The Minnesota Opera's performance of Silent Night, the true story of a miraculous moment of peace during one of the bloodiest wars in history, will be broadcast on PBS nationwide starting on December 13. A listing of stations that will broadcast this Pulitzer Prize-winning opera from Kevin Puts is available HERE.
On Christmas Eve 1914, soldiers in opposing trenches laid down their arms and came together to share food, drink and camaraderie. For one night only, enemies became friends as soldiers serenaded each other with Christmas carols and played a friendly game of soccer.
Tenor William Burden stars as Nikolaus Sprink, the soldier whose voice inspired peace among adversaries. Liam Bonner, Craig Irvin and Gabriel Preisser will portray the multinational trio of lieutenants who come together to broker the truce. Soprano Karin Wolverton portrays opera singer Anna Sørensen, one of the few female voices among this mostly male cast of soldiers and officers.
Kevin Puts' music expresses the musical backgrounds of the French, German and Scottish soldiers. The opera is sung in French, English, German and Italian--with English subtitles.
Critic Larry Fuchsberg of Minneapolis' StarTribune said about Puts' score: "There is no emotion his writing cannot conjure. In the course of two hours, he integrates an astonishing range of forms and styles: waltz and fugue, 18th century opera and 19th century song, a folk-like Scottish ditty (complete with bagpipes), atonality and more. At its best, as in the heartfelt choral lullaby of Act I or the shattering funeral march of Act II, his music is as powerful as any being written today."
The Minnesota Opera commissioned Silent Night as part of their New Works Initiative, and presented the world premiere in November 2011. The libretto, by Mark Campbell, is based on the screenplay for the French film Joyeux Noël.
