Jake Heggie/Gene Scheer’s MOBY-DICK will be broadcast nationally on PBS Great Performances. This is San Francisco Opera‘s production from last year, with a cast featuring Jay Hunter Morris (Ahab), Stephen Costello (Greenhorn/Ishmael), Morgan Smith (Starbuck), Jonathan Lemalu (Queequeg), Talise Trevigne (Pip), Robert Orth (Stubb), Matthew O’Neill (Flask), and Joo Won Kang (Gardiner); conducted by Patrick Summers and directed by Leonard Foglia in the Robert Brill production with projections by Elaine McCarthy. The opera was commissioned by The Dallas Opera with San Francisco Opera, San Diego Opera, State Opera of South Australia, and Calgary Opera.
opera
Heggie MOBY-DICK DVD with San Francisco Opera
On this world premiere recording, Grammy-winning tenor Jay Hunter Morris plays the role of Captain Ahab in Herman Meville’s epic tale of a fierce, obsessive whaling-boat captain who descends into madness and puts his crew in mortal danger is brought to the stage in this thrilling production from San Francisco Opera. Composer Jake Heggie is in his ‘finest creation since Dead Man Walking,’ and librettist Gene Scheer adaptation is ‘a vibrant, compelling piece of musical theater’ (San Francisco Chronicle).
Watch the video on YouTube.
Purchase the DVD here.
Approaching Ali debuts at Washington National Opera
In two premiere performances, composer D.J. Sparr and librettists Mark Campbell and Davis Miller‘s hour-long opera tells the story of a reporter’s transformative meeting with the boxing legend Muhammad Ali. Approaching Ali features Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Soloman Howard (Joe in Show Boat) as Muhammad Ali, David Kravitz as Davis Miller, Aundi Marie Moore as Odessa Clay, and Ethan McKelvain as Young Davis. The opera will be performed with a chamber orchestra conducted by Steven Jarvi, and receive a complete staging by director Nicole Watson and a design team with mentorship provided by WNO Artistic Director Francesca Zambello.
“’Approaching Ali’…features an imaginative score by Baltimore School for the Arts alum D.J. Sparr. His harmonic style is nicely spicy, but fundamentally tonal, and he reveals a good sense of propulsion; like Ali in his prime, the score is nimble on its feet.” –Baltimore Sun
“…Sparr knows how to send a vocal line soaring vividly, and how to extract a great deal of color from a 10-member orchestra…” –Baltimore Sun
“…”Approaching Ali” makes a worthy calling card for the American Opera Initiative. It also demonstrates Sparr’s considerable potential; his first attempt in this tricky genre lands some very solid punches.” –Baltimore Sun
“Creating a modern opera work without alienating audiences seems to be no small feat.” –Maryland Theater Guide
“The audience obviously wanted more after the world premiere of Washington National Opera’s Approaching Ali. The 50 minute work… received a standing ovation from an enthusiastic crowd whom over ninety percent actually stayed for a 15 minute Q&A, an awesome feat for any Modern Opera production…The show is a contemporary human story set to a 21st century score, and polished with an accessible finish.” –Maryland Theater Guide
“Some of the most alluring music was written for the character of Odessa Clay, Mr. Ali’s mother, beautifully enacted by Aundi Marie Moore. She spun out the bluesy humming with a honeyed tone, one of several Americana elements of the score.” –The New York Times
“In a genre dominated by four-hour behemoths, it’s pleasantly rare to feel that a work is too short, with the somewhat abrupt conclusion here leaving you wanting more.” – The New York Times
“… Miller’s well-respected book—reduced to a simple yet surprisingly deep libretto by everyone’s favorite American librettist, the skillful Mark Campbell and set to music by D. J. Sparr, a composer we had previously not encountered—has been transformed into a compact, intensely emotional work of musical theater that explores the tragedies and triumphs of the human inscape in unexpected and at times powerful ways.” –Washington Times
“Some of the best vocal writing, however, fell to Domingo-Cafritz alumna Aundi Marie Moore … who had a coffee-rich tone as Odessa, full of maternal savvy and bluesy vernacular touches.” –Washington Post
Read more about the premiere here.
