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Just to the side of our revolving stage, a whole other meeting of worlds is happening. Bravo and congratulations to our incredible ensemble of instrumentalists led by Music Director Marc Lowenstein.
DOUBLE BASS Doug Balliett
PERCUSSION Matt Cook
HARPSICHORD Gabriel Crist
VIOLA Miranda Cuckson
FLUTE Emi Ferguson
VIOLIN Keir GoGwilt
CELLO Coleman Itzkoff
VIOLA DA GAMBA Eric Tinkerhess
PIANO richard valitutto
THEORBO Jason Koji Yoshida
Tickets for this week are still available at MOCA.org
Read interviews with the creative team in @nytimes@latimes@hollywoodreporter@bombmag@sfclassicalvoice@attache4culture Links in bio.
@moca@runningamoc@arcostanzo@cathbrittan@yale_schwarzman@curtisinstitute@emiferguson@colemanplayscello@dougballiett@eric.tinkerhess@mrmhcook@mirandacmusic@keir_gogwilt@pianotutto
📷 @austin_thomas_richey
Coleman Itzkoff, Emi Ferguson, and Doug Balliett (L to R), The Comet / Poppea (2024). Performance documentation from the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA. Image by Austin Richey, courtesy MOCA and The Industry.
Marc Lowenstein, The Comet / Poppea (2024). Performance documentation from the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA. Image by Austin Richey, courtesy MOCA and The Industry.
Jason Koji Yoshida, Gabriel Crist, and Eric Tinkerhess (L to R), The Comet / Poppea (2024). Performance documentation from the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA. Image by Austin Richey, courtesy MOCA and The Industry.
richard valitutto, The Comet / Poppea (2024). Performance documentation from the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA. Set design by Mimi Lien. Image by Austin Richey, courtesy MOCA and The Industry.
“The Comet / Poppea” is a new opera that brings together the seemingly disparate worlds of Claudio Monteverdi’s “L'incoronazione di Poppea” (The Coronation of Poppea) and the world premiere of The Comet, based on the 1920 science-fiction short story by sociologist and Pan-Africanist civil rights activist W.E.B. Du Bois. Sound designer Mark Grey uses our Spacemap Go spatial sound design and mixing tool to create audio that follows the circular movement of the set to create a natural feel, while also using distance effects and warping to create a surreal sonic image.
The opera, which was conceived and directed by Yuval Sharon and composed by George Lewis with Libretto by Douglas Kearney, premiers today at The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA in Los Angeles, CA. “The Comet / Poppea” is realized through a landmark partnership among organizations across the United States, produced by Anthony Roth Costanzo and Cath Brittan, The Industry, AMOC* (American Modern Opera Company), Curtis Institute of Music, and Yale Schwarzman Center.
Photo credit:
1-3: Erin Baiano, courtesy of The Industry
4: Austin Richey, courtesy of MOCA and The Industry
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After six years in the making, the premiere of The Comet / Poppea is right around the corner and the news is spreading. The creative team has been in conversation with The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Classical Voice, and Cultural Attaché on the development and future of this monumental work. Links in bio.
Get your tickets now before they sell out!
June 14-23 The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA
Composed by George Lewis
Libretto by Douglas Kearney
Conceived & Directed by Yuval Sharon
Presented by MOCA & The Industry
The Comet / Poppea is produced by Anthony Roth Costanzo and Cath Brittan, The Industry, AMOC* (American Modern Opera Company), Curtis Institute of Music, and Yale Schwarzman Center.
@moca@runningamoc@yale_schwarzman@curtisinstitute@arcostanzo@yuvalsharon_la_detroit@austin_thomas_richey@alsoanoperasinger@latimes@nytimes@attache4culture@sfclassicalvoice
1. Anthony Roth Costanzo and Yuval Sharon (L to R) in The Comet / Poppea (2024), performance documentation from the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA. Image by Austin Richey, courtesy MOCA and The Industry.
2. Marc Lowenstein, Anthony Roth Costanzo, and Davóne Tines (L to R) in The Comet / Poppea (2024), performance documentation from the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA. Image by Austin Richey, courtesy MOCA and The Industry.
3. Yuval Sharon and Marc Lowenstein (L to R) in The Comet / Poppea (2024), performance documentation from the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA. Image by Austin Richey, courtesy MOCA and The Industry.
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First look at rehearsal images as we prepare for the world premiere next week!
The Comet / Poppea
Composed by George Lewis
Libretto by Douglas Kearney
Conceived & Directed by Yuval Sharon
The Comet / Poppea is realized through a landmark partnership among organizations across the United States, produced by Anthony Roth Costanzo and Cath Brittan, The Industry, AMOC* (American Modern Opera Company), Curtis Institute of Music, and Yale Schwarzman Center.
Tickets available at MOCA.org
1. George Lewis with Yuval Sharon, Marc Lowenstein, and Luther Lewis
2. Yuval Sharon and Anthony Roth Costanzo
3. Amanda Lynn Bottoms and Nardus Williams
Images by Erin Baiano
@moca@runningamoc@yale_schwarzman@curtisinstitute@erinbaiano@arcostanzo@yuvalsharon_la_detroit@lutherlewisart@amandalynnbottoms@narduswill.i.ams
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We are thrilled to announce an exciting lineup of conversations with the artists and creators of The Comet / Poppea, presented in partnership with MOCA and made possible by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
The Comet / Poppea in Conversation
Yuval Sharon, George Lewis, Douglas Kearney, and Anthony Roth Costanzo
Sunday, June 16 at 2:00 pm
Join us after the performance for an in-depth conversation with director Yuval Sharon, composer George Lewis, librettist Douglas Kearney, and performer/producer Anthony Roth Costanzo on the themes and development of The Comet / Poppea.
