The Great Gatsby is a 1999 opera in two acts written by American composer John Harbison. The libretto, also by Harbison, was adapted from the 1925 novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Additional popular song lyrics were by Murray Horwitz. The opera was commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera in honor of music director James Levine's 25th anniversary with the company.
Performance history The Great Gatsby had its premiere performance on December 20, 1999. Conducted by Levine, the cast included Jerry Hadley, Dawn Upshaw and Lorraine Hunt Lieberson. The stage production was by Mark Lamos. The opera has been performed at the Met twelve times in two seasons. In 2000 it was produced at Lyric Opera of Chicago. The opera has received mixed reviews, some describing it as "undramatic and dull." It was also performed in the summer of 2012 at the Aspen Music Festival and School. It was performed at Seagle Festival in Schroon Lake, NY in the summer of 2018.
The first European performance was on 6 December 2015 at the Semperoper in Dresden conducted by Wayne Marshall.
Roles RoleVoice typePremiere Cast, December 20, 1999(Conductor: James Levine)European Premiere, December 6, 2015(Conductor: Wayne Marshall)Jay Gatsby, a wealthy but mysterious young mantenor Jerry Hadley Peter LodahlDaisy Buchanan, a young socialitesoprano Dawn Upshaw Maria BengtssonTom Buchanan, Daisy's husband, formerly an athlete tenorMark W. Baker Raymond VeryNick Carraway, Daisy's cousin, a stockbrokerbaritone Dwayne Croft John ChestJordan Baker, Daisy's friend, a golfer mezzo-soprano Susan Graham Christina BockGeorge Wilson, garage mechanicbass Richard Paul FinkLester LynchMyrtle Wilson, George's wifemezzo-sopranoLorraine Hunt Lieberson Angel BlueRadio/Band Singertenor Matthew PolenzaniAaron PegramTango Singermezzo-soprano Jennifer Dudley Jelena KordićMeyer Wolfshiem, a businessmanbass-baritone William Powers Matthias HennebergHenry Gatz, Jay's fatherbaritone Frederick Burchinal Tilmann RönnebeckMinisterbass LeRoy Lehr
References
The Metropolitan Opera Database. Opera publisher G. Schirmer, Inc.
External links An interview with John Harbison David Stevens, "Harbison Mixes Up A Great 'Gatsby'" (Review of the premiere), International Herald Tribune, December 29, 1999 Metropolitan Opera, Synopsis: The Great Gatsby