''Marnie'' is an opera by
Nico Muhly
Nico Asher Muhly (; born August 26, 1981) is an American contemporary classical music composer and arranger who has worked and recorded with both classical and pop musicians. A prolific composer, he has composed for many notable symphony orchestras ...
to a
libretto
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 theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...
by
Nicholas Wright based on the
1961 novel by
Winston Graham
Winston Mawdsley Graham OBE, born Winston Grime (30 June 1908 – 10 July 2003), was an English novelist best known for the Poldark series of historical novels set in Cornwall, though he also wrote numerous other works, including contemporary ...
.
Performance history
The opera was commissioned by the
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...
of New York and was first performed in a co-production of the Met and the
English National Opera
English National Opera (ENO) is an opera company based in London, resident at the London Coliseum in St Martin's Lane. It is one of the two principal opera companies in London, along with The Royal Opera. ENO's productions are sung in English ...
.
The production design, which employed
video projections, was by Julian Crouch and
59 Productions, the costumes, by
Arianne Phillips
Arianne Phillips (born April 26, 1963) is an American costume designer. Phillips was recognized for her work on the Broadway musical '' Hedwig and the Angry Inch'', starring Neil Patrick Harris, earning her a Tony award nomination for Best Cost ...
, and the
stage lighting
Stage lighting is the craft of lighting as it applies to the production of theater, dance, opera, and other performance arts. , by
Kevin Adams
Kevin () is the anglicized form of the Irish masculine given name (; mga, Caoimhghín ; sga, Cóemgein ; Latinized as ). It is composed of "dear; noble"; Old Irish and ("birth"; Old Irish ).
The variant ''Kevan'' is anglicized from , an ...
.
[Production details]
English National Opera[''Marnie'']
October 19, 2019 (premiere), Metropolitan Opera Archive. The New York performances, conducted by Robert Spano
Robert Spano ( ; born 7 May 1961, Conneaut, Ohio) is an American conductorDavidson, Justin. "CLASSICAL MUSIC: Looking for Magic: Mixing visuals and language into a performance is just part of conductor Robert Spano's pursuit of orchestral risk" ...
(in his Met debut), featured Isabel Leonard
Isabel Leonard (born February 18, 1982) is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer based in New York City. She is of Argentine ancestry on her mother's side.
Education
Leonard was born in New York City. For five years she sang with the Manhattan ...
(Marnie), Christopher Maltman
Christopher Maltman (born 6 February 1970) is a British operatic baritone.
Christopher Maltman was born in Cleethorpes and was educated at Warwick University where he received a degree in Biochemistry and subsequently studied music at the Royal A ...
(Mark Rutland), Iestyn Davies
Iestyn Davies (born 16 September 1979) is a British classical countertenor.
Education and background
Davies was born in York, England and first studied piano and recorder, mentored in his early years by his father Ioan, the founding cellist ...
(Terry Rutland), Anthony Dean Griffey (Mr Strutt), Denyce Graves
Denyce Graves (born March 7, 1964) is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer.
Early life
Graves was born on March 7, 1964, in Washington, D.C., to Charles Graves and Dorothy (Middleton) Graves-Kenner. She is the middle of three children and w ...
(Marnie's Mother), Ashley Emerson
Ashley Emerson is an American soprano. She has made more than 60 opera appearances since 2007, including starring roles at major venues; and she has received acclaim from various sources. #
Early life
Daughter of Robert and Beth Emerson, Emerson ...
(Laura Fleet), Stacey Tappan
Stacey Tappan (born June 13, 1973) is an American coloratura soprano.
Tappan was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and grew up in Pasadena, California. Both her parents are instrumental musicians.
She studied in the voice program at Chapman Uni ...
(Dawn), Marie Te Hapuku
Marie Te Hapuku (formerly Marie-Adele McArthur) is an operatic soprano from Gisborne, New Zealand, and is a direct descendant of the Māori chief, Te Hapuku., of the Ngāti Kahungunu tribe.
Life and career
She made her professional debut with Ut ...
(Miss Fedder), and Ian Koziara (Derek).[ The seventh and last performance of ''Marnie'' in the New York season was transmitted in ]high-definition video
High-definition video (HD video) is video of higher resolution and quality than standard-definition. While there is no standardized meaning for ''high-definition'', generally any video image with considerably more than 480 vertical scan lines (No ...
as part of the Metropolitan Opera Live in HD
Metropolitan Opera Live in HD (also known as The Met: Live in HD) is a series of live opera performances transmitted in high-definition video via satellite from the Metropolitan Opera in New York City to select venues, primarily movie theaters, ...
series.[''Marnie'']
November 10, 2019 (last night), Metropolitan Opera Archive. It is now available for streaming at Met Opera on Demand with a subscription or rental fee, but was provided free of charge on April 30 and November 24, 2020, and on June 28, 2021.
Roles
In an interview during the Met Opera's 2018 Live in HD stream of the opera, Muhly said that he wrote the role of Marnie with mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard in mind. She performed the title role in the opera's American premiere, at the Metropolitan Opera, but the role was performed by Sasha Cooke in the world premiere.
References
Further reading
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External links
Synopsis
at MetOpera.org
Score details
Music Sales Group
Wise Music Group is a global music publisher, with headquarters in Berners Street, London. In February 2020, Wise Music Group changed its name from The Music Sales Group.
In 2014 Wise Music Group (as The Music Sales Group) acquired French cla ...
''Marnie''
Met Opera on Demand
2017 operas
Operas by Nico Muhly
English-language operas
Operas based on novels
Opera world premieres at the English National Opera
Operas
Plays by Nicholas Wright
Operas set in the British Isles
Operas set in the 20th century
{{English-opera-stub