The End of the Affair • Program Note
The Houston Grand Opera approached me about creating my second full-length opera late in 1999. I was eager to work again with Terrence McNally after our great collaboration in Dead Man Walking, but he was unavailable to collaborate on a big opera at the time. He suggested I work with the playwright Gary Bonasorte, and he also suggested I take a look at The End of the Affair, the novel by Graham Greene which had inspired two films: one starring Deobrah Kerr (1955) and a second starring Julianne Moore (1999). The scene in which the main protagonist, Sarah Miles, wrestles with her bargain with God was so emotionally big and powerful, and her journey so fascinating, that I decided to proceed with the project.
Several difficult setbacks came with the sudden, tragic death of Gary Bonasorte at age 45. Then the original director had to withdraw. With an early 2004 premiere date already set at Houston Grand Opera, I had to move quickly. The previous director introduced me to the playwright Heather McDonald, and we agreed to collaborate. Then we found the director Leonard Foglia, who was in the process of creating a new production of Dead Man Walking for a consortium of seven opera companies. Through the sometimes thorny creative process, the full libretto arrived one year before the world premiere. Somehow, a piano/vocal score emerged in time for a full workshop at Bucknell University in October 2003. Then I orchestrated the opera in three months, just in time to start rehearsals. It was a harrowing journey. The original production had some dramaturgical and musical issues that needed clarifying, so the team set about making major cuts and rewrites. We were able to try out the new version at Madison Opera in early 2005. With a few more revisions, the opera landed in its final form at Seattle Opera in October 2005.