Pictured: Evans Mirageas (left) with Speight Jenkins (third from left) and Ring Cycle recording engineers Matthew Sutton (second from left) and Rick Fisher.
By Evans Mirageas
My introduction to The Speight Jenkins Dynamo Power Station was in the summer of 1986. I was producing a national radio broadcast series at WFMT Chicago, which sent me to Seattle to create a program about the new Robert Israel/Francois Rochaix Ring. I had entrée to Speight through our mutual friend, the Seattle-based designer Robert Dahlstrom. Bob prepared me for the man's energy, incisive intellect, rapid speech, and wicked humor. By then, I was no stranger to opera producers. At home, I was a keen observer of the formidable Ardis Krainik at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. My radio series had already given me the opportunity to interview the Sphinx-like John Crosby of Santa Fe Opera and the ebullient Terry McEwen at San Francisco Opera.
But meeting Speight changed my idea of what an impresario could be. In the week I spent collecting interviews and attending rehearsals, Speight was everywhere, offering counsel, encouragement, keen-eyed advice, and most of all, a presence at every rehearsal. His vast knowledge of Wagner, the entire repertoire, and generations of singers was awe-inspiring.
He wore it lightly, never with an ounce of pretension. And while I am certain he probably drove his staff crazy at times, Speight’s standards of excellence and his love for the art form and ALL its practitioners were never in doubt. For the next twenty years, we saw one another often, either in New York (where we both once were on the Met Opera Quiz—that was intimidating) and, of course, in Seattle. I’ve lost count of how many times I saw Seattle Opera productions, but the 1998 Tristan stands out.
In 2005, I was asked to take on the role of Artistic Director of Cincinnati Opera. My first call after getting the offer was to Speight. “Help!” I cried. “I’ve never run an opera company. Don’t I remember you had a similar rocket-trajectory of learning when you went from being a music critic to running Seattle Opera?” Or words to that effect. He chuckled and said, “Come to Seattle as soon as you can. We’ll spend a couple of days, and I will tell you every rookie mistake I made in those first years. You’ll make plenty of your own mistakes, but at least you won’t repeat mine.”
And so, I did. For these past 21 years, whenever I had a dilemma or a challenge, I’d call Speight. He was never too busy to offer advice, counsel, encouragement—there you go, those words again. He has been my model, a lodestar on how to treat artists and engage with patrons and donors. Who can forget coming into the renovated McCaw Hall and seeing “The Boss” at the top of the stairs, greeting every patron? I host all our pre-performance talks and post-performance talk-backs—another Speight innovation.
He entrusted me to be part of the team that created the live audio recording in 2013 of his last Ring—the incredibly beautiful production directed by Stephen Wadsworth with set designs by Thomas Lynch, costumes by Martin Pakledinaz, and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski. I will treasure that privilege forever.
Goodbye, mentor and friend. You touched thousands of lives on both sides of the footlights, supported many generations of performers and producers of this crazy art form, and did it all with selflessness and fierce dedication to excellence that all of us who came into your orbit will never forget.
EVANS MIRAGEAS, The Harry T. Wilks Artistic Director - Cincinnati Opera