The company will premiere two stories in one show: “Thump!” by Kimberly Osberg and “The King in Yellow” by Melody Eötvös.
Both of these literary operas will premiere at 7:00 p.m. Friday at the ?Buskirk-Chumley Theater.
New Voices Opera is a student-run opera company that focuses on the production of student-composed operas and vocal works.
“The King in Yellow” is based on a collection of short stories by Robert W. Chambers’ 1985 novel of the same name, according to the company’s website. This story takes two vignettes from the collection of short stories and adapts them for the stage.
The opera “Thump!” is based on the short story “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allen Poe. This story centers on a calculated murder and the inner drama the main character faces.
Executive Director of New Voices Opera, Benjamin Smith, said the idea behind putting these two separate stories into one show came the company’s fall exhibition. The group assessed eight to 10 composers who submitted their original work.
“We are looking for a good story and something the audience can relate to, since most repertory operas are the same story,” Smith said. “We wanted to show something that is more creative, innovative.”
He said what made “Thump!” and “The King in Yellow” so unique was how different each story’s plot is from most other traditional operas.
“Basically we took two student composers with independent work and made them cohesive even though they have nothing to do with each other,” Smith said. “They are two different shows. Both of them are similar in the way they take place in the 1800s period and are older suspense, thrill and horror ?stories.”
Bridget Williams, the lighting designer of the show, said what made the production so special was how it gave students a chance to compose their own pieces they could not get to do anywhere else.
“It is unique because it is new work and that is important to the artistic community, to try and inspire young artists to produce their work,” Williams said. “This is a good opportunity for people who are trying to become established composers to get their work produced.”
Admission for the event is free and open to the public, with a $10 suggested donation at the door.
“Audience members should come and expect to hear music you wouldn’t hear in any other opera,” Smith said. “You forget there is music since the story is portrayed so well.”
