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Ausrine Stundyte as Cio-Cio-San, Elizabeth Janes as Butterfly’s child and Sarah Larsen as Suzuki in Seattle Opera's production of Puccini's Madama Butterfly. Photo by Elise Bakketun.
North American Works Directory Listing
Defendants Rosenberg
Composer: Ari Benjamin Meyers
Librettist: Ari Benjamin Meyers
Other Artistic Personnel: Holger Pototzki, Director; Fabian Dobler, Conductor; Tom Presting, Scenic Designer; Polly Matthies, Costume Designer; Susanne Range, Dramaturgist
Original Cast: Sabine Stolpe (Ethel Rosenberg); Ingo Anders (Julius Rosenberg); James Clark (Manny Block); Roland Fenes (Irving Saypol); Heinz Hirsch (Irving Kaufman); Undine Dreißig (various roles); Veronika Schreckenbach (various roles); Wolfgang Klose (various roles); Opera-Choir of the Theater der Landeshauptstadt Magdeburg
Premiere Date: December 11, 1999
Producing Company: Theater der Landeshauptstadt Magdeburg
Description: Defendants Rosenbergis based on the life, trial, and execution of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. To many, the Rosenbergs are criminals; to many others, martyrs. The opera incorporates actual events as documented by the trial transcript, newspaper accounts, and most significantly, the prison correspondence of the Rosenbergs. It does not try to prove their guilt or innocence. Above all, DEFENDENTS ROSENBERG is a love story, albeit an atypical one. In their own words, the Rosenbergs speak to us -- or rather-- sing to us (Ethel was a trained opera singer) -- as ghosts from our past, from our collective consciousness as a country. They do so not as icons, but as parents, lovers, dreamers, and prisoners.
Length: 02:15
Musical Style: A grand opera employing chamber opera forces
Contact: Ari Benjamin Meyers
Phone: (011) 49 30 399 69 44 or 516-423-1204
Composer Web Site: http://www.aribenjaminmeyers.com

Spring 2013 Magazine Issue
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  • Inheriting the Wind
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