AOP takes Hagoromo on Tour - First Stop: The Pocantico Center
American Opera Project’s premier of Hagoromo at the BAM Harvey Theatre last year was a major success that “seamlessly integrated the worlds of experimental music, dance, theatre, opera, puppetry and fashion into a rich, sober whole” (Financial Times.) This month AOP takes the praised, multi-genre opera to Tarrytown, NY to perform a 50-minute fully-staged excerpt at The Pocantico Center-Kykuit House. Even those who were lucky enough to catch the sold-out premiere will have surprises in store since the excerpts will contain some new dances and puppetry ideas. The performance will take place at 3:30pm on Saturday, September 24th on the lawn of the Kykuit House, which has been the home to four generations of the Rockefeller family. It will follow a two-week residency at which the creative team will be reimagining sections of the work in preparation for a projected national tour in the 2017-18 season. Both the performance and residency are made possible through the generous support of the Rockefeller Brothers Fund.
Hagoromo is a multidisciplinary work inspired by one of the masterpieces of Japanese Noh drama about the fateful encounter between a fallen angel and a poor fisherman, performed by former New York City Ballet principal dancers Wendy Whelan and Jock Soto. Director David Michalek's thoroughly contemporary vision is a bold experiment in hybrid forms: a chamber opera composed by Nathan Daviss and librettist Brendan Pelsue, with dance choreographed by David Neumann, puppetry by Chris M. Green performed by puppeteers Ren Carrillo, Tristan Farmer, Catherine Gowl, Leah Hoffman, Rowan Magee, and Erin Orr, dramaturgy by Norman Frisch, and costumes created by the celebrated Belgian designer Dries Van Noten. The work also includes recorded music from the 2015 World Premiere production at the BAM Fisher featuring contralto Katalin Károlyi and tenor Peter Tantsits, the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), and Brooklyn Youth Chorus.
Tickets to the Sep. 24th performance are limited and available at AOP's Events Page. Rain date is Sunday, September 25.
