Frances Staunton’s donation of her family’s 1,720 acre ranch to the State of Colorado for the purpose of developing a state park was the seminal event that eventually led to the opening of Staunton State Park on May 18, 2013. The family’s cabin still stands in the park, and we all try to comprehend what it was like for their family during the days they enjoyed this area with their friends and visitors.
It is important to understand that music was one of the central themes of Frances’s life. After attending Emerson school in Denver, she graduated from Denver East High School in 1919. Thereafter, she received her B.A. and then her M.A. in music from the University of Denver’s Lamont School of Music. She studied piano and singing, along with French, Italian and German. She also studied under several prominent local voice instructors, and performed in numerous concerts, recitals, and radio music shows. There are many fan letters from listeners in the region who raved about her extraordinary vocal skills. She also received a scholarship from the Julliard School of Music in New York, and spent a year in residence there.
As a result of her talent and the intensive training she received, she was able to capture lead roles in several opera productions by the Denver Grand Opera Company at Denver’s Auditorium Theatre in the 1940’s. The roles that she fondly remembered later in life were the gypsy woman Azucena in Il Trovatore (The Troubadour), and as Maddalena in Rigoletto. Both of these very popular operas were composed by Guiseppi Verdi about 1850, and remain among the most memorable works in the history of opera. Recent statistics show that these two works are ranked the 9th and 20th in number of opera performances staged today. Imagine Frances practicing her singing roles on warm evenings around the cabins.
The basic coordinates are N 39⁰30.ABC and W 105⁰23.XYZ, and the cache is located within the boundaries of Staunton State Park. To get close, please determine the answers to the following questions to complete the coordinates of the location:
A.
In Rigoletto, the main character is best described by the following statement:
3 - He was a wealthy Duke, who spent his time in battles with his enemies, and chasing all the women with whom he came into contact.
4 - He was a court jester, who made a living by being nasty in making jokes about everyone to amuse the Duke.
5 - He was an executioner and jailer, who believed that part of his job was torturing those unfortunate enough to be captured and sent to him.
6 - He was a court functionary (courtier), who spent his days scheming to gain advantage over others who sought favor from the Duke.
B.
Rigoletto experiences the failure of his most ambitious plan in the opera, which results in this significant impact on him:
3 - His daughter, who he shielded from the world, falls in love with a noble and sacrifices her life so that he may live.
5 - He runs away from all his evil deeds, and becomes a sailor/pirate.
6 - His wife is abducted and killed by a rival who he has embarrassed in public.
7 - His adopted son becomes a formidable soldier and in a rage, kills him for his cruel treatment of others.
C.
Guiseppi Verdi is one of three giants in the opera composer world. Which characteristic sets him apart from the significant others in this field?
3 - He used words very literally, and their literal meanings were crucial to understand the depth and breadth of the story.
5 - His focus was purely on the beauty of the singing, and he was the pinnacle of the “Bel Canto” school.
7 - He borrowed stories from plays that interested him, and amplified the audience’s experience of the drama with the musical effects that he added.
9 - He departed from tradition, and developed an unstructured alternative approach to the music which dominated the modernistic approach to this classic art form.
X.
One of the things that sets opera apart from other art forms is the ability to impart emotions into the performance only through the music, which enhances the attachment of the audience to the story even though they may not understand the words in another language. What is the primary reason the operas of Verdi are so popular with many people?
0 - The music has very attractive melodies that many people often hum.
1 - The audience can relate to the human emotions that are portrayed on the stage, and this feeling does not become old with repeated performances.
2 - Both of the above
3 - Neither of the above.
Y.
Azucena mistakenly kills her own infant, and saves the brother of the evil Duke. She raises the brother as her own child, who becomes a Troubadour. Her mother made her promise to avenge her death by burning at the stake at the hands of the Duke’s father. How was this accomplished in the story?
1 - When the Duke kills her adopted son, she is the one that tells him that he killed his own brother.
4 - She arranges the abduction of the Duke’s only son, and he is taken to a land far away, which breaks the Duke’s heart.
6 - She kills the Duke with poison, and that allows her adopted son to take over his domain.
9 - In an attempt to kill the Duke, she accidently mortally wounds the woman the Duke fancies, but who is in love with her adopted son. Her adopted son then kills the Duke, thinking he is responsible.
Z.
Maddelena is the sister of an assassin, and lures the victims to their last breath at the hands of her brother. Azucena is a gypsy woman who tries to avenge the burning of her mother at the stake. One of these roles is classified as a mezzo-soprano, and the other a contralto voice. What is the key difference between these roles that Frances was able to overcome to perform them both:
2 - The soprano is normally the heroine or tragic character, while the contralto and mezzo-soprano are normally the evil character or witch. Frances apparently could relate well to emotional response necessary for the latter roles.
5 - The soprano is normally the main female character (prima dona) in operas, and Frances was satisfied to play the secondary roles.
7 - The mezzo-soprano and the contralto have about the same vocal range, but a different sweet spot (tessitura) where they sing their best with good power and control within the vocal range. Frances was able to handle both sweet spots.
Compile your answers as instructed above to learn the location of the cache, and please use tact when accessing it if there are other people around. The cache is not located within the log fences surrounding several of the historic structures. Since the possible area for the location of the cache is quite large, it is suggested you access the area from the SR trail, using the initial waypoint provided, and then proceed off the trail when you are getting close enough to the coordinates.
Now for a bonus, that does not impact the GPS coordinates of the cache, but may allow you some insight into the characters that tell the story of the park. One of Frances’s close friends was a well- known opera singer named Jeanne Brola. She was married to John Harrison, who was one of the greatest voice instructors in Europe in the early 20th century, and together they formed the Brola-Harrison Voice Studio, where Frances studied. Jean Brola spent time at the Staunton Ranch, and see if you can locate evidence of her presence as you look for this cache.
You can validate your puzzle solution with certitude.
References
Scudder, Bonnie - The Secrets of Elk Creek: Shaffers Crossing, Staunton State Park, and Beyond. Elk Creek Publishing, Pine, CO, 2013.
Forman, Sir Denis - A Night at the Opera: an Irreverent Guide to the Plots, the Singers, the Composers, the Recordings. The Modern Library, New York, 1998.
Berger, William - Verdi with a Vengeance: An Energetic Guide to the Life and Complete Works of the King of Opera. Vintage Books, New York, 2000.
This cache was developed by a team of park volunteers, and is located within Staunton State Park, which has one public entrance along S. Elk Creek Road, six miles west of Conifer, about 1.5 miles off U.S. Highway 285. Parking along either side of S. Elk Creek Road and Upper Ranch Road adjacent to the park boundary is prohibited. All vehicles entering the park must have a daily park pass ($7) or a CO state park annual pass.
Hours of operation vary by season, and no overnight parking is permitted. During summer weekends, the park may reach capacity, and cars are allowed to enter only if a parking space is available. Horse trailers are admitted if space is available for parking trailers. Information about the park can be found at http://cpw.state.co.us/placestogo/parks/staunton
All visitors must follow park rules and regulations. These include dogs on leash at all times, clean up after pets, travel on developed trails or dirt roads, no fires away from the developed area, leave no trace, respect areas closed for resource management, and be careful around wildlife (especially mountain lions, coyotes, and black bears). Fishing is allowed in park waters, but license and limit regulations must be followed. No motorized vehicles (except park vehicles) are allowed on trails. Pack your own trash out of the back country, and trash receptacles are located near the parking areas. Also, be prepared for changing weather, bring adequate water and footwear, and trails may be snow-covered or icy in winter.