Beth Morrison Projects to Present New Works by BMP:NEXTGEN 3 Finalists
By Afton MarkayBeth Morrison Projects (BMP) is set to presents new works by the two finalists of the company’s flagship program for early career composers BMP:NEXTGEN.
The two finalists, Anuj Bhutani and Harriet Steinke, were selected from 10 semifinalists and each received a commission for a 30-minute vocal-theatre work developed under the mentorship of composer Missy Mazzoli and librettist Royce Vavrek. Semi-staged versions of both works will be presented across two performances before a winner is announced from the stage on May 17.
Bhutani’s “MANU,” directed by Rory Pelsue, weaves a personal narrative of institutional trauma with the Hindu flood myth, exploring endurance, identity, and memory through a hybrid musical language. Steinke’s “Monna Innominata,” directed by Nina Goodheart, reimagines Christina Rossetti’s 1881 sonnet cycle, placing the audience in the role of reader as a story of misreading, assumption, and buried secrets unfolds.
The winner of the final round, which Beth Morrison will announce at the final concert, will win a commission for a full-length vocal-theatre work developed and produced by BMP over the next three to five years, which will have performances in New York and Los Angeles.
“BMP:NEXTGEN is a program that reflects the very DNA of who we are,” said Morrison in a press release. “Discovering the next generation of creators in opera-theatre and music-theatre is central to our mission. Supporting and providing a platform for young composers, librettists, directors, designers, and singers—artists who will shape the future of our industry—is endlessly thrilling to me. Come experience the future of opera.”
Previous BMP:NEXTGEN winners include Emma O’Halloran and Niloufar Nourbakhsh.
Semi-staged versions of each work will be presented at National Sawdust in Brooklyn on May 16 and 17.
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