PITTSBURGH OPERA PRESENTS TWO MODERN OPERAS IN MAY DURING INTERNATIONAL OPERA CONFERENCE

Close

No Events

EVENTS

Today

April 4, 2023
Chris Cox, Director of Marketing and Communications
412-281-0912 ext. 217
Contact via email
Download as a PDF

Pittsburgh Opera presents two modern operas in May to coincide with international opera conference

Pittsburgh Opera is producing two different contemporary operas in May to coincide with OPERA America’s Opera Conference 2023.

  • Denis & Katya will be performed at the Bitz Opera Factory, 2425 Liberty Avenue, in Pittsburgh’s Strip District on May 6, 9, 12, 14, and 18.
  • We Shall Not Be Moved will be performed at the August Wilson African American Cultural Center in downtown Pittsburgh on May 13, 16, 18, 19, and 21.

OPERA America’s Opera Conference 2023, May 17-20, is the largest assembly of opera administrators, artists, trustees, and associates in the world. Hosted by Pittsburgh Opera, hundreds of stakeholders will convene for discussions, networking, and performances that move opera forward.

Overview of the operas:

Denis & Katya


On November 14, 2016, Denis Muravyov and Katya Vlasova, fifteen-year-olds in the rural Pskov region of Russia, died after a three-day standoff with Russian Special Forces. They live-streamed their last hours onto internet sites, leaving behind a trail of devastating video footage: drinking and smoking, cuddling and crying, and preparing to die. 


Denis and Katya could have been your children, best friends, or classmates. Two teenagers who lived every moment—including their last—online. What led to their violent deaths? Why did they choose to broadcast their final moments on social media? And what does it say about the voyeuristic society that watched, liked, and objectified them in real-time, transforming two kids into clickbait?

This visceral opera uses verbatim text to examine the vast public response to the events surrounding the tragedy of these two Russian runaways, exploring how stories are shaped and shared in our age of trolls, conspiracy theories, fake news, and 24/7 digital connection.

The New York Times called Denis & Katya "an intimate, haunting triumph", and Musical America called it “ … the most brilliantly original operatic work I’ve seen in a decade."

 

We Shall Not Be Moved

On the run after a series of tragic incidents, five North Philadelphia teens find refuge in an abandoned, condemned house in West Philadelphia at the exact location that served as headquarters of the MOVE organization, where a 1985 standoff with police infamously ended with a neighborhood destroyed and 11 people dead, including five children. This self-defined family is assuaged and even inspired by the ghosts who inhabit this home and begin to see their squatting as a matter of destiny and resistance rather than urgent fear.

Combining spoken word, contemporary movement, video projection, classical, R&B, and jazz singing, and a brooding, often joyful score filled with place, purpose, and possibility, We Shall Not Be Moved is a timely exploration of past and present struggles that suggests an alternate future through the eyes of its young protagonists.

Tony Award-winner and Kennedy Center Honoree Bill T. Jones directs and choreographs; Viswa Subbaraman conducts.

DATES/TIMES/LOCATIONS/ LANGUAGES/RUN TIMES
slide-plus
slide-minus

Denis & Katya

  • Where: The Bitz Opera Factory (Pittsburgh Opera's headquarters), 2425 Liberty Avenue, in Pittsburgh's Strip District
  • When:
    • Sat., May 6, 2023  * 8:00 PM
    • Tues., May 9, 2023  * 7:00 PM
    • Fri., May 12, 2023  * 7:30 PM
    • Sun., May 14, 2023  * 2:00 PM
    • Thurs., May 18, 2023 * 6:00 PM
  • Language: Denis & Katya is sung in in English and Russian with English supertitles projected above the stage
  • Run Time: Approximately 65 mins. There is no intermission.

We Shall Not Be Moved

  • Where: August Wilson African American Cultural Center, 980 Liberty Avenue in downtown Pittsburgh
  • When:
    • Sat., May 13, 2023  * 8:00 PM
    • Tues., May 16, 2023  * 7:00 PM
    • Thurs., May 18, 2023  * 10:30 AM Community Matinee - details below
    • Fri., May 19, 2023  * 7:30 PM
    • Sun., May 21, 2023  * 2:00 PM
  • The May 18th performance of We Shall Not Be Moved is a special 10:30 AM matinee performance with low-price tickets available for community groups. If you are interested in bringing your group to this performance please contact Wendy Parkulo, Manager of Group Sales and Community Initiatives, via email or at 412-281-0912 ext. 213 for more information.
  • Language: We Shall Not Be Moved is sung in English with English supertitles projected above the stage
  • Run Time: Approximately 2 hours, 5 minutes including one 20-minute intermission
CAST AND ARTISTIC TEAMS
slide-plus
slide-minus

Denis & Katya

Please see the Denis & Katya webpage for complete cast and artistic team information.

We Shall Not Be Moved

Please see the We Shall Not Be Moved webpage for complete cast and artistic team information.

TICKETING INFORMATION
slide-plus
slide-minus

Tickets for adults for We Shall Not Be Moved start at $15; adult tickets for Denis & Katya are $50. Tickets for kids and teens ages 6–18 are half-price. Patrons buying tickets to both operas can save 25% off the regular ticket price at pittsburghopera.org/two.

For tickets call 412-456-6666, visit the Benedum Center Box Office, or order online at pittsburghopera.org/tickets or CulturalDistrict.org.

Pittsburgh Opera is committed to making opera accessible to all groups by providing great discounts and special benefits to group ticketholders. A group at Pittsburgh Opera can be as few as 6 people!  In addition, college and university students, faculty, and staff are eligible for our Cheap Seats program—see pittsburghopera.org/CheapSeats for details. For more information about group ticket services and discounts, contact Wendy Parkulo at (412) 281-0912, ext. 213 or via email.

Pittsburgh Opera is continuing its no-hassle refund policy for all 2022–23 operas. Pittsburgh Opera will offer full refunds for any patrons who notify us that they need to cancel their tickets at least one hour prior to their performance start time.

SPONSORS
slide-plus
slide-minus

PNC is the 2022–23 Pittsburgh Opera Season Sponsor.

WQED-FM is Pittsburgh Opera’s Media Sponsor.

Ambridge Regional Distribution and Manufacturing Center is the Tuesday performance and ‘Meet the Artists’ post-show event sponsor.

Support for We Shall Not Be Moved comes from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Denis & Katya is sponsored in part by a gift from an Anonymous Donor.

2425 LIBERTY AVE.
PITTSBURGH, PA 15222

P. 412-281-0912

©2024 PITTSBURGH OPERA