Opera For Everybody

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Opera for Everybody

Author : Susie Gilbert
Publisher : Faber & Faber
ISBN 13 : 057126865X
Total Pages : 722 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (712 download)

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Book Synopsis Opera for Everybody by : Susie Gilbert

Download or read book Opera for Everybody written by Susie Gilbert and published by Faber & Faber. This book was released on 2011-03-03 with total page 722 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Susie Gilbert traces the development of ENO from its earliest origins in the darkest Victorian slums of the Cut, where it was conceived as a vehicle of social reform, through two world wars, and via Sadler's Wells to its great glory days at the Coliseum and beyond. Setting the company's artistic achievements within the wider context of social and political attitudes to the arts and the ever-changing theatrical style, Gilbert provides a vivid cultural history of this unique institution's 150 years. Inspired by the idealism of Lilian Baylis, the company has been based on the belief that opera in the vernacular can not only reach out to even the least privileged members of society but also create a potent and immediate communication with its audience. With full access to ENO's archive, Gilbert has unearthed a rich range of material and held numerous interviews with a fascinating array of personalities, to weave an absorbing tale of life both in front and behind the scenes of ENO as it developed over the years.

Opera for All Seasons

Author : Marianne Williams Tobias
Publisher : Indiana University Press
ISBN 13 : 0253353408
Total Pages : 497 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (533 download)

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Book Synopsis Opera for All Seasons by : Marianne Williams Tobias

Download or read book Opera for All Seasons written by Marianne Williams Tobias and published by Indiana University Press. This book was released on 2010-06-03 with total page 497 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From operas presented in reconfigured army barracks to those mounted on a stage rivaling that of New York's Metropolitan Opera House, Indiana University Opera Theater has grown into a world-class training ground for opera's next generation. This illustrated history captures the excitement, hard work, and talent that distinguish each performance and that have made IU Opera Theater what it is today. It includes six decades of opera production from the inaugural Tales of Hoffman, a legendary Parsifal, and a performance of Martinů's Greek Passion at the Met, to the 2008 La Bohème--the first opera streamed live on the internet from Indiana University to a worldwide audience.

Opera 101

Author : Fred Plotkin
Publisher : Hachette Books
ISBN 13 : 1401306004
Total Pages : 444 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (13 download)

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Book Synopsis Opera 101 by : Fred Plotkin

Download or read book Opera 101 written by Fred Plotkin and published by Hachette Books. This book was released on 2013-07-16 with total page 444 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Opera is the fastest growing of all the performing arts, attracting audiences of all ages who are enthralled by the gorgeous music, vivid drama, and magnificent production values. If you've decided that the time has finally come to learn about opera and discover for yourself what it is about opera that sends your normally reserved friends into states of ecstatic abandon, this is the book for you. Opera 101 is recognized as the standard text in English for anyone who wants to become an opera lover--a clear, friendly, and truly complete handbook to learning how to listen to opera, whether on the radio, on recordings, or live at the opera house. Fred Plotkin, an internationally respected writer and teacher about opera who for many years was performance manager of the Metropolitan Opera, introduces the reader (whatever his or her level of musical knowledge) to all the elements that make up opera, including: A brief, entertaining history of opera; An explanation of key operatic concepts, from vocal types to musical conventions; Hints on the best way to approach the first opera you attend and how to best understand what is happening both offstage and on; Lists of recommended books and recordings, and the most complete traveler's guide to opera houses around the world. The major part of Opera 101 is devoted to an almost minute-by-minute analysis of eleven key operas, ranging from Verdi's thunderous masterpiece Rigoletto and Puccini's electrifying Tosca through works by Mozart, Donizetti, Rossini, Offenbach, Tchaikovsky, and Wagner, to the psychological complexities of Richard Strauss's Elektra. Once you have completed Opera 101, you will be prepared to see and hear any opera you encounter, thanks to this book's unprecedentedly detailed and enjoyable method of revealing the riches of opera.

Opera 101

Author : Fred Plotkin
Publisher : Hyperion
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 520 pages
Book Rating : 4.X/5 (2 download)

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Book Synopsis Opera 101 by : Fred Plotkin

Download or read book Opera 101 written by Fred Plotkin and published by Hyperion. This book was released on 1994-12 with total page 520 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Written by an opera insider and featuring an introduction by Placido Domingo, here is a thorough, friendly, and truly complete guide to learning how to love and appreciate the opera. After a brief history of opera, the book includes a guide to operatic terms, a minute-by-minute listener's guide to 11 central works, a list of recommended books and recordings and much more.

