''Angel's Bone'' is an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

by composer

Du Yun Du Yun (traditional Chinese: 杜韻, simplified Chinese: 杜韵) is a Chinese-born American composer, performer, vocalist and performance artist. She won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Music for her opera '' Angel's Bone'', with libretto by Royc ...

and

librettist A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major litu ...

Royce Vavrek Royce Vavrek is a Canadian-born Brooklyn-based librettist, playwright, dance scenarist, musical theatre writer and filmmaker known for his collaborations with composers David T. Little, Missy Mazzoli, Mikael Karlsson, Ricky Ian Gordon, Paola Prest ...

in one act that follows the plight of two angels discovered on earth who are forced into spiritual and sexual slavery at the hands of a financially troubled couple. The work is a contemporary parable that explores the dark effects behind modern-day slavery, and human trafficking and probes the psyche of traffickers. Du Yun draws her inspiration from a range of musical genres – from classical to

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

to the cabaret.

Synopsis

''Angel's Bone'' follows the plight of two angels whose nostalgia for earthly delights has, mysteriously, brought them back to our world. Battered and bruised from their long journey, they are found by a husband and wife, Mr. and Mrs. X.E. Facing a financial crisis, the couple had grown far apart. The unspoken aggression between them is palpable. Nevertheless, when they find the fallen cherubs in their garden, Mr. and Mrs. X.E. Set out to nurse the wounded angels back to health. They bathe them, wash the dirt from their nails and lock them in a room, leaving them in a claw-foot bathtub for a bed. They then decide to exploit the magical beings, clipping their wings and forcing them into prostitution to earn back their plucked feathers.

Roles and performance history

The original 35-minute chamber version of “Angel’s Bone” was commissioned by the Mann Center for the Performing Arts, and directed by Habib Azar.

Julian Wachner use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = , death_cause = , body_discovered = , resting_place = , resting_place_coordinates = ...

conducted the world premiere performance of the full-length opera with Novus NY and the

Trinity Wall Street Trinity Church is a historic parish church in the Episcopal Diocese of New York, at the intersection of Wall Street and Broadway in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. Known for its history, location, architecture and ...

Choir. The production, which opened on January 6, 2016, at the 3LD Art & Technology Center in

Greenwich Street Greenwich Street is a north–south street in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan. It extends from the intersection of Ninth Avenue (Manhattan), Ninth Avenue and Gansevoort Street in the Meatpacking District, Manhat ...

Lower Manhattan Lower Manhattan (also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York) is the southernmost part of Manhattan, the central borough for business, culture, and government in New York City, which is the most populated city in the United States with ...

, as part of the

Prototype Festival Prototype Festival is an annual, weeklong contemporary opera and musical theater festival held in New York City. Program Prototype Festival is an annual, weeklong festival of contemporary opera and musical theater. The festival encourages n ...

in New York City, was directed by

Michael McQuilken Michael McQuilken is an American, New York-based theater and opera director, filmmaker, and musician. Early life Born and raised in Beaverton, Oregon, McQuilken moved to Seattle, Washington in 1997. He began creating fringe theatre while earning a ...

and co-produced by Beth Morrison Projects, HERE, and Trinity Wall Street.Trinity of Wall Street Choir, NOVUS NY, Wachner, Julian. National Sawdust. 2017, compact disc. Performance time: about 80 minutes The opera's premiere in Asia took place on 10 November 2018 at the

Kwai Tsing Theatre Kwai Tsing Theatre () is a major performance venue in Kwai Chung, New Territories, Hong Kong. It is located in Kwai Fong, near Kwai Fong MTR station. It was built by the Regional Council and opened on 18 November 1999 to provide a medium-size venu ...

in Hong Kong during the New Vision Art Festival . The

Ventura College Ventura College is a public community college in Ventura, California. Established in 1925, the college has a campus with an enrollment of 13,763 students. It is part of the Ventura County Community College District. History Ventura College ...

streamed a production in January 2021.

Critical reception

"Du Yun's audacious and searing ''Angel's Bone''. It's an appallingly good work when you consider that it takes on the subject of child trafficking and mixes in elements of magic realism and a musical cocktail of Renaissance polyphony, electronica, Modernism, punk rock and cabaret ... The director, Michael McQuilken, drew courageous and memorable performances from all." Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. "''Angel's Bone'' is a mature and complex work. It is a fable inside an allegory and its soundscape ranges across the history of Western music." Natalie Axton,

Hyperallergic ''Hyperallergic'' is an online arts magazine, based in Brooklyn, New York. Founded by the art critic Hrag Vartanian and his husband Veken Gueyikian in October 2009, the site describes itself as a "forum for serious, playful, and radical thinking ...

. "Disturbing, powerful and original, effectively using electronics and video, the opera ended with the evil wife tearfully pleading her case on daytime TV, adding the final nail of credibility to a work that gave me nightmares, yet one that I would nonetheless see again."

Anne Midgette Anne Midgette (born June 22, 1965) is an American music critic who was the first woman to write classical music criticism regularly for ''The New York Times''. She was the chief classical music critic of ''The Washington Post'' from 2008 to 2 ...

, ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

''. "Mezzo Abigail Fischer's wonderfully pitiless demeanor and chilly coloratura set up a Lady Macbeth-like Mrs. X.E.; Kyle Pfortmiller brought out the brutish insecurity of her husband, so easily persuaded to do her dirty work. Kyle Bielfield's wide vocal range and sweetness embodied the heartbreaking innocence of the Boy Angel; as the Girl Angel, Jennifer Charles's nonclassical voice scraped and howled against an electronic score, making her pain excruciatingly audible." Heidi Waleson, ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

''. The opera received the 2017

Pulitzer Prize for Music The Pulitzer Prize for Music is one of seven Pulitzer Prizes awarded annually in Letters, Drama, and Music. It was first given in 1943. Joseph Pulitzer arranged for a music scholarship to be awarded each year, and this was eventually converted i ...

. The Pulitzer jury described the piece as a bold work "that integrates vocal and instrumental elements and a wide range of styles into a harrowing allegory for human trafficking in the modern world." Du Yun is the first Asian woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Music.

Recordings

* Abigail Fischer (Mrs. X.E.), Kyle Pfortmiller (Mr. X.E.), Jennifer Charles (Girl Angel), Kyle Bielfield (Boy Angel), Thomas McCargar (Man on the TV), Melanie Russell (Female Customer/TV Host), Choir of Trinity Wall Street, NOVUS NY, recorded at National Sawdust, Williamsburg, New York, conducted by Julian Wachner. Label: VIA Records 2017."''Angel's Bone'' (2017)"
album

References

External links

*, Beth Morrison Projects * * *
Du Yun's website
{{Authority control 2016 operas Operas One-act operas English-language operas Pulitzer Prize for Music-winning works Opera world premieres at the Prototype Festival Operas by Du Yun Works about human trafficking Angels in popular culture