Stockton Symphony Association

The symphony goes Hollywood

May 06

Ralph Cato is a little concerned - but not totally fearful - about this cinematic apparition.

That's OK. The dignified, deep-voiced opera and theater vocalist is playing along just for the sheer fun of it.

"The most interesting challenge will be 'Ghostbusters.'" said Cato, who's taking a two-week break from a touring production of "Riverdance" to perform at the Stockton Symphony's Pops & Picnic event Friday at University of the Pacific's A.G. Spanos Center. "I don't want to give away any surprises. But it looks it's like it's gonna be a fun evening."

Cato, a native of New Orleans who lives in Los Angeles' Echo Park neighborhood and has sung everything from rock, R&B and Verdi arias to the main tune in "Riverdance," has been cramming this week with symphony conductor Peter Jaffe to harmonize with the 70-piece orchestra's "Hollywood Hits" selections.

"The only one I knew was 'Singin' in the Rain,' " Cato, 55, said of the theme song from a 1952 Gene Kelly film. "I wasn't familiar with the others."

A bass baritone, Cato, who has traveled the world singing in a variety of styles, said he'll definitely be ready Friday when Jaffe leads the orchestra through tunes from "Gone With the Wind" (1939), "Raiders of the Lost Ark" (1981), "Pirates of the Caribbean" (2003-07), "Star Wars" (1997-2008), the James Bond films and, of course, "Ghostbusters" (1984).

Cato - who's also using his short hiatus from "Riverdance" to sing in Felix Mendelssohn's "Elijah Oratorio" with the Pasadena Chorale on May 22 - is familiar with Jaffe, who's concluding his 15th year as conductor of the 84-year-old symphony.

Cato, a Uuniversity of California, Riverside graduate who also studied at University of Southern California and California State University, Northridge, worked with Jaffe on a 2006 production of Giacomo Puccini's "Tosca" (as Baron Scarpia) for Modesto's Townsend Opera Players.

He'll be back Nov. 11 and 13, singing Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's "Requiem" with Jaffe's Stockton Symphony.

"He's a great musician and a fun guy," Cato said of Jaffe during a recent phone conversation from Safety Island, Fla., where he was singing in "Riverdance." "I really like him. He's very animated. It's fun to find conductors who can have fun and pursue their art at the same time."

Cato, who's been singing the signature "Heal Their Hearts" in "Riverdance" since 1996, has been seeking that mix anywhere he gets a good gig.

"Yeah, I've done pretty much everything," he said with a laugh. "I started in a rock 'n' roll band and didn't get into classical until college. I did some jazz in a choir at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland. I decided I really enjoyed classical music and wanted to get good at it. I've been fortunate enough to keep busy."

That hasn't been easy.

"It's still tough for an African-American male to get an audition for opera," Cato said, noting that "Porgy and Bess" remains the stereotyped exception. "I do pretty good if someone will sit still for five minutes."

He's auditioned - unsuccessfully - 23 times for Los Angeles Opera roles.

"They've never given me anything," said Cato, who performs in "Porgy and Bess" with the Los Angeles Philharmonic on July 19 at the Hollywood Bowl. "I can do these roles, though nontraditional casting it would be. Some African-Americans don't pay any attention to it. To some African-Americans, it's still the last bastion of white supremacy."

He recently auditioned for he San Francisco Opera, "but I still haven't heard from them."

Cato's musical education started on St. Charles Street in New Orleans' Garden District when he began acting in annual classroom productions at 7. In his first lead role, he was an old man - "with a hat and cane" - in second grade.

He sang in school chorales but "didn't really get asked to do anything serious" until eighth grade. He had to sing in front of a high school crowd.

"I was petrified," Cato said. "But I pulled it off and got a good response and thought, 'Hey I really like this.' "

He began playing piano in 10th grade, accompanying the school choir as a senior.

Then came "two very different types of music": rock 'n' roll (Striker) and R&B (Sound Corporation).

At 16, he performed in the New Orleans Gallery Theater Group's production of "Alice in Wonderland" ("what a hoot") and, in 1970, portrayed Honey Brown in a stage adaptation of Carson McCullers' "The Member of the Wedding."

A friend's father suggested Cal State Northridge (then San Fernando Valley State) as an option, and Cato headed West, studying music, theater and French. He also sang in Costa Mesa's Pacific Chorale.

He's seen the world: spending three years in New York, one in London, four particularly disappointing years in Germany ("trying to get work until I ran out of money") and four months in New Zealand, "mostly trying for opera roles," he said.

College diction classes in French, Italian and German helped. Not enough.

"They loved me in 'Riverdance.' " he said of persistently reluctant opera directors.

In June 1996, his manager submitted an audition tape to "Riverdance" producers and said, "They want you in London. Can you be there in two weeks?"

He stayed with the production until 1998, still "pursuing opera" roles actively.

After teaching undergraduate vocal students at University of Californaia, Los Angeles, he rejoined "Riverdance" in 2008. With a degree from California State University, Fullerton, added, he still teaches voice in Los Angeles Unified School District high schools.

Opera remains No. 1.

He's added China - nine weeks and 11 cities - and South Korea to his travel checklist.

"For the Chinese, Irish dancing is kind of a cultural stretch," Cato said of "Riverdance." "At first, it was lesser-known, and the applause was low-key, polite. Places where we stayed a week, by the end of the run, the audience became more enthusiastic and vocal."

He's determined to get that feedback in opera roles, too.

"Maybe one day it will happen," he said. "All I need is a break - on a broader stage where people can see you. I'm already 55. I'm in my prime. I should not have to teach. It's a challenge, but you have to be honest.

" 'Riverdance' is my 'other' life. Almost everything other than that is classical."

Except, of course, for "Ghostbusters."

Contact Tony Sauro at (209) 546-8267 or tsauro@recordnet.com. Visit his blog at recordnet.com/lensblog.