A chorus takes wing

ON a balmy Sunday in early June, Grant Gershon takes the podium, ready to rehearse yet another show with yet another ensemble. The music director of the Los Angeles Master Chorale has helped launch many challenging pieces. This assignment, however, is a little different.

It does involve a new work -- an opera, “Keepers of the Night,” by Peter Ash and Donald Sturrock -- and a score that Gershon says is “as sophisticated as anything that appears at the Dorothy Chandler.” But “Keepers,” which was commissioned by the Los Angeles Children’s Chorus, is the rare opera intended to be performed primarily by kids but enjoyed by a broader audience.

“This isn’t just a young person’s thing,” says director Corey Madden. “It’s a very smart and funny fable about the opera world and about the power of the young to see through adult social and artistic pretensions.”

Sturrock and Ash’s story line follows the adventures of the four Knight children, who go camping in their backyard but end up in the imaginary forest of Arcadia, where a lovers’ quarrel between an owl and the moon leads to mischief, magic and revolution.

The half-million-dollar project -- which will run from Thursday through Sunday at the Alex Theatre in Glendale -- is the most ambitious undertaking in LACC’s 21-year history. The organization has gained national acclaim for its concerts and appearances with the Master Chorale, Los Angeles Opera and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. But it has never attempted anything on this scale. That’s why it has enlisted the aid of such veterans as Gershon, Madden, mezzo-soprano Suzanna Guzman, baritone Malcolm MacKenzie and soprano Lynette Tapia. (The other guest soloist is soprano Lauren Libaw, a chorus alumna who is studying music at Yale.)

In some ways, though, the stars will be 65 ‘tweens and teens, most of whom will perform in groups representing bats, mosquitoes and other creatures. Since the fall, artistic director Anne Tomlinson and her staff have guided the entire chorus through the complex score. Now Madden is combining four weeks of rehearsal with an “opera camp” designed to introduce cast members to the basics of stage life. The first lesson -- one everyone has picked up all too quickly -- is that the success of something years in the making can depend on one month of preproduction frenzy.

“This will be quite a voyage of discovery for all of us,” says Gershon on that first day of “Keepers” camp. Comfortably casual in a polo shirt and jeans, he smiles as he looks around the Fellowship Hall at Pasadena Presbyterian Church, where LACC is based. The singers -- arrayed before him in rows of chairs -- are also dressed for an afternoon by the pool, but their demeanor is all business; they sit stiffly erect, eyes focused, pencils poised to annotate the scores laid across their laps.

Gershon asks to hear “The Hymn to the Tree,” the opera’s central theme. He leans into the music, his arms tracing elegant arcs in the air. As their voices float through the cavernous hall, the kids start to relax.

“That’s going to be gorgeous,” Gershon says after they finish. He offers suggestions -- exaggerate your words, don’t let the energy fall -- then says what he will repeat a lot in coming weeks: “Don’t worry. We’ll work on that.”

A break is announced. The room erupts into squeals of laughter and the squish of sneakers.

“I want to give them the sense that they can be silly or take risks,” Gershon says later. “They are impeccably prepared, but they have to explore how to use their voices as actors. That involves leaving some of their preconceived notions of classical singing at the doorstep.”

Working with young artists has its challenges. “Some are shyer or have to be coaxed,” he says. There also are benefits. “At the opening of any rehearsal, there’s trepidation. Everybody’s sniffing each other out. With grown-ups, that can take a week or two. But we got past that a lot more quickly here.”

Dream comes to fruition

THE Children’s Chorus started with a couple of dozen kids, mainly from Pasadena; now, there are 231 members from Los Angeles and Orange counties. The organization consists of four choirs -- preparatory, apprentice, intermediate and concert -- and a small chamber group. Applicants as young as 8 may audition, and each year between a third and a half are accepted. Girls can stay until they graduate from high school; boys leave when their voices change. Families pay annual tuition of up to $1,200 and commit to a hefty schedule of rehearsals, performances and music theory classes.

The idea of commissioning an opera began with group founder Rebecca Thompson. “She left before she could fulfill the dream,” says Tomlinson, who has served as artistic director since 1994, after Thompson moved to the East Coast. Tomlinson and Rachel Fine, the chorus’ new executive director, “wanted to do this for her and for the children, only a few of whom have had the chance to work in a larger production.” Funding finally came through grants and donations, including a major contribution from philanthropists Helen and Peter Bing.

Tomlinson met Sturrock and Ash, who live in London, when some LACC children sang in L.A. Opera’s 1998 world premiere of “Fantastic Mr. Fox.” Sturrock had written the libretto, based on a Roald Dahl story, and Ash was the conductor. (Tobias Picker composed the music.)

Sturrock, Dahl’s authorized biographer, and Ash, who leads one of England’s top youth orchestras, have created one other opera, “The Golden Ticket,” which is their version of Dahl’s “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.” “From ‘Ticket’ we learned a lot about this tricky business that we call family opera,” says Ash, “including how to offer something for everyone.”

In composing “Keepers’ ” shimmering, often contrapuntal score, he was mindful of writing for lighter, higher voices. “That’s why we have an ensemble of 14 instead of an orchestra,” he says. Most chorus members sing in groups to enhance projection.

