Welcome to the first of three seasons we are calling our BIG QUESTIONS, an entirely new way of putting a season together. The works appearing on our stage were chosen to offer you a year-long conversation around one expansive idea. It is a way of making a season subscription feel much bigger than the sum of its parts, as each visit to the Detroit Opera House will take the same question and look at it from a new angle. And the best way to experience it will be—of course—to subscribe!
As the nation commemorates the 250th anniversary of our Declaration of Independence, Detroit Opera feels it is a perfect moment to ask ourselves the question: Has America at 250 lived up to its promise? Puccini, William Grant Still, Kurt Weill, Margaret Atwood, John Cage, and all the artists that will appear with us next season will likely have a different answer to that question. Opera, with its multiplicity of viewpoint, is an incredible platform to explore all the many perspectives we might consider as we take stock of our national character.
We don’t know what kind of conclusions we will draw at the end of the season, but I am entering this conversation thinking about the words of the philosopher Richard Rorty: “Our national character is still in the making.” The dialogue with you, our audience, over the extended period of this season is a work-in-progress we all look forward to commencing.
Yuval Sharon Barbara Walkowski Artistic Director
BY
PHOTO
AUSTIN RICHEY
AMERICA @
BIG QUESTIONS SEASON ONE
Detroit Opera embarks on a season-long exploration of American identity as the nation marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Throughout that time, the musical-dramatic art form of opera has shaped, challenged, and expanded the definition of what it means to be American. In four inspiring and original productions, Detroit Opera’s first BIG QUESTIONS season invites you to participate in a dialogue around the question: Has AMERICA at 250 lived up to its promise?
Through the medium of opera, we will examine the enduring tensions and transformations that have defined the nation, as well as how the ideals set forth in the Declaration of Independence have echoed through the centuries. From the rugged pioneer spirit depicted in Puccini’s masterpiece The Girl of the Golden West to the dystopian fantasy of The Handmaid’s Tale, we see how America has evolved—at times staying true to its promise of liberty, at others faltering under the weight of contradictions.
Through a powerful mix of historical, contemporary, and speculative storytelling, our BIG QUESTIONS season one will take you on an unforgettable journey into the heart of what it means to be American today. Join us for all four opera productions for the richest and most expansive conversation.
SEP 28 / SUN / 2:30PM
OCT 02 / THU / 7:30PM
OCT 04 / SAT / 7:30PM
THE GIRL OF THE
Before opera became an American art form, it was up to the great Italian composer Giacomo Puccini to reflect the sound of the nation.
MUSIC GIACOMO PUCCINI
LIBRETTO GUELFO CIVININI & CARLO ZANGARINI
BASED ON A PLAY BY
DAVID BELASCO DIRECTOR RICHARD JONES CONDUCTOR ROBERTO KALB
Premiering in 1910 at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, La fanciulla del West was an immediate sensation and is still considered by some as the composer’s greatest work. After creating Madama Butterfly, Puccini took another story from American playwright David Belasco to invoke a mythic world: a fantasy of the Gold Rush and the Wild West, teeming with romance, action, and the archetypal cowboy. Audiences will enjoy classic Puccini melodies and unforgettable characters. Puccini composed The Girl of the Golden West as a musical love letter to America. Set in a mining camp during the California Gold Rush in 1849—yet featuring many of the beloved elements of classic Italian opera—it tells the story of Minnie, a virtuous saloon owner whose moral code is put to the test when she falls for Dick Johnson (a.k.a. Ramerrez), a bandit on the run from a relentless sheriff, Jack Rance, who’s determined to have Minnie for himself.
This is a production of English National Opera and Santa Fe Opera.
Richard Jones DIRECTOR
Roberto Kalb CONDUCTOR
Jessica Faselt MINNIE
Yonghoon Lee DICK JOHNSON
Simone Piazzola JACK RANCE
Ben Taylor SONORA
Spencer Hamlin NICK
Allen Michael Jones ASHBY
DEC 07 / SUN / 2:30PM
DEC 11 / THU / 7:30PM
DEC 13 / SAT / 7:30PM
Highways and Valleys—Two American Love Stories is a unique double bill combining voices often excluded from the operatic mainstream: the “dean of African American music,” William Grant Still, and the Jewish émigré Kurt Weill. From their marginalized positions in American society, both composers sought out the heart of American folk music and brought it into the world of opera.
MUSIC WILLIAM GRANT STILL
LIBRETTO VERNA ARVEY
DIRECTOR KANEZA SCHAAL CONDUCTOR ROBERTO KALB
1,USA
Composed in the 1940s, Highway 1, USA is a distinctly American story of ordinary people aspiring for the “American dream.”
Still's work celebrates the Black experience in an engaging musical voice, revealing how African American culture is central to the sound of our national identity.
