At age 63, Frederica von Stade knows the most fertile part of her career is behind her, and the celebrated mezzo-soprano could hardly be less concerned.
“I’m at the stage in my career of just thinking, ‘Gosh, are they really still inviting me to go places? I can’t believe it. Well, if they think I can do it, I’ll go,’ ” she said from her home in the San Francisco Bay Area.
One of the places eager to host her is Denver. Von Stade will join composer and pianist Jake Heggie — a longtime friend — for Opera Colorado’s annual gala concert at 7:30 tonight in the Ellie Caulkins Opera House.
These days, the singer typically performs just three or four engagements a month, including occasional duo-recitals with bass Samuel Ramey, a big slowdown from her frenzied, jet-setting schedule a few decades ago.
“I’ve had my time in a big way. I’ve just loved every minute,” she said, breaking into song during a recent interview, voicing the title stanza from “Before the Parade Passes By” from “Hello, Dolly!”
“It’s good. It’s the way it’s supposed to be. If I’m still asked, I still love it and get a big kick out of doing it. But I’m not going to be upset if not asked.”
Opera productions are all but a thing of the past for von Stade. “I can’t sing Cherubino anymore. Mercifully,” she said of her signature role in “The Marriage of Figaro.”
The mezzo-soprano is making what she calls her final operatic appearances in a work created especially for her — “Three Decembers,” Heggie’s small-scale adaptation of Terrence McNally’s play “Master Class.”
Von Stade portrays an aging actress who tries to come to terms with the alienation that has long existed between her and her two grown children — an alcoholic daughter and a gay son whose partner is dying of AIDS.
The work, originally titled “Last Acts,” debuted in February at the Houston Grand Opera to lackluster reviews. After a few revisions, the San Francisco Opera will present a second production in December at the University of California at Berkeley.
Even if she is not at the center of the opera world anymore, Von Stade still keenly follows the scene. She attended the San Francisco Opera’s much-publicized premiere earlier this month of Stewart Wallace’s “The Bonesetter’s Daughter” and gave it a rave review.
She also praised the recently appointed artistic leaders there and at New York City’s Metropolitan Opera — David Gockley and Peter Gelb. Both have shaken up their companies, taking more risks on new works and unconventional stagings.
“It’s very innovative and exciting, and there are the singers to go with it” she said. “It’s not all production. There are some sensational singers out there.”
She cited fast-rising mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato, who was on the cover of Opera News in October 2007, and the young South African soprano Elza van den Heever, who won the Seattle Opera’s second International Wagner Competition in August.
For her concert in Denver, von Stade is a doing a variation on a program she performed recently in Houston — primarily favorite art songs and Broadway selections.
The lineup is divided into thematic sections, such as songs dealing with roses, including Ned Rorem’s “I Am Rose,” Franz Schubert’s “Hedenröslein” and the Edith Piaf vehicle “La Vie en Rose.”
It will include two selections by Heggie, who is best known for his operatic adaptation of “Dead Man Walking.” It premiered at the San Francisco Opera in 2000 with a cast that included von Stade.
The mezzo-soprano will perform “Paper Wings,” the composer’s song cycle with texts by her, and “About to Break” from “Three Decembers.”
The concert ends with several show tunes, including Stephen Sondheim’s “Send in the Clowns” and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “I Cain’t Say No” from “Oklahoma!”
Given Von Stade’s decades of experience and her familiarity with most of these selections, it might seem that she wouldn’t have to give much thought to the program before she walks on stage. But the opposite is true.
“I probably work harder now than I did as a young singer,” she said. “You’re sort of corralling your talents. Among some of the things that are harder is memory. So, I really have to get after my memory quite severely.”
Von Stade might have to work harder, but the results are virtually guaranteed to be as thrilling as ever. Singers inevitably age, but great artistry is timeless.
Kyle MacMillan: 303-954-1675 or kmacmillan@denverpost.com
Mezzo-Soprano Frederica von Stade; Pianist Jake Heggie
Vocal music. Ellie Caulkins Opera House, Denver Performing Arts Complex, 14th and Curtis streets. Opera Colorado presents the famed singer in a gala concert of art songs and opera and Broadway favorites. 7:30 p.m. today. $23-$60. 303-357-2787 or .
