Dead Man Walking • 2000
Libretto by Terrence McNally
Based on the book by Sister Helen Prejean
Opera
in two acts
World Premiere: October 7, 2000
Commissioned by San Francisco Opera
Duration: 2 hours, 20 minutes
About
A young couple is brutally killed, and the convicted murderer, Joseph De Rocher, sits on death row. Sister Helen Prejean agrees to be his spiritual adviser. As she meets his family, and the families of his victims, she begins questioning every attitude she has about how human beings treat each other. Based on real-life events, Jake Heggie’s music and Terrence McNally’s libretto explore the nature of friendship and forgiveness in the most profound ways. Hugely acclaimed in major houses internationally, Dead Man Walking is widely acknowledged as one of the most riveting operas of the 21st century. It simply demands to be seen.
Courtesy of Lyric Opera of Chicago
“Dead Man Walking makes the most concentrated impact of any piece of American music theater since West Side Story more than 40 years ago.”
Premiere Cast & Creative Team
Conductor: Patrick Summers
Production: Joe Mantello
Set Designer: Michael Yeargan
Costume Designer: Sam Fleming
Lighting Designer: Jennifer Tipton
Sound Designer: Roger Gans
Chorus Director: Ian Robertson
Prompter: Sara Jobin
Stage Manager: Jerry Sherk
Fight Coordinator: Kimberly Basso
San Francisco Opera Orchestra and Chorus
San Francisco Boys and Girls Choruses
Golden Gate Boys Chorus
Sister Helen: Susan Graham
Joseph De Rocher: John Packard
Mrs. De Rocher: Frederica von Stade
Sister Rose: Theresa Hamm-Smith
Anthony de Rocher: David Tenenbaum
Sister Lillianne: Sally Mouzon
Sister Catherine: Virginia Pluth
Jimmy Charlton: Jeremy Singletary
Mrs. Charlton: Donita Volkwijn
Father Grenville: Jay Hunter Morris
George Benton: John Ames
Owen Hart: Robert Orth
Kitty Hart: Nicolle Foland
Jade Boucher: Catherine Cook
Howard Boucher: Gary Rideout
Made possible by an extraordinary gift from Phyllis Wattis and supported, in part, by The Carlyle Fund, Susan and Dennis Carlyle, co-founders. Libretto developed with the assistance of The Howard Gilman Foundation. Additional commission and production support provided by the National Endowment for the Arts.