New Works Festival

Jefferson Lives!

Music by Joshua Daniel Nichols
Libretto by Stefanos Koroneos, based on the original concept and source text by Dr. James R. Harrigan

Presented in partnership with Teatro Grattacielo and Polyhymnia

What does a revolution really look like when you’re living through it?

Jefferson Lives! explores the birth of the American Revolution not as distant history, but as a deeply human experience filled with uncertainty, conviction, doubt, and consequence. Through the ghostly presence of John Adams and a modern Narrator unexpectedly drawn into the past, the opera examines how revolutionary ideas move from thought to action, and the moral questions that emerge when history demands a choice.

Featuring 2 performers and chamber ensemble

The Post Office

Music by Laura Kaminsky
Libretto by Elaine Sexton
Design by Charles Renfro
Presented in Partnership with American Opera Projects

What happens when the ideals of democracy collide with the realities of everyday life?

In a small-town post office, five co-workers find themselves caught in a heated conflict over gay marriage, free speech, race, class, and what it means to live in a democracy. Then the ghost of Benjamin Franklin, America’s first Postmaster General, arrives to witness it all.

Provocative, contemporary, and deeply human, The Post Office brings the questions at the heart of American life into one very ordinary workplace, challenging us to consider what unites us, what divides us, and whether our founding ideals can withstand the pressures of the present.

Featuring 5 singers and piano