Space-Travel Opera Composed by WCU Prof Holds World Premiere in Philadelphia

By

Aniara – a space-travel choral opera composed by Robert Maggio, chair of West Chester University’s Department of Music Theory, History, and Composition – is having its world premiere in Philadelphia. (Image via Philadelphia Inquirer)

Aniara: fragments of time and space – a space-travel choral opera composed by Robert Maggio, chair of West Chester University’s Department of Music Theory, History, and Composition – is having its world premiere in Philadelphia, writes David Patrick Stearns for the Philadelphia Inquirer.

The production is staged in the Christ Church Neighborhood House for five performances through June 23 and began with the world premiere on June 20. Due to limited seating, the show on June 22 will also be streamed for free.

Later this year, the production will visit the Netherlands and Finland.

The opera is based on an epic poem by Nobel laureate Harry Martinson from 1956. It focuses on the inhabitants of a Mars-bound spaceship that is evacuating the dying Earth.

The ambitious multimedia production is a collaboration between Maggio, the new music choir Crossing, and Klockriketeatern, a Helsinki-based theater company.

Throughout the opera, Maggio uses diverse styles in his score.

“The score doesn’t stay in one place,” he said. “In some cases, it’s very simple and minimalist and clean, and in other places, it wants to open up for a sense of breath of expression.”

Read more about the opera in the Philadelphia Inquirer here.

Connect With Your Community

Subscribe to stay informed!

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
Advertisement
Creative Capital logo