Cynthia Lawrence is one of the premiere Sopranos in the world, who will be 
"starring"?  in a Colorado Opera Concert on September 19.

However, the Concert Impresario could not resist also engaging Dominic 
Chianese, "JR" of 'The Sopranos', and "exploiting" his Infamy to sell 
tickets. Chianese has questionable singing skills. 

Further, the Impresario is promoting the Concert almost exclusively with 
Posters and Advertising "connecting" it to 'The Sopranos' 

Therefore, not only is Opera, one of the greater contributions of Italians 
being "associated" with garbage, which is infuriating, but equally 
disconcerting is that Ms. Lawrence is being relegated to being a "second 
banana" to a mere supporting member of an amoral and bigoted TV series. 
========================================================== 
Subject: September 19th Concert
Date: Sun, 19 Aug 2001 22:14:55 -0400
From: Steve Antonunccio <anton1492@home.com>
To: Cynthia Lawrence <Cynthia@CynthiaLawrence.com>

Dear Cynthia,

I felt it important that I take my appeal directly to you.  Since you
are one of the premiere sopranos in the world, I have grave concerns
about the appropriateness of the concert you will be performing on
September 19th in Denver with Dominic Chianese.  I don't know if you 
are fan of the television show "The Sopranos" or not, but as an 
Italian American who is concerned about our culture, I think you 
should understand the complexity of associating a person of your fine 
ability with a program like this.

As you may or may not know, "The Sopranos" has been universally
condemned by all of the major Italian American cultural organizations 
in this country because of its ugly stereotyping of Italian Americans 
and for its graphic violence.  Both the Sons of Italy and the 
National Italian American Foundation, which is represented by millions 
of Italian Americans, have condemned this series since it began three 
years ago.

As you might imagine, Italian culture is very important to me and most
Italian Americans, and Italian opera is one thing that we
can point to with great pride.  It is a very sacred part of our 
culture that has not be blighted by this ugly stereotyping and
fascination with organized crime that "The Sopranos" has promoted.  By
combining these two things into one concert and promotion, I could not 
think of a more unholy marriage in terms of respect and celebration of 
our beautiful culture.

I don't know if you have seen the newspaper ads for this concert, but 
in the first ad you are promoted at the bottom of the page in very 
small print.  In the new ads I saw this weekend, they do have a 
postage stamp size picture of you at the bottom of the ad. However, 
both ads are completely dominated by "Uncle Junior" Dominic Chianese 
in a menacing stare and the "O" in the word Sopranos is replaced with 
a target and cross hairs representing the use of guns.  It is bad 
enough that this series has blighted forever a beautiful Italian word 
like the word "Soprano," but they are going a step further by directly 
connecting opera to a television show that celebrates gun violence. 
Please understand that I have nothing but respect your talent and work 
ethic. It is easier to become a professional football player than it 
is to become a world class opera star. There are 1300 professional 
football players, and only a handful of opera stars with your talent. 
  So few people can reach the level that you have reached and I'm sure 
it took a lot of sacrifice, practice, support from a family who loves 
and cares about you, and hard work.  To me, I find it insulting, that 
a character actor, who became famous by playing a murderous Italian 
American mobster, would get top billing over a world class opera star. 
 What did he do to put in his dues as a singer?  He is just a notch 
above being a lounge singer in his ability.  Not only does Dominic 
Chianese get top billing, but he completely dominates the ad with his 
face and menacing stare in an ad designed, not to attract opera 
lovers, but to attract those people who watch a television series that 
promotes racism and violence.  I am sure you have played in many sold 
out halls that didn't require you to have a gimmick to promote your 
beautiful gift.

Even if you could care less about Italian American culture, I would 
hope you would have some sensitivity to the culture of
violence that "The Sopranos" promotes. By its very name and "handgun"
logo, "The Sopranos" teaches young people that you can solve your
problems with a gun.  It is one of the most violent programs on
television and does not represent the responsible and legal use of
firearms.  In fact, you can pretty much count on in every episode that
an Italian American is going to take that gun out of the logo and blow
the brains out of another Italian American.  Hardly something most
civilized people would want to associate with Italian Americans or
Italian opera.

I know you have roots in Colorado and my daughter just graduated from 
a Colorado high school, a high school very similar to a suburban high
school like Columbine.  Although she never experienced the tragedy of
Columbine, she did have to deal with two good friends being murdered 
by hand guns in the past two years.  Our whole family dealt with her 
grief, and I'm afraid I don't find anything entertaining about the 
violence in "The Sopranos" and the Italian American defamation it 
promotes.  I find it equally offensive that a concert like this would 
happen almost in the shadow of Columbine high school.

If you don't care about Italian American defamation, or a series that
promotes gun violence, how do you feel about misogyny? In last years
season they showed one Italian American woman being graphically raped
and they also showed an Italian American man beating to death his
stripper girlfriend with his bare hands.  Now some people might watch
this type of graphic violence and understand how destructive it is, 
but I guarantee you there are people out there who are watching this 
brutal hatred toward women and actually enjoying it and copying this 
kind of dreadful behavior.  This kind of hatred toward women is the 
trademark of "The Sopranos."  From the very beginning, Tony Soprano's 
Italian American Mother tried to have him killed.  All the women in 
his life are either pathetic, controlling, or evil.  His mother, his 
wife, his sister, and his daughter make his life completely miserable. 
 Now I'm not saying Italian Americans or my family are perfect, but my 
Mother never tried to have me killed.  I have two daughters, a wife, a 
sister, and a Mother who I love and respect...and believe me, my 
Father taught us from a very early age that the most cowardly thing a 
man could do was hit a woman.  In my Italian American family, respect 
for women is one of the most important things we learn at a very early 
age.

Please reconsider your participation in this concert.  I would hope 
you would understand how destructive it is to associate something as
beautiful as opera with a television series that is racist, violent, 
and treats women with such little regard.

Sincerely,
Steve Antonuccio