Download Intimate Apparel selected for Fall 2016 Opera

MEDIA RELEASE
March 18, 2016
Contact: Ashley Tongret, Director of Public Relations
(513) 768-5526 or [email protected]
Editors’ note: Photos available upon request.
CINCINNATI OPERA AND CCM OPERA’S
OPERA FUSION: NEW WORKS
PARTNERS WITH
THE METROPOLITAN OPERA/LINCOLN CENTER THEATER’S
NEW WORKS PROGRAM
FOR FALL 2016 RESIDENCY
Intimate Apparel
Music by Ricky Ian Gordon
Libretto by Lynn Nottage
November 5-14, 2016
Funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the workshop will use the combined resources
of Cincinnati Opera and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music
Free public performance of excerpts from Intimate Apparel will be held November 14
CINCINNATI, OH—Cincinnati Opera and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music
(CCM) are pleased to announce that their groundbreaking joint program, Opera Fusion: New Works, will
partner with The Metropolitan Opera/Lincoln Center Theater’s New Works Program for the fall 2016
residency. Commissioned by the Met/LCT New Works Program, the new American opera Intimate
Apparel, by composer Ricky Ian Gordon with a libretto by Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage, will
receive a 10-day workshop in Cincinnati from November 5 to 14, 2016. The residency will culminate in a
free public performance of excerpts in Cincinnati on November 14 and a private presentation for the
Met and Lincoln Center Theater executives in New York City on November 18.
The Met/LCT New Works Program develops new opera and music theater works, providing support
during the creative process leading to a workshop production produced by The Met/LCT. The Met/LCT
New Works program is funded by a generous gift to the Met from the Francis Goelet Charitable Trusts,
and Lincoln Center Theater’s participation in the Met/LCT New Works Program is made possible by a
major grant from the Ford Foundation. Cincinnati’s Opera Fusion: New Works 2016 residency will
provide the opportunity for a preliminary workshop of Intimate Apparel, focusing on musical
development, prior to the Met/Lincoln Center Theater workshop which will follow in 2017.
Thanks to a generous grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Opera Fusion: New Works was
created in 2011 to foster the development of new American operas. The program offers composers or
composer/librettist teams the opportunity to workshop an opera during a 10-day residency in
Cincinnati, utilizing the talent, personnel, and facilities of both organizations. The workshops are cast
with a combination of CCM students and professional artists, and each workshop concludes with a
public performance. The program is led by co-artistic directors Marcus Küchle, Director of Artistic
Operations of Cincinnati Opera, and Robin Guarino, the J. Ralph Corbett Distinguished Chair of Opera at
CCM. In 2015, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation renewed the program’s funding, allowing for a second
cycle of six workshops over the next three years.
“We are grateful to The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation for renewing the funding for Opera Fusion: New
Works, and are very proud of what the program has produced thus far,” said Patricia K. Beggs, The
Harry Fath General Director & CEO of Cincinnati Opera. “We look forward to expanding our Opera
Fusion: New Works partnerships to include the Met and Lincoln Center Theater, following the success of
our previous collaborations with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Minnesota Opera, and The Dallas Opera.”
Said Peter Gelb, General Manager of the Metropolitan Opera: “We’re grateful to Opera Fusion: New
Works for playing such a vital role in the development of this important new work.”
“I’m delighted at the news of Cincinnati Opera and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of
Music’s involvement with Intimate Apparel and look forward to working with them,” said André Bishop,
Artistic Director of Lincoln Center Theater.
“The opportunities provided by Opera Fusion: New Works have a tremendous impact on the talented
students at CCM, and the magic behind this program is a direct result of the strong and mutually
beneficial partnership CCM has with Cincinnati Opera,” said Peter Landgren, the Thomas James Kelly
Professor of Music and Dean at CCM. “That said, a two-legged stool between arts organizations can only
stand firmly when a third leg is added, and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has provided that
support for this artistic partnership. The renewal of Mellon’s initial investment reflects the success that
has already been achieved through this collaboration. Expanding our partnership with Intimate Apparel
to include the Metropolitan Opera speaks to the even greater potential that lies ahead for Opera Fusion:
New Works.”
“We are thrilled to deepen our existing relationship with Ricky Ian Gordon through Opera Fusion: New
Works,” said Marcus Küchle, co-artistic director of Opera Fusion: New Works. “Cincinnati Opera is
committed to the development and presentation of new operas, and we feel Ricky’s is a contemporary
and authentic American voice that touches audiences. We hope that our involvement with Morning Star
had a small part in Ricky’s ever-increasing visibility, and we literally could not be more excited for him
and Cincinnati Opera to be working with the Met and LCT.”