Paul Holdengräber with Yuval Sharon
Saturday, June 22 at 2:00 pm
The Industry’s Founder and Co-Artistic Director Yuval Sharon joins curator, writer, and interviewer Paul Holdengräber after the performance to discuss The Comet / Poppea and Sharon’s forthcoming book, A New Philosophy of Opera.
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Conceived by The Industry’s founder and co-artistic director, Yuval Sharon, and composed by George Lewis, with libretto by poet Douglas Kearney, this groundbreaking work is presented in partnership with the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) and appears at The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA, with eleven performances, June 14–23, 2024.
All tickets available at MOCA.org
The Comet / Poppea is realized through a landmark partnership among organizations across the United States, produced by Anthony Roth Costanzo and Cath Brittan, The Industry, AMOC* (American Modern Opera Company), Curtis Institute of Music, and Yale Schwarzman Center.
@moca@runningamoc@yale_schwarzman@curtisinstitute@yuvalsharon_la_detroit@pholdengraber@arcostanzo
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“Sweet Land: The Making of a Myth”
A special screening, tomorrow, April 20, 5:30–8:30pm
at Los Angeles State Historic Park!
Join us for a special screening of the KCET documentary featuring the making of The Industry’s groundbreaking site-specific opera Sweet Land, named Best Opera of 2020 by the Music Critics Association of North America.
An eye-opening pageant that disrupts the dominant narrative of American identity, Sweet Land was a highly collaborative creation produced by The Industry, the Los Angeles-based experimental company founded by MacArthur Fellow Yuval Sharon. Sweet Land took place February 29 - March 8, 2020 before being forced to shut down due to COVID-19. Directed by Jonathan Stein. Produced by The Industry. Originally premiered Wed., Oct. 27 at 9 p.m. on KCET / Fri., Oct. 29 at 8 p.m. PT on PBS SoCa.
5:30p DJ @maalbea
6:30p PERFORMANCE by @sharonchohikim
PANEL CONVERSATION w. @yuvalsharon_la_detroit@edgargarciaplazola@rageone@lastatehistoricpark
7:30p SWEET LAND: THE MAKING OF A MYTH
Thank you @dublab@lariverparks@lastatehistoricpark
Sweet Land: The Making of a Myth - Documentary Screening
Featuring a special performance from The Industry’s Company and Board Member, Chohi Kim
Los Angeles State Historic Park and The Industry welcome you to join us for a free screening of the KCET Artbound Documentary Sweet Land: The Making of a Myth, and a panel discussion with community members and The Industry’s Co-Artistic Director, Yuval Sharon. We will revisit the wonder of Sweet Land at Los Angeles State Historic Park, a production and place at the intersection of art, history and inspiration.
After years of preparation, the operatic imaginings of Sweet Land materialized on the landscape at Los Angeles State Historic Park only to vanish prematurely with the arrival of COVID-19 in the late winter of 2020. Sweet Land: Making of a Myth chronicles the team’s creative process and how they recast the origin story of the United States through the eyes of Indigenous Americans and immigrants.
Los Angeles State Historic Park is located in the heart of downtown Los Angeles. Of the space, Historian Leonard Pitt declared “No other 32 acres holds as much opportunity to enlighten us about the history and culture of Los Angeles and this region...”
5:30p BYO picnic and live DJ on the lawn
6:30p Performance and Panel Conversation
7:30p Film Screening
No RSVP required - BYO blankets and lawn chairs
@lastatehistoricpark
1. Sweet Land, 2020. Yuval Sharon, Du Yun, Cannupa Hanska Luger. Image by Michael Christopher Brown for NYT.
2. Sweet Land, 2020. Aja Couchois Duncan and Kelci Hahn. Image by Michael Christopher Brown for NYT.
3. Sweet Land, 2020. Marc Lowenstein. Image by Michael Christopher Brown for NYT.
4. Sweet Land, 2020. Image by Michael Christopher Brown for NYT.
The Industry & MOCA present:
The Comet / Poppea
Composed by George Lewis
Libretto by Douglas Kearney
Concept & Direction by Yuval Sharon
June 14–23, 2024
WAREHOUSE at Geffen Contemporary at MOCA
The Comet / Poppea brings together seemingly disparate worlds connected by stories of cultural transformation. It juxtaposes Claudio Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea (The Coronation of Poppea), an Italian opera from 1643 unfolding among the social divisions of ancient Rome; and the world premiere of The Comet, based on the 1924 science-fiction short story by sociologist and Pan-Africanist civil rights activist W.E.B. Du Bois. Set in 1920s New York City, “The Comet” depicts a Black man and white woman as the only survivors after a comet hits Earth.
Presented on a turntable divided in two halves, these worlds unfold simultaneously, with the stage’s rotation creating a visual and sonic spiral for audiences—inviting associations, dissociations, collisions, and confluences.
The Comet / Poppea is realized through a landmark partnership among organizations across the United States, produced by Anthony Roth Costanzo and Cath Brittan, The Industry, AMOC* (American Modern Opera Company), and Curtis Institute of Music.
👉 TICKETS ON SALE APRIL 25
@moca@runningamoc@curtisinstitute@arcostanzo@yuvalsharon_la_detroit@douglas.kearney@cathbrittan
