WHEN:
Saturday, October 12, 2024, at 7:30 p.m
WHERE:
New England Conservatory’s Jordan Hall
30 Gainsborough Street
Boston, MA
TICKETS:
$35+
For more information and tickets visit the Odyssey Opera and Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP) website.
A spokesperson describes the event as follows:
“...With scores by George Gershwin, libretti by Ira Gershwin, and books by George S. Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind, the stories of Of Thee I Sing (1931) and Let ‘Em Eat Cake (1933) are both centered on American politics: the former being a politically correct Pulitzer Prize-winning musical; the latter, a politically incorrect flop. When it was first performed on Broadway, Of Thee I Sing was a hit with over 440 performances. It won the Pulitzer Prize in 1932 in Drama, the first musical to win that prestigious award. The Prize Committee said: “Of Thee I Sing is not only coherent and well-knit enough to class as a play, but it is a biting and true satire on American politics and the public attitude towards them.” The Gershwins teamed up again with Kaufman and Ryskind for their second and final collaboration, the 1933 sequel Let ‘Em Eat Cake. The show ran just 89 performances and is largely forgotten about today. Let ‘Em Eat Cake concerns the actions of a rogue President who lost re-election, fires the Supreme Court, stages a military coup, and paints the White House blue..."
Performers:
Heather Buck (soprano), Mary Turner
Aaron Engebreth (baritone), President John P. Wintergreen
Abigail Paschke (soprano), Diana Devereaux/Trixie Flynn
Neal Ferreira (tenor), French Ambassador/Kruger
Steven Goldstein (tenor), Vice President Alexander Throttlebottom
Odyssey Opera chorus
Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP)
Gil Rose, conductor
Program (concert versions):
Of Thee I Sing (1931)
Let ‘Em Eat Cake (1933)
Music by George Gershwin
Libretti by Ira Gershwin
Based on books by George S. Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind
