Mon 2/4-Sun 2/10
If you think of opera as a period piece, a genre that is musty with history, think again. Composers, librettists and directors are rethinking opera constantly and looking for news ways to use it to express contemporary ideas. That’s what Cleveland Opera Theatre’s {NOW} fest, now in its third year, is about. It stands for “New Opera Works,” and for a week, that’s what you can see and hear.
The weeklong festival is unique because you can see works in various stages of development — readings, workshop scene performances and full productions, all free. There are also talkbacks where audience members can share their thoughts with the performers and creative team and learn from them why they made the choices they did.
And not only is it collaborating with various other music programs and organizations — Oberlin Conservatory, the Cleveland Composers’ Guild, Cleveland Public Theatre, Knoxville’s Marble City Opera, New York City’s On Site Opera and Baldwin Wallace Conservatory of Music where {NOW} Fest ’19 will be in residence — but it’s bringing in three special guests, composer/pianist Jake Heggie, up-and-coming composer Griffin Candey, and soprano Ann Moss, who specializes in contemporary music.
Find a full schedule of events here.
Berea, OH 44017
Berea, OH 44017