The Boston Globe from Boston, Massachusetts • P1

Community briefing Dining Out Sports Globe North BOSTON SUNDAY GLOBE NOVEMBER 7, 2010 BOSTON.COMREGION ELECTION 2010 An awesome night at the opera Republicans make gains in the region Four area seats in House switch to GOP control ByJohnLaidler GLOBE CORRESPONDENT While the Republican surge that swept the nation last Tuesday largely bypassed Massachusetts, the GOP made some noticeable gains in state legislative races north of The party, vastly outnumbered in the Legislature, will start the new session Jan. 5 State Senate Middlesex, Essex Pet. Katherine Clark (D) 52 Craig Spadafora (R) 48 2d Essex, Middlesex Barry Finegold (D) 53 Jamison Tomasek (R) 42 Jodi Oberto (I) 5 State Representative 22d Middlesex Marc Lombardo (R) 51 Kevin Conway (D) 35 JamesO'Donnell(l) 14 6th Essex Jerald Parisella (D) 60 Brett Schetzsle(R) 40 9th Essex Donald Wong (R) 51 Mark Falzone (D) 49 18th Essex James Lyons (R) 53 Barbara L'ltalien (D) 47 Encumbent with four new state representative seats in the region, among 16 it picked up statewide. Two of the Republican wins were striking because they came against veteran Democratic House members. Saugus Board of Selectmen chairman Donald H.

Wong edged incumbent Mark V. Falzone of Saugus in the Ninth Essex District, while James J. Lyons Jr. of Andover outpaced Democrat Barbara A. L'ltalien of Andover in the 18th Essex District.

"It's a great feeling," said Wong, who attributed his win to the hard work of his volunteers and the fact that people in the district know him as a selectman and a local businessman; he is part owner of his family's Kow-loon Restaurant, on Route 1. Wong said he plans to focus on providing incentives for businesses to locate and remain in Massachusetts. "It's going to be hard Students from Revere High School at the opening night of "Madama Butterfly" at the Cutler Majestic Theatre in Boston. Senior Jennifer Sao (top, third from right) designed the artwork for the back cover of the program. work.

I won't start till January, but already I'm starting to build a said Wong, who became one of the first two Asian-Americans elected to the Legislature the other is Quincy Democrat Tackey Chan, who also won a House seat last week. The two other Republican gains were in districts now held by retiring Democrats. Democrats scored a notable win of their own, as State ELECTION, Page 3 Revere High School students set aside their initial skepticism and develop a passion for classic musical dramas New 18th rep vows to cut budget, taxes What the 17-year-old expected: shrill sopranos, cheesy bravado, portly women wearing horns. But what Xuyen Mai actually experienced at her first opera: elegance, vocal roller-coaster rides, characters who wrapped her into their lives and stayed long after the curtain dropped. "I had a wicked good first impression; I couldn't wait to come back," the Revere High School senior said last weekend just before taking a seat for her second night out at the opera in Boston.

"It's a wonderful experience. People should give it a chance." Opera, to many people, is considered staid and stuffy, a high-pitched, unintelligible amusement for the elite. But at the urban, diversely populated Revere High School, a group of students has developed an unexpected and unlikely passion for the often misunderstood 16th-century Italian performance art. "It's something by far that words cannot The state representative-elect from the 18th Essex District said he is eager to get to work delivering on his campaign promises to fight for lower spending and taxes on Beacon Hill. "It's an exciting time to represent the folks up on the Merrimack Valley and I'm really looking forward to it," Jim Lyons said.

The Andover Republican claimed the 18th Essex seat in last Tuesday's election when he unseated four-term Democratic incumbent Barbara A. L'ltalien in the district that includes parts of Andover, Boxford, Georgetown, Haverhill, Methuen, and North Andover. Lyons won by 1,081 votes, or 53 percent to 47 percent. Lyons said jobs and the economy will be his priorities after he is sworn in Jan. 5.

"When we began our campaign in March, we talked about the '5, 5, 5 rollback rolling back the meals, sales, LYONS, Page 3 describe," said 18-year-old senior Tamar Bonaventure. The rapt audience member at three operas so far added that, prior to her first show, "I really didn't quite grasp how epic it was." In evenings at the theater organized by the school's culture club led by youthful and energetic English teacher Nancy Barile anywhere from 30 to 50 students, male and female, freshmen and senior, have voraciously taken in performances of such classics as "Aida," "The Barber of Seville," and "La Boheme." And, just last week, at the Cutler Majestic Theatre, they sat enraptured by "Madama Butterfly," an aching tale OPERA, Page 5 Undergoing a metamorphosis A digital watercolor (left) created by senior Richard Trimarchi was chosen for the cover of the "Madama Butterfly" program. Page 5 YOUR TOWN For more coverage of news and events in your local community, go to www.boston.comyourtown. The River goes with a flow of its own '1 I By James Sullivan GLOBE CORRESPONDENT As the birthday party was winding down, one tipsy guest tried to walk off with a party favor. Staff members from The River, the Haver-hill-based radio station celebrating its 15th year, confronted the young man as he grabbed an oversized sign.

Sheepishly, he expressed his love for the station and identified himself as an aspiring nightly local spotlight. Such quirky, personalized connections are the lifeblood of WXRV-FM (92.5), the "adult album alternative" station that calls itself Boston's Independent Rock station. In an age of computerized playlists and drastically reduced reliance on radio "personalities," 92.5 The River is making a strong case for the continued viability of an older, more intimate way of doing radio. On the air, The River's disc jockeys are still "able to be human beings. We can tell stories," says Bob Stuart, the afternoon drive-time host who loves to give listeners tidbits of information about songs and bands the station plays.

THE RIVER, Page 6 PHOTOS BY JIM DAVISGLOBE STAFF Rather than banning him from future events, general manager Donald St. Sauveur told the guy to send in a recording. A week after the party, the station aired one of his band's songs on its Rita Cary, a 92.5 The River morning DJ, (left) calls the Haverhill station's crew one big dysfunctional family. At right, general manager Donald St. Sauveur sits in The River Music Hall, the station's performance space..