Opera Meets Film: How the Murder’s Portrayal Alters the Emotional Impact of Both Versions of ‘Dead Man Walking’

(Credit Javier del Real / Gramercy Pictures) “Opera Meets Film” is a feature dedicated to exploring the way that opera has been employed in cinema. We will select a section or a film in its entirety, highlighting the impact that utilizing the operatic form or sections from an opera can alter our perception of a film that we are viewing. This week’s installment features “Dead Man Walking.” Over the last few years, Jake Heggie and Terrence McNally’s “Dead Man Walking” has become a major staple of the international opera repertory, one of the few 21st century operas to really own such a valuable distinction. And it isn’t hard to see why. Based on a true story, the {…}

Barbican 2017-18 Review – Dead Man Walking: Joyce DiDonato Shines In Jake Heggie’s Haunting Disarray Of An Opera

Jake Heggie’s 2000 opera “Dead Man Walking” – based on the memoirs of Sister Helen Prejean and inspired by the film of the same name – hardly conforms to operatic standards. An intersection of “Porgy and Bess”-like motifs, rock opera recitatives, and the echoes of New Orleans jazz, it treats the opera template with a moderate respect: scant arias and {…}