Based on Jean Cocteau's 1950 retelling of the Orpheus myth, Orphée is a parable on the
life of an artist in which the poets Orphée and Cégeste, Eurydice, and a mysterious Princess interact within the worlds of the living and the dead. Love eventually triumphs,
but The Princess has violated the laws of life and death, and is banished into oblivion.
Philip Glass’s Orphée finds the composer “at his most inventive” (Washington Times), bringing his signature ostinato figures to the work, but creating a “lyrical and even seductive” whole, a “fast-moving opera that grabs hold from the first jazzy flourishes”(Baltimore Sun). The Albany Times-Union called the production “a stunner.”
Matthew Worth (The Barber of Seville, 2010) leads the cast as Orphée, alongside former Resident Artist Caroline Worra as Eurydice. Heather Buck makes her Pittsburgh Opera
debut as La Princesse in this chic production from Glimmerglass Opera, complete with a portrait that is an homage to Chuck Close. Sam Helfrich (Eugene Onegin
, 2009) returns as stage director. Music Director Antony Walker conducts.
Cast and Creative Team for Orphée at Benedum Center for the Performing Arts
Orphée
Matthew Worth
Conductor
Antony Walker
Director
Sam Helfrich
Costume Designer
Kaye Voyce
