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"A coup of music theater for Spoleto - an experiment in opera grand and intimate and timely in its content."-Opera TodayAmistad is the extraordinary (and historically true) story of a slave ship taken off the coast of Long Island in 1839 by the US Coast Guard. The ensuing story of enslavement, rebellion and the eventual trial (at which former President John Quincy Adams was the defense lawyer) form the context for Anthony Davis's stunning opera in which gods and spirits travel across the ocean from Africa accompanying the captives on their journey to slavery and then to freedom. Davis's complex and melodious score, newly revised for the Spoleto Festival performances, draws upon a range of sources, including jazz and blues. Conducted by Emmanuel Villaume and directed by Sam Helfrich with sets by Caleb Wertenbaker and costumes by Kaye Voyce, Amistad took the audience on an emotional journey through the Middle Passage, offering hope and salvation in times of despair, a fitting work to inaugurate the newly renovated Memminger Auditorium.
Director: SAM HELFRICH | Conductor: EMMANUEL VILLAUME | Assistant Conductor: OLIVIER REBOUL | Accompanist: LYDIA BROWN | Costume Designer: KAYE VOYCE Set Designer: CALEB WERTENBAKER | Lighting Designer: PETER WEST
The Trickster God: MICHAEL FOREST | Navigator: RAÚL MELO | Don Pedro: JEFFREY WELLS | Kinnah: ROBERT MACK | Grabeau: KEVIN MAYNOR | Burnah: HERBERT PERRY | Margru: JANINAH BURNETT | Bahia: KENDALL GLADEN | Kaleh: NORMAN SHANKLE | Captive girl: CRYSTAL CHARLES | Cinque: GREGG BAKER | Lieutenant: EDWARD PARKS | Antonio: FIKILE MVINJELWA | Reporter 1: DENNIS PETERSEN Reporter 2: ZACHARY COATES | Reporter 3: JAN OPALACH | Reporter 4: JONATHAN GREEN | Phrenologist: DENNIS PETERSEN | Abolitionist Tappan: BRIAN FRUTIGER John Quincy Adams: STEPHEN MORSCHECK | Judge: EDWARD PARKS | Goddess of Waters: MARY ELIZABETH WILLIAMS | Ship Cook: BRIAN MATTHEWS
Amistad performances are sponsored by American Express
Additional support is provided by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Brand Foundation, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelly Foundation, The Alice Tully Foundation, and the Ford Foundation. Opera programming is endowed by the Arthur and Holly Magill Foundation.
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