New York Opera Alliance Presents The Fourth Annual New York Opera Fest, May and June 2019

 

With over 20 companies presenting more than 25 events throughout the city, the Fest will once again prove how opera can be fresh, vital, and relevant, exploring contemporary themes of gender roles, LGBTQ rights, toxic masculinity, political satire, global warming, and more

 

Performances include a contemporary spin on a biblical classic, The Mikado filtered through the lens of the current White House administration, an operatic treatment of the life of Eleanor Roosevelt, Purcell’s Dido & Aeneas in a Catacomb, and a musical exploration of climate change and conservancy

 

“NYC's opera scene is at its most open and inviting in decades, and nobody seems as anxious to tear down the imaginary walls keeping novices out of the halls as the New York Opera Festival.”

—Time Out New York

 

For immediate release — New York, NY — New York Opera Alliance (NYOA), a consortium of New York opera companies and producers, presents the fourth annual New York Opera Fest (nyoperafest.com), a two-month celebration of opera on an unprecedented scale that takes place throughout May and June, with over 20 New York City-based companies large and small, putting on over 25 events in venues around the city, with the Fest kicking off on April 29 at Marc Scorca Hall.

 

The Fest is a living, breathing example of opera’s ability to explore challenging, relevant themes in an impactful and meaningful way. Gender roles come to the forefront in Rhymes With Opera’s operatic treatment of the life of Eleanor Roosevelt and On Site Opera’s portrait of Lady Murasaki, author of the first novel. LGBTQ rights are the subject of The Stonewall Operas, four premieres performed in the West Village’s Stonewall Inn to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots, as well as Hunter Opera’s take on Paula Kimper’s acclaimed Patience & Sarah. Toxic masculinity is brought to bear in Opera Lafayette and Heartbeat Opera’s joint take on the Biblical story of Susanna and the little OPERA theatre of ny’s New York premiere of Benjamin Britten's Owen Wingrave. On the political front, Donald Trump’s White House is the setting for Bronx Opera’s update of Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Mikado, Encompass New Opera Theatre’s Paradigm Shifts Music and Film Festival celebrates those fighting to preserve the environment in the face of climate change, and Vertical Player Repertory presents a musical setting of large portions of the United States Constitution.

 

The New York Opera Fest also continues to take opera to new locations far beyond the walls of the traditional concert hall, be it a Brooklyn Catacomb, the historic Stonewall Inn, a playground, a bar, a black box theater, and more. The Fest also features a performance in American Sign Language with a deaf actress mirroring the performance.

 

Continuing its commitment to contemporary music, this year’s Fest offers seven world premieres including Chunky in Heat (Experiments in Opera and Contemporaneous) and The Impossible She (Rhymes with Opera), as well as several New York City premieres.

 

The Fest also features innovative, accessible productions of the classics, including Carmen, Il Trovatore, Gianni Schicchi, The Magic Flute and more, as well as the rarely performed Hérodiade by Jules Massenet.

 

NYOA is excited to announce the return of FestTix: $25 tickets that grant access to a number of the Fest’s productions. FestTix will be on sale April 1 through May 1 on the New York Opera Fest website (nyoperafest.com).

 

The New York Opera Alliance works in partnership with OPERA America, the national service organization for opera and the nation’s leading advocate for American opera, based in the National Opera Center in New York City.

 

ADDITIONAL PERFORMANCE INFO AND COMPLETE FESTIVAL LISTINGS BELOW

http://nyoperafest.com/

https://www.facebook.com/NYOperaAlliance/

https://twitter.com/NYOperaAlliance

https://www.instagram.com/nyoperaalliance/

 

“The festival is a reminder that opera doesn’t need a 3,000-seat theater to be grand, and some of the more innovative, impassioned, exciting and vital – as well as affordable – productions are coming out of these smaller, more nimble companies.” —WQXR

 

PERFORMANCES INCLUDE:

 

Opera Lafayette and Heartbeat Opera present Stradella's La Susanna based on the timely story of Susanna and the Elders from the Book of Daniel, the Bible's iconic story of sexual harassment and the perversion of justice. Originally conceived with a male narrator and male savior, Stradella's seductive oratorio from 1681 becomes a powerful and complicated opera for 2019, with women as both storyteller and savior.

 

On Site Opera presents world premiere of Murasaki's Moon in The Astor Chinese Garden Court at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. This site-specific opera delves into the life and work of one of the most extraordinary women in Japanese history, Lady Murasaki, author of what is considered the world's first novel. Shocking modern parallels will be revealed as the story follows Lady Murasaki on her non-traditional path to become one of the most significant literary figures of all time.

