Presented by the Texas Tech University School of Music Opera Theatre in collaboration with students in the University Symphony Orchestra, Carlisle Floyd's "Susannah" is a masterpiece of English-language opera that remains one of the most-performed American operas worldwide. The performances are March 31 & April 1 at 7:30pm at the Allen Theatre
Written during the turbulent historical period punctuated by McCarthyism (which is mirrored in the plot of the opera), Floyd wrote both the music and the libretto during his professorship at Florida State University. Borrowing heavily from traditional Applachian musical styles, Protestant hymnody and folk melodies set the tone for Floyd's extrapolation of the Apocryphal tale of Susannah and the Elders. Taking place in the fictional mountain town of New Hope Valley, Tennessee, Susannah Polk grapples with her church community as she is branded a sinner, and must lock horns with her religious elders in an effort to clear her name.
Tickets are available at Eventbrite.com and at music.ttu.edu. General admission tickets are $15; seniors and non-TTU students are $10; TTU students are free with valid ID
