CONTEMPORARY OPERA – SPRING 2022
Here you will find classes on contemporary opera.
At each session, we view a different opera and engage in a lively discussion of its text, staging, medium, and historical and cultural background.
This semester might include the flamenco-influenced “El Público,” Douglas Cuomo’s “Doubt,” Bo Holten’s “Visit of the Royal Physician,” Korngold’s “Die Tote Stadt,” Britten’s “Billy Budd,” and “Brexit: The Opera.”
CONTEMPORARY OPERA
Bo Holton: Visit of the Royal Physician Act 1
Presenter: Steve Koening, Frieda Lipp, Victor Brener
Presentation Date: February 8, 2022
This fun story, based on a 1999 novel about the odd Christian 7th King of Denmark in the eighteenth century, is a satire, a love story, and story of court intrigue and a lust for power. Is the King insane? Is his new Physician about to cross the line with the Queen? Is the Physician going to make it a better world for the common people? And what about the Dog? Tune in, opera fans, at 2pm.
CONTEMPORARY OPERA
Bo Holton: Visit of the Royal Physician Act 2
Presenter: Steve Koening, Frieda Lipp, Victor Brener
Presentation Date: February 22, 2022
Recap: A satire, a love story, and a story of court intrigue and lust for power. Is the odd, young King Christian VII insane? Is the dog going to make a good Royal Council? The opera is based on a novel about the eighteenth century King of Denmark.
CONTEMPORARY OPERA
Philippe Hersant: Les Èclaires (Nikola Tesla), Act 1
Presenter: Steve Koening, Frieda Lipp, Victor Brener
Presentation Date: March 8, 2022
This 2021 opera is a fictionalized biography of the inventor Nikola Tesla. It depicts his arrival in America in 1884, and a stormy relationship with Thomas Edison. While “Gregor” is not interested in profit, he is surrounded by shameless industrialists who steal and exploit his inventions. Adored and ultimately mistreated by his fellow man, the philanthropic genius will only find solace in the company of birds. As with the real-life Tesla, Gregor becomes progressively obsessed with impractical projects and imagined extra-terrestrial contacts.