NEW CHAMBER MUSIC
ABHANDENGEKOMMEN
frank pesci
OPERA
“These people are among us, but not of us.”
The true story of eleven Sicilian dockworkers accused of a crime, tried, acquitted, and then lynched during the 1890s in New Orleans. The first Stateside suspicions of the mafia, post-reconstruction tensions, and xenophobia underpin a parable about faith, social responsibility, and self-betterment.
“Be kind to each other, because you're never alone”
Five women play poker – badly. As four of them try to exploit each other’s “tells”, the nature of their relationships comes to light. At the showdown, their mutual bonds and vulnerabilities are laid bare, as the fifth woman pegs them all and runs the table in a hilarious and heartwarming fashion.
THE SYSTEM OF SOOTHING
“Believe nothing you hear, and only half of what you see.”
While investigating a new treatment for the mentally ill, a young doctor stumbles across the thin line between reality and a terrifying masquerade. Based on a story by Edgar Allan Poe, the opera balances on the realization that one person’s madness is another’s normalcy. A winner of the 2017 Fort Worth Opera FRONTIERS showcase.
“There is nothing like Opening Day, like joining a new team.”
Josh’s girlfriend traded him to another woman in exchange for a performance artist. He copes with joining a new team, when all he wants is to be safe at home on a hopeful opening day. This off-beat, baseball-themed romantic comedy is based on a short story by SNL wunderkind, Simon Rich.
“Your little <body part> is frozen...”
A “Mad Libretto” opera. Arias and scenes from Puccini operas are presented with a new English translation and music. Performers solicit words from the audience beforehand and then sing through the piece as a Mad Lib.
A discussion about contemporary opera with Make Weird Music's Anthony Garone.