Rhoslyn Jones.

SFCM voice faculty Rhoslyn Jones’ staging of Jodi Goble’s Meow and Forever has been recognized as part of the 2023/24 National Opera Association Opera Production Competition. Twenty-one judges spent over 300 hours viewing the total submissions—and though Jones submitted it to a lower category—they decided to bump Meow and Forever into the Division I category, where it was awarded second place overall.

Jodi Goble.

The prize, the NOA wrote to Jones, “is a testament to you and your students and all your fine work for our art form. The future of opera is in good hands. Thank you, and bravi tutti!” Jones added, “The students should feel very proud of the work they did during this project and I’m thrilled for all of them.”

This was the second year in which Jones staged a Winter Term production specifically for undergrads, who are typically underserved at most institutions regarding performance opportunities in opera. “SFCM is kind of at the forefront of saying, ‘Okay, we're going to put the undergrads front and center,” Jones said. “They certainly have a lot of opportunities to perform here in opera scenes, studio recitals and things like that. But to have a named role as an undergraduate—that is really special.” SFCM's Winter Term is a recurring opportunity for students to take classes or join productions outside of their usual academic work, from instrument-making to beer-brewing to fully staged productions.

Jones admitted to “quietly stalking” composer Jodi Goble on social media, and jumped at the chance to bring Meow & Forever to SFCM. “Jodi's writing is very lyrical and has a lot of dramatic moments that remind you of the ‘bigger’ opera style, but the way she's written it is so accessible for young singers,” Jones said. “It's a story about young people figuring it out, so it's accessible for them in terms of the language that's used. It sounds like what they would say.”

'Meow and Forever.'

Meow and Forever has two full roles for the main characters’ cats, which Goble initially balked at in the writing, saying, “I fought so hard against it … I had to get over the ego of being the person who was going to be known for writing a trio with cats." But in the end, Meow slots right into the tradition of feline-related opera: "Rossini wrote a cat duet … and when Ravel wrote L'enfant et les sortilèges, there's a cat duet toward the end of that. So this is just the next generation of cat duets.”

Jones is passionate about what the undergraduate operas stir in the students. “It's so heartwarming to see this group of students work together so passionately and earnestly. It's the first time in the year that some of the freshmen and sophomores are really in the same room with their peers, and they really all hang out together. They're in a chat group together. They're fully invested and feel a sense of ownership over their work and their artistry. And that for me as an educator is just really rewarding." 

Learn more about studying Opera and Musical Theatre at SFCM.