Hunter Opera Theater, National Opera Association & The American Opera Project present the NOA Eastern Regional Conference
and Earth Day Celebration
Hunter Opera Theater in collaboration with National Opera Association & The American Opera Project present masterclasses with Brandon McShaffrey and Miriam Charney followed by a concert reading of PRECIPICE, a new chamber opera by Susan Zeeman Rogers (Concept & Design), Rima Fand (Music) and Karen Fisher (Libretto).
9:30-11:00 AM – Brandon McShaffrey: Structuring Emotional Velocity through Movement and Improvisation
11:00-12:30 PM – Miriam Charney: Contemporary Opera: Study of Vocal Methods & Strategies
PRECIPICE
2:00 - 3:30 PM
A concert reading of a new chamber opera by
Susan Zeeman Rogers (Concept & Design),
Rima Fand (Music)
and Karen Fisher (Libretto)
followed by a Q&A with Dr. Susan Gonzalez,
the creative team, and director Mallory Catlett
ABOUT PRECIPICE
Ana finds freedom in the forest, but as a child of the 1950’s her wild spirit is crushed, and her voice is stolen by adults who disregard and punish her. Rather than marry a man who expects only beauty and docility, she finds her way to the precipice of her dream, and leaps. She wakes to find herself in a surreal wilderness in which she must fight to find her voice and power as a woman, and to create a world worth returning to.
Told as an object theatre/chamber opera, Precipice sets an intimate story against epic natural landscapes, created with hand-made paper dioramas and live feed video. This contemporary fairy tale has music by Rima Fand, libretto by Karen Fisher, design by Susan Zeeman Rogers and direction by Mallory Catlett. By drawing parallels between environmental and emotional damage, Precipice looks at how we are silenced and exiled, and at how we find our way back to connection, both with each other and the natural world.
Precipice: A New Chamber Opera
PHOTOS FROM PRECIPICE
The cast of Precipice rehearses with Music Director Mila Henry, Artistic Director of The American Opera Project
The cast of Precipice rehearses with Music Director Mila Henry, Artistic Director of The American Opera Project
Susan Gonzalez, Artistic Director of Hunter Opera Theater, moderates the after show Q&A with the creative team behind Precipice, Susan Zeeman Rogers (Story & Design), Rima Fand (Composer), Karen Fischer (Librettist), and Mallory Catlett (Director).
The cast of Precipice rehearses with Music Director Mila Henry, Artistic Director of The American Opera Project