Space Opera

Author : Catherynne M. Valente
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
ISBN 13 : 1481497510
Total Pages : 304 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (814 download)

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Book Synopsis Space Opera by : Catherynne M. Valente

Download or read book Space Opera written by Catherynne M. Valente and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2018-04-10 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 2019 HUGO AWARD FINALIST, BEST NOVEL The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy meets the joy and glamour of Eurovision in bestselling author Catherynne M. Valente's science fiction spectacle, where sentient races compete for glory in a galactic musical contest…and the stakes are as high as the fate of planet Earth. A century ago, the Sentience Wars tore the galaxy apart and nearly ended the entire concept of intelligent space-faring life. In the aftermath, a curious tradition was invented—something to cheer up everyone who was left and bring the shattered worlds together in the spirit of peace, unity, and understanding. Once every cycle, the great galactic civilizations gather for the Metagalactic Grand Prix—part gladiatorial contest, part beauty pageant, part concert extravaganza, and part continuation of the wars of the past. Species far and wide compete in feats of song, dance and/or whatever facsimile of these can be performed by various creatures who may or may not possess, in the traditional sense, feet, mouths, larynxes, or faces. And if a new species should wish to be counted among the high and the mighty, if a new planet has produced some savage group of animals, machines, or algae that claim to be, against all odds, sentient? Well, then they will have to compete. And if they fail? Sudden extermination for their entire species. This year, though, humankind has discovered the enormous universe. And while they expected to discover a grand drama of diplomacy, gunships, wormholes, and stoic councils of aliens, they have instead found glitter, lipstick, and electric guitars. Mankind will not get to fight for its destiny—they must sing. Decibel Jones and the Absolute Zeroes have been chosen to represent their planet on the greatest stage in the galaxy. And the fate of Earth lies in their ability to rock.

Avidly Reads Opera

Author : Alison Kinney
Publisher : NYU Press
ISBN 13 : 1479811769
Total Pages : 114 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (798 download)

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Book Synopsis Avidly Reads Opera by : Alison Kinney

Download or read book Avidly Reads Opera written by Alison Kinney and published by NYU Press. This book was released on 2021-10-12 with total page 114 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Opera is community, comfort, art, voice, breath, life. It’s hope.” All art exists to make life more bearable. For Alison Kinney, it was the wild, fantastical world of opera that transformed her listening and her life. Whether we’re listening for the first time or revisiting the arias that first stole our hearts, Avidly Reads Opera welcomes readers and listeners to a community full of friendship, passion, critique—and, always, beautiful music. In times of delirious, madcap fun and political turmoil, opera fans have expressed their passion by dispatching records into the cosmos, building fairy-tale castles, and singing together through the arduous work of social activism. Avidly Reads Opera is a love letter to the music and those who love it, complete with playlists, a crowdsourced tip sheet from ultra-fans to newbies, and stories of the turbulent, genre-busting, and often hilarious history of opera and its audiences. Across five acts—and the requisite intermission—Alison Kinney takes us everywhere opera’s rich melodies are heard, from the cozy bedrooms of listeners at home, to exclusive music festivals, to protests, and even prisons. Part of the Avidly Reads series, this slim book gives us a new way of looking at culture. With the singular blend of personal reflection and cultural criticism featured in the series, Avidly Reads Opera is an homage to the marvelous, sensational world of opera for the casual viewer.

Who's Afraid of Opera?

Author : Michael Walsh
Publisher : Diversion Books
ISBN 13 : 1626819661
Total Pages : pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (268 download)

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Book Synopsis Who's Afraid of Opera? by : Michael Walsh

Download or read book Who's Afraid of Opera? written by Michael Walsh and published by Diversion Books. This book was released on 2015-08-04 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For anyone who has been intimidated, overwhelmed, or just plain confused by what they think opera is, WHO’S AFRAID OF OPERA? offers a lively, readable guide to what author Michael Walsh describes as "the greatest art form yet invented by humankind." From opera's origins in Renaissance Italy to The Who's rock odyssey “Tommy” and Stephen Sondheim's “Into the Woods,” Walsh explores what opera is and what it's not, what makes a great singer, and why it takes Tristan so long to die. So curtain up! It's time to settle into your seat, close up your program, and watch the house lights go down. And get ready for the musical ride of your lives.

