Awakenings (opera)

Awakenings is an opera in two acts composed by Tobias Picker, with a libretto by Aryeh Lev Stollman.[1][2] Based on Awakenings, Oliver Sacks' 1960's chronicle of his efforts to help the victims of an encephalitis epidemic,[3] the opera was commissioned by the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, and premiered on June 5, 2022.[4][5][6] The East Coast premiere of Awakenings was performed by Odyssey Opera in partnership with Boston Modern Orchestra Project, conducted by Gil Rose and directed by James Robinson, on February 25, 2023, at the newly renovated Huntington Theater.[7][8]

Awakenings
Opera by Tobias Picker
LibrettistAryeh Lev Stollman
LanguageEnglish
Based onOliver Sacks' Awakenings
Premiere
June 5, 2022 (2022-06-05)
Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, St. Louis, Missouri

Roles
RoleVoicePremier cast, 2022
Conductor: Roberto Kalb
Dr. Oliver SacksBaritoneJarrett Porter[9]
Dr. PodsnapBassDavid Pittsinger
Mr. RodriguezTenorAndres Acosta
RoseSopranoSusanna Phillips
MiriamMezzo-SopranoAdrienne Danrich
Leonard LevTenorMarc Molomot
IrisMezzo-SopranoKatharine Goeldner
RuthSopranoRachel Blaustein
Dr. Samuel SacksBass BaritoneKeith Klein
Dr. Muriel Else LandauContraltoElissa Pfaender
Ms. KohlSopranoAngel Azzarra
FrankTenorJared Esguerra
Lucy Mezzo-Soprano Daniela Magura

Development
Oliver Sacks

Picker originally met Oliver Sacks at a dinner party.[10] Picker, whose Tourette's syndrome went undiagnosed until he was in his thirties, was interested in Sacks's opinion of his symptoms.[11][12] Soon becoming close friends, Picker and Sacks served as mutual inspirations for one another: Picker was interested in Sacks's intellect and compassion, while Sacks was fascinated by Picker's creativity, Tourette's, and musicianship.[13] Picker would become one of the subjects of Sack’s book Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain:

Tobias Picker, the distinguished composer, also has Tourette’s. but when he is composing or playing the piano or conducting, his tics disappear. I have watched him as he sits almost motionless for hours, orchestrating one of his études for piano at his computer… Picker writes in every mode—the dreamy and tranquil no less than the violent and stormy—and moves from one mood to another with consummate ease.[14]

In 2010, Picker composed a ballet, Awakenings, for the Rambert Dance Company, inspired by the book by Oliver Sacks.[15][16] Later in the decade, Picker and his husband, the novelist and neurologist Aryeh Lev Stollman, began to develop an opera based upon Awakenings.[17]

References
  1. Cohn, Fred. "Re-Awakenings". Opera News. Retrieved September 3, 2022.
  2. Fenske, Sarah. "Awakenings Opera Premiering In St. Louis Came From Couple's Mutual Inspiration". St. Louis Public Radio. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  3. MacCarthy, Fiona (5 December 1985), "Travels round a couch", The Times
  4. "Awakenings". www.opera-stl.org. Opera Theatre of Saint Louis. Retrieved May 5, 2022.
  5. "Awakenings". www.tobiaspicker.com. Tobias Picker. Retrieved May 5, 2022.
  6. Durchholz, Daniel (Feb 4, 2022). "Opera Theatre of St. Louis names first principal conductor, extends other contracts". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved May 3, 2022.
  7. Orbey, Eren (February 20, 2023). "Oliver Sacks Gets An Opera". The New Yorker. Retrieved February 27, 2023.
  8. Madonna, A.Z. (February 27, 2023). "'Awakenings' is the stuff of dreams". The Boston Globe. Retrieved February 27, 2023.
  9. Cohn, Fred. "Re-Awakenings". Opera News. Retrieved September 3, 2022.
  10. Epstein, Robert. "Awakening to 25 Years of Change". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  11. Harries, Rhiannon. "How We Met: Oliver Sacks & Tobias Picker". The Independent. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  12. Goode, Erica (June 2, 2016). "Oliver Sacks Tribute Captures His Quirks and Insights". The New York Times. Retrieved May 1, 2022. 'He was very helpful to me because he could talk about it, talk about what he was observing, in a way that made me understand how I was being observed by the outside world,' Mr. Picker said.
  13. Harries, Rhiannon. "How We Met: Oliver Sacks & Tobias Picker". The Independent. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  14. Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain (2007) ISBN 978-1-4000-4081-0
  15. "Awakenings: Rambert". Rambert. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  16. "Rambert Dance Company: The Making of Awakenings". The Ballet Bag. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  17. Fenske, Sarah. "Awakenings Opera Premiering In St. Louis Came From Couple's Mutual Inspiration". St. Louis Public Radio. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
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