Fort Worth Opera Announces Partnership with American Lyric Theater for Upcoming JFK Opera, 2016

Fort Worth Opera General Director Darren K. Woods today shared further details about the highly anticipated world premiere of the company's third commissioned opera, JFK (working title), by the sensational and highly acclaimed team of composer David T. Little and librettist Royce Vavrek. The opera, which serves as the crown jewel of Fort Worth Opera's (FWOpera's) 70th anniversary season in 2016, is the final work in three years of world premieres from the company that begin during the upcoming 2014 season. The world premiere production of JFK will take place at Fort Worth's renowned Bass Performance Hall on April 16, 2016.

Highlighting its dedication to introducing new works to the public, FWOpera is pleased to announce it has entered into collaboration with New York City's distinguished American Lyric Theater (ALT). ALT joins FWOpera as a developmental co-commissioner for JFK.

The opera, first announced in 2012 as the final work of Phase One of Opera of the Americas-Fort Worth Opera's ten-year artistic commitment to the production of work from contemporary composers of the Americas-reflects a significant moment not only in American history, but in Texas's local history as well. JFK will tell the story of the lives and relationships of those connected to the 35th President of the United States, with a focus on their moments in Fort Worth the morning before his fateful trip to Dallas. The commissioned production reinforces FWOpera's position in the industry as a champion of American contemporary composers.

In making the announcement Mr. Woods stated, "We are delighted to be working with Lawrence Edelson on this project. ALT and Larry particularly were chosen because of their wonderful track record of developing new operas. We first met Royce Vavrek on a project that he was collaborating on with Larry and it seemed a natural fit to work with Larry on bringing JFK to life."

"American Lyric Theater is thrilled to co-commission JFK with Fort Worth Opera," said Mr. Edelson. "ALT prides itself providing invaluable resources to composers and librettists, as well as to other opera companies across the country. Through this partnership, we are able to support this incredibly exciting project, and at the same time, support one of our distinguished alumni, Royce Vavrek, and David T. Little. The collaboration will also enable ALT to draw upon Fort Worth Opera's producing expertise, as we make plans to bring this exciting new work to New York City audiences after it premieres in Texas."

Kurt Howard, Fort Worth Opera Producing Director commented, "FWOpera is looking forward to partnering with an expert organization in the art of compositional development. It is a perfect synergy of ALT's developmental program and the full producing experience of Fort Worth Opera to bring a completely new work to the American opera world. We are using each of our strengths in a partnership that will be stronger than our individual parts - a partnership that will fully support the creative talents of David T. Little and Royce Vavrek."

ALT will present two public events in New York City in conjunction with FWOpera, leading up to the 2016 world premiere of JFK in Fort Worth. The first event, taking place this fall, is a libretto workshop culminating with a The Living Libretto: JFK on Saturday, November 9, 2013, at The National Opera Center in New York City. The event will feature Mr. Vavrek reading excerpts of the libretto in progress. Immediately following will be a panel discussion with Mr. Vavrek and Mr. Little, along with dramaturges Cori Ellison and Michael Cohen, historical researcher William V. Madison, Mr. Woods, and Mr. Edelson exploring the challenge of adapting historical subject matter for the opera stage, and the portrayal of famous, iconic figures in opera, among other topics. (Please visit www.altnyc.org for further details and tickets for this event.) The second event, a concert reading of the score in progress, will take place in New York City in the fall of 2014 (details to be announced at a later date).

Further details about JFK, including the cast and creative team for the world premiere, will be announced in 2015.

ABOUT COMPOSER DAVID T. LITTLE
David T. Little's potently dramatic music draws upon his experience as a rock drummer, and fuses classical and popular idioms to powerful effect. His music has been performed throughout the world-including in Dresden, London, Edinburgh, LA, Montreal, and at the Tanglewood, Aspen, MATA and Cabrillo Festivals-by the London Sinfonietta, Alarm Will Sound, eighth blackbird, So Percussion, ensemble courage, Dither, NOW Ensemble, PRISM Quartet, Praxis Quartet, Aeolus Quartet, Newspeak, the New World Symphony, Beth Morrison Projects, Peak Performances @ Montclair, American Opera Projects, New York City Opera, the Grand Rapids Symphony, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra under Marin Alsop, at the Park Avenue Armory, and on the Ecstatic Music Festival and the 25th anniversary Bang On A Can Marathon. He has received awards and recognition from The American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, Meet The Composer, the American Music Center, the Harvey Gaul Competition, BMI, and ASCAP, and has received commissions from Carnegie Hall, the Baltimore Symphony, the Albany Symphony, the New World Symphony, Third Coast Percussion, Kronos Quartet, Maya Beiser, Todd Reynolds, Alarm Will Sound, the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, the University of Michigan, and Dawn Upshaw's Vocal Arts program at the Bard Conservatory. The Wall Street Journal called Little's first full-length opera, Dog Days, "one of the most exciting new operas of recent years," and The New York Times cited Dog Days as one of two highlights of the season, stating that the work "proved beyond any doubt that opera has both a relevant present and a bright future." Little's multi-media music theatre work, Soldier Songs (2006), based on interviews with veterans of five wars, received its New York City premiere in January 2013 in the inaugural PROTOTYPE Festival. Recent works include AGENCY for the Kronos Quartet, Haunt of Last Nightfall for Third Coast Percussion; RADIANT CHiLD for the New World Symphony; Conspiracy Theory for Darcy James Argue's Secret Society, a new music big band; CHARM for the Baltimore Symphony under Marin Alsop; haunted topography for Alarm Will Sound; and Am I Born for the Brooklyn Philharmonic, Brooklyn Youth Chorus and soprano Mellissa Hughes, under Alan Pierson. Upcoming projects include new works for the London Sinfonietta, Newspeak, cellist Maya Beiser, violinist Todd Reynolds, a new opera, JFK (working title), commissioned by the Fort Worth Opera and a new work commissioned by The Metropolitan Opera and Lincoln Center Theater's new works program. He is also currently developing a new multimedia theater work, Artaud in the Black Lodge with legendary Outrider poet Anne Waldman. From 2010-2012, Little was the Executive Director of the MATA Festival. He is currently the Director of Composition at Shenandoah Conservatory, and the founding artistic director of the amplified chamber ensemble, Newspeak.

