The Santa Monica-based Broad Stage is set to present Heartbeat Opera’s rendition of “Fidelio” on February 26 and 27, 2022. 

This version of Beethoven’s famed opera features an all-new orchestral arrangement by Daniel Schlosberg as well as new English Dialogue co-written by Marcus Scott and Ethan Heard. The opera will be directed by Ethan Heard. 

The cast will star Derrell Acon, Kelly Griffin, Victoria Lawal, Curtis Bannister, and Corey McKern. It will feature a choir of more than 100 incarcerated singers and 70 volunteers from six prison choirs throughout the Midwest including the Oakdale Choir Community Choir, Kuji Men’s Choir, Ubuntu Men’s Chorus, Hope Thru Harmony Women’s Choir, East Hill Singers, and Voices of Hope.

This version of “Fidelio” originated in 2018 and was conceived for the era of “Black Lives Matter.” The New York Times lauded the production, calling it “Urgent, powerful, and poignant.”