{"id":29918,"date":"2017-10-11T15:55:02","date_gmt":"2017-10-11T20:55:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/resource-center.hrblock.com\/?post_type=newsroom&#038;p=29918"},"modified":"2023-03-02T12:51:39","modified_gmt":"2023-03-02T18:51:39","slug":"entertainer-doesnt-break-leg-stage-splits-open-chin","status":"publish","type":"newsroom","link":"https:\/\/hrbcomlnp.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/newsroom\/around-block\/about-us\/entertainer-doesnt-break-leg-stage-splits-open-chin\/","title":{"rendered":"Entertainer doesn\u2019t break a leg on stage, but splits open his chin"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"IT Professional and Opera Singer\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/LvCgT44qy_Q?list=PLri6sJNt1hIKqWJn7L5qxXgZbWrEJEXH8\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Before a performance, entertainers are often told to \u201cbreak a leg.\u201d Yet actor and singer Matt Foerschler has never complied during any of his 600 live theatrical performances.<\/p>\n<p>He has, however, split open his chin. Got stitches during intermission. And returned to finish the same show.<\/p>\n<p>It all happened a while back, when Foerschler sang tenor in a French opera: Offenbach\u2019s \u201cLa Perichole.\u201d Playing a soldier in a bar, Foerschler stood on a stool make a toast. The stool collapsed. His chin hit a goblet and parted like the Red Sea. Then, ouch! A river of blood.<\/p>\n<p>Foerschler figured he needed stitches, based on the gasps from the opera\u2019s production manager. So, the two made a trip to a nearby emergency room.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Building character<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>\u201cThat happened around Halloween,\u201d says Foerschler. \u201cI was in partial costume with T-shirt, pants, suspenders and boots, and the production manager was dressed up Goth style.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen we arrived at the ER, we knew doctors and nurses were just looking at us saying, \u2018Drugs\u2019 \u2013 which wasn\u2019t the case \u2013 and shaking their heads.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Foerschler wore a beard \u2013 now bloody \u2013 as part of his character and wanted to keep it in tact; amazingly, the medical staff complied.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI told the doctor I needed my beard. So, the doctor stitched me up without trimming any whiskers, like is normally done for stitches.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Then it was back to the theater. And on with the show.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Building a career<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Such discipline, such diligence, is part of Foerschler\u2019s makeup. And it comes in handy at H&amp;R Block\u2019s world headquarters, where he\u2019s a principal architect in information technology.<\/p>\n<p>Although Foerschler boasts a bachelor\u2019s and a master\u2019s degree in voice performance from the University of Kansas, he\u2019s largely self-taught when it comes to IT. He built his 30-year career in software design on a childhood passion and plenty of on-the-job training.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been fascinated by electronics since I was 9 years old,\u201d when he liked to tinker with ham radio equipment, says Foerschler.<\/p>\n<p>By the time he was in college during the late \u201870s\/early \u201880s, Foerschler was making money off that interest: He worked at a Radio Shack selling personal computers, which back then were the size of convection ovens. Eventually, he bought a behemoth and programmed it on his own.<\/p>\n<p>That experience dovetailed nicely with Foerschler\u2019s educational pursuit: a 4-year-degree in electrical engineering. Until Calculus 121 figured in. Pure math was a struggle, so he switched majors to vocal music \u2013 another talent he\u2019d unearthed during childhood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI can\u2019t repeat what my parents said when I changed from engineering to music,\u201d says Foerschler. \u201cBut they knew I wanted to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>So did Foerschler. \u201cI was good at two things: electronics and music.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Since engineering was out, music was in.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Building a repertoire<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Over the years, Foerschler found ways to incorporate both interests, by working days at various computer companies and spending nights on stage. He:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Has sung<\/strong> over 30 roles with various opera companies, including at the Lyric Opera of Kansas City in Missouri (where\u2019s he\u2019s been a member for 38 years), the Des Moines Metro Opera in Iowa, and the Florentine Opera Center of Milwaukee in Wisconsin.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Has appeared<\/strong> in over 130 productions<\/li>\n<li><strong>Can be heard<\/strong> in roles on two opera recordings:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cCoyote Tales\u201d by Henry Mollicone, Newport Classics, 1998<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThe Devil and Daniel Webster\u201d by Douglas Moore, Newport Classics, 1996<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Today, Foerschler also appears in musical theater, including his current gig as the Beast in \u201cBeauty and the Beast\u201d at the Topeka Civic Theatre in Kansas.<\/p>\n<p>But whether he\u2019s under the spotlight or on the clock, Foerschler brings a holistic approach to his pursuits:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEverything I\u2019m involved with is a team effort, whether I\u2019m at work or on stage,\u201d says Foerschler. \u201cOne person may be in the spotlight for a while, but there\u2019s always plenty of people behind the scenes, backing them up.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Before a performance, entertainers are often told to \u201cbreak a leg.\u201d Yet actor and singer Matt Foerschler has never complied during any of his 600 live theatrical performances. He has, however, split open his chin. Got stitches during intermission. And returned to finish the same show. It all happened a while back, when Foerschler sang [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":418,"featured_media":29874,"menu_order":0,"template":"","tags":[],"news-categories":[23376,23377],"class_list":["post-29918","newsroom","type-newsroom","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-categories-around-block","news-categories-about-us"],"acf":{"post_rest_thumbnail_alt_id":null},"yoast_head":"<title>Entertainer doesn\u2019t break a leg on stage, but splits open his chin - Newsroom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Matt Foerschler boasts a bachelor\u2019s and a master\u2019s degree in voice performance from the University of Kansas, he\u2019s largely self-taught when it comes to IT.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hrbcomlnp.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/newsroom\/around-block\/about-us\/entertainer-doesnt-break-leg-stage-splits-open-chin\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Entertainer doesn\u2019t break a leg on stage, but splits open his chin\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Matt Foerschler boasts a bachelor\u2019s and a master\u2019s degree in voice performance from the University of Kansas, he\u2019s largely self-taught when it comes to IT.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/hrbcomlnp.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/newsroom\/around-block\/about-us\/entertainer-doesnt-break-leg-stage-splits-open-chin\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"H&amp;R Block\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hrblock\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-03-02T18:51:39+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/hrbcomlnp.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Opera-Singer-Youtube-Thumbnail-1024x576.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"576\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@hrblock\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hrbcomlnp.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/newsroom\/around-block\/about-us\/entertainer-doesnt-break-leg-stage-splits-open-chin\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/hrbcomlnp.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/newsroom\/around-block\/about-us\/entertainer-doesnt-break-leg-stage-splits-open-chin\/\",\"name\":\"Entertainer doesn\u2019t break a leg on stage, but splits open his chin - 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