Borzova THE WEDDING GIFT OF PIRATE GRANNY
Hartford Opera Theatre’s production of the new chamber opera by Alla Borzova with librettist David Johnston.
Bruce: The Firework Maker’s Daughter US/UK Tour
Tickets for David Bruce’s chamber opera The Firework Maker’s Daughter are now on sale. The opera comes to the Lindbury Studios of the Royal Opera House, London from 3-13 April; and to the New Victory Theatre, New York from 3-12 May, as well as a substantial UK tour with performances in Hull, Huddersfield, Watford, Bury St Edmunds, Buxton, Oxford and Newcastle.
The opera is a retelling of Philip Pullman’ s fabulous and colourful story featuring the spirited young girl who risks everything to follow her true path in life. Like Pullman’s work, I like to think it’s “suitable for young and old.”
The libretto is by Glyn Maxwell (whose book On Poetry is really worth checking out.) Director John Fulljames and designer Dick Bird take the helm, along with shadow-puppeteers Indefinite Articles; and in the pit, two old favourites – Chroma in the UK and Metropolis Ensemble in New York. A great cast of Mary Bevan, Jamie Laing, Andrew Slater, Amar Muchhala and Wyn Pencarreg make this a show not to miss.
Tickets on sale now. Links below
Hull Truck
23th – 26th March
Lawrence Batley Theatre, Huddersfield
30th March
Linbury Studio Theatre, Royal Opera House
3th – 13th April
New Victory Theatre, New York
2nd – 12th May
Watford Palace Theatre
17th & 18th May
Theatre Royal, Bury St Edmund’s
21st & 22nd May
Buxton Opera House
24th & 25th May
Oxford Playhouse
28th & 29th May
Northern Stage, Newcastle
31st May & 1st June
Heggie and Scheer’s Moby-Dick: A Grand Opera for the Twenty-first Century
Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer’s grand opera Moby-Dick was a stunning success in the world premiere production by the Dallas Opera in 2010. Robert K. Wallace attended the final performance of the Dallas production and has written this book so readers can experience the process by which this contemporary masterpiece was created and performed on stage. Interviews with the creative team and draft revisions of the libretto and score show the opera in the process of being born. Interviews with the principal singers and the production staff follow the five-week rehearsal period into the world premiere production, each step of the way illustrated by more than two hundred color photographs by Karen Almond.
Opera fans, lovers of Moby-Dick, and students of American and global culture will welcome this book as a highly readable and visually enthralling account of the creation of a remarkable new opera that does full justice to its celebrated literary source. Just as Heggie and Scheer’s opera is enjoyed by operagoers with no direct knowledge of Moby-Dick, so will this book be enjoyed by opera fans unaware of Melville and by Melville fans unaware of opera.
Washington National Opera commissions D.J. Sparr
American Opera Initiative
Composer D.J. Sparr and librettist Davis Miller will premiere The Tao of Muhammad Ali (A Ghost Story) in June 2013 in the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater. This original hour-long opera tells the story of a reporter’s transformative meeting with the boxing legend Muhammad Ali.
The Tao of Muhammad Ali (A Ghost Story) will be performed with a chamber orchestra and receive a complete staging by a young director and design team (with mentorship provided by WNO Artistic Advisor Francesca Zambello). Open workshops at the Kennedy Center will be held throughout its development cycle.
Complete casting, creative team, and ticketing information for the June 2013 performance will be announced at a later date.
A key element of the American Opera Initiative is connecting the young composers and librettists to professional mentors who have successfully brought new American operas to the stage. Each of the inaugural mentors—composer Jake Heggie, librettist Mark Campbell, and conductor Anne Manson—as well as advisor Robert Wood will work with the artists selected for both the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 seasons.
