27

Ana De Archuleta
Dec 1, 2020
2 min read

Music by: Ricky Ian Gordon

Libretto by: Royce Vavrek

Duration: 5 Acts-95 minutes

Originally Commissioned and premiered: Opera Theatre of St. Louis, 2014

Project Statement

27 follows the lives of Gertrude Stein and her partner Alice B. Toklas as they host legendary salons at 27 rue de Fleurus in Paris, entertaining such illustrious guests as Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Man Ray, Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald. The opera attempts to bring Ms. Stein to life through her writing, highlighting her lack of inhibition and unabashed self-expression even in the face of negative critical opinion. In creating physical representations of her and Alice, the piece also explores the ways in which the women relate to one another and the rest of the world, using the World Wars as brackets to track the evolution of their relationship as they grapple with the changes that only war, and the passing of time, can bring.

FORCES

Singers:

Gertrude Stein; - mezzo- Soprano

4 supporting singers (Soprano, Tenor, Baritone, Bass-Baritone, singing a variety of roles); Optional Chorus

Orchestration:

2(2 dbl. Picc.)

2(2nd dbl. E.H.) 2 2(2nd dbl. Cbsn.) A.Sax. – 2 2 2(2nd dbl. B.Tbn.) 0; Timp. 2Perc. Hp. Pno. Str.

Reduced Instrumentation: 1(dbl. Picc.) 1 1 1 - 1 1 1 0; Timp. 2Perc. Hp. Pno. Str.

Review

“27” is a triumph for Gordon and Vavrek and a tour-de-force for all of the performers. –Bruce-Michael Gelbert, Q On Stage

. . . .a playful, quick-witted libretto that pushed Mr. Gordon beyond his trademark melodies into a brighter, friskier style. –Heidi Waleson, The Wall Street Journal

. . .a taut, witty and affecting new piece of lyric theatre. –James Sohre, Opera Today

MEDIA