Synopses & Reviews
A droll and gentle satire of the colorful characters who make up the opera worldA Nut at the Opera is a colorful and hilarious look at a fictitious opera world as seen through the eyes of artist Maurice Vellekoop. With characters such as Olga Pickuptruckskaya and Valda Heck and references ranging throughout the history of opera, nothing—from the heights of Wagnerian solemnity to the excesses of French spectacle—escapes the elegant skewering of Vellekoops pen.
With an introduction by Stewart Hamilton, radio personality and host of CBC Radios Opera Quiz, and featuring Vellekoops trademark lavish, over-the-top illustrations throughout, A Nut at the Opera is for the opera aesthete. The initial drawings were originally conceived as a series of birthday cards for a dear friend of the artists who is now deceased; they form a fond tribute to this teacher and mentor.
About the Author
Maurice Vellekoop lives in Toronto and attended the Ontario College of Art. He is an illustrator whose work has appeared in Time, Cosmopolitan, GQ, Vogue, Vanity Fair, The New York Times Magazine, and Wallpaper.