About
Delirious. Manic. Damned. This double-bill featured a boastful murderer and a self-condemned artist. Stewart Copeland, drummer/founder of the rock band The Police, elevates Poe's story of a meticulous murderer betrayed by his own paranoia. Michael Gordon, Bang on a Can co-founder, dives into the restless soul of the brilliant painter Van Gogh, revealing his world through the raw emotions of his personal letters. Both operas feature music at the edge of rock, jazz, and modernism.
Reviews
Mitisek's concept was to view both operas as interior dramas by self-destructive men. For Copeland's half-hour "Tell-Tale Heart", Mitisek littered the stage with litter, homeless people, hookers and (get it?) the police (including a fat one munching on doughnuts). The production turns Copeland's literal retelling of the short story into a flashy, grisly, sexy saga of a serial-killing Poe in a wheelchair.
Credits
Conductor: Ben Makino
Stage Director/Production Design: Andreas Mitisek
Video Designer: Adam Flemming
Edgar: Robin Buck
Neighbor 1: Ashley Knight
Neighbor 2: Danielle Bond
Alan/Police Officer 1: John Matthew Myers
Shadow Edgar/Police Officer 2: Jason Switzer
Actor: Mark Bringelson
Photos
Long Beach Opera 2013
