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Brampton,
Ontario born Edward Franko has distinguished himself as one of Canada's
most energetic and experienced stage directors. His career has also included
stints as producer, artistic director, educator, actor and lyric tenor.
Mr. Franko has been hailed for his vivid imagination and his unique interpretations
of theatre, traditional and contemporary opera and musical theatre. He
has developed a large operatic directing repertoire while working with
Opera Anonymous, TrypTych, Opera York, Opera Mississauga, and many others.
His innovative stagings have included successful productions of Menotti's
The Consul, Menotti's The Medium, Stravinsky's The
Rake's Progress; Puccini's Il Tabarro, Mozart's Cosi
Fan Tutte, Puccini's La Boheme and Ashenasi's The Tell-Tale Heart.
Mr. Franko has been instrumental in the formation and development of such
groups as Songstar Productions, Opera Anonymous (where he acted as chairman
of the board, managing director and production director) and TrypTych,
a group he co-founded along with William Shookhoff and Lenard Whiting.
With TrypTych, he has directed Poulenc's La Voix Humaine, Mihalovici's
operatic version of Krapp's Last Tape, and Weisgall's operatic
version of The Stranger. As well, he has directed the play Krapp
Last's Tape by Samuel Beckett and the play The Stranger
by August Strindberg. Mr. Franko directed and performed in Mahagonny
Songspiel for Tryptych. He also acted as staging consultant for Beethoven’s
Fidelio and the Canadian premiere of Hugo Wolf’s only opera,
Der Corregidor. He directed many Orion House productions including
Golden Moments in Opera and Music for the Soul. Mr.
Franko also directed Opera Anonymous' English language world premiere
of Joseph Quesnel's Lucas et Cecile at the Glenn Gould Studio
which garnered rave reviews. He has directed the Canadian
Premiere of Frid's The Diary of Anne Frank to critical acclaim. Recently for TrypTych, he directed and starred in the one-man opera Askenasi's The Tell Tale Heart. Mr. Franko directed Doolittle's Boiler Room Suite early in 2009. In the summer of 2009, he was on staff as stage director for Adamo's Little Women for Halifax Summer Opera Workshop. In early 2010, he directed the world premiere of Canadian composer Andrew Ager's Frankenstein for TrypTych. Mr. Franko also stage directs for the annual showcase for Pro Voce Studios in Toronto.
Most recently, he made his successful European
directorial debut with his original production of Frid's The Diary of
Anne Frank at the Three Rings Festival in Prague, Czech Republic. As well,
he stage directed Britten's The Beggar's Opera as part of the inaugural
Summer Opera School in Chichester, Great Britain.
One of Mr. Franko's latest projects has been the Toronto International
Chamber Music Festival, which made its debut in the summer of 2003, returned
in 2004 and 2006.. As producer, director and performer, he, along with
his partners Lenard Whiting and William Shookhoff, have laid the groundwork
for an annual music event of international stature.
Active as an opera educator, Mr. Franko has worked with The Royal Conservatory
of Music, Toronto (Rodelinda, Magic Flute); Creative Artist's
Productions (Cosi Fan Tutte, The Impresario, Orpheus in the Underworld,
Old Maid and the Thief ); Opera Anonymous (Abduction from the
Seraglio) and JHS Opera (Il Trittico, Lucia di Lamermoor).
Until recently he was on staff with Pro Voce Vocal Studio's opera workshop
where he directed Gianni Schicchi, In a Garden, Hin und Zuruck,
Old Maid and the Thief, Suor Angelica and The Medium.
He regularly acts as stage director for Yoriko and Her Shooting Stars
in Ottawa, a programme aimed at educating youth about opera, and that
has featured the esteemed Stuart Hamilton as narrator. As well, he he
has acted as the original Artistic Director of Bytown Opera Works (Ottawa,
Ontario). With TrypTych, he has helped develop it's workshop division
and has stage directed Rigoletto, The Tales of Hoffman, The
Most Happy Fella, The Boys from Syracuse, A Kurt Weill Kabaret, Send in
the Sondheim, Little Women and many others.
As a professional tenor, Mr. Franko has many oratorio and opera roles
to his credit. In oratorio, he has been heard in Messiah, Mozart's
Requiem, Elgar's Coronation Ode, Haydn's St. Cecilia
Mass and many others. His operatic roles include Lensky in Eugene
Onegin, Charles Darwin in The Leviathan Hook (World Premiere), Charlie in
Weill's Mahagonny Songspiel, the lead fowl in Doolittle's
Charlie the Chicken, the role of the Protaganist in the one-man opera, Goro in Madama Butterfly, Askenasi's The Tell Tale Heart (A Canadian Premiere) and Luigi in Il Tabarro. He has made many cabaret appearances
in shows including Another Opening, Another Show, Life is a Cabaret,
Heart Songs, Heart and Soulstice, Brush up Your Tenor, Holly Jolly Christmas
Cabaret and many others. He has performed with the Canadian Opera
Company, Opera Ontario, Opera Hamilton, Opera York, Opera Anonymous, Maritime Concert
Opera and many others. Along with the co-artistic director of TrypTych, he has created and performed in the popular A Tale of Two Tenors, A Tale of Two Tenors Two and To Lucia with Love across Ontario. Most recently, he produced the Scottish Musical Extravaganza, The Glory of Scotland at Macmillan Theatre in Toronto as well as perfoming in it.
He is also venturing into writing opera librettos and has two projects on the go. Details to follow.