Heggie’s MOBY-DICK premieres at San Francisco Opera
“A GREAT AMERICAN OPERA” Opera Now Magazine
“A TRIUMPH”The Dallas Morning News
“AN UNDENIABLE SUCCESS” The New York Times
“THE HIT OF THE SEASON” The Washington Post
“A MASSIVE ARTISTIC ACCOMPLISHMENT” WFAA-TV
Moby-Dick is an opera in two acts by composer Jake Heggie and librettist Gene Scheer, based on the novel by Herman Melville. Commissioned by The Dallas Opera with San Francisco Opera, San Diego Opera, Calgary Opera and the State Opera of South Australia, Moby-Dick opened to extraordinary international acclaim on April 30, 2010 at the Margot & Bill Winspear Opera House in Dallas.
ORIGINAL PRODUCTION TEAM
Conductor | Patrick Summers |
Director & Dramaturg | Leonard Foglia |
Set Design | Robert Brill |
Lighting | Donald Holder |
Costumes | Jane Greenwood |
Projections & Film | Elaine McCarthy |
Musical Preparation | Laurie Rogers, Michael Heaston, Janice Fehlauer |
Chorus Conductor | Alexander Ro |
ORIGINAL CAST
Ahab | Ben Heppner |
Greenhorn | Stephen Costello |
Starbuck | Morgan Smith |
Queequeg | Jonathan Lemalu |
Pip | Talise Trevigne |
Stubb | Robert Orth |
Flask | Matthew O’Neill |
Gardiner | Jonathan Beyer |
The Dallas Opera Orchestra and Men of the Chorus
ORCHESTRATION
3 flutes (one doubles piccolo)
3 oboes (one doubles English Horn)
3 clarinets (one doubles bass clarinet)
3 bassoons (one doubles contrabassoon)
4 horns in F
3 trumpets in C
2 trombones
bass trombone
timpani
2 percussion
harp
strings
PRODUCTION COMPANIES
A list of companies who have performed or scheduled future performances of the opera follows:
- The Dallas Opera (April 2010)
- State Opera of South Australia (Aug./Sept. 2011)
- Calgary Opera (Jan. 2012)
- San Diego Opera (Feb. 2012)
- San Francisco Opera (Oct. 2012)
- Washington National Opera (Feb.-March 2014)
- Los Angeles Opera (Oct.-Nov. 2015)
- The Dallas Opera (Nov. 2016)
- Utah Opera (Jan. 2018)
- Pittsburgh Opera (March 2018)
Heggie’s DEAD MAN WALKING
“Dead Man Walking makes the most concentrated impact of any piece of American music theater since West Side Story more than 40 years ago.”
THE GUARDIAN (London)
Since its premiere in 2000, Dead Man Walking, the first opera by composer Jake Heggie and librettist Terrence McNally, has become one of the opera world’s most performed new works. Commissioned by San Francisco Opera (then headed by Lotfi Mansouri), it is based on the prize-winning book by Sister Helen Prejean, CSJ and tells the modern-day story of a nun who becomes the spiritual advisor to a condemned man on Louisiana’s death row. The opera was first performed on October 7, 2000 at San Francisco’s War Memorial Opera House. Maestro Patrick Summers led the San Francisco Opera Orchestra and Chorus and a cast that included mezzo-soprano Susan Graham as Sister Helen, baritone John Packard as Joseph DeRocher, and mezzo-soprano Frederica von Stade as his mother, Mrs. DeRocher. The production was directed by Joe Mantello and featured sets by Michael Yeargan, lighting by Jennifer Tipton, and costumes by Sam Flemming. The original run of seven performances was increased to nine due to popular demand, and most performances were sold out.
In 2001 a new production of Dead Man Walking was commissioned by seven American opera companies: Opera Pacific, Cincinnati Opera, New York City Opera, Austin Lyric Opera, Michigan Opera Theater, Pittsburgh Opera and Baltimore Opera. Directed by Leonard Foglia and designed by Michael McGarty, the production features costumes by Jess Goldstein and lighting by Brian Nason.
A list of companies who have performed or scheduled future performances of the opera follows:
- San Francisco Opera (2000) — World Premiere
- Opera Pacific (2002) — New Production
- Cincinnati Opera (2002)
- New York City Opera (2002)
- Austin Lyric Opera (2003)
- Michigan Opera Theater (2003)
- State Opera of South Australia (2003) — First International Production
- Pittsburgh Opera (2004) — Live Broadcast on National Public Radio
- Calgary Opera (2006) — New Production. Canadian Premiere.
