Sophia’s Forest
a chamber opera for soprano, mezzo, baritone, child soprano (or high soprano), child actress (non-singing)
libretto by Hannah Moscovitch
duration: ~60 minutes
Personnel:
Sophia – soprano
Anna – mezzo
Wes – baritone
Emma – child soprano or high soprano
Young Sophia – child actress
string quartet, percussion, and electronically controlled sound sculptures.
SOPHIA’S FOREST was premiered September 8 and 9, 2017 in Philadelphia. Please see the Sophia’s Forest project page for more details or email lembitbeecher [at] gmail [dot] com for a video recording of the premiere.
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2022 Opera Parallèle Production Photos (credit: Steve DiBartolomeo):
“Not to be overlooked…is Sophia’s Forest…I missed it but caught up with a video that verified much of the rapturous reaction I’d heard from others. A searingly introspective study on immigrant children, the opera was full of vocal lines reflecting psychological depths but also electronic music effects that added greatly to the dreamlike atmosphere. The superb soprano Kiera Duffy was a major plus in the leading role.”
– David Patrick Stearns (Philadelphia Inquirer’s Best-of-2017 List), December 26, 2017
The rest of the fine, understated score—atmospheric and sensitively deployed in terms of pacing the sung and spoken material—emerged from elaborately worked musical sculptural “tree” units that Beecher controlled from a computer, seated with the musicians at the rear of the playing space.
– David Shengold (Opera News), December 2017