NYU Skirball to Present the North American Premiere of Toshio Hosokawa’s ‘Hanjo’

By Chris Ruel

NYU Skirball is set to present the North American premiere of Toshio Hosokawa and Yukio Mishima’s “Hanjo” on Sept. 30 and Oct. 2, 2022, at NYU Skirball.

Produced by Catapult Opera and directed by Italian choreographer Luca Veggetti, Hosokawa’s “Hanjo” is based on a 14th-century Noh play and is considered a fine example of Japanese storytelling by one of the country’s most important living classical music composers. Director and choreographer Veggetti is a frequent collaborator of Hosokawa and won acclaim for his stagings of the opera in Germany and Tokyo.

In the lead role is soprano Eri Nakamura, who won acclaim for her portrayal of “Madama Butterfly” at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Joining Nakamura onstage are mezzo-soprano Abigail Fischer and baritone Adam Richardson. The dancer Saori Tsukada will perform the silent role of Kōken.

Hosokawa is Japan’s preeminent living composer and is considered one of our time’s foremost opera composers. His opera “Matsukaze” received its American premiere at the Lincoln Center Festival in 2013 to critical acclaim. He has composed both vocal and symphonic music and is co-founder and artistic director of the Japanese Festival for Contemporary Music.

Catapult Opera presents masterpieces from non-Western and underrepresented cultures to build new audiences while engaging and retaining existing audiences. Hanjo is the company’s first live production.

“Hanjo” had its world premiere in 2004 in Aix-en-Provence.

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