 

Bronx Opera bring the Gilbert and Sullivan classic, The Mikado into the world of Trump: think of Yum-Yum as Ivanka, Nanki-Poo as Jared/Don Jr., Ko-Ko as Colbert, Pooh-Bah as Mick Mulvaney, the Gentlemen of Japan as the White House Press Corps.

 

Death of Classical presents Purcell’s eponymous Dido & Aeneas in the Catacombs of The Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, starring acclaimed mezzo Daniela Mack in the lead role, directed by her husband Alek Shrader.

 

Experiments in Opera and Contemporaneous will present the premiere of Chunky in Heat, which tells the story of a young girl who comes of age poolside at her family’s home in the canyons of Los Angeles. Against this backdrop of privilege, she struggles to understand her place in her family and the world.  

 

Rhymes With Opera presents two productions, including the world premiere of Daniel Thomas Davis’s opera The Impossible She, which focuses on the life of Eleanor Roosevelt, juxtaposing aspects of the first lady’s relationship with Lorena Hickok with her political persona as experienced by a fictitious radio-listener.

 

Encompass New Opera Theatre presents the “Paradigm Shifts Music and Film Festival,” which celebrates true stories of courageous people from around the world who are preserving and protecting our planet, oceans, wildlife, and sacred lands. Dedicated to bridging indigenous cultures, women’s wisdom, and the global justice and environmental movement, the festival pairs each film with artists performing a variety of music and dance from jazz and gospel, to classical, folk, African, Tibetan, Native American, and new opera and chamber music.

 

the little OPERA theatre of ny presents the New York premiere of Benjamin Britten's Owen Wingrave, which follows a young man who comes home to confront his family and rebel against its military past. The ghosts of his ancestors and a dark secret haunt all the inhabitants of the Wingrave home. Britten's powerful score etches strong individual voices caught within a fraught atmosphere.

 

Opera on Tap presents a concert at Freddy’s Bar and Backroom, contemporary arias paired with food and drink specials at Barbès, and Hansel and Gretel at the playground of Harlem’s PS 129 with a chorus of third graders.

 

Hunter Opera presents Paula Kimper’s Patience & Sarah, which tells the powerful story of two young women who meet, fall in love, and resolve to devote their lives to each other.

 

Regina Opera Company presents four performances of Verdi’s masterpiece Il trovatore with 35-piece orchestra. The complex drama about a gypsy's plight has plenty of plot twists and a brilliant vibrant score.

 

Vertical Player Repertory shines a light on the foundational document of the United States with a semi-staged performance of The Constitution, a musical setting of large portions of the United States Constitution, including highlights of Articles 1-7, the Bill of Rights, and subsequent amendments, by Benjamin Yarmolinsky, in a new setting for chorus and soloists.

FULL NEW YORK OPERA FEST EVENTS :

For additional event details, please visit: nyoperafest.com

May 4 & 5: Bronx Opera presents The Mikado

Lovinger Theatre, Lehman College, 250 Bedford Park Boulevard West, Bronx, NY 10468

 

May 2 – 5: New Camerata Opera presents The Rape of Lucretia

The Flea Theater, 20 Thomas St, New York, NY 10007

 

May 2 – 5: Opera Lafayette and Heartbeat Opera presents La Susanna

BAM Fisher - Fishman Space, 321 Ashland Place, Brooklyn, NY, 11217

 

May 6 – 19: Regina Opera Company presents Il Trovatore

Our Lady of Perpetual Help School, 5902 6th Ave, Brooklyn NY 11220

 

May 7 – 11: City Lyric Opera presents La Tragédie de Carmen

West End Theater, 236 W. 86th St. New York, NY 100124

 

May 9: Opera on Tap presents Home Brew

Freddy's Bar, 627 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215

 

May 9 – 10: Hunter Opera Theater in association with American Opera Projects presents Patience & Sarah

The Kaye Playhouse, 695 Park Ave, New York, NY, 10065

 

May 9 – 12: The Little Opera Theatre of NY presents Owen Wingrave

GK ArtsCenter, 29 Jay Street, Brooklyn, NY, 11201

 

May 10: New Amsterdam Opera presents Hérodiade

The Center at West Park, 165 W. 86th Street, New York, NY 10024

 

May 10 – 12: Brooklyn College Opera Theatre presents Gianni Schicchi

Don Buchwald Theater, Leonard & Claire Tow Center for the Performing Arts, 2900 Bedford Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11210

 

