''Morning Star'' is an opera by composer

Ricky Ian Gordon Ricky Ian Gordon (born May 15, 1956) is an American composer of art song, opera and musical theatre. Life Gordon was born in Oceanside, New York. He was raised by his mother, Eve, and father, Sam, and he grew up on Long Island with his three sist ...

and librettist William M. Hoffman, and tells the story of a

Russian Jewish The history of the Jews in Russia and areas historically connected with it goes back at least 1,500 years. Jews in Russia have historically constituted a large religious and ethnic diaspora; the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest po ...

family who immigrates to

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in 1910. It is based on a 1940 play by the same name by Sylvia Regan. The opera was developed by Opera Fusion: New Works, a collaboration between

Cincinnati Opera Cincinnati Opera is an American opera company based in Cincinnati, Ohio and the second-oldest opera company in the United States (after the New York Metropolitan Opera). Beginning with its first season in 1920, Cincinnati Opera has produced opera ...

and the

University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

which focuses on the creation of new American operas. It premiered at Cincinnati Opera in June 2015.

History

started writing ''Morning Star'' in the late 1990s, when he was the resident composer at the

Lyric Opera of Chicago Lyric Opera of Chicago is an American opera company based in Chicago, Illinois. The company was founded in Chicago in 1954, under the name 'Lyric Theatre of Chicago' by Carol Fox (Chicago opera), Carol Fox, Nicola Rescigno and Lawrence Kelly, w ...

. It was going to be a collaboration between the Lyric Opera of Chicago and the

Goodman Theatre Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of the Chicago theatre scene, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization. Part of its present theater complex occupies the ...

; however, the project was soon dropped. In 2012, it was brought back to life by Opera Fusion: New Works, a collaboration between Cincinnati Opera and the

dedicated to the development of new American opera. In June 2015, ''Morning Star'' premiered at Cincinnati Opera.

Synopsis

The opera tells the story of the Felderman family, a

family who immigrates to

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Historically, it w ...

in 1910. It is set against the backdrop of the

Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, a borough of New York City, on Saturday, March 25, 1911, was the deadliest List of industrial disasters, industrial disaster in the history of the city, an ...

, and follows the family through

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and the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

Music and instrumentation

The ''

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'' described the score as blending "melodic

arioso In classical music, arioso (; also aria parlante ) is a category of Solo (music), solo vocal piece, usually occurring in an opera or oratorio, falling somewhere between recitative and aria in style. Literally, arioso means ''airy''. The term arose ...

, accompanied recitative,

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

-style ballads, stirring ensembles, and

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and

ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that had its peak from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its Syncopation, syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers ...

elements." This piece calls for a small orchestra.

Critical reception

Critical reception for this opera was mixed. ''Chicago Tribune'' stated that this opera had "considerable heart, power and poignancy." ''

The Cincinnati Enquirer ''The Cincinnati Enquirer'' is a morning daily newspaper published by Gannett in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. First published in 1841, the ''Enquirer'' is the last remaining daily newspaper in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, altho ...

'' said that "Hoffman's libretto was at times poetic or sentimental, other times groaningly clichéd." ''

Opera News ''Opera News'' was an American classical music magazine. It was published from 1936 to 2023 by the Metropolitan Opera Guild—a non-profit organization, located at Lincoln Center, that was founded to promote opera and support the Metropolitan ...

'', on the other hand, called ''Morning Star'' "a rich, complex work."

References

{{Portal bar, Opera English-language operas Operas 2015 operas Operas set in the United States Operas based on plays Operas based on works by American writers Operas by Ricky Ian Gordon Libretti by William M. Hoffman