December 7, 2010
Cast Set for Opera Based on 9/11 Hero
The San Francisco Opera on Tuesday disclosed details of a new opera by Christopher Theofanidis based on a book about Rick Rescorla, the head of security for Morgan Stanley who died shepherding people to safety during the Sept. 11 attack on the World Trade Center. The opera, “Heart of a Soldier,” will star the baritone Thomas Hampson, the tenor William Burden and the soprano Melody Moore. Francesca Zambello will direct and Patrick Summers will conduct. It will have its first performance on Sept. 10, the eve of the 10th anniversary of the attack. The work, with a libretto by Donna DiNovelli, is based on the book of the same name by James B. Stewart. The company said the opera has a traditional orchestra but also includes electric guitar and synthesizer. “There are hints of music from very different circumstances here that run below the surface,” Mr. Theofanidis said in a statement, “music from the 1940s, rock of the 1960s, Cornish folksong and Islamic calls to prayer” (a reference, he said, to a character’s conversion to Islam).
Tuned In: S.F. Opera announces the world premiere of ‘Heart of a Soldier,’ a 9/11 themed work by Christopher Theofanidis
By Sue Gilmore
Contra Costa Times
Posted: 12/07/2010 02:39:12 PM PST
Updated: 12/08/2010 07:57:42 PM PST
Two separate announcements of great import for the opera lovers among us reverberated on both sides of the Bay today. The San Francisco Opera has announced the world premiere of a new work with a 9/11 theme by Christopher Theofanidis and librettist Donna DiNovelli that will open at War Memorial Opera House on Sept. 10, 2011, the eve of the 10th anniversary of that horrible day of destruction.
Entitled “Heart of a Soldier” and based on the 2002 nonfiction book by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist James B. Stewart, the opera will star famed American baritone Thomas Hampson in the role of Rick Rescorla, the decorated Vietnam vet who, as head of security for Morgan Stanley, successfully herded all 2,700 employees out of the South Tower of the World Trade Center by singing to them through a megaphone. Rescorla then headed back into the burning building in search of stragglers and was killed in its collapse.
San Francisco Opera general director David Gockley, in Tuesday’s “Heart of a Soldier” announcement, said he has been trying to get a commissioned work from “the brilliantly talented” Theofanidis for a decade, and that the opportunity to present it as an observance of the 9/11 anniversary and the commitment of Hampson brought the project to its “critical mass.”
“On the surface, the piece is about what it takes to be a true hero,” Gockley said, “but what will drive the music is the passion, the suspense, and the ultimate tragedy.”
Dallas-born Theofanidis, 42, who now teaches at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, is a Grammy-nominated and multiple award-winning composer who served as the California Symphony’s artist in residence from 1994-’96. Although he had a 90-minute dramatic oratorio with an immigration theme, “The Refuge,” premiere at Houston Grand Opera in 2007, “Heart of a Soldier” is his first fully staged opera. It will run 2 hours and 45 minutes and also star soprano and former Adler Fellow Melody Moore as Rescorla’s wife and soulmate, Susan, and tenor William Burden as his close friend and comrade-in-arms, Dan Hill.
The composer and librettist were able to consult with the real Dan Hill and Susan Rescorla on the work, and Theofanidis said on Tuesday that the contact was inspirational. “The fact that it is a true story has made it very personal for both of us,” he noted. “This is fundamentally a deeply humanistic work, with an emphasis on Rick and Dan coming to understand who they are as people and then maximizing their potential. The essence of this comes from a sense of service to others and duty — the heart of a soldier.”
Performances of S.F. Opera’s “Heart of a Soldier,” to be directed by Francesca Zambella and conducted by Patrick Summers, have been set for Sept. 10, 13, 18, 21, 24, 27 and 30. Ticket prices and information will be available in January along with the announcement of the full 2011-2012 season.
