Dates

7-22 Nov 2022

Location

Dutch National Opera & Ballet, Main Stage

Running time

2:30, incl. 1 interval

Tickets

n.a.

Blue

A striking portrait of a black family

Opera has rarely been as topical as Blue. In Harlem, a black couple anticipates the birth of its first-born son, with both hope and anxiety. The mother worries about her son’s future as she watches him become a young man and enter the world of activism. Meanwhile, the father tries to open his son’s eyes to the realities of 21st century America, whilst simultaneously struggling with his own identity as a police officer, a ‘Black man in blue’. When the parents’ deepest fears come true, they have to find a way to cope with reality.

Photo: Marta Syrko

A striking portrait of a black family

Dutch National Opera presents the European premiere of Blue, an opera by American Tony Award-winning composer Jeanine Tesori and American librettist and theatre director Tazewell Thompson. Inspired by events in contemporary America as well as by Black literature, this opera captures the anguish of a community that finds strength and comfort in togetherness in dark times. It portrays a profoundly traumatic loss that elicits a great deal of pain and suffering, but also highlights the importance of human connection and the pivotal role music plays in this regard.

 

Relevant and on point

The opera, which had its world premiere at the Glimmerglass festival in July 2019, won the Music Critics Association of North America Award for Best New Opera in 2020. Afterwards, the topical eloquence of the story was only strengthened by the events surrounding George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement, which spread around the world and for which countless people took to the streets in Amsterdam as well.

Performance information

Opera in two acts

Sung in English

Composition  Jeanine Tesori 

Libretto  Tazewell Thompson

Musical direction  Kwamé Ryan

Stage direction  Tazewell Thompson

Set design  Donald Eastman

Costume design  Jessica Jahn

Lighting design  Robert Wierzel, Eric Norbury

The Father  Kenneth Kellogg

The Mother  Aundi Marie Moore

The Son  Darius Gillard

The Reverend  Will Liverman

Girlfriends / Congregants 

Vuvu Mpofu

Thembinkosi Magagula

Rehanna Thelwell

Policemen / Congregants 

Thando Mjandana

Charles Williamson

Martin Mkhize

Residentie Orkest The Hague

Blue was commissioned by The Glimmerglass Festival and premiered in July, 2019.

Co-production: The Glimmerglass Festival, Washington National Opera and Lyric Opera of Chicago

Trigger Warning

This performance makes references to child loss and depicts scenes of grief that some audience members may find distressing.

Online programme

Along with the printed programme book, we also offer online programme information for this performance. The online programme will take you behind the scenes with in-depth stories, articles, and interviews with the creators and cast.

Trailer Blue
You havin' a what?
Black man in blue
Blue teaser
in the media
rave reviews

An opera that is inclusive and diverse, topical and moving, musically and textually overwhelming, and manages to bring in new audiences.

8 November

Tesori composed theatrical and beautiful music and is familiar with Puccini's tricks to touch the mood.

8 November

Aktueller kann Oper nicht sein! (...) Die Handlung ist messerscharf konzipiert und entfaltet sich wie ein Fernsehkrimi.

8 November

Blue embodies the essence of great opera: It unites a deeply moving story with music that stirs the passions and touches the heart. There’s no filler, no moment where composer or librettist lingers too long or self-indulges. It’s a stunning achievement that deserves a permanent place in the repertory.

5 March

Composer Jeanine Tesori knows how to cook merriment, how to cook sadness. That she was nominated several times for a Tony Award: it is immediately afterthought.

9 November

5 reasons to look forward to Blue

Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scènefoto Blue | Foto: Clärchen en Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Scene from Blue | Photo: Clärchen and Matthias Baus
Residentie Orkest

Residentie Orkest The Hague

Residentie Orkest The Hague is over 100 years old and is one of the most eminent symphony orchestras in the Netherlands. Led by principal conductor Anja Bihlmaier, this innovative orchestra performs in prominent concert halls in the Netherlands and abroad. Most recently, it has collaborated with Dutch National Opera on Dialogues des Carmélites, Madama Butterfly and Denis & Katya. In November 2022, it provi­ded the musical accompaniment to Blue.

Photo: Wouter Vellekoop

Podcast - Blue

By: Jasmijn van Wijnen

Rehearsal Blue - director Tazewell Thompson | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue - director Tazewell Thompson | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue - director Tazewell Thompson | Photo: Melle Meivogel
Rehearsal Blue - director Tazewell Thompson | Photo: Melle Meivogel

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