Mermaid in the Jar at Mannes Opera

The second-ever production of Mermaid in the Jar with orchestra comes to Mannes Opera on November 17th and 18th, kickng off an incredible season of contemporary opera. The other composers on the Mannes Opera season roster are Kate Soper, John Adams, Mark Adamo—whatta lineup! And Mermaid is on a double bill with Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortileges, which I consider an ideal pairing. During my young, foolish, and mercifully brief attempt to be a professional operatic, coloratura, the Fire Aria was part of my audition package…and thank goodness you will never hear me attempt to sing it ever again! It all eventually paid off in unexpected ways, though, and you will undoubtedly hear its influence on my score.

This piece was my first collaboration with librettist Royce Vavrek and my first attempt at an opera that was longer than one scene. It had a concert debut all the way back in 2009 with Lauren Worsham as the Girl, but it did not receive a full staging with orchestra until The Wild Beast of the Bungalow—the larger triptych of which Mermaid is the first part—premiered in its entirety in 2020. Fun fact: Emma Griffin, who now runs the opera program at Mannes, directed that first concert reading. Life is long and careers are long, and it’s wonderful that Emma thought to incorporate this work into the school’s programming all these years later. I cannot wait to see it realized this time by conductor Chris Allen and director Rose Freeman.

Update: Performances have now concluded, but a stream of the video is available below for those who could not attend in person. The performances were fantastic, and I thank everyone for their hard work and support. The orchestra score is also available now!