Out ‘Barihunk’ Jonathan Beyer sings as part of a trio in Dallas Opera’s upcoming production of ‘Turandot,’ but he’ll be missing his operatic partner
MAKING BEAUTIFUL MUSIC | Jonathan Beyer, standing, has performed in the past with his boyfriend, fellow opera singer Brandon Cedel, but for Dallas Opera’s ‘Turandot,’ he’s going it alone.
Gregory Sullivan Isaacs
Contributing Writer
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TURANDOT
Winspear Opera House,
2403 Flora St. April 5–21.
Tickets from $19.
214-443-1000. DallasOpera.org
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Who, or what, are Ping, Pang and Pong? Not video games nor Saturday morning cartoon characters. They are one of the most famous trios in opera, the three ministers of state in ancient Peking (one a baritone, the other tenors) who appear, always together, in Puccini’s Turandot.
These three roles are not like the usual secondary characters in operas. They appear in all three acts and have a considerable amount of music to sing. The opening scene of Act 2 is theirs alone, as they touchingly reminisce about the lives they had to leave behind to serve in court and the bloodthirsty ice princess, Turandot.
In the Dallas Opera’s upcoming production, out baritone Jonathan Beyer takes on the role of Ping. Beyer’s resume has some impressive highlights: He was a national finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Competition and won the grand prize at the 2011 George London Foundation. But the accomplishment some of his fans are most intrigued by is this: Beyer and his partner, bass-baritone Brandon Cedel, won the “cutest couple award” at their condo in Philadelphia. (They are both featured on Barihunks.com as well … and for good reason.)
“We have been together for seven years now,” Beyer says. “We first met when we were at Curtis [Institute for Music in Philadelphia], but soon after, I went to join the young artist program in Pittsburgh. So, right from the start we knew that it would have to be a ‘see you when I see you’ relationship.”
They are occasionally cast in the same production — recently, a production of La Bohème in the sultanate of Oman. “Loren Maazel was conducting, one of the best opera conductors in the world. It was a terrific production. The Sultan Qaboos loves classical music,” Beyer says.
Since homosexuality is illegal in Oman, how did that work out for the two of them?
“They let us share a hotel room and everyone treated us like any other couple, even though some were a little reserved about it,” he says. “Apparently, these rules are not energetically enforced and even less so for foreign visitors. Once again, the Sultan is working very hard to modernize Oman and you can see the results everywhere you go.”
Sadly, Cedel isn’t part of Dallas Opera’s Turandot — and in a way, Beyer almost wasn’t, either. The first time he was ever offered the role of Ping, his initial reaction was to turn it down.
“In my memory of the opera, it was hard to separate [the trio] from the whole spectacle,” he says. “However, once I started to look through the score, I realized how much music the three characters really have. It is quite a lot of singing, and it is not easy, either.”
Since then, he sings Ping frequently. “You never know how the director will handle the three of us. Sometimes we are always in a tight grouping and other times we are more separate and move around on our own. Sometimes we are the same character in triplicate and other times very different.”
After Turandot, Beyer will go to Pittsburgh for a recital, then to Frankfort as soloist for an orchestra, then to France to sing Escamillo in Bizet’s Carmen. Cedel won’t be in any of those places.
“This is one of those periods where it is really hard on our relationship,” Beyer says. “We will have three solid months of not seeing each other. But we keep in touch with Skype and FaceTime. It’s a big improvement over a phone call, but it is still not a hug.”
Sounds to us like the makings of a tragedy worthy of opera.
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition March 29, 2013,