- Baltimore Opera (2006)
- Dresden Semperoper (2006) — New Production. European Premiere.
- Malmö Opera (2006-2007) — New Production. Scandinavian Premiere.
- Sydney, Australia (2007) — New Production
- Dresden Semperoper (2007) — Revival.
- Vienna Klangbogen Festival (2007)
- Hagen, Germany (2007-2008)
- Dublin, Ireland (2007) — New Production
- University of Colorado at Boulder (2007) — New Production. First complete university production.
- University of Nebraska in Lincoln. (2008) — New Production. Directed by William Shomos and conducted by Tyler White.
- Malmö Opera (2009) (revival)
- Fort Worth Opera (2009)
- Dresden SemperOper (2009) (revival)
- Royal Danish Theatre in Copenhagen (2009)
- Cape Town Opera, South Africa (2009)
- Houston Grand Opera (2011) – 10th Anniversary Production
- Union Avenue Opera, St. Louis (2011)
- Tulsa Opera (2012)
- Dresden SemperOper (2012) – revival
- Fayetteville Opera (2013)
- Opéra de Montréal (2013)
- Boston Opera Collaborative (2013)
- Eugene Opera (2013)
- The Modern American Music Project (2013)
- Staatstheater Schwerin, Germany (2014)
- Madison Opera (2014)
- Central City Opera (2014)
- DePaul University (2014)
- Des Moines Metro Opera (2014)
- Madison Opera (2014)
- University of Michigan (2014)
- Opera Parallele (2015)
- Northwestern University (2015)
- Opera NUOVA (2015)
- Dayton Opera (2015)
- Indiana University Opera Theater (2015)
- New Orleans Opera (2016)
- Shreveport Opera (2016)
- Townsend Opera (2016)
- Fresno Opera (2016)
- Lyric Opera of Kansas City (2017)
- Vancouver Opera (2017)
- Washington National Opera (2017)
- Pensacola Opera (2017)
- Miami Music Festival (2017)
- Opera on the Avalon (2017)
- Boston Conservatory (2017)
- Kentucky Opera (2017)
- BBC Symphony/Barbican Center (2018)
- Minnesota Opera (2018)
- James Madison University (2018)
- Teatro Real Madrid (2018)
- Utah Opera (2018)
- Theater Erfurt (2019)
- Atlanta Opera (2019)
- Oldenburgisches Staatstheater (2019)
- Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (2019)
- Welsh National Opera (2019)
- Israel Opera (2019)
- Opera Idaho (2020)
- Hungarian State Opera (2020)
- The Metropolitan Opera (2023)
- Lanestheater Detmold (2024)
Recordings
There are two recordings of Dead Man Walking:
Instrumentation
There are two versions of the orchestration to Dead Man Walking.
Original (full) Orchestration
3 Flutes (3rd doubling Alto Flute and Piccolo)
2 Oboes
English Horn
2 Clarinets in Bb
Bass Clarinet
3 Bassoons (3rd doubling Contrabassoon)
4 Horns in F
3 Trumpets in C
2 Trombones
Bass Trombone
Harp
Piano
Timpani
Percussion (2 players)
Strings
Reduced Orchestration
2 Flutes (2nd doubling on Alto Flute and Piccolo)
2 Oboes (2nd doubling English Horn)
2 Clarinets in Bb(2nd doubling Bass Clarinet)
2 Bassoons (2nd doubling on Contrabassoon)
2 Horns in F
2 Trumpets in C
Trombone
Bass Trombone
Synthesizer (harp and piano sounds only)
Timpani
2 Percussion
Strings
Licensing
For theatrical performances, there are two components to licensing Dead Man Walking. Grand Rights (theatrical rights) are licensed by:
Funsten and Franzen
Bill Holab Music handles rentals and sales of the musical materials. You can request a quote here.
Scores can be purchased here.
