Hosokawa
The Raven
Music by Toshio Hosokawa
Libretto by Edgar Allan Poe
New Production
Part of Festival O22
Edgar Allan Poe's haunting poem inspires a two-part evening of immersive theater, the centerpiece of which is Toshio Hosokawa’s The Raven. The classic elegy transforms into a chilling monodrama for mezzo-soprano (Kristen Choi, Rigoletto 2022) and chamber orchestra, led by conductor Eiki Isomura, inspired by the supernatural elements of Noh theater.
Before taking your seat on the stage of the Miller Theater for The Raven, journey through Poe’s verse as you travel through the theater with a performer as your guide. A collaboration between director Aria Umezawa and the Philadelphia-based Obvious Agency, this interactive discovery of grief, love, and the afterlife will transform how you encounter Hosokawa’s music.
Due to the close proximity to artists for the full duration of the evening, we highly recommend all members of the audience wear a mask. When you wear a mask you help us to create a safer environment for all artists and audience members.
MapMiller Theater
| Wed, Sep 21 | 7:00 p.m. |
| Sat, Sep 24 | 7:00 p.m. |
| Thu, Sep 29 | 7:00 p.m. |
| Sat, Oct 1 | 7:00 p.m. |
Approximately 90 minutes with no intermission
Production support provided by the Kimmel Cultural Campus
Major support has been provided by Mr. and Mrs. Frederick P. Huff, Paul L. King, and Ellen Steiner.
Cast & Creative Team
- Cat Ramirez * Associate Director, Obvious Agency Workshop
- Jennifer Hiyama * Scenic & Props Design
- Bless Rudisill * Lighting Designer
- Ariel Wang * Costume, Hair & Makeup Design
- Lucas Campbell * Sound Designer
- Nicole Labadie-Bartz * Stage Manager
- Hunter Smith * Assistant Stage Manager
- *Opera Philadelphia debut
The Composer
Toshio Hosokawa
“I am searching for a new form of Japanese spiritual culture and music, one through which I can remain true to myself as well as to my origins. We need to examine the Western world again, more carefully, in order to see ourselves objectively and to truly get to know ourselves.”
Toshio Hosokawa, Japan’s pre-eminent living composer, creates his distinctive musical language from the fascinating relationship between Western avant garde art and traditional Japanese culture. His music is strongly connected to the aesthetic and spiritual roots of the Japanese arts (such as calligraphy), as well as to those of Japanese court music (such as Gagaku). He gives musical expression to notions of beauty rooted in transience: “We hear the individual notes and appreciate, at the same time, the process of how the notes are born and then die: a sound landscape of continual ‘becoming’ that is animated in itself.” Read more>>
Interaction Guide
What is The Raven
The Raven is two experiences in one! It’s a co-production between Opera Philadelphia and Obvious Agency, a local worker-owned cooperative that creates games and interactive performances. The first half of the performance is an interