NATHAN GUNN
THE GOSPeL OF
mARY MAGDALeNE
M A RK A DA M O
The absorbing story of Jesus and Mary Magdalene is reimagined in this world premiere by acclaimed American composer Mark Adamo.
Drawing from modern scholarship, composer/librettist Mark Adamo re-imagines the story of Jesus and the people closest to him—including the misunderstood woman who loved him most dearly and heard his message most clearly. A “brilliant theater composer” (The New Yorker) whose Little Women is one of the most frequently performed new operas of the past 20 years, Adamo “writes music that is lush but transparent, full of arching vocal phrases and deftly blended ensembles” (San Francisco Chronicle). WORLD PREMIERE
Kevin Newbury directs and Michael Christie conducts a resplendent cast, including risingstar Sasha Cooke, praised “for her convincing operatic portrayals and her rich expressive voice” (The New York Times), in the title role, and Nathan Gunn, “a voice of stunning authority” (The New York Times), who sings the role of Yeshua ( Jesus); with “burnished tenor” William Burden (The New York Times) as Peter and Maria Kanyova, “a superb singing actress” (Opera News), as the mother of Jesus, Miriam.
CAST
PERFORMANCES
Mary Magdalene: Sasha Cooke* Miriam: Maria Kanyova Peter: William Burden Yeshua: Nathan Gunn
JUNE 2013 19 7:30pm · 22 8pm · 25 8pm · 28 8pm
PRODUCTION Conductor: Michael Christie* Director: Kevin Newbury* Set Designer: David Korins* Costume Designer: Constance Hoffmann Lighting Designer: Christopher Maravich *San Francisco Opera debut
JULY 2013 2 7:30pm · 5 8pm
· 7 2pm
OperaVision in Balcony. See page 14. Approximate running time: 2 hours, 40 minutes including one intermission San Francisco Opera production Commissioned by San Francisco Opera Sung in English with English supertitles The world premiere of The Gospel of Mary Magdalene is made possible, in part, by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Photo: Nathan Gunn in Billy Budd by David Bachman/Pittsburgh Opera
sfopera.com/magdalene
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