''Bum Phillips'' is an

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

in two acts by American composer Peter Stopschinski. Kirk Lynn wrote the English language

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

based on

Bum Phillips Oail Andrew "Bum" Phillips Jr. (September 29, 1923 – October 18, 2013) was an American football coach at the high school, college and professional levels. He served as head coach in the National Football League (NFL) for the Houston Oilers fro ...

' memoirs ''Bum Phillips: Coach, Cowboy, Christian''. The opera was conceived by

theater director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

Luke Leonard and commissioned by Monk Parrots, Inc. as described in a 2014 ''Sports on Earth'' article titled "A Night at the ''Bum Phillips'' Opera".

Performance history

*February 2013 – Workshop performance of act 1 produced by Post Theatre Company at

Long Island University Long Island University (LIU) is a private university in Brooklyn and Brookville, New York, United States. The university enrolls over 16,000 students and offers over 500 academic programs at its main campuses, LIU Brooklyn and LIU Post on Long I ...

-Post and

La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club (sometimes abbreviated as La MaMa E.T.C.) is an Off-Off-Broadway theater founded in 1961 by African-American theatre director, producer, and fashion designer Ellen Stewart. Located in the East Village neighborho ...

. *March 15–30, 2014 – World premiere in the

Ellen Stewart Ellen Stewart (November 7, 1919 – January 13, 2011) was an American theatre director and Theatrical producer, producer and the founder of La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club. During the 1950s, she worked as a fashion designer for Saks Fifth A ...

Theatre at La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club in New York. The performance was attended by former

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

players and

Houston Oilers The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston, Texas, from its founding in 1960 Houston Oilers season, 1960 to 1996 Houston Oilers season, 1996. The Houston Oilers began play as a charter member of the Ame ...

Dan Pastorini Dante Anthony Pastorini (born May 26, 1949) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the Houston Oilers. He played college football for the Sa ...

and Lawrence Harris, and Bum Phillips' son and NFL coach,

Wade Phillips Harold Wade Phillips (born June 21, 1947) is a former American football coach. He has served as head coach of the Denver Broncos, Buffalo Bills, Dallas Cowboys, Houston Roughnecks and San Antonio Brahmas. He has also served as interim head coa ...

. It was conducted by Peter Stopschinski, performed by

American Modern Ensemble The American Modern Ensemble is a contemporary classical music ensemble based in the United States in New York City with the goal of premiering, performing and recording and commissioning the widest possible repertoire written by American composer ...

, and directed and designed by Luke Leonard. Dan Pastorini reacted, "Bum Phillips and opera don't belong in the same sentence ... And I sat there and I watched this thing unfold for two hours, and at the end of it I had tears coming down my cheeks," and Wade Phillips responded, "It certainly meant a lot to us. Meant a lot to me ... Not many people get a tribute to them in any way and this opera did it for us." *September 24, 2015 – Benefit performance produced by Dan Pastorini Charity at the Stafford Centre in

Stafford, Texas Stafford is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, in the metropolitan area. The city is mostly in Fort Bend County, Texas, Fort Bend County, with a small part in Harris County, Texas, Harris County. As of the 2020 census, Stafford's population was ...

. The performance was introduced by

and attended by NFL players

Earl Campbell Earl Christian Campbell (born March 29, 1955), nicknamed "the Tyler Rose", is an American former professional football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons, primarily with the Houston Oilers. Known f ...

, Billy Johnson,

Ken Burrough Kenneth Othell Burrough (July 14, 1948 – February 24, 2022) was an American professional football player who was a wide receiver for the Houston Oilers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Southern ...

Robert Brazile Robert Lorenzo Brazile Jr. (born February 7, 1953), nicknamed "Dr. Doom", is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). Brazile played from 1975 to 1984 for the Houston Oilers and ...

, and others.

Roles

Instrumentation

The work is scored for one violin, one bass, two French horns, one drummer, percussion, and two pianos (one

Fender Rhodes The Rhodes piano (also known as the Fender Rhodes piano) is an electric piano invented by Harold Rhodes, which became popular in the 1970s. Like a conventional piano, the Rhodes generates sound with keys and hammers, but instead of strings, t ...

References

External links

* {{official, http://www.bumphillipsopera.com/
NFL Films Presents, Show: #7

HowlRound on YouTube: Bum Phillips All-American Opera World Premiere
2014 operas Operas Operas set in the 20th century English-language operas Cultural depictions of American people Cultural depictions of players of American football Operas based on real people