luminaries as Chris Brown, Missy Elliot, Lil' Kim, Bobby Brown, and more. The singer announced the news yesterday on Facebook stating: "Trying to duo [sic] the opera world proud! Bringing legit opera to primetime and then fusing it with hip hop too!" Press release "Chris Brown is set to kick off the 2014 Soul Train Awards, The Hollywood Reporter has learned exclusively. The musician, who leads this year's nominees list with seven nods, will take the Orleans Arena stage in Las Vegas on Nov. 7. Also slated to sing at the annual ceremony are Aloe Blacc, Nico & Vinz, Lisa Stansfield, Kem, Jeremih and Liv Warfield. Jodeci are also set to

Alyson Cambridge on the red carpet

reunite for a medley of their hits. Wendy Williams will host the event, airing Nov. 30 at 8 p.m. on Centric and BET networks. The 2014 show will celebrate the history of dance with choreographer Fatima Robinson and her seasoned troupe, as well as producers 1500 or Nothin’ on board as music directors. 'This slate of performances is another example that Soul Train Awards 2014 is the only place where soul music lovers can find the diverse combination of current chart-topping performers and reunions from their favorite hit-making groups,' said Paxton Baker, general manager and executive vp, Centric, in a statement. 'We are pulling out all the stops this year and are thrilled to have Chris Brown and Jodeci lead the big surprises we have in store.' The 2014 Soul Train Awards is directed by Tony McCuin and produced by BET Event Productions and Sunseeker Media. Executive producers include Centric's Baker, Tami Arasli and Derek Lewis; Sunseeker's Bart Phillips; Soul Train Holdings' David Koff and Jerry Letter; Doug E. Fresh and Wendy Williams Productions' Williams and Kevin Hunter." [Source] Read more about the singer on the event's website by clicking here. A photo of Alyson Cambridge in rehearsal for the event is after the jump.

How Facebook Versus Drag Queens Will Affect Opera Singers

UPDATE (10/02/14): Chris Cox of Facebook has responded to the controversy and says that drag queens will be allowed to use their stage names on their accounts. No word on sopranos. Read more about it here.

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If this Facebook debate were happening 40 years ago, this
 opera singer wouldn't even be able to go by Bubbles on
 her personal page, but rather Belle Silverman.

"Years ago, Lil Miss Hot Mess created a Facebook profile. 'The way that I move through the world as a drag queen is different than how I move through the world every day,' she says. With her stage name, she has a different social circle, a different way of being online. Her page was shut down early last week, and she wasn't the only one whose account was deactivated. Facebook also closed the pages of other queens after they were reported for not using their 'real' names on Facebook. Now, drag queens around the U.S. are gaining allies in a fight against Facebook's real name policy. Activists argue that 'real' is a complicated term, and that for some, using birth names on profiles can actually put them at risk instead of keep them safe. But Facebook contends this protocol prevents anonymous bullying. In an emailed statement, a Facebook spokesperson said: 'Having people use their real names on Facebook makes them more accountable, and also helps us root out accounts created for malicious purposes, like harassment, fraud, impersonation and hate speech. While real names help keep Facebook safe, we also recognize that a person's real identity is not necessarily the

Bianca Del Rio is one of the drag queens in danger of
 having to change her profile name to Roy Haylock.
(Photo: Santiago Felipe)

name that appears on their legal documentation, and that is why we accept other forms of identification that verifies the name a person uses in everyday life.' The policy isn't new, so why is it getting attention now? Within the last couple weeks, dozens of drag queens' Facebook profiles were reported as not having 'real' names (Facebook says it does not seek out fake profiles). Those flagged accounts were deactivated. Drag queens started organizing and, along with San Francisco City Supervisor David Campos, met with Facebook on Sept. 17. Facebook said it would reactivate approximately 200 accounts and that at the end of two weeks, queens would have to either change their names or lose their profiles. Next week, there's another meeting scheduled at Facebook — and a protest planned in San Francisco. In the midst of the back-and-forth, a number of questions about identity and safety online have come up. Here are a few of them. Facebook has said that drag queens can use their stage names if they switch over to pages in place of profiles. The way people engage is similar — except we're talking about 'fans' rather than 'friends.' Facebook also says it offered to help anyone who was interested in turning a friend list into fans. Here comes the issue: Pages are intended for 'businesses, brands and organizations.' As Lil Miss Hot Mess puts it, 'We're not Lady Gaga; we're not Coca-Cola.' For her, inviting people to a show is 'much closer to inviting people to a dinner party.' She adds, 'These names are not just marketing tools.' She says her name is another part of her identity — not a separate persona." [Source] What does this mean in terms of the opera world? If you log onto Facebook and try searching for one of your favorite singers, chances are you will get a fan page or Wikipedia produced page. Many opera singers don't want to deal with people they are not truly connected with in the offstage world sending friend requests to their private accounts. The solution? Make a variation on your name or truncate it so that no one searching actually could find it. But once they become friends with another singer,

Citizen Leah Joanne may have to become
 public figure Leah Crocetto if Facebook
 has their way. (Photo: Facebook)

for example, their identity becomes pretty obvious. For example, mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton goes by the moniker Jam Barto; soprano Sondra Radvanovsky goes by her married name Sondra Lear; soprano Alyson Cambridge goes by Aly Cam (which might soon change, since she is recently engaged); soprano Leah Crocetto has taken the name Leah Joanne for her personal page (possibly her middle name as the surname?); and Deborah Voigt created two pages using her casual nickname Debbie Voigt. Will Facebook take these singers to task, along with the drag queens, and force them to either change their personal pages to the names reported on government issued IDs? Luckily Facebook wasn't around for the entire last century or we would have to search Facebook for the real names of famous singers like Alice Pons, Roberta Peterman, Mary Price, Belle Silverman, Helen Porter Mitchell, and Sophia Kalos.

San Diego Opera Announces 2014-15 Season After Rescue

Seats at San Diego Civic Theatre
wait to be filled with opera fans.

"San Diego Opera’s Board of Directors voted today to rescind the decision to close the Company after nearly two months of careful analysis, deliberation and fundraising. The Company originally announced its closure and the sale of its assets on March 19, 2014. The original closure date was scheduled to occur on April 14, 2014, the day after the Company’s final sold-out performance of Don Quixote. A vote by the Board on March 31, 2014, delayed that closure by two weeks until April 29, 2014. Another vote by the Board on April 18, 2014, extended that closure date to at least May 19, 2014. Today’s vote on May 16, 2014, overturns the original decision to close. 'The public spoke, we listened, and we’re open for business,' shares Board President Carol Lazier, 'and do we have some great news to share with you!' In light of this news, San Diego Opera is announcing its 2015 season, the Company’s 50th. La bohème, Don Giovanni, and Nixon in China are the three operas being performed at the San Diego Civic Theatre. The Company will also celebrate its 50th anniversary with special Gala Concerts of favorite arias, duets, ensembles and choruses with the San Diego Symphony at Copley Symphony Hall. Additional events and performances are in the works, and will be announced shortly. The Company has also announced that the ongoing crowd funding effort has resulted in a total of $2,116,376 in donations from 2461 of donors as of midnight Sunday, May 18, 2014. 48% of these donors have never given before and represent gifts from six countries – Austria, Australia, Canada, England, Italy, Mexico & 36 States. The gifts range from $10 – $50,000 with a median gift of $100. Now that the $1 million goal has been reached, and the Company has announced a 2015 season, both triggers of the escrow account have been met and donations will be moved from the escrow account into the Company’s 2015 fund to be used for the just-announced season." [Source] See details of the season, including artists performing, after the jump.