THE GIRLS OF THE GOLDEN WEST DRIVER

Are we doomed to shove each other aside, be cruel and even kill our neighbors?

The creators note that these elements have always existed in our country. Cultural differences, vicious ethnic attacks and insults abound. The gold rush brought together Chinese, Mexicans, and Americans into a melting pot that was any thing but. Here the main subject of the opera emerges. Lusty, angry, greedy, their voices charge through the opera house. Some of the liveliest music is created by the group, directed by Ian Robertson. In the second act, the chorus of miners becomes prominent. We join in appreciating the descriptions, both verbal and musical. In the first act, individuals are the focus of attention. Singers often describe a world to the audience as we watch the background activities of the mining town. Paul Appleby sings Joe Cannon, a challenging role in which he portrays cuckhold, lover, and drunk, as well as a man who seeks good fortune. The opera company cast many young singers, whose aspirations and eagerness for success mirrors that of the mining community.

THE GIRLS OF THE GOLDEN WEST DRIVER

She is attracted to the driver of her wagon, a black cowboy Ned Peters, who is sung by DavГіne Tines, even more striking here than he was in the recent BAM presentation of Crossing. She is a forceful presence during the entire opera.Дescriptions of both nature and the gold rush characters are memorably drawn by Bullock, taking on the challenge of Adams' lyrics in both bold and stretched lines. Julia Bullock, taking on the role of Dame Shirley, uses all the beauty and drama of her soprano to capture the language of the poetic letters Dame Shirley wrote home. The unusual focus in the first act is on individual singers, who address us. He chose to compose a spare orchestral accompaniment to match the crude and stripped down setting. Part of the draw of the subject was the challenge of creating the natural world with which he is often surrounded.

Drawn to the character of the eastern-born wife of a doctor who re-located to the west coast at the time of the Gold Rush, Adams and his frequent collaborator Peter Sellars have crafted an unfamiliar and compelling picture of a powder keg mining town in the Sierra Nevada mountains.

John Adams' celebration of his 70th birthday is crowned with a new opera, Girls of the Golden West, which enjoys its world premiere at the San Francisco Opera.

The girls of the golden west