100 Great Operas And Their Stories

Author : Henry W. Simon
Publisher : Anchor
ISBN 13 : 0385054483
Total Pages : 562 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (85 download)

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Book Synopsis 100 Great Operas And Their Stories by : Henry W. Simon

Download or read book 100 Great Operas And Their Stories written by Henry W. Simon and published by Anchor. This book was released on 1989-04-22 with total page 562 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An invaluable guide for both casual opera fans and aficionados, 100 Great Operas is perhaps the most comprehensive and enjoyable volume of opera stories ever written. From La Traviata to Aïda, from Carmen to Don Giovanni, here are the plots of the world’s best-loved operas, told in an engaging, picturesque, and readable manner. Written by noted opera authority Henry W. Simon, this distinctive reference book contains act-by-act descriptions of 100 operatic works ranging from the historic early seventeenth century masterpieces of Monteverdi to the modern classics of Gian-Carlo Menotti. In addition to highlighting the most important aspects of each opera, the author discusses the main characters, the famous turnings of plot, and the most significant arias. Here, too, is a wealth of anecdotes concerning literary background, past performances and stars, and production problems of the great operas.

Opera for Everyone

Author : Jean Grundy Fanelli
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 304 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis Opera for Everyone by : Jean Grundy Fanelli

Download or read book Opera for Everyone written by Jean Grundy Fanelli and published by . This book was released on 2004 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Not your usual opera guide, this work forgoes the usual synopses of plots, biographical particulars, and anecdotes to concentrate instead on fundamental elements of opera examining it from many angles. With a discussion of such topics as those who created it--the musicians, writers, and artists--the outcome of their work, commissioners and producers, why opera developed as it did, why particular styles became popular, when operas were given and in what environment or political climate, the reaction of audiences, and the span of success. Opera is viewed, as much as possible, from a perspective of what audiences at the time would have expected and enjoyed. All aspects of opera are explained in language appropriate for those with varying levels of knowledge about the art form. Each chapter features a particularly innovative period of operatic history and each focuses on representative and successful works of that era and concludes with a short selection of other works of the same period and style for further listening or viewing. Plates of little-known engravings--seven of Baroque stage productions--and a glossary, bibliography, and index round out the work.

Unsettling Opera

Author : David J. Levin
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
ISBN 13 : 0226475255
Total Pages : 276 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (264 download)

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Book Synopsis Unsettling Opera by : David J. Levin

Download or read book Unsettling Opera written by David J. Levin and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2008-11-15 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What happens when operas that are comfortably ensconced in the canon are thoroughly rethought and radically recast on stage? What does a staging do to our understanding of an opera, and of opera generally? While a stage production can disrupt a work that was thought to be established, David J. Levin here argues that the genre of opera is itself unsettled, and that the performance of operas, at its best, clarifies this condition by bringing opera’s restlessness and volatility to life. Unsettling Opera explores a variety of fields, considering questions of operatic textuality, dramaturgical practice, and performance theory. Levin opens with a brief history of opera production, opera studies, and dramatic composition, and goes on to consider in detail various productions of the works of Wagner, Mozart, Verdi, and Alexander Zemlinsky. Ultimately, the book seeks to initiate a dialogue between scholars of music, literature, and performance by addressing questions raised in each field in a manner that influences them all.

Reading Opera

Author : Arthur Groos
Publisher : Princeton University Press
ISBN 13 : 140085959X
Total Pages : 363 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (8 download)

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Book Synopsis Reading Opera by : Arthur Groos

Download or read book Reading Opera written by Arthur Groos and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2014-07-14 with total page 363 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Libretto-bashing has a distinguished tradition in the blood sport of opera," writes Arthur Groos in the introduction to this broad survey of critical approaches to that much-maligned genre. To examine, and to challenge, the long-standing prejudice against libretti and the scholarly tradition that has, until recently, reiterated it, Groos and Roger Parker have commissioned thirteen stimulating essays by musicologists, literary critics, and historians. Taken as a whole, the volume demonstrates that libretti are now very much within the purview of contemporary humanistic scholarship. Libretti pose questions of intertextuality, transposition of genre, and reception history. They invite a broad spectrum of contemporary reading strategies ranging from the formalistic to the feminist. And as texts for music they raise issues in the relation between the two mediums and their respective traditions. Reading Opera will be of value to anyone with a serious interest in opera and contemporary opera criticism. The essays cover the period from the early nineteenth to the early twentieth centuries, with a particular focus on works of the later nineteenth century. The contributors are Carolyn Abbate, William Ashbrook, Katherine Bergeron, Caryl Emerson, Nelly Furman, Sander L. Gilman, Arthur Groos, James A. Hepokoski, Jurgen Maehder, Roger Parker, Paul Robinson, Christopher Wintle, and Susan Youens. Originally published in 1988. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

