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Synopsis
Act I, Lilith-a story of young newleyweds and how they learn to cope with the emotional baggage one of them has brought into the marriage. According to Biblical legend, Adam had a wife, Lilith, before Eve, but she was banished from his life. Lilith makes a surprise appearance during Adam and Eve's honeymoon. Act II, Mrs. Noah-about a middle-aged duo and how they come to return to one another after drifting apart over the years. According to the Bible, Noah had a serious drinking problem, and his wife has had some difficulty with him throughout the years. On New Year's Eve at the hotel, her husband gets drunk and Mrs. Noah, beguiled by the wayward staff, leaves her husband to wander about. Charmed by the hotel's band leader, she plans to dance the night away until drops of water coming from the ceiling remind her that her husband is adrift in an overflowing whirling spa. Water then short circuits the main power, turning on the emergency lights throughtout the hotel. Mr. and Mrs. Noah dry off and make up. Act III, Sarah-is the tale of an older couple and how they contemplate the legacy they have left behind them. The Biblical story concerns a childless Sarah. It was arranged that her husband, Abraham, would impregnate Sarah's maid, Hagar, and thus provide an heir, Ishmael. But, later in life, Sarah gives birth to Isaac, and Ishmael and Hagar are banished to the desert. Sarah's situation in the opera explores the issues of late-life babies and how they affect relationships as well as surrogate motherhood. At the hotel, the elderly Sarah, soon learns that she is pregnant. Earlier in life, her husband, Abe, had a child with a foreign maid. Now the couple must examine their lives and decide how their new child will fit in with its new half-brother.
OPERA America/Opera.ca Grants Awarded
Click here to learn more about OPERA America granting programs.
| GRANT NAME | YEAR | Opera for the Eighties and Beyond | 1987 | Opera for the Eighties and Beyond | 1986 |
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Title Information
All information is derived from OPERA America's Season Schedule of Performances and titles databases which date back to 1991. OPERA America is constantly updating this data. If you feel that a work or an artist has been omitted or that information is incorrect, please use the linked forms below. Title Information Form Artist Information Form
Approximate Runtime (hh:mm)
2:00
Number of Acts
3
Musical Style
Tonal; popular elements; eclectic style: modern jazz to soft rock to modern classical
Vocal & Musical Forces
2 Sopranos, 2 Mezzo-sopranos, 2 Tenors, Baritone, Bass-baritone; Orchestra (8 players): flute (piccolo), clarinet, horn, violin, cello, string bass/electric bass, piano/synthesizer, percussion
Original Cast
Adam, Dan Montez; Eve, Julia Wade; Lilith, Rachel Louis; Sarah, D'Anna Fortunato; Mrs. Noah, Susan Gundunas; Hagar, Kathleen Nitz; Bellhop, David Cox-Cresswell; Linda kessel Solis; Stephen Guggenheim, Ross Halper
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