This astonishingly original presentation of the fairy tale Beauty and the Beast blurs the distinctions between film and live opera, merging Jean Cocteau's classic 1946 romantic fantasy with Philip Glass' mesmerizing 1994 score. Glass composed the music as a new soundtrack to the film, transforming the original spoken French dialogue into sung libretto.
Now Opera Parallèle has responded to the dreamlike, subconscious elements of the story with its own new film and stage direction, further blurring the barriers between the characters onscreen and the singers on stage. The work asks, What is true beauty? What is good and evil? Can we go beyond appearances and discover the beauty that lies inside the soul?
"A multi-veined phantasmagoria of sights and sounds, drama and pathos and humor" (San Francisco Chronicle).
Performed in French with English subtitles
Opera Parallèle
La Belle et la Bête
Nicole Paiement, artistic director and conductor
Brian Staufenbiel, director and scenic designer
Cal Performances Company Debut
by Philip Glass
Libretto by the composer
Based on the film by Jean Cocteau
Featuring Hadleigh Adams, baritone (La Bête/Avenant)
show less
Now Opera Parallèle has responded to the dreamlike, subconscious elements of the story with its own new film and stage direction, further blurring the barriers between the characters onscreen and the singers on stage. The work asks, What is true beauty? What is good and evil? Can we go beyond appearances and discover the beauty that lies inside the soul?
"A multi-veined phantasmagoria of sights and sounds, drama and pathos and humor" (San Francisco Chronicle).
Performed in French with English subtitles
Opera Parallèle
La Belle et la Bête
Nicole Paiement, artistic director and conductor
Brian Staufenbiel, director and scenic designer
Cal Performances Company Debut
by Philip Glass
Libretto by the composer
Based on the film by Jean Cocteau
Featuring Hadleigh Adams, baritone (La Bête/Avenant)
This astonishingly original presentation of the fairy tale Beauty and the Beast blurs the distinctions between film and live opera, merging Jean Cocteau's classic 1946 romantic fantasy with Philip Glass' mesmerizing 1994 score. Glass composed the music as a new soundtrack to the film, transforming the original spoken French dialogue into sung libretto.
Now Opera Parallèle has responded to the dreamlike, subconscious elements of the story with its own new film and stage direction, further blurring the barriers between the characters onscreen and the singers on stage. The work asks, What is true beauty? What is good and evil? Can we go beyond appearances and discover the beauty that lies inside the soul?
"A multi-veined phantasmagoria of sights and sounds, drama and pathos and humor" (San Francisco Chronicle).
Performed in French with English subtitles
Opera Parallèle
La Belle et la Bête
Nicole Paiement, artistic director and conductor
Brian Staufenbiel, director and scenic designer
Cal Performances Company Debut
by Philip Glass
Libretto by the composer
Based on the film by Jean Cocteau
Featuring Hadleigh Adams, baritone (La Bête/Avenant)
read more
Now Opera Parallèle has responded to the dreamlike, subconscious elements of the story with its own new film and stage direction, further blurring the barriers between the characters onscreen and the singers on stage. The work asks, What is true beauty? What is good and evil? Can we go beyond appearances and discover the beauty that lies inside the soul?
"A multi-veined phantasmagoria of sights and sounds, drama and pathos and humor" (San Francisco Chronicle).
Performed in French with English subtitles
Opera Parallèle
La Belle et la Bête
Nicole Paiement, artistic director and conductor
Brian Staufenbiel, director and scenic designer
Cal Performances Company Debut
by Philip Glass
Libretto by the composer
Based on the film by Jean Cocteau
Featuring Hadleigh Adams, baritone (La Bête/Avenant)
show less
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