Not only is Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth performing completely new music this week (see: Saturday blurb), TCU Opera Theatre is doing the same thing, and it’s an even bigger deal. The Falling and the Rising was commissioned by the school’s music department, plus opera companies in Phoenix, San Diego, and Memphis, to tell the story of a soldier who has been placed in an induced coma following a roadside explosive attack, as thoughts swirl through her head while she lies in a hospital bed.
There’s always a danger that a work like this may collapse into something reverential and dull. Then again, composer Zach Redler once wrote a musical called Perez Hilton Saves the Universe, so we like the odds of him keeping sentimentality at bay. In addition to Redler’s research at Walter Reed Medical Center with librettist Jerre Dye, the opera also utilizes musicians from the U.S. Army Field Band and Soldier’s Chorus, as well as David Gately, the director who has graced Fort Worth Opera’s productions on many occasions. It’s the city’s opera that generally corners the market on new works for the stage, but this weekend, TCU will be home to that action. Best of all, admission is free, though tickets must be reserved online.
The Falling and the Rising runs Fri-Sun at TCU, Ed Landreth Auditorium, 2800 S University Dr, FW. Tickets are free. Call 817-257-7602.
