On Sept. 21, Marc Blitzstein’s “Parabola and Circula” will get its world premiere in a concert performance at the Berlin Philharmonie. The showcase will be presented by the Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung and the Berliner Festspiele / Musikfest Berlin. Karl-Heinz Steffens, Artistic Director of the “Bauhaus Music” project and Chief Conductor of the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra, will lead the {…}
Reuben, Reuben is a two-act “urban folk opera” or “musical play” written by American composer Marc Blitzstein (1905-1964) in 1955. He is most noted for his off-Broadway adaptation of Kurt Weill and Berthold Brecht’s The Threepenny Opera. Despite Blitzstein’s many works, his name is relatively unknown today nor his opera remembered. The opera’s central story is based on the Faust legend {…}
It is easy to see why Marc Blitzstein’s “Regina” is rarely performed. It’s a demanding work that tackles issues of greed, race relations and other seedy elements of humanity head-on while fusing many musical styles that make it hard to characterize. Because there are so many elements to this opera that includes 10 major characters, it is difficult to mount {…}