Why do people outside the US think our last and only opera was “Porgy and Bess”?
I’m glad you asked that question. First of all Porgy and Bess was presented as a musical, not an opera for generations. Although it was written as an opera it was first considered an opera at all in 1976 – in a truncated production by the Houston Grand Opera that transfered to Broadway. Its first full production,at least in the US, was at the Met in 1986 – a long wait. There are many American excellent operas but they don’t get enough critical support. Our pseudo-intellectual class only considers it music if its European. Some Operas have done reasonably well: The Ghosts of Versailles by John Corigliano (1991) It was premiered at the Metropolitan Opera to good reviews and has been revived there and at the Chicago Lyric Opera. It will be revived at the Met again in 09-10 Satyagraha – Phillip Glass (1980) – Revived this year in a stunning success at the Met. It got great reviews even from critics who previously didn’t like Glass. Next to Tristan and Isolde it was the opera event of the y