The libretto is playful and, says Sturrock, a bit subversive: “This is a story about dreaming and nature. But it’s also about the countryside versus the town, and about democracy, and about young people asking lots of questions. I have a childish sense of humor, and there’s a lot of the child in Peter too. So it’s easy for us to see the world like children do.”

Practice makes precision

IT’S the second week of camp, and four boys in T-shirts, baggy shorts and jeans are rehearsing the prologue, in which little forest denizens -- the Baby Keepers -- set up the opera’s story within a story.

“Behold, Arcadia,” begins Josiah Yiu, a serious-looking 12-year-old.

He is interrupted (in character) by Evan Roberts, whose eyes twinkle mischievously.

“Good,” says Gershon. He urges Roberts to give one phrase a sarcastic edge. “Remember, you’re delivering a punch line.”

All four boys start to sing. “Not quite so fast,” Gershon says. He makes them repeat this section three times. “That’s good.” He pauses, then adds, “We’ll work on that.”

The Knight children practice entering the scene, pulling a red wagon loaded with camping gear. The Baby Keepers are supposed to be invisible, but the groups can’t help getting in each other’s way.

“I was interested in the Keepers, who are magical, interacting with the Knights,” Madden says later. “But after trying different things, I realized that it was too overwhelming for them. So we edited.”

Dealing with multiple motivations and movements can be hard for young performers, especially those who are used to concentrating on vocal technique. “That’s why we’re creating a map of what each of them has to do,” Madden says, “wiring it in their brain so they don’t have to think about each step.”

For two decades, Madden was on the artistic staff and ran the youth theater and education programs of the Center Theatre Group, which she is leaving this year. “With kids,” she says, “you have to get them to drop any idea of school-play acting, which doesn’t work as well as filling up your imagination gently as you go through a series of actions.”

The first week of camp featured exercises designed to break down old habits and build camaraderie and self-confidence. During the second week, Madden, Gershon and choreographer Stephen Hues have tackled the bulk of the staging.

“We’ve learned that the key is to keep things in small groups and focus on specific elements,” says Madden. That strategy has helped counter short attention spans, but, she says, “We still haven’t figured out how to shake the embarrassment-related issues -- like giggling.”

Still, the performers are starting to feel comfortable with their characters. The Knight children have developed “vivid personalities,” says Gershon. He describes 16-year-old Emma (Catherine Leech) as a surrogate mother, like Wendy in “Peter Pan.” Dominic (chorus alumnus Thor Blough) is about 13 and is the rebel. Daniel (Paul Supanich) is afraid of everything. Chloe (Jacqueline Emerson) is the youngest and also the wisest.

“At this point,” says Gershon, “the groundwork and grunt work for the opera is almost done.”

Even so, surprises have popped up. “Several boys’ voices have started to change,” he says. “Characters we cast three or four months ago are sounding a fifth or an octave lower. Frankly, I’m not sure what we’ll have by the show.”

Ticking clock grows louder

WEEK 3 brings the Hump. “Frequently, there’s a crisis that hits about now,” says Madden, “when you realize how little time you have left and you want to shift gears but you’re tired.”

At the end of most days, Madden asks cast members to describe how they feel. Early on, people would yell, “Excited!” Now they may sigh, “Exhausted.” Minds are overflowing with music and cues, and bodies and vocal cords are getting weary.

One big boost comes when the adult performers arrive at the end of June. They are gracious and friendly and, wow, can they sing. The kids are in awe. Tapia, who plays the moon, delivers a coloratura aria that provokes such prolonged cheering that the rehearsal comes to a halt.

“Everybody just went, ‘Ooooh,’ ” says 15-year-old Elizabeth Goodrich. “They sounded so professional, and good, and loud.”

Goodrich, a Valley resident who joined LACC three years ago, plans to study theater when she enters the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts as a sophomore this fall. She feels at home on the stage and remains “pretty jazzed.”

Some of the other kids admit to being tired. A few worry about jitters or “goofing up.”

“For a new person, that’s the hardest thing to learn,” says Madden. “Even if you make a mistake, you have to cover and go on.”

By early July, the company has settled into the Alex Theatre for a final week of full rehearsals on the main stage with musicians and sets. “That’s always a scary feeling,” says Gershon, “seeing how big the 1,300-seat room is and seeing how hard it is to get your words across.”

The children have begun to perform in their costumes, created by L.A.-based designer Robert Prior. Most of them will wear pajamas that have been dyed or painted and will be adorned with what Madden calls “headdresses and black-light stuff” or “zany or glamorous stuff inspired by ‘30s movie musicals” -- a tribute to the Alex’s past life as a cinema palace.

As show time approaches, kids as well as adults are excited and a little nervous.

“We’ve been working on bits of this all year and anticipating the opera since before I joined LACC,” says Goodrich. “I’m really looking forward to the end product and the crazy costumes and using all the things we’ve learned in camp.”

Gershon says the last month has seen many triumphs, large and small. “Recently, Corey asked the entire company to take two steps stage left and everybody actually did it,” he says with a smile. More important, the chorus members have mastered a difficult score and grown adept at “loosening up yet becoming more focused -- you need both elements to be a good performer.”

Now, says Gershon, “We’re ready to have some fun, and we’re hoping the audience is too.”

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‘Keepers of the Night’

Where: Alex Theatre, 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale

When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday

Price: $20 to $60

Contact: (818) 243-2539 or www.alextheatre.org