In 2011, Opera Fusion: New Works awarded its first workshop to composer Douglas J. Cuomo and
librettist John Patrick Shanley in support of their new opera Doubt, which premiered at Minnesota
Opera in January 2013. In 2012, Opera Fusion: New Works provided workshops for Champion, by
composer Terence Blanchard and librettist Michael Cristofer, which premiered at Opera Theatre of
Saint Louis in June 2013; and Morning Star, by composer Ricky Ian Gordon and librettist William M.
Hoffman, which premiered at Cincinnati Opera in June 2015. In 2013, the residency went to Fellow
Travelers, by composer Gregory Spears and librettist Greg Pierce, which will have its world premiere at
Cincinnati Opera on June 17, 2016. In 2014, the program invited composer Jake Heggie and librettist
Terrence McNally to workshop Great Scott, which premiered at The Dallas Opera in October 2015. For
the final workshop of the original six-workshop grant, the residency was awarded to Meet John Doe,
with music and libretto by the late Daniel Catán. The first workshop of the second six-opera cycle was
given in October 2015 to Shalimar the Clown, by composer Jack Perla and librettist Rajiv Joseph, which
will premiere at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis on June 11, 2016.
“We are delighted to bring back Ricky Ian Gordon for this residency and we are equally thrilled to have
acclaimed playwright and librettist Lynn Nottage join us for this iteration of Opera Fusion: New Works,”
said Opera Fusion: New Works co-artistic director Robin Guarino. “Intimate Apparel provides us with an
excellent opportunity to celebrate diversity through contemporary opera. The work incorporates
powerful feminist and racial commentary, while calling for an almost entirely African American cast. This
project also provides CCM with an opportunity to strengthen its existing bonds with the Metropolitan
Opera. Many of our students graduate to the Met’s stage and three of our faculty members also belong
to the stage directing and music staff at the Met.”
“I'm very glad to bring Intimate Apparel to Cincinnati,” said composer Ricky Ian Gordon. “Workshopping
another piece with Opera Fusion: New Works, where I felt so safe and taken care of when we
workshopped Morning Star, is a wonderful opportunity. They really know what to give you so you feel
cosseted but free to explore. I feel it is exactly what we need for the next step in the development of
this piece.”
“I‘m so happy that Opera Fusion: New Works is providing an opportunity to assist in the development of
this musical adaptation of Intimate Apparel by organizing this workshop,” said Lynn Nottage, the
playwright and librettist of Intimate Apparel. “I always felt Intimate Apparel was at heart a piece that
could be sung and it has been a thrilling experience exploring all the musical possibilities of the piece
with Ricky Ian Gordon.”
About Intimate Apparel
Adapted by Lynn Nottage from her prize-winning 2003 play of the same name, Intimate Apparel tells the
story of Esther, a 35-year-old seamstress in 1905 New York City. Esther sews lingerie for a living,
interacting with a wealthy Fifth Avenue wife, a Tenderloin prostitute, and a Jewish fabric merchant on
the Lower East Side, with whom she shares a closeness that cannot be pursued further because of his
religion. Esther embarks on a letter-writing relationship with a Panama Canal laborer, leading to
marriage and ultimately heartbreak, but she maintains her strength of character and determination to
make a better life for herself.
About composer Ricky Ian Gordon
After studying composition at Carnegie Mellon University, Ricky Ian Gordon settled in New York City,
where he quickly emerged as a leading writer of vocal music that spans art song, opera, and musical
theater. Gordon's songs have been performed by such internationally renowned singers as Renée
Fleming, Dawn Upshaw, Nathan Gunn, Kelli O'Hara, Audra MacDonald, Kristin Chenoweth, and Nicole
Cabell. His operas include The Grapes of Wrath, adapted from the novel by John Steinbeck; Morning
Star, adapted from the play by Sylvia Regan; A Coffin in Egypt; and 27.
About librettist Lynn Nottage
Lynn Nottage is a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and screenwriter and a recipient of the MacArthur
Genius Grant Fellowship. Her plays include By The Way, Meet Vera Stark (Lily Award, Drama Desk
Nomination), Ruined (Pulitzer Prize, OBIE, Lucille Lortel, New York Drama Critics’ Circle, Drama Desk,
Outer Critics Circle Award, and Audelco), Intimate Apparel (American Theatre Critics and New York
Drama Critics’ Circle Awards for Best Play), and Fabulation, or The Re-Education of Undine (OBIE Award).
Nottage is a faculty member at the Yale School of Drama and teaches at Columbia School of the Arts.
About The Metropolitan Opera/Lincoln Center Theater New Works Program
The Metropolitan Opera/Lincoln Center Theater New Works Program is a co-venture between the two
institutions which aims to develop new opera and music theater works through a workshop process.
