Originally staged in 2019 at New York state's Glimmerglass Opera, Blue is showing signs of becoming a key operatic work of our time. Even with pandemic-caused delays, it has gone on to receive productions in Washington, D.C., and Seattle, garnering attention both in the U.S. and in Europe. The title refers both to the existential condition connoted by the blues and to the police, as the libretto by Tazewell Thompson tells of an African American policeman whose son is killed by a white officer during a protest. The killing ...
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Originally staged in 2019 at New York state's Glimmerglass Opera, Blue is showing signs of becoming a key operatic work of our time. Even with pandemic-caused delays, it has gone on to receive productions in Washington, D.C., and Seattle, garnering attention both in the U.S. and in Europe. The title refers both to the existential condition connoted by the blues and to the police, as the libretto by Tazewell Thompson tells of an African American policeman whose son is killed by a white officer during a protest. The killing is not shown on stage; instead, the opera deals with the son's birth; with the reactions of both parents; with a conflict between father and son as the father answers the question "What am I supposed to do?" with "Stay alive"; and with an encounter between the father and a minister after the shooting. Thompson contributes a booklet note that ought to be required reading for those aspiring to write an opera libretto, as he describes the process of learning to write and hone one...
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