Bruce: The Firework Maker’s Daughter
The Firework Maker’s Daughter is a new opera by award-winning composer David Bruce and librettist Glyn Maxwell, based on the fairy-tale adventure by acclaimed children’s author Philip Pullman. Staged by John Fulljames, with designs by Dick Bird and puppetry by Indefinite Articles, this tale of courage, friendship and growing-up will be a magical, theatrical event suitable for all the family.
“More than anything else in the world, Lila wants to be a Firework-Maker. But every Firework-Maker must make a perilous journey to face the terrifying Fire-Fiend! Can Lila possibly survive? Especially when she doesn’t know she needs special protection to survive the flames…”
David Bruce writes:
Since my own childhood I have thought of the theatre as a colourful place of magic and fantasy and as I’ve grown older I am still attracted to those same aspects—for me there is not really a difference between children’s theatre and adult theatre—as I see it, it’s all ‘play’ and we are all children.
Philip Pullman seems to share a similar enjoyment of the fun and colour of the theatre—in an essay describing the origins of The Firework Maker’s Daughter, he talks about his role putting on annual plays in the school where he worked:
Each year I would add some new theatrical trick to my repertoire: a shadow-puppet interlude, or a scene painted on a gauze that would magically vanish when you raised the lights behind and lowered them in front, or a wind machine and a thunderstorm. I had more fun fooling about with those things than I’ve ever had before or since.
For me—as I think for Pullman—there is a direct connection between the sense of fantasy that can be created in the theatre and a sense of spiritual and moral questioning. In the theatre we allow ourselves to wonder—to question ‘what if’ – and the question can sometimes be absurd or comical in nature, but other times be something much more profound. In a largely secular society, the theatre is one of the few places where we can still ask ourselves the big questions, and still feel wonder in all its aspects. My instinct as an artist is to set those big questions in a context that allows us to laugh, smile and relax. And this is one of the things that attracts me most about Pullman’s story—it contains both the absurd and fun elements that make theatre such a delight – talking elephants, a fire-fiend in a grotto, etc.—whilst at the same time making some fairly profound points about the creation of art, the need for self-expression, friendship, courage and love. To quote Pullman again:
Fairy tales are ways of telling us true things without laboring the point. They begin in delight, and they end in wisdom. But if you start with what you think is wisdom, you’ll seldom end up with delight—it doesn’t work that way round. You have to begin with fun.
I am attracted in this story to the Far Eastern setting and the possibility that it offers me to create a distinctive sound-world for the piece. As a composer I have often drawn influence from folk idioms from around the world, and am attracted to the idea of creating my own kind of ‘imaginary folk music, which is somewhat familiar, but also new and unknown. The Firework Maker’s Daughter similarly occupies some kind of familiar but unknown imaginary land with elements of Thailand, China, India and Indonesia all wrapped together and intermingling.
As a result, two particular passions of mine are likely to find their way into the music. Firstly, Indian music, which I have loved for many years (I have already had discussions about the project with renowned British tabla player Kuljit Bhamra, who has worked specifically on incorporating tabla and aspects of Indian music into the Western notated tradition); and secondly, home-made ‘folk’ instruments – Pullman mentions that in his original production, a home-made “gamelan” was used on stage, made out of scrap metal. I have long had an interest in such home-made instruments—for example Piosenki, my song-cycle of Polish children’s poems includes a 6 foot “lagerphone” made from bottle tops attached to a large pole – so the idea of revisiting Pullman’s original idea is very appealing to me.
As a composer for whom color and indeed humour are passionate concerns, I believe there are huge opportunities in this piece to create a vivid and rich operatic re-telling of the story, which will enhance Pullman’s wonderfully imaginative world in ways only opera can. The story has huge scope, taking in intimate personal moments – for example, Lila’s battle with her own self-belief as she struggles up the mountain; contrasted with large operatic set pieces such as the fire-fiend’s grotto and the elephant parade. Topping it all of course, there will need to be musical fireworks, with Lila’s culminating “display” an extraordinary musical and visual climax. Having set both a solar eclipse (Has it Happened Yet? 2002) and childbirth (Push! 2006) to music before, these are the kind of “impossible” musical challenges I relish.