The Secret River

Author : Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
ISBN 13 : 1442432977
Total Pages : 56 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (424 download)

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Book Synopsis The Secret River by : Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings

Download or read book The Secret River written by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2011-02-01 with total page 56 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the literary iconic author of The Yearling comes an enchanting tale that transcends decades and generations. The Great Depression has hit, and Calpurnia and her family do not have enough. Not enough money, not enough food, not enough fish for Daddy to sell at the market. With the aid of a wise forest friend, Calpurnia discovers a secret river that provides an abundance of fish, which her community desperately needs. But when she returns the next day for more, she learns there is an important distinction between need and greed. Set during a time of want, The Secret River overflows with riches: marvelous language, mystical happenings, and wondrous, awe-inspiring artwork from legendary team Leo and Diane Dillon that brims with symbolism. Both timely and timeless, this lavish picture book is a classic in the making.

Sing Me Forgotten

Author : Jessica S. Olson
Publisher : Harlequin
ISBN 13 : 1488076235
Total Pages : 321 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (88 download)

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Book Synopsis Sing Me Forgotten by : Jessica S. Olson

Download or read book Sing Me Forgotten written by Jessica S. Olson and published by Harlequin. This book was released on 2021-03-09 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Lush and lavish, Sing Me Forgotten hit all the right notes." —Erin A. Craig, New York Times bestselling author of House of Salt and Sorrow "A deliciously magical feminist twist on the beloved classic The Phantom of the Opera." —Kester Grant, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Court of Miracles Isda does not exist. At least not beyond the opulent walls of the opera house. Cast into a well at birth for being one of the magical few who can manipulate memories when people sing, she was saved by Cyril, the opera house’s owner. Since that day, he has given her sanctuary from the murderous world outside. All he asks in return is that she use her power to keep ticket sales high—and that she stay out of sight. For if anyone discovers she survived, Isda and Cyril would pay with their lives. But Isda breaks Cyril’s cardinal rule when she meets Emeric Rodin, a charming boy who throws her quiet, solitary life out of balance. His voice is unlike any she’s ever heard, but the real shock comes when she finds in his memories hints of a way to finally break free of her gilded prison. Haunted by this possibility, Isda spends more and more time with Emeric, searching for answers in his music and his past. But the price of freedom is steeper than Isda could ever know. For even as she struggles with her growing feelings for Emeric, she learns that in order to take charge of her own destiny, she must become the monster the world tried to drown in the first place. "Enchanting, lush, and decadent." —Adalyn Grace, author of All the Stars and Teeth Also by Jessica S. Olson: A Forgery of Roses

A History of Opera

Author : Carolyn Abbate
Publisher : W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN 13 : 0393089533
Total Pages : 576 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (93 download)

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Book Synopsis A History of Opera by : Carolyn Abbate

Download or read book A History of Opera written by Carolyn Abbate and published by W. W. Norton & Company. This book was released on 2015-09-08 with total page 576 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “The best single volume ever written on the subject, such is its range, authority, and readability.”—Times Literary Supplement Why has opera transfixed and fascinated audiences for centuries? Carolyn Abbate and Roger Parker answer this question in their “effervescent, witty” (Die Welt, Germany) retelling of the history of opera, examining its development, the musical and dramatic means by which it communicates, and its role in society. Now with an expanded examination of opera as an institution in the twenty-first century, this “lucid and sweeping” (Boston Globe) narrative explores the tensions that have sustained opera over four hundred years: between words and music, character and singer, inattention and absorption. Abbate and Parker argue that, though the genre’s most popular and enduring works were almost all written in a distant European past, opera continues to change the viewer— physically, emotionally, intellectually—with its enduring power.

