Jackie O - 1997 Opera Production 

An opera by composer Michael Daugherty and librettist Wayne Koestenbaum

A World Premiere co-production by Banff Centre for the Arts and Houston Grand Opera

BANFF - What becomes a legend most? Will you be famous forever, or famous for 15 minutes? Uncover the essence of media celebrity and pop culture fascination in the world premiere of Jackie O, a musical happening that sets out to retrieve the persona of one of the 20th century's most enduring cultural icons, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

Reinterpret Jackie through the imagined eyes of her peers, among them Liz Taylor, Princess Grace, Maria Callas in a 90-minute work that fuses opera, theatre, and media cultures. Recover the heady days of the 1960s, a period of extreme idealism, crash-and-burn transition and the extraordinary inventions of postmodernism and pop culture, in a dramatic happening that unfolds at Andy Warhol's New York studio, The Factory.

A contemporary fantasy for 19 instrumentalists and 19 performers, Jackie O is the product of a brilliant creation team led by composer Michael Daugherty and librettist Wayne Koestenbaum. Michael Daugherty is the much-lauded composer of pop-inspired works like Metropolis Symphony, Elvis Everywhere and Desi, an homage to the Desi Arnaz character in the TV series "I Love Lucy." Associate professor of English at Yale, Wayne Koestenbaum is a winner of a Whiting Writer's Award and the author of Jackie Under My Skin: Interpreting an Icon and The Queen's Throat: Opera, Homosexuality and the Mystery of Desire.

The production team which created le nouvel ensemble moderne and Banff Theatre Arts' acclaimed co-production of Berg's Wozzeck has gathered for Jackie O. It includes director Nicholas Muni, newly appointed artistic director of the Cincinnati Opera; German designer Peter Werner; and Canadian lighting designer Harry Frehner.

Jackie O is a world premiere and co-production assembled by two of 20th century opera's leading development companies: Banff Theatre Arts, Keith Turnbull, artistic director and Houston Opera Studio of the Houston Grand Opera, David Gockley, general director. Banff Theatre Arts is dedicated to the development, interpretation and performance of 20th century repertoire in music theatre, opera, drama and dance. Houston Opera Studio, the advanced training program of Houston Grand Opera, offers performance opportunities to young professionals. Both Banff and Houston are leaders in the commissioning and presentation of 20th century opera.

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