Opera PATIENCE & SARAH Set for Players Theatre, 6/23-24

After a sold-out run at the 1998 Lincoln Center Festival, the opera PATIENCE & SARAH returns to New York as a staged concert performance for two nights only - Thursday, June 23rd and Friday, June 24th at 7PM at the Players Theatre (115 MacDougal Street). Considered the first opera to portray an openly romantic relationship between two self-affirming women, PATIENCE & SARAH is composed by Paula Kimper with libretto by Wende Persons. The work is based on the novel of the same title by Isabel Miller. Paula Kimper is conducting with Douglas Moser directing. Baritone Michael Kelly is featured in the cast of seven. Tickets are $42- $62 and can be purchased through https://web.ovationtix.com/ or by calling 866-811-4111.

VIDEO: The final duet from Galapagos Art Space's 2011 performance of PATIENCE & SARAH, excerpts of the opera produced by American Opera Projects. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwRKB7haVdI

PATIENCE & SARAH tells the story of two 19th-century women of different backgrounds and economic status who risk being disowned by their families to pursue a dream of sharing a life together. Hailed as "a rare and moving opera about women in love" by New York Magazine, the production features a new seven-piece orchestration for staged concert performances.

The Lincoln Center Festival run of PATIENCE & SARAH was also described by The New York Times as "A soaring affirmation in this music of the transcendent beauty of life and love. " USA Today raved: "Kimper's music recalls Richard Strauss in its soaring vocal lines." Opera News acclaimed: "The opera bubbles with glorious vocal writing" and The Wall Street Journal said "Wende Persons' libretto is a masterpiece of economy."

The story of PATIENCE & SARAH touches upon still relevant issues of gender expression and the limited opportunities for women, which from the start gained the work a strong following beyond the traditional circle of operagoers. The production, set in 19-century Connecticut, tells the story of young artist Patience White and her lover Sarah Dowling, the bright and adventurous daughter of a poor farmer. The narrative is based on the true story of painter Mary Ann Willson, who lived with her companion Miss Brundage as a farmerette in the early 19th century in Greene County, New York. In 1989, Persons' libretto made its way to composer Paula Kimper, then a creator of chamber music and incidental compositions for theater and film, who was reluctant to take on a project of such scope. Shortly after a personal epiphany sparked by seeing Wagner's The Ring Cycle at The Met, however, she decided to try her hand at it. Her score, full of romantic arias and theme-driven musical storytelling, has been referred to as "accessible, attractively lyrical" by The New York Times.

"PATIENCE & SARAH features heroic women as leading characters, as portrayed in many of my operas." - says composer Paula Kimper. "It combines my love for beautiful melodies with a romantic story. Working in a large-scale opera format reflects my aspirations as a female musician and composer in a traditionally male-dominated world. Growing up, I was told 'girls don't play the trumpet,' but I did it anyway and was one of a handful. I am pleased to see significant numbers of women making music today, and I think the new generation of female artists should feel entitled to equality," she continued.

The opera features Nadia Petrella as Patience, Elsa Quéron as Sarah, Michael Kelly as Parson Peel, Chad Kranak as Edward White, Jessica Copland as Martha White and Ma Dowling, Duncan Hartman as Pa Dowling and Bryn Holdsworth as Rachel Dowling.

This presentation at the Players Theatre is a part of the inaugural New York Opera Fest, a two-month long festival made up of members of the New York Opera Alliance (NYOA,) presented in partnership with OPERA America, the national service organization for opera and the nation's leading advocate for American opera. For more information, visit http://nyoperafest.com.

Photo by Ken Howard

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