The After Dinner Opera Company presents the world premiere of Jordan Wentworth Farrar's The Day Boy and the Night Girl, an operatic re-imagining of the classic Victorian fairy tale by George MacDonald. Wentworth Farrar's new three-act opera debuts at Symphony Space on December 29, 2009.
The Day Boy and the Night Girl follows the lives of Phytogen and Nycteris, both of whom have been imprisoned by the sorcery of Watho, the she-wolf. The boy, Phytogen, has been cursed never to see night while Nycteris, the girl, is doomed never to see the light of day. This retelling of the fairy tale was adapted by Wentworth Farrar from her memory of reading the story as a child. "I wanted to take the premise of the book and make it my own," she says.
According to Curator Magazine, "Wentworth Farrar's music is tonal, with haunting melodic themes interspersed with tightly stacked vocal harmonies... a new and unusual work."
DigitalCity notes "an eerie yet beautifully melodic chorus adorned with splendid vocal harmonies reverberates out from a fantastical scene of dancing fireflies, mystical mermaids and other apparitions."
The Village Voice calls it "An enchanted evening."
The opera also marks the 60th anniversary of the After Dinner Opera Company, which commissioned The Day Boy and Night Girl to celebrate its milestone birthday. Since 1950, the After Dinner Opera has produced hundreds of American chamber operas by more than 70 composers, including Duke Ellington and Leonard Bernstein.
About Jordan Wentworth Farrar:
Jordan Wentworth Farrar is a New York City based composer and singer. Her performances include roles and solo engagements with Gran Teatre del Liceu of Barcelona, New York's Amato Opera, Austin Civic Opera, and the Civic Light Opera of Seattle. The Day Boy and the Night Girl is her first opera.
For more information about THE DAY BOY AND THE NIGHT GIRL by JORDAN WENTWORTH FARRAR please visit dayboynightgirl.com.
Hear music samples from The Day Boy and the Night Girl on the DBNG Facebook page.
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