May 10 – 18: Rhymes With Opera presents The Impossible She

124 Bank Street Theater, 124 Bank Street, New York, NY

 

May 11 – 12: CantantiPROJECT presents Teseo

The Underground Theater: Abrons Arts Center, 466 Grand Street, New York, NY 10002

 

May 15 – 16: Americas Society presents Kopernikus

22 Boerum Place, Brooklyn, NY 11201

 

May 17: Collectio Musicorum, Inc. presents The Many Sounds of Rigoletto; the Music behind the Music

Christ and St. Stephen's Church, 120 W 69th St, New York, NY 10023

 

May 17 – May 29: On Site Opera presents Murasaki's Moon

The Astor Court, Metropolitan Museum of Arts, 1000 5th Ave, New York, NY 10028

 

May 19 – May 20: American Opera Projects presents The Stonewall Operas

The Stonewall Inn, 53 Christopher Street, New York, New York

 

May 30 – June 8: American Opera Projects presents As One

Kaufman Music Center, Merkin Hall, 129 W 67th St, New York, NY 10023

 

May 31 – June 2: Experiments in Opera presents Chunky In Heat

The Flea Theater, 20 Thomas Street, New York, NY

 

June 4 – June 8: Death of Classical presents Purcell: Dido & Aeneas

The Catacombs of the Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn

 

June 7: Opera on Tap presents New Brew

Barbes Brooklyn, 376 9th St, Brooklyn, NY 11215

 

June 13 – 14: Opera on Tap presents The Playground Operas

PS 129 - 25 W 130th St, New York, NY 10027

 

June 27 – 30: Vertical Player Repertory presents The Constitution: A Secular Oratorio

Behind The Door, 219 Court Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201

 

Date TBD: Divaria Productions presents The Human Voice

Venue TBD

 

Date TBD: Encompass New Opera Theatre presents PARADIGM SHIFTS, Music, Opera & Film Festival

Venue TBD

 

Date TBD: Paula Kimper Ensemble presents Melody Book for “Song of Myself”

Venue TBD

NYOA PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONS

American Lyric Theater

American Opera Projects

Apotheosis Opera

Ardea Arts

Beth Morrison Projects

Bronx Opera Company

Cantanti PROJECT

Center for Contemporary Opera

Chelsea Opera

Christman Opera Company

City Lyric Opera

Conservatory of Music of Brooklyn College

Create Opera

dell’Arte Opera Ensemble

Douglas Moore Fund for American Opera

Downtown Music Productions

Encompass New Opera Theatre

Experiments in Opera

Gilbert and Sullivan Light Opera Company of Long Island

Harlem Opera Theater

Heartbeat Opera

HERE Arts Center

Hunter Opera Theater

Indie Opera Podcast

International Brazilian Opera Company

Manhattan School of Music Opera Theater

Martina Arroyo Foundation National Opera Center/OPERA America

New Amsterdam Opera

New Camerata Opera

New Opera NYC

On Site Opera

Opera Breve

Opera Lafayette

operamission

Opera on Tap

OperaRox Productions

Opera Upper West

Paula Kimper Ensemble

The Professional Women Singers Association

Queens College Opera Studio

Regina Opera

Rhymes With Opera

SIGN & SING

the little OPERA theatre of NY

Untitled Theater Company No. 61

Vertical Player Repertory

VHRP Live!

Vital Opera

 

ABOUT THE NEW YORK OPERA ALLIANCE

The New York Opera Alliance (NYOA) is a consortium of New York City opera companies and producers established to enhance and support the visibility and viability of opera in NYC. Founded in 2011, NYOA has grown from 13 organizations to close to 50 strong. Since 2013, NYOA has been fiscally sponsored by OPERA America. We believe that New Yorkers and visitors to New York alike can be better informed about the breadth, range and vitality of New York City’s opera-producing community. NYOA is a community-driven organization; together, we aspire to increase awareness of participating organizations, share ideas and resources, and generate revenue for collaborative projects.

ABOUT OPERA AMERICA

OPERA America leads and serves the entire opera community, supporting the creation, presentation and enjoyment of opera. Artistic services help opera companies and creative and performing artists to improve the quality of productions and increase the creation and presentation of North American works. Information, technical and administrative services to opera companies reflect the need for strengthened leadership among staff, trustees and volunteers. Education, audience development and community services are designed to enhance all forms of opera appreciation. OPERA America provides organizational and project support to NYOA, through convenings, facilitated discussion, professional development leadership and access to OPERA America member resources. For more information, please visit operaamerica.org