OperaFest XV: Stories On Stage at Roosevelt University Ganz Hall

2 p.m.
Clarice Assad/Lila Palmer: The Selfish Giant (concert premiere)
Commissioned by American Lyric Theater
Lawrence Edelson, Artistic and General Director
Children play in a lovely garden outside the village. They discover that a giant owns the garden, who seeks to keep them out by building a wall. One of the children teaches the giant about accepting others, sharing resources, and how the walls we build actually make us more fearful.

3 p.m.
Jake Heggie/Gene Scheer: Two Remain (Act I)
Based on a true story, Holocaust survivor Krystyna Zywulska is asked for an interview about her time in Auschwitz. As she begins to talk, the ghosts of her past, including her younger self, take over the interview.

4 p.m.
Milton Granger: Bluebeard’s Waiting Room
Bluebeard is languishing in the ICU ward of a modern hospital. His next of kin has been notified, and so five of his wives show up, straight out of an earlier era, with costumes, attitudes, and life histories to match. Bluebeard awakens just long enough to ask for his wife. Which one does he mean? The answer surprises everyone…

5 p.m.
David Shenton/Christine Steyer: On Call: COVID-19 (An opera in 3 scenes)
Winner of the 2020-21 National Opera Association Production Award, Working in Concert/Bellissima Opera’s On Call: COVID-19 looks in on a series of “Zoom” calls with six healthcare workers struggling with the unfolding pandemic and its humanitarian and personal toll, from various vantage points across the world.

These performances will be repeated on Saturday, November 5. To RSVP for Saturday’s performances, click here.

• Music Directors: Dana Brown and Shannon McGinnis
• Stage Directors: Cathy Dunn and Aaron Hunt

OperaFest is an annual festival featuring CCPA graduate students in voice with piano accompaniment (sung in English).

These performances are free and open to the public, but non-Roosevelt guests must pre-register below to attend (by noon the day of the performance) so they can be added to the University’s guest list. If RSVPing for a group, please list each person’s name in the comment box so they can be included on the security list.

Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. 

For the University’s complete and updated COVID-19 safety policies, click here.

This performance will also be live-streamed at https://youtu.be/cHDlQl5soCs.