THE KNOCK

   CENTRAL CITY OPERA: JULY 5 – AUGUST 2

L-R: Armando Contreras, Mary Hollis-Hindley and Cierra  Byrd (photo credit: Amanda Tipton)

With music by Aleksandra Vrebalov and libretto by Deborah Brevoort, “The Knock” was commissioned by the Glimmerglass festival and Cincinatti Opera. It seems fitting that Central City Opera has chosen to produce its regional premier since the opera is set in Colorado.

     This one-act opera lets us as audience see and feel what it’s like to be loved ones left behind when their spouses are deployed to military service. 

     A female-driven production, “The Knock” is quite the opposite of many classic operas which, like The Barber of Seville, have one female role and multiple males. In this work several women who are spouses of men deployed to Fallujah, Iraq , gather since there has been a blackout and no communication.

 

     Vrebelov’s complex and ingenious composition, with its nerve-jangling strings and pulse-pounding percussion, put our own hearts and nervous system as audience in synch with the women involved, and what’s transpiring on stage.

     Mary Hollis-Hindley’s nuanced performance as Jo Jenner, a mother of two small children, who awaits the possibility of tragic news, makes us feel the anxiety with her search for anything-even a stick of gum!- to distract her and alleviate the fear.

    As Aisha McNair, Cierra Byrd provides a comforting presence as this community of military wives assembles.

     Armando Contreras is superb as Lt. Roberto Gonzales in his first journey to deliver the devastating knock. Wishing to have been on the front lines rather than carry this emotional burden, he studies protocols and gets lost in local landmarks, trying to make his way through this labyrinth of pain.

     During this emotionally charged production, if your chest is not heaving and tear ducts over-flowing you may not be breathing. Heart-wrenching and soul-shredding, this is a contemporary American work that demands to be seen and heard.     

     Alison Moritz’ deft stage direction is handled with a sensitive, light touch.

     David Bloom’s conducting of this unique composition succeeds brilliantly.

     Eliciting great sensitivity with the choral work, as well as the recitative moments, Arthur Bosarge, The Master of Choruses, does superb work harmonizing the ensemble.

     Lawrence E. Moten III’s scenic design uses simple unadorned geometric lines to suggest a house. A long line of tiny model homes forms a miniscule neighborhood on the apron of the stage.

     This new work is unmissable for lovers of serious dramatic opera!

   Special thanks to Central City Opera for bringing us the contemporary works of the American Opera.    

For tickets go online to centralcityopera.org or call the box office at 303-292-6700.