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Thomas Adès's Powder Her Face at Skylight Music Theatre

Jan. 06, 2016

Thomas Adès's <em>Powder Her Face</em> at Skylight Music Theatre

Skylight Music Theatre in Milwaukee, Wisconsin presents Thomas Adés’s celebrated opera Powder Her Face. Composed when Adès was 24, Powder Her Face has become a modern classic, with over 200 performances worldwide since its 1995 premiere.

Recounting the scandalous downfall of Margaret, Duchess of Argyll, the chamber opera has been hailed for its musical variety – encompassing references to cabaret, tango, Berg and Stravinsky – and has become notorious for its musical depiction of fellatio, the first in operatic history.

The Duchess’s divorce in 1963 rocked the British aristocracy; salacious photographs and outrageous stories of her trysts with famous partners filled the tabloids during the court proceedings. The depiction of this contemporary event is yet another notable characteristic of Powder Her Face, which ushered in a new era of opera that comments on modern issues. Commissioned by Almeida Opera, the libretto was penned by Philip Hensher.

Under the musical direction of Viswa Subbaraman, Powder Her Face features soprano Cassandra Black in the role of the Duchess. The production opens January 29 and runs through February 14.

Later this month, the National Theatre Brno in the Czech Republic presents Powder Her Face in a production directed by Tomáš Studený and led by Marko Ivanović. The production opens January 29 and runs through May 4.

For more on Thomas Adés, visit fabermusic.com.

For information about Skylight Music Theatre’s production of Powder Her Face, visit their website, skylightmusictheatre.org.

Thomas Adès
Powder Her Face (1995)
chamber opera in two acts
libretto (Eng) by Philip Hensher
2 sopranos, tenor, bass
3cl(I.bcl, ssax, bsax; II.bcl, asax, bsax ad lib; III.bcl, cbcl, swanee whistle)-hn.tpt.trbn-perc-hp-pno -accordion-2vn.va.vc.db
115’

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