The Listeners: daring psychological thriller at Opera Philadelphia

Nicole Heaston (Claire) and Lindsey Reynolds (Ashley)

John Moore (Dillon)

Kevin Burdette (Howard Bard) and ensemble

Nicole Heaston (Claire Devon) and dancer Sydney Donovan as the Coyote

Joseph Lim, Diane Newman and John Moore in Missy Mazzoli and Royce Vavrek’s The Listeners

By Cameron Kelsall, 26 September 2024

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“the overall effect of the staging matches the disquieting tenor of the story being told”

Reviewed at Academy of Music, Philadelphia on 25 September 2024

Mazzoli, The Listeners (US premiere)

Opera Philadelphia

Corrado Rovaris, Conductor

Lileana Blain-Cruz, Director

Adam Rigg, Set Designer

Kaye Voyce, Costume Designer

Yi Zhao, Lighting Designer

Opera Philadelphia Orchestra

Opera Philadelphia Chorus

Nicole Heaston, Claire Devon

Troy Cook, Paul Devon

Lindsey Reynolds, Ashley Devon

Aaron Crouch, Kyle Harris

Kevin Burdette, Howard Bard

Rehanna Thelwell, Angela Rose

John Moore, Dillon

Lucy Schaufer, Hortense

Ethan Vincent, Thom

Daniel Taylor, Vince

Diana Newman, Danica

Jessica Beebe, Sina

Taylor-Alexis Dupont, Emily

Zachary Altman, Bram

Guadalupe Paz, Theresa Alvarez

Alissa Anderson, Mrs Moreno

Amanda Sheriff, Jess

Lauren Cook, Lee Ann

A sorta fairy tale: Sleepers Awake premieres at Opera Philadelphia

Cameron Kelsall, 22nd April

A new opera by Gregory Spears subverts the Sleeping Beauty trope, with middling results.

**111

Opera by committee: Opera Philadelphia premieres Complications in Sue

Cameron Kelsall, 4th February

Opera Philadelphia commissions ten composers to tell the story of an ordinary woman's idiosyncratic march from cradle to tomb.

****1

A didactic Decameron: The Seasons at Opera Philadelphia

Cameron Kelsall, 20th December

Conceived by Anthony Roth Costanzo and Sarah Ruhl, this high-handed pasticcio sets the climate crisis to a soundtrack of Vivaldi.

***11

A long, strange trip: Opera Philadelphia’s Il viaggio a Reims

Cameron Kelsall, 19th September

The intrepid company brings Damiano Michieletto’s well-traveled production of a Rossini rarity to the US for the first time.

***11

Opera Philadelphia's Unholy Wars creates a dialogue with Monteverdi

Cameron Kelsall, 23rd September

Arab-American tenor Karim Sulayman devises a thoughtful pastiche that centers the perspective omitted from Early Modern depictions of the Middle East in music.

****1

Quinn Kelsey triumphs in Opera Philadelphia's Simon Boccanegra

Cameron Kelsall, 22nd September

In his role debut as the Genoan Doge, the American baritone continues to burnish his bona fides as the premier Verdi baritone of his generation.

****1

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Cameron Kelsall

Cameron Kelsall is a classical music critic and cultural reporter. He has written for Bachtrack since 2019, and his byline has appeared in many national and international classical music publications. Based in Philadelphia, he regularly travels around the United States for musical events. In addition to his career in journalism, Cameron also teaches in the Theatre Arts program at the University of Pennsylvania. He is also a certified sommelier and avid home cook. His favorite composer is Mahler. Twitter: @CameronPKelsall.

The Listeners: daring psychological thriller opens Opera Philadelphia season