ABOUT LIBRETTIST ROYCE VAVREK
Royce Vavrek is a Canadian filmmaker, librettist, playwright, and musical theatre writer known for his collaborations with composers David T. Little, Missy Mazzoli, and Ricky Ian Gordon, soprano Lauren Worsham, producers Beth Morrison and Lawrence Edelson, and conductor Alan Pierson. His work has been presented at or performed by the Brooklyn Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Carnegie Hall, International Contemporary Ensemble, and Opera America, among others. His current commissions include operas for Opera Theatre of Saint Louis and Fort Worth Opera and a musical for Signature Theater. Mr. Vavrek's filmmaking credits include From Sky and Soil, which was created as part of the Corus Young Filmmakers Initiative for broadcast on the W Network through a prize administered by the Canadian Film and Television Production Association.

ABOUT AMERICAN LYRIC THEATER
American Lyric Theater (ALT) was founded in 2005 by Lawrence Edelson to build a new body of operatic repertoire for new audiences by nurturing composers and librettists, developing sustainable artistic collaborations, and contributing new works to the national canon. Many opera companies commission and perform new works, but ALT is the only company in the United States that offers extensive, full-time mentorship for emerging operatic writers. While the traditional company model focuses on producing a season, ALT's focus is on serving the needs of composers and librettists, developing new works, and collaborating with larger producing companies to help usher those works into the repertoire. Operas developed through the CLDP and by CLDP alumni have been presented by a wide variety of companies, including Tulsa Opera, Fort Worth Opera, Urban Arias, Center City Opera, San Francisco Conservatory, New York City Opera VOX, and Beth Morrison Projects. In 2012, ALT was the first company dedicated to artist mentorship rather than operatic production to be recognized by OPERA America as a Professional Company Member - a testament to ALT's service to the field. For more information about American Lyric Theater, please visit www.altnyc.org

ABOUT FORT WORTH OPERA
Founded in 1946, Fort Worth Opera is the oldest continually performing opera company in Texas, and one of the 14 oldest opera companies in the United States. Under the leadership of General Director Darren K. Woods since 2001, the organization has gained national attention from critics and audiences alike for its artistic quality and willingness to take risks. Known throughout the operatic world as a champion of new and rarely-performed works, the company has taken a leadership role in producing contemporary operas. In 2007, when the company changed its fall/winter schedule to a condensed one-month long Festival in the spring, FWOpera staged its first world premiere, Frau Margot, and followed up the next season with Angels in America (which resulted in More Life: the Art and Science of AIDS, a community-wide collaboration amongst organizations in the performing and visual arts, children's education, medicine, and social services), Dead Man Walking in 2009, the world premiere of Before Night Falls in 2010, and Hydrogen Jukebox in 2011. The 2012 Festival staged the regional premieres of Mark Adamo's Lysistrata and Jake Heggie's Three Decembers, the first time the two composers' works have been co-programmed, and the 2013 season featured the regional premiere of Tom Cipullo's Glory Denied, as well as the inaugural season of its new works showcase, Frontiers, featuring works by eight composers from the Americas. Fort Worth Opera's CD recordings of Frau Margot, Before Night Fall, and Glory Denied are available on the Albany label.

The company's upcoming 2014 season, part of Phase One of its recently announced ten-year artistic vision Opera of the Americas-funded in part by support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation-includes two premieres - the professional world premiere of Daniel Crozier and Peter M. Krask's With Blood, With Ink; and the regional premiere and national co-production of Kevin Puts and Mark Campbell's Pulitzer Prize award-winning Silent Night. Reinforcing its leadership role in contemporary opera, the 2014 Festival includes the second season of its annual new works program, Frontiers, showcasing new works by composers from the Americas. The company will also feature fresh productions of two popular works: the company's second staging of Bizet's The Pearl Fishers, last performed in 1983; and Mozart's Così fan tutte, last staged in 1995. www.fwopera.org

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