The kitchen of a modest house attached to a gas station is the unassuming setting of what The New York Times hailed as a “one-act stunner” from William Grant Still. The home belongs to Bob and Mary, who run the filling station and support Bob’s younger brother, Nate. But each sees that support, and its limits, very differently, leading to a harrowing event that throws into question the nature of family, responsibility, success, and the American Dream.
This is a production of LA Opera.
MUSIC KURT WEILL
LIBRETTO ARNOLD SUNDGAARD
DIRECTOR KANEZA SCHAAL
CONDUCTOR ROBERTO KALB
* Detroit Opera Production Premiere
Weill’s “folk opera in one act” Down in the Valley was originally written for the radio at the same time Still was composing his reflection of Black life.
Weaving together American folk songs and original choruses, Weill incorporates the music of his adopted homeland to reflect the search for belonging among immigrant communities.
Down in the Valley weaves several traditional American songs into a tragic tale of love and loss. It begins and ends in a Birmingham jail cell on the eve of the execution of Brack—a teenage boy convicted of murdering the man who tried to take Jennie, Brack’s beloved, away from him. Told partly in flashback, this simple story of ill-fated romance and shattered innocence is as timeless as it is universal.
DOWN IN THE
Kaneza
Roberto Kalb CONDUCTOR
Schaal DIRECTOR
Nicole Heaston MARY / JENNIE
Victor Ryan Robertson NATE / BRACK WEAVER
Davóne Tines BOB / THOMAS BOUCHÉ
Rehanna Thelwell AUNT LOU
MAR 01 / SUN / 2:30PM
MAR 05 / THU / 7:30PM
MAR 07 / SAT / 7:30PM
The Handmaid’s Tale serves as a cautionary tale that forces us to reflect on whether America's core values—freedom and separation of church and state—are at risk.
MUSIC POUL RUDERS
LIBRETTO PAUL BENTLEY
BASED ON THE NOVEL BY MARGARET ATWOOD DIRECTOR BRENNA CORNER
CONDUCTOR MARIT STRINDLUND
“Once, my body belonged to me.”
The Handmaid’s Tale provides a chilling look into an imagined future, where America’s fragile democracy collapses into religious tyranny. Echoing contemporary concerns about the overlap between government and religion, this fictional story is timelier than ever.
Within the frame of an academic conference held in the distant future, the opera depicts a contemporary America in the throes of a theocratic dictatorship where women have been stripped of all rights, including the right to bodily autonomy.
Before Margaret Atwood’s beloved classic of speculative fiction became the source material of a popular TV series, Poul Ruders’ gripping musical treatment brought the story to operatic stages around the world. It comes to Detroit in a fast-faced production you will not soon forget.
A production of Opera at Banff Centre, expanded for its Detroit premiere.
Marit Strindlund CONDUCTOR
Brenna Corner DIRECTOR
Alexandria Shiner AUNT LYDIA
Sam Carl COMMANDER
Niamh O'Sullivan OFFRED
Lisa Marie Rogali OFFRED BEFORE
MAY 15 / FRI / 7:30PM
MAY 16 / SAT / 7:30PM
MAY 17 / SUN / 2:30PM
MAY 22 / FRI / 7:30PM
MAY 23 / SAT / 7:30PM
MAY 24 / SUN / 2:30PM
LOCATION TBA
* Detroit Opera Production Premiere
This immersive opera performance reflects on Detroit’s multiculturalism and encourages audiences to engage in joyous, participatory reflection—highlighting that America's most significant strength lies in its ability to reimagine and rebuild.
APARTMENT HOUSE
CONCEPT JOHN CAGE DIRECTOR YUVAL SHARON
Conceived for the US bicentennial celebration of American independence in 1976, John Cage imagined a free-form musical tapestry, a “musicircus” that reflects America’s diversity and interdependence. Now, 50 years later, Detroit Opera presents a one-of-a-kind immersive experience realizing Cage’s utopian vision of American cultural coexistence.
Apartment House 1776 uses the image of an “apartment house”—each room containing a unique story from a different cultural background, unified into one interconnected building—as an inspiring metaphor for the American experience. Simultaneous performances by multiple artists, all arranged by chance operations, result in a one-of-a-kind “mix” of sights and sounds. Vocalists representing different religious and cultural communities sing traditional songs, while the individual instrumentalists of the Detroit Opera Orchestra perform fragments of music from the time of the American Revolution. This only-in-Detroit event promises to be a kaleidoscopic aural experience like no other.
* There will be no assigned seating at these performances. Audiences are encouraged to walk through the immersive experience.
