Pinning the Tale on The Golden Ass: Canadian Opera Company General Director to Deliver Talk on New Opera During York University Conference Exploring Apuleius' Ancient Fable

TORONTO, April 22, 1999 -- Canadian Opera Company (COC) General Director Richard Bradshaw will deliver the keynote address at a York University conference which coincides with the COC's world premiere run of Robertson Davies' libretto The Golden Ass. The one-day conference, entitled Pinning the Tale: Apuleius' Golden Ass in its Cultural Context, takes place at York University, Saturday, April 24, 1999, 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Bradshaw's talk, which is scheduled for 4:15 p.m., explores the late Canadian literary icon Robertson Davies' libretto, inspired by Lucius Apuleius' ancient Roman fable The Golden Ass -- a tale about human vanity, humility and redemption. The opera which has received praise and critical acclaim from critics and audiences alike, opened April 13 at the Hummingbird Centre and will run until April 25.

Organized by York University's Division of Humanities in the Faculty of Arts, the conference will bring together scholars from around the globe, including England's Oxford University and Princeton University in the U.S., to discuss topics as diverse as the philosophical education of Latin Sophists at Athens to Apuleius and the life of Aesop. Registration for the conference is $10 (free for York University community members).

WHO:
Canadian Opera Company (COC) General Director Richard Bradshaw
(Bradshaw will deliver a talk on the COC's new opera The Golden Ass based on Robertson Davies' libretto and inspired by Lucius Apuleius' ancient Roman fable.)

WHAT:
Conference: Pinning the Tale: Apuleius' Golden Ass in its Cultural Context

WHEN:
Saturday April 24, 1999, 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

WHERE:
Founders College, Senior Common Room
York University, 4700 Keele Street

-30-

For more information, please call:

Prof. James Rives
Division of Humanities
York University
(416) 736-2100, ext. 70476

Sine MacKinnon
Senior Advisor, Media Relations
York University
(416) 736-2100, ext. 22087

Ken Turriff
Media Relations Officer
York University
(416) 736-2100, ext. 22086
YU/042/99