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Harvey Milk, On Silver Screen and Opera Stage

Feb. 02, 2009

The 2008 feature film MILK is amassing Academy Award nominations and bringing much renewed and warranted attention to the martyred gay civil rights activist Harvey Milk. The opera Harvey Milk by Stewart Wallace, which premiered at the Houston Grand Opera in 1995, also chronicles the life and times of this historical figure. Gus Van Sant, director of Focus Films' MILK, attended a performance at San Francisco Opera in November 1996, when he was originally to direct the film. Composer Stewart Wallace comments:

The film includes many similarities in structure and approach to the opera. It chooses to celebrate Milk's life and ends as the opera does with the candlelight vigil, not continuing on to Dan White's trial. The film is also framed by Harvey Milk's political will. In the opera, we used Milk's actual recorded words, so that the ghost of Harvey Milk was actually felt in the hall with the words "Come Out!" looping after his assassination. Scott Smith, Harvey's long time lover, played by James Franco in the film, Anne Kronenberg, Harvey's campaign manager, and others who worked with him throughout his life attended the world premiere of Harvey Milk in Houston. The final performance at Houston in 1995 was dedicated to the memory of Scott Smith, who passed away the night before.

Mark Adamo wrote of the premiere in The Washington Post, "Harvey Milk is an astounding achievement -- lively, artful, tough-minded American music-drama, deeply satisfying to ear, eye and mind" and John von Rhein of TheChicago Tribune called Harvey Milk "... one of the best new operas in years."

Following its premiere run at the Houston Grand Opera, Harvey Milk saw performances at New York City Opera, Dortmund Opera (Germany) and then San Francisco Opera where it was recorded with Donald Runnicles conducting. Stewart Wallace also composed Kaddish For Harvey Milk, a concert requiem which premiered with the Madison Symphony in 1997. Based on music from the opera, the work includes new music for the chorus, soloists and expanded orchestra.

To order the commercial recording of Harvey Milk available on Teldec Records, please click here.

To learn more on the music of Stewart Wallace, go to www.stewart-wallace.com and www.schott-music.com.

Stewart Wallace
Harvey Milk (1995)
opera in three acts
libretto (En) by Michael Korie
for soprano, male soprano, mezzo-soprano, 2 tenors, bass, 2 high baritones, boy tenor and girl soprano
2(2pic).2(2.ca).2(2.Ebcl).bcl(cl).2(2.cbsn)-4.3.3.2-timp.3perc-kybd-str
120'

 

Kaddish for Harvey Milk (1997)
for soprano, mezzo-soprano, high baritone, large chorus and orchestra
text (En) by Michael Korie
pic.1.2(2.ca).2.bcl.1.cbsn-4.3.3.2-timp.3perc-kybd-str
30'

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