PHOTO COURTESY OF DANCE THEATRE OF HARLEM / NIR ARIELI
The 25/26 Dance @ Detroit Opera series is a salute to American dance by American dance companies. Three major forces of American dance include George Balanchine, the Father of American Ballet; Jack Cole, the Father of American Theatrical Jazz Dance; and Martha Graham, the Pioneer of American Modern Dance. They each created a new vocabulary for dance, uniquely their own, and uniquely American. Their works and influences will be seen throughout the season.
From ballet to contemporary to modern, the 25/26 Dance season is a celebration of what American dance has contributed to this important artform. —Jon H. Teeuwissen, Artistic Advisor for Dance
OCTOBER 18 / 19, 2025
STARS OF AMERICAN BALLET
Daniel Ulbricht, Founder and Artistic Director
George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Gerald Arpino, and Twyla Tharp are influential choreographers who shaped American dance in the 20th century. Each choreographer contributed uniquely to the evolution of dance, expanding its artistic and expressive possibilities. This program explores the shaping of the American dance scene with Robbins’ “In the Night,” an excerpt from Arpino’s “Light Rain,” Tharp’s “Brel,” and Balanchine’s “Who Cares” (concert version).
Dancers appearing courtesy of New York City Ballet and Houston Ballet.
JANUARY 17 / 18, 2026
HUBBARD STREET DANCE CHICAGO
Linda-Denise Fisher-Harrell, Artistic Director
For 47 years, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago has been one of the most original forces in contemporary dance—bringing top choreographers and works to Chicago and beyond. Detroit will be treated to works from renowned choreographers including Bob Fosse.
NOVEMBER 15 / 16, 2025
DANCE THEATRE OF HARLEM
Robert Garland, Artistic Director
Dance Theatre of Harlem is a Detroit favorite returning to the Detroit Opera House for the first time since their 2023 performances. Arthur Mitchell created the company in New York City after making history in 1955 as the first Black principal dancer at New York City Ballet. He was also the famed protégé of George Balanchine, the “Father of American Ballet.” The company’s Detroit program will feature pieces created by George Balanchine, Robert Garland, and other iconic works.
APRIL 11 / 12, 2026
PAUL TAYLOR DANCE COMPANY
Michael Novak, Artistic Director
Paul Taylor left Martha Graham Dance Company to found his own company in 1954, transforming the landscape of modern dance. Many of his 147 works are considered modern masterpieces. The Detroit program will include Company B and Esplanade
25/26 Opera Season Changes
▪ Due to low ticket sales on Friday evenings, we are moving all Friday subscribers to the new night of Thursday for the first three operas. If you wish to switch to a Saturday or Sunday subscription instead, please contact the box office.
▪ We will now be opening our first three operas on Sundays and closing on Saturdays. For those who prefer to be a part of the opening performance experience of each opera instead of Saturday, the box office will be happy to reseat you into a Sunday subscription. For DiChiera Society members, feel free to reach out to the Development team to get a better understanding of celebratory activities for opening and closing performances.
▪ Apartment House 1776 will be an immersive experience and will not have seating. All subscribers have been renewed into the first weekend of performances, but you may choose to attend any performance if desired. All subscribers are paying the same price for this performance regardless of price level on the other operas. More details will come later this summer about location.
Subscription Benefits
Subscriptions offer many benefits over purchasing individual tickets, including:
▪ Same seats for all productions in your package
▪ Discounts on additional single tickets
▪ Advance purchase of discounted parking
▪ Easy and free exchanges
▪ Early access to the Cadillac Lounge
▪ Discounts on other national opera company tickets through Opera Passport by OPERA America ...and so much more!
Seating and Packages
Select the package that interests you the most on the performance day that best suits your schedule. Don’t worry—as a subscriber, you can easily exchange performance dates or productions. We offer the ultimate flexibility! Love both Opera and Dance? Purchase an All Access package.
If you are unfamiliar with the Detroit Opera House, or have questions about seating, our box office associates would be happy to help select excellent seats for you. Just give us a call during box office hours at 313.237.7464.
Thursday and Saturday evening performances are at 7:30PM. Sunday matinee performances are at 2:30PM. Programs,
4. Pre-Paid Parking Save up to 40% off parking Discounted prepaid parking in our parking center is available to Detroit Opera subscribers only—$20 per performance.
Add-on exclusive pre-show and intermission lounge access with a drink token, charcuterie plate, and reserved seating. You can purchase passes for each performance and each attendee, or select passes for specific productions. The box office will reach out to note your selections. Seating is limited!
This required fee helps pay administrative costs, such as credit card fees, and is a one-time order fee.
8. Payment Complete your order by totaling #3-7 = $
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Flexible payment plans are available in 2 or 3 installments. Your payment schedule will be confirmed by the Box Office when your renewal form is processed.
Photography of front cover artwork by Tyree Guyton, "Cover Up" Mixed media, Courtesy of Cranbrook Art Museum
