and faculty member of the Hebrew
Union College School of Sacred
Music.
The cantors will sing individually
and together, presenting songs from
Carmen, Candide, Phantom of the
Opera and many other classics.
Mishura will close with a favorite aria
from Samson and Delilah.
"I recognized Irina as having a
world-class voice the first time I heard
her and immediately engaged her to do
concerts at Temple Israel," says Cantor
Orbach, also an opera performer. "I
was pleased to connect her with sym-
phonies in the area, such as the Jackson
Symphony Orchestra, and introduce
her to David DiChiera, [founder and

lowing me," Mishura says. "I just
love people, and I love the communi-
ty. Each time I return from. Europe, I
feel I'm returning home."
Cantor Corrsin, who has worked
closely with Orbach to plan a pro-
gram of beautiful and balanced selec-
tions, is looking forward to meeting
Mishura.
"Temple Israel's concert program is
unique, and to do this program in my
first month at the temple is very excit-
ing," says Corrsin, who has performed
in concerts across the country. She cur-
rently serves on a committee of the
Union of American Hebrew
Congregations to create a congregation-
al songbook for the High Holidays.

Temple Israel's Harold Orbach and Lori Corrsin join two other
cantors in a tribute to Detroit's most celebrated opera star.

SUZANNE CHESSLER
Special to the Jewish News

111

ezzo-soprano Irina
Mishura, who has
known success as a diva
in Moldavia as well as
Europe, had a dream when she moved
to Michigan in 1992 — singing with
the Metropolitan Opera. Now, after
seven years of working her way up
from local complimentary perfor-
mances to out-of-state paid perfor-
mances, that dream is coming true.
Mishura, recently featured in
Samson and Delilah for the Michigan
Opera Theatre, will appear in the
Met's production of the same opera.
To celebrate that achievement,
Temple Israel has arranged a concert
of acclaimed arias and serious show-
stoppers, "Voices of the Opera," for
Thursday evening, Aug. 5. Performers
will be cantors who have dual reli-
gious-secular careers.
Cantor Harold Orbach, who was
instrumental in helping Mishura find
work in America, will share the spot-
light with Lori Corrsin, who recently
joined Temple Israel; Fredda Rakusin
Mendelson, who filled the slot
Corrsin left at Larchmont Temple in
Larchmont, N.Y.; and Jacob Ben-
Zion Mendelson, who serves as both
assistant professor of liturgical music
at ,ne Jewish Theological Seminary

general director] at MOT
"I heard her marvelous perfor-
mance this spring in Samson and
Delilah and was glad she got great
reviews for her vocal arid acting tal-
ents. I'm delighted that I may have
had a small part in helping her find
her rightful place among the artists of
the world.
Mishura decided to leave Moldavia
after the Soviet Union dissolved and
political conditions hurt her career.
The opera wanted native IvIoldavians
to perform, and she was -from Russia.
Mishura attributes her American
career advancement in large part to the
help of the Jewish community. Before
she had a piano, she was allowed to
rehearse daily at the Jewish
Community Center in Oak Park.
Invitations to perform in recitals at
synagogues and temples showcased her
talents before she auditioned for MOT.
"I've met many people who
became my fans and friends, and they
are at my concerts," she says. "They
are very precious to me."
Opera companies in San Francisco,
Toledo, Miami and Cincinnati are
among those who have cast Mishura
in important productions. There also
have been important foreign perfor-
mances, such as one with the
Jerusalem Symphony.
"I think in the Jewish community
everybody knows my story and is fol-

"

Fredda Rakusin Mendelson brings
experience at the Metropolitan Opera
to her Temple Israel performance. She
also has sung at Carnegie Hall and on
national television.
Jacob Ben-Zion Mendelson, who
has sung leading tenor roles with
major opera companies, has appeared
at Carnegie Hall and is chazan at the
Temple Israel Center in White Plains,
N.Y. In 1987, he led services at the
Choral-Main Synagogue of Moscow
as the first Conservative cantor to be
officially invited by the Russian gov-
ernment since the Bolshevik
Revolution.
As the cantors celebrate Mishura,
she will celebrate the experience of
singing in the program.
Each time I am on stage, you can't
imagine my feelings," she says. "I'm
soaring; I do not feel my feet. I try to
practice a lot so I can learn some new
pieces. I always want to be ready to
),
do my best.

"Voices of the Opera" will be
presented 7:30 p.m. Thursday,
Aug. 5, at Temple Israel. An
Arlene June Gottlieb Memorial
Concert, it is co-sponsored by the
Temple Israel Brotherhood. For
complimentary tickets and infor-
mation, call (248) 661-5700.,

Top left: Irina Mishura will be honored
at Temple Israel on Thursday.

Top to bottom: Cantor Lori Corrsin:
"To do this program in My first month
at the temple is very exciting."

Cantor Harold Orbach: "I recognized
Irina as having a world-class voice the
first time I heard.her"

Jacob Ben-Zion Mendelson and Fredda
Rakusin Mendelson also will perform.

7/30
1999

Detroit Jewish News

81