Theodor Herzl's Sixth Congress Address (Opera Excerpt)

Sixth Congress Address, excerpt from "State of the Jews" Opera - preview performances Dec 5-8, 2019
Music by Alex Weiser
Libretto by Ben Kaplan
Length: 80 minutes in two acts
Singers: 4 principal singers plus 8-person choir
Instrumentation: Clarinet, String Quintet, and Piano
Production Team: Mary Birnbaum, Director, Lee Dionne, Music Director, Kryssy Wright, Lighting Design, Grace Laubacher, Scenic Design Consultant, Amy MacDonald, Costume Design
Singers: Mario Diaz-Moresco: Theodor Herzl, Kristin Gornstein: Julie Herzl, Jonathan Z. Harris: Yechiel Tchlenov, Dominik Lippay, & Menachem Ussishkin, Alex Mansoori: Alfred Dreyfus, Ben Jacob, Pope Pius X, Rev. William Hechler, C4 and Friends: Chorus
Instrumentalists: Lee Dionne, Piano, Yasmina Spiegelberg, Clarinet, Brigid Coleridge, Violin, Harriet Langley, 2nd Violin, Lauren Siess, Viola, Julia Yang, Cello, Greg Chudzik, Double Bass
State of the Jews, a new opera in two acts,​ is a historical drama about Theodor Herzl (1860-1904), the charismatic and controversial Jewish Austro-Hungarian journalist whose writings ignited a mass political movement. In response to rising antisemitism, Herzl pursues the establishment of a Jewish state, but these political choices come at a great personal cost, wreaking havoc on the Herzl home. The opera interweaves the political turmoil of turn of the century Europe- the rise of nationalist movements, the threat of mass violence, and the struggle for political autonomy- with the true but relatively unknown story of Theodor’s relationship with his wife Julie, and the toll that his political work took on their marriage and lives. In her stark, contrasting response to the same historical circumstances, Julie exposes the complex and, in many ways, still unresolved challenges of that political moment in time.
State of the Jews has been performed in a series of semi-staged preview performances at the 14th Street Y in NYC, and will receive its world premiere production at Temple Emanu-El on January 15th: streicker.nyc/...
The Creators:
Broad gestures and rich textures are hallmarks of the “compelling” (The New York Times), “deliciously wistful” (San Francisco Classical Voice), “personal, expressive, and bold,” (I Care If You Listen) music of composer Alex Weiser. Born and raised in New York City, Weiser creates acutely cosmopolitan music combining a deeply felt historical perspective with a vibrant forward-looking creativity. Weiser’s debut album and all the days were purple, was named a 2020 Pulitzer Prize Finalist for Music. Released by Cantaloupe Music in April 2019, the album includes songs in Yiddish and English and has been praised as “ravishing” (The New Yorker), “reverent and magical... devastatingly beautiful,” (American Record Guide), “gorgeous” (Tablet Magazine), “utterly original and exquisitely unsettling... sweeping, bewitching, divinely dissonant... pitch-perfect.” (In Geveb). Weiser co-founded and directs the “ever-enjoyable” and “engaging” (New York Times) Kettle Corn New Music concert series and is the Director of Public Programs at the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research where he curates and produces programs. Visit www.AlexWeiser.com for more information.
Born in Brooklyn, NY, librettist​ Ben Kaplan​ studied literature and theater at Williams College. He currently serves as Director of Education at the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, where he directs programs that teach Jewish history and culture to a broad and diverse audience. These programs include the Uriel Weinreich Summer Program in Yiddish Language, Literature, and Culture and the YIVO-Bard Winter Program on Ashkenazi Civilization. As a librettist, he creates historically informed dramatic works that chronicle turning points in history lost to contemporary cultural discourse. Visit www.BenKaplanLibrettist.com for more information.