''Three Decembers'' is a

chamber opera Chamber opera is a designation for operas written to be performed with a chamber ensemble rather than a full orchestra. Early 20th-century operas of this type include Paul Hindemith's ''Cardillac'' (1926). Earlier small-scale operas such as Pergoles ...

in two acts by

Jake Heggie Jake Heggie (born March 31, 1961) is an American composer of opera, vocal, orchestral, and chamber music. He is best known for his operas and art songs as well as for his collaborations with internationally renowned performers and writers. B ...

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by Gene Scheer which is based on the unpublished play ''Some Christmas Letters'' by

Terrence McNally Terrence McNally (November 3, 1938 – March 24, 2020) was an American playwright, librettist, and screenwriter. Described as "the bard of American theater" and "one of the greatest contemporary playwrights the theater world has yet produced," ...

. Created with a role for

Frederica von Stade Frederica von Stade OAL (born June 1, 1945) is a semi-retired American opera singer. Since her Metropolitan Opera debut in 1970, she has performed in operas, musicals, concerts and recitals in venues throughout the world, including La Scala, th ...

, the work premiered on 29 February 2008 at the

Houston Grand Opera Houston Grand Opera (HGO) is an American opera company located in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1955 by German-born impresario Walter Herbert and three local Houstonians,Giesberg, Robert I., Carl Cunningham, and Alan Rich. ''Houston Grand Opera at ...

(HGO). It commissioned the work in association with the

San Francisco Opera San Francisco Opera (SFO) is an American opera company founded in 1923 by Gaetano Merola (1881–1953) based in San Francisco, California. History Gaetano Merola (1923–1953) Merola's road to prominence in the Bay Area began in 1906 when he ...

and Cal Performances. The opera was first presented under the working title ''Last Acts'' at the world premiere by the

. The premiere production was directed by

Leonard Foglia Leonard Foglia (born August 24, 1954) is an American theatre director, librettist, and novelist. Foglia made his Broadway debut as the assistant director of ''The Heidi Chronicles'' in 1989. He also directed revivals of ''Wait Until Dark'' (1998) ...

with lighting designed by Brian Nason and costumes by Cesar Galindo. The ten-instrument chamber orchestra included two pianos played by Heggie himself as well as

Patrick Summers Patrick Summers (born August 14, 1963) is an American conductor best known for his work with Houston Grand Opera (HGO), where he has been the artistic and music director since 2011, and with San Francisco Opera, where he served as principal gue ...

, who also conducted the performance.

Synopsis

The three parts of the opera are set in the month of December in the years 1986, 1996 and 2006 and it tells the story of a famous actress, Madeline, and her two adult children as they struggle to know and love each other. "It is the universal story about the family we wish for and the family we wind up with."

Roles

References

External links

* {{Authority control Operas set in the United States Operas English-language operas 2008 operas Operas by Jake Heggie Libretti by Terrence McNally Operas based on plays Opera world premieres at Houston Grand Opera