Composers and librettists are given creative and financial support as they develop their pieces and the
opportunity to hear them sung through at the culmination of a weeklong workshop with singers and
piano. There is then the potential to move on to a full commission for a production at either institution.
The first piece from the program to receive a full commission and production was Two Boys by Nico
Muhly and Craig Lucas, which received its premiere at the Met in 2011. Composers and librettists
currently working on projects for the New Works Program include Ricky Ian Gordon and Lynn Nottage;
Jeanine Tesori and George Brant; Matt Aucoin and Sarah Ruhl; David T. Little and Royce Vavrek; and
Joshua Schmidt and Dick Scanlan.
Opera Fusion: New Works is sponsored by a generous grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
Founded in 1920 and the second oldest opera company in the nation, Cincinnati Opera presents a thrilling season of
grand opera every June and July. The company's repertoire includes beloved classics and contemporary
masterworks brought to life by some of the world's most dynamic performers and creative teams.
Cincinnati Opera’s 2016 Summer Festival runs June 16 through July 29, featuring Johann Strauss, Jr.’s
Die Fledermaus, the world premiere of Gregory Spears and Greg Pierce’s Fellow Travelers, Ludwig van Beethoven’s
Fidelio, and Giacomo Puccini’s Tosca. The season will open with Opera in the Park, a free community concert in
Washington Park, on June 26. Cincinnati Opera’s 2016 season is made possible with support from ArtsWave, Ohio
Arts Council, Macy’s, The Louise Dieterle Nippert Musical Arts Fund, and many generous individuals, corporations,
and foundations.
cincinnatiopera.org
Nationally ranked and internationally renowned, the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music is the
largest single source of performing arts events in the state of Ohio. CCM’s Spring 2016 Opera Season concludes
with a Mainstage Series production of Leoš Janácek’s The Cunning Little Vixen (April 8 – 10).
CCM gratefully acknowledges the support of the Louise Dieterle Nippert Trust, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation,
The Otto M. Budig Family Foundation, The Corbett Endowment at CCM, ArtsWave, The Greater Cincinnati
Foundation, the H. Wayne Ferguson Family Foundation, The Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile, Jr./
U.S. Bank Foundation, the Frances R. Luther Charitable Trust, Macy’s, Mr. & Mrs. Edward S. Rosenthal,
and many other generous individuals and organizations.
ccm.uc.edu
THE METROPOLITAN OPERA is a vibrant home for the most creative and talented singers, conductors, composers,
musicians, stage directors, designers, visual artists, choreographers, and dancers from around the world. Since the
summer of 2006, Peter Gelb has been the Met’s general manager—the 16th in company history. Under his
leadership, the Met has been elevating its theatrical standards by significantly increasing the number of new
productions, staged by the most imaginative directors working in theater and opera, and has launched a series of
initiatives to broaden its reach internationally. These efforts to win new audiences prominently include the
successful Live in HD series of high-definition performance transmissions to movie theaters around the world, as
well as opening the house to the general public for free dress rehearsals. To revitalize its repertoire, the Met
regularly presents modern masterpieces alongside the classics. Known as the venue for the world’s greatest voices,
the Met has been under the musical direction of James Levine since 1976.
LINCOLN CENTER THEATER, under the direction of Producing Artistic Director André Bishop, is in its 31st year and
produces plays and musicals at Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont, Mitzi E. Newhouse, and Claire Tow Theaters, as
well as on Broadway and nationally and internationally. Outstanding recent productions include its Tony Awardwinning productions of War Horse, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s South Pacific, and The Coast of Utopia. LCT develops
new work through play readings, workshops, and an annual Directors Lab. LCT also presents a “platform”
discussion series, publishes the Lincoln Center Theater Review, and Open Stages, its education program, reaches
thousands of NYC public schools students annually. LCT3 is Lincoln Center Theater’s programming initiative devoted
to producing the work of new artists and developing new audiences. This spring, while Lincoln Center Theater’s
Tony Award-winning production of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s The King and I continues its open-ended run at the
Vivian Beaumont Theater, LCT is also producing the New York premiere of Marco Ramirez’s The Royale, directed by
Rachel Chavkin at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, and the LCT3 world premiere production of Greg Pierce’s Her
Requiem, directed by Kate Whoriskey, at the Claire Tow Theater. Upcoming productions include Oslo, a new play by
J.T. Rogers, directed by Bartlett Sher, beginning performances Thursday, June 16 at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater;
the LCT3 production of Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’s War, directed by Lileana Blain-Cruz, beginning performances
Saturday, May 21 at the Claire Tow Theater; and a new production of the William Finn-James Lapine musical
Falsettos, beginning performances Thursday, September 29 on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre.
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