Conducting Opera

Author : Joseph Rescigno
Publisher : University of North Texas Press
ISBN 13 : 1574418041
Total Pages : 311 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (744 download)

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Book Synopsis Conducting Opera by : Joseph Rescigno

Download or read book Conducting Opera written by Joseph Rescigno and published by University of North Texas Press. This book was released on 2020-06-15 with total page 311 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Conducting Opera discusses operas in the standard repertory from the perspective of a conductor with a lifetime of experience performing them. It focuses on Joseph Rescigno’s approach to preparing and performing these masterworks in order to realize what opera can uniquely achieve: a fusion of music and drama resulting in a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. Opening with a chapter discussing his performance philosophy, Rescigno then covers Mozart’s most-performed operas, standards of the bel canto school including Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia, five of Verdi’s works including La traviata, a selection of Wagner’s compositions followed by French Romantic operas such as Bizet’s Carmen, Puccini’s major works, and finally four operas by Richard Strauss. A useful appendix contains a convenient guide to the scores available online. Conducting Opera includes practical advice about propelling a story forward and bringing out the drama that the music is meant to supply, as well as how to support singers in their most difficult moments. Rescigno identifies particularly problematic passages and supplies suggestions about how to navigate them. In addition, he provides advice on staying true to the several styles under discussion.

Sing for Your Life

Author : Daniel Bergner
Publisher : Little, Brown
ISBN 13 : 0316300659
Total Pages : 217 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (163 download)

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Book Synopsis Sing for Your Life by : Daniel Bergner

Download or read book Sing for Your Life written by Daniel Bergner and published by Little, Brown. This book was released on 2016-09-27 with total page 217 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The New York Times bestseller about a young black man's journey from violence and despair to the threshold of stardom: "A beautiful tribute to the power of good teachers" (Terry Gross, Fresh Air). "One of the most inspiring stories I've come across in a long time."-Pamela Paul, New York Times Book Review Ryan Speedo Green had a tough upbringing in southeastern Virginia: his family lived in a trailer park and later a bullet-riddled house across the street from drug dealers. His father was absent; his mother was volatile and abusive. At the age of twelve, Ryan was sent to Virginia's juvenile facility of last resort. He was placed in solitary confinement. He was uncontrollable, uncontainable, with little hope for the future. In 2011, at the age of twenty-four, Ryan won a nationwide competition hosted by New York's Metropolitan Opera, beating out 1,200 other talented singers. Today, he is a rising star performing major roles at the Met and Europe's most prestigious opera houses. Sing for Your Life chronicles Ryan's suspenseful, racially charged and artistically intricate journey from solitary confinement to stardom. Daniel Bergner takes readers on Ryan's path toward redemption, introducing us to a cast of memorable characters -- including the two teachers from his childhood who redirect his rage into music, and his long-lost father who finally reappears to hear Ryan sing. Bergner illuminates all that it takes -- technically, creatively -- to find and foster the beauty of the human voice. And Sing for Your Life sheds unique light on the enduring and complex realities of race in America.

The Passions of Peter Sellars

Author : Susan McClary
Publisher : University of Michigan Press
ISBN 13 : 047212479X
Total Pages : 224 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (721 download)

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Book Synopsis The Passions of Peter Sellars by : Susan McClary

Download or read book The Passions of Peter Sellars written by Susan McClary and published by University of Michigan Press. This book was released on 2019-01-25 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Recognized as one of the most innovative and influential directors of our time, Peter Sellars has produced acclaimed—and often controversial—versions of many beloved operas and oratorios. He has also collaborated with several composers, including John C. Adams and Kaija Saariaho, to create challenging new operas. The Passions of Peter Sellars follows the development of his style, beginning with his interpretations of the Mozart-Da Ponte operas, proceeding to works for which he assembled the libretti and even the music, and concluding with his celebrated stagings of Bach’s passions with the Berlin Philharmonic. Many directors leave the musical aspects of opera entirely to the singers and conductor. Sellars, however, immerses himself in the score, and has created a distinctive visual vocabulary to embody musical gesture on stage, drawing on the energies of the music as he shapes characters, ensemble interaction, and large-scale dramatic trajectories. As a leading scholar of gender and music, and the history of opera, Susan McClary is ideally positioned to illuminate Sellars’s goal to address both the social tensions embodied in these operas as well as the spiritual dimensions of operatic performance. McClary considers Sellars’s productions of Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro, Don Giovanni, and Così fan tutte; Handel’s Theodora; Messiaen’s Saint François d’Assise; John C. Adams’s Nixon in China, The Death of Klinghoffer, El Niño, and Doctor Atomic; Kaija Saariaho’s L’amour de loin, La Passion de Simone, and Only the Sound Remains; Purcell’s The Indian Queen; and Bach’s passions of Saint Matthew and Saint John. Approaching Sellars’s theatrical strategies from a musicological perspective, McClary blends insights from theater, film, and literary scholarship to explore the work of one of the most brilliant living interpreters of opera.