Composer Paola Prestini's Opera Edward Tulane to Receive World Premiere at Minnesota Opera, October 8-13

Edward Tulane, a new opera by composer Paola Prestini and librettist Mark Campbell, commissioned by Minnesota Opera, will receive its premiere after a two-year postponement on Saturday, October  8 at 7:30 p.m. at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts. It is the first work by a woman to be commissioned by Minnesota Opera as part of the company's New Works Initiative. 

The opera is based on the novel The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by two-time Newbery Medalist and #1 New York Times best-selling author Kate DiCamillo. It is the first time one of her works is being adapted for the operatic stage. “I think that [this adaptation] is going to be a visual feat, in addition to a musical one,” DiCamillo said. “It’s a very dramatic tale, so it just seems well-suited for the drama of opera.”

"Edward Tulane continues my love of working on art that brings intergenerational audiences together," said composer Paola Prestini. "The themes found in the DiCamilo novel, woven into a brilliant and unique libretto by Mark Campbell gave me the perfect springboard for an opera about hope and transformation— told through a rabbit's perspective! The opportunity to unleash my imagination into sound worlds for underwater fish, a zany doll shop, and ultimately a cast of characters that guide our leading soul with love and wisdom has been delightful. We all are in need of magic and transformation, and Edward's journey brings it in spades. I’m immensely grateful that Minnesota Opera chose me for this adventure, and hope that this opera brings new audiences to our stages."

The leading cast features several noteworthy house debuts, including those of Minnesota native tenor Jack Swanson, soprano Zulimar López-Hernández, baritone Brian Vu, bass Zachary James, mezzo-soprano Elise Quagliata and baritone Daniel Belcher. Former Minnesota Opera Resident Artists Benjamin Sieverding, Victoria Vargas and Adriana Zabala with current Resident Artists Lisa Marie Rogali, Danielle Beckvermit, Nicholas Davis and Christian Sanders fill out the cast. Russian-American conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya, the music director of Chicago Opera Theater, will lead from the podium.

Postponed for two years due to COVID, the world premiere was preceded in December 2021 by a 40-minute Choral Suite, featuring stop-motion animation by acclaimed artist Erin Pollock: