In a Grove

An opera in seven testimonies

Libretto by Stephanie Fleischmann

Edition: Performance material

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Description

Sited within a ghost forest in the Pacific Northwest in 1922, the opera unfolds within a barren, haunted landscape devastated by wildfire. Into a terrain of broken dreams, marred by violence and obfuscated by smoke, comes a young woman who upends conventional notions of gender and narratives of victimhood, claiming agency for herself. Transpiring within a frontier territory riven by class struggle and fear of the other, this feminist retelling of Akutagawa Ryūnosuke’s classic tale manifests a world in which the environment is under siege, and wildly veering personal truths vie with absolute fact, shattering what we think we know.

Orchestral Cast

1(afl).1(cla, bcl).0.0-1.0.0.0-2perc(I. vib, crot, cabasa, 2 lg sizzle cym, 2 double bass bows; II. vib, crot, cabasa, lg bd, sandblocks, 2 double bass bows)-hp.pno(doubling midi keyboard)-vn.vc-electronics

Cast

*This part may be performed by a mezzo-soprano as needed. In addition, the roles may be split up between 8 singers, especially in the context of University productions.
The Woodcutter/The Outlaw (Luther Harlow), baritone - The Priest/The Medium, countertenor* - The Policeman/The Settler (Ambrose Raines), tenor - Leona Raines/Leona’s Mother, soprano

More Information

Title:

In a Grove

An opera in seven testimonies

Libretto by Stephanie Fleischmann

Language:

English

Edition:

Performance material

Level of difficulty:

intermediate - advanced

Publisher/Label:

Schott Music

Publishing year:

2021

Year of composition:

2021

Duration:

58 ′

World Premiere:

February 19, 2022 · Pittsburgh, PA (USA)
George R. White Opera Studio, Bitz Opera Factory
Woodcutter / The Outlaw: Yazid Gray
Policeman / The Man: Andrew Turner
Leona Raines / Leona’s Mother: Madeline Ehlinger
Priest / Medium: Chuanyuan Liu · Conductor: Antony Walker · Pittsburgh Opera
Original staging: Mary Birnbaum
(scenic)

Commissioned work :

Commissioned by the Los Angeles Opera, with production support from Pittsburgh Opera, and with additional creative and development support provided by Metropolis Ensemble, Raulee Marcus, and Steven Block