POTSDAM, NY (02/26/2016)(readMedia)-- Four finalists have been selected for the 2018 Domenic J. Pellicciotti Opera Composition Prize at The Crane School of Music.

The prize was founded by Dr. Gary C. Jaquay '67 to honor his life partner Domenic J. Pellicciotti, an ardent fan of opera. The award seeks to encourage and acknowledge the creation of new opera works that explore themes related to tolerance, inclusion or the celebration of diversity.

The finalists will create a 20-minute excerpt of their proposed opera, which will be workshopped at SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music on Sept. 24, 2016. One winner will be awarded a $25,000 commission to complete the work, which will premiere in November 2018, in a production by the award-winning Crane Opera Ensemble and Orchestra.

The finalists include "Albert Nobbs," a gender-bending story based on the novella by George Moore, about a butler in a 19th century Irish hotel who hides a secret: "he" is really a "she." Patrick Soluri is the composer and Deborah Brevoort is the librettist for "Albert Nobbs."

Based on a true story, "Mayo" tells of America's tragic infatuation with eugenics in the early 20th century. Though Mayo Buckner was committed to the Iowa Home for Feeble-Minded Children at the age of eight, and lived there for 60 years, he forged a life of quiet dignity and meaning. "Mayo" is composed by Tom Cipullo, who is also the librettist.

Adapted from Edith Wharton's novel and reset in Martinique in 1911, "The Reef" is a tragic opera in which the strict conventions of plantation society breed intolerance, based on race and class, and doom love between an American widow and a diplomat because of his prior affair with a mixed-race nursemaid. Anthony Davis is the composer and Joan Ross Sorkin is the librettist for "The Reef."

"Uncovered," by composer Lori Laitman, is the deeply moving story of a woman in a society that dictates every aspect of her existence so that she hides her real self. The opera is based on librettist Leah Lax's memoir, "Uncovered: How I Left Hasidic Life and Finally Came Home."

Noted American dramaturg Cori Ellison will work with the composers and librettists chosen as finalists, and with the 2018 prize winners, to develop their opera projects. A leading creative figure in the opera world, she is currently staff dramaturg at Glyndebourne Festival Opera and was dramaturg at New York City Opera from 1997 to 2010. Active in developing new opera, Ellison teaches opera dramaturgy for the American Lyric Theater Composer Librettist Development Program and serves as a freelance dramaturg for companies including Opera Philadelphia, Canadian Opera and Beth Morrison Projects.

The selection panel for the 2018 Domenic J. Pellicciotti Opera Composition Prize includes:

• Mark Campbell, award-winning opera librettist and winner (along with composer Martin Hennessey) of the 2014 Pellicciotti Prize for "A Letter to East 11th Street;"
• Dr. Carleen Graham, SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor and director of the Crane Opera Ensemble;
• Nicole Paiement, conductor, founder and artistic director of Opera Parallèle and principal guest conductor for the Dallas Opera;
• Dr. Kirk Severtson, professor and music director of the Crane Opera Ensemble and Orchestra;
• Dr. Timothy Sullivan, associate professor and chair of the Department of Music Theory, History and Composition at The Crane School of Music, and
• Darren Keith Woods, general director of Fort Worth Opera.

The finalists' workshop performances will be held on Saturday, Sept. 24 in the Sara M. Snell Music Theater at SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music. A panel discussion featuring all the finalists will be held on Friday, Sept. 23 at 4 p.m.

Both events will broadcast live on the SUNY Potsdam website and the Crane School of Music YouTube channel. The livestream for these and other performances can be found at www.potsdam.edu/academics/Crane/streaming.

These events will be free, and the public is invited to attend.

To learn more about the Domenic J. Pellicciotti Opera Composition Prize, visit www.potsdam.edu/academics/Crane/events/pellicciotti.

For more information about SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music, please visit www.potsdam.edu/crane.

About the Crane Opera Ensemble:

The award-winning Crane Opera Ensemble is a significant source for opera and music theatre in the North Country region of New York State. The ensemble provides exciting opportunities for students to experience all facets of opera performance and production, through rehearsals, coachings and classes related to performance practices and production techniques. The ensemble's productions have garnered awards from the National Opera Association (2015, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2003), The American Prize (2011), and the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (2010).

About The Crane School of Music:

Founded in 1886, SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music has a long legacy of excellence in music education and performance. Life at Crane includes an incredible array of more than 300 recitals, lectures and concerts presented by faculty, students and guests each year. The Crane School of Music is the State University of New York's only All-Steinway institution. For more information, visit www.potsdam.edu/crane.

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Posted Friday February 26, 2016 at 09:05 am by SUNY Potsdam
Last Updated Friday February 26, 2016 at 01:41 pm