As part of the Fall 2021 Signature Series, the USC Thornton Opera presents two one-acts as part of the fall performance, including Benjamin Britten’s Curlew River, A Parable for Church Performance and Christoph Gluck’s one-act opera, Orfeo ed Euridice. Curlew River, with music by Benjamin Britten to a libretto by William Plomer, is the first of Britten's three “Parables for Church Performance.” It is based on the Japanese noh play Sumidagawa. Orfeo ed Euridice is an opera composed by Christoph Willibald Gluck, based on the myth of Orpheus and set to a libretto by Ranieri de' Calzabigi. These contrasting operas, composed 300 years apart and reimagined within the gritty urban landscape of downtown Los Angeles, tell stories of love, loss, suffering and redemption that continue to resonate today.
Re-watch the performances
November 19th, 2021
Bing Theatre - University Park Campus
Use the chapter markers to advance to the beginning of each one-act.
12:42 - Curlew River
1:40:30 - Orfeo ed Euridice
November 20th, 2021
Bing Theatre - University Park Campus
Use the chapter markers to advance to the beginning of each one-act.
15:36 - Curlew River
1:47:30 - Orfeo ed Euridice
Further reading
USC Opera Artists Website > Learn more about the creative team behind this production
You Can Help! > Links to downtown Los Angeles charitable organizations