The End of the Affair (opera)
Encyclopedia
The End of the Affair is a chamber opera
with music by Jake Heggie
and a libretto
by Heggie and Leonard Foglia
.
Based on the Graham Greene
novel of the same title
, it is set in London
in 1944 and 1946 and focuses on Maurice and Sarah, who vows to end their illicit affair if his life is spared in a bombing. His survival leads to Sarah's religious conversion and Maurice's railing against God for it. After returning to her husband, Maurice hires a private detective to investigate her under direction of her cuckholded husband Henry.
. The libretto's last ten minutes were revised to alter the ending for performances at Madison Opera
and Seattle Opera
.
The second version of the opera was recorded "live" in 2007 at the Lyric Opera of Kansas City with Emily Pulley (soprano) as Sarah Miles, Keith Phares (baritone) as Maurice Bendrix, Joyce Castle
(mezzo-soprano) as Mrs. Bertram, Victor Benedetti (baritone) as Henry Miles, Robert Orth (baritone) as private Mr. Parkis and Gerard Powers (tenor) as Richard Smythe.
Later on the same reviewer makes to following comments.
Chamber opera
Chamber opera is a designation for operas written to be performed with a chamber ensemble rather than a full orchestra.The term and form were invented by Benjamin Britten in the 1940s, when the English Opera Group needed works that could easily be taken on tour and performed in a variety of small...
with music by Jake Heggie
Jake Heggie
Jake Heggie is an American composer and pianist.Jake Heggie is the composer of the operas Dead Man Walking , The End of the Affair , At The Statue of Venus , To Hell and Back , and Moby-Dick , as well as the stage work For a Look or a Touch...
and a libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
by Heggie and Leonard Foglia
Leonard Foglia
Leonard Foglia is an American theatre director, librettist, and novelist.Foglia made his Broadway debut as the assistant director of The Heidi Chronicles in 1989...
.
Based on the Graham Greene
Graham Greene
Henry Graham Greene, OM, CH was an English author, playwright and literary critic. His works explore the ambivalent moral and political issues of the modern world...
novel of the same title
The End of the Affair
The End of the Affair is a novel by British author Graham Greene, as well as the title of two feature films that were adapted for the screen based on the novel....
, it is set in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1944 and 1946 and focuses on Maurice and Sarah, who vows to end their illicit affair if his life is spared in a bombing. His survival leads to Sarah's religious conversion and Maurice's railing against God for it. After returning to her husband, Maurice hires a private detective to investigate her under direction of her cuckholded husband Henry.
Performance history
It premiered in March 2004 at Houston Grand OperaHouston Grand Opera
Houston Grand Opera Houston Grand Opera was founded in 1955 through the joint efforts of Maestro Walter Herbert and cultural leaders Mrs. Louis G. Lobit, Edward Bing and Charles Cockrell...
. The libretto's last ten minutes were revised to alter the ending for performances at Madison Opera
Madison Opera
Madison Opera is a regional opera company based in Madison, Wisconsin. It was founded in 1961 as an extension of the and came to national prominence with the commissioning and premiering of Shining Brow, the opera about Frank Lloyd Wright by composer Daron Hagen and librettist Paul Muldoon. The...
and Seattle Opera
Seattle Opera
The Seattle Opera is an opera company located in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1963 by Glynn Ross, who served as the company's first general director through 1983, Seattle Opera's season runs from August to late May, with five or six operas offered and with eight to ten performances each, often...
.
The second version of the opera was recorded "live" in 2007 at the Lyric Opera of Kansas City with Emily Pulley (soprano) as Sarah Miles, Keith Phares (baritone) as Maurice Bendrix, Joyce Castle
Joyce Castle
Joyce Castle is an American mezzo-soprano who has had an active opera career for the last four decades. She earned degrees in music from The University of Kansas and the Eastman School of Music. She made her professional opera debut in 1970 at the San Francisco Opera as Siebel in Charles Gounod's...
(mezzo-soprano) as Mrs. Bertram, Victor Benedetti (baritone) as Henry Miles, Robert Orth (baritone) as private Mr. Parkis and Gerard Powers (tenor) as Richard Smythe.
Critical reaction
Reaction to the version of the novel was decidedly mixed.- "In what is a kind of on-stage musical equivalent of the slow fade into a flashback, he tells the story while bits and pieces are sung by the other characters until we are firmly in the flashback. That was an interesting effect that worked well"
Later on the same reviewer makes to following comments.
- That is a good message but the response from most was so what. The connection between that and the love of God was not communicated"
Roles
- Sarah Miles, sopranoSopranoA soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
(created by Cheryl BarkerCheryl BarkerCheryl Barker is an Australian operatic soprano who has had an active international career since the late 1980s. She has sung on several complete opera recordings with Chandos Records, including Dvořák's Rusalka , Janáček's The Makropulos Case , Janáček's Káťa Kabanová , and Puccini's Madama...
) - Maurice Bendrix, her lover, baritoneBaritoneBaritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
- Henry Miles, her husband, baritone
- Mr. Parkis, a private detective, baritone
- Richard Smythe, a rationalist, tenorTenorThe tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
- Mrs. Bertram, Sarah’s mother, mezzo-sopranoMezzo-sopranoA mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above...
- Lancelot, young son, speaking role