The Studios of Key West presents “Single Occupancies,” an evening of Contemporary Opera Theatre Monologues

Three characters, three stories, three worlds — and an evening that will stretch your notion of what modern opera can be. On Saturday, Jan. 4 and Sunday, Jan. 5 at 8:00 pm, The Studios of Key West proudly presents “Single Occupancies,” a collection of three contemporary opera theatre monologues directed by Murphy Davis. Tickets for the limited engagement event are now on sale at 305-296-0458 and www.tskw.org.

Performed by nationally renowned opera singers, “Single Occupancies” includes two world premiere pieces by Martin Hennessy and Stephen Kitsakos, and one regional premiere by Mark Campbell and Marisa Michelson. Scored for piano, cello, clarinet and double bass, and sung in English, the storylines are riveting, fresh and relevant.

“The strength of these pieces springs, in part, from their brevity,” said Stephen Kitsakos, librettist. “Like a powerful short story, these narratives begin in media-res, presenting an immediate and fascinating slice of life. The characters grab you by the collar, compel you to look closely, and of course, to listen.”

Each thirty-minute piece introduces a singularly unique character. In An Incident in Sutton Square, the audience meets a young man with obsessive compulsive disorder (tenor, Daniel Curran); in The Woman in Penthouse A, an international socialite accused of a crime tells her side of the story to an unseen journalist (soprano, Vira Slywotzky); and in The Other Room, an artist assisting her AIDS-stricken friend with suicide awaits the inevitable as she paints a canvas nearby (soprano, Molly Ranson).

“With one foot in traditional opera and the other in musical theater, “Single Occupancies” stretches the genre,” continued Kitsakos. “Because these pieces were written as monologues, the audience finds itself playing confidant to characters who, all in their own ways, are terribly alone.”

As a special component of the event, The Studios is delighted to have Mark Campbell present a post-performance talk each evening. Librettist of the Pulitzer-Prize winning opera, “Silent Night,” Mr. Campbell is perhaps the most prolific and well-known librettist of new American opera. Among other topics, he’ll be sharing his thoughts on what it’s like to write LGBTQ characters for the contemporary opera stage.

Ticket prices range from $100 to $50, with discounts for Studios’ members.

The production is sponsored in part by the Florida Keys Council of the Arts, the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and by private donations generously provided by patrons of The Studios.

[livemarket market_name="KONK Life LiveMarket" limit=3 category=“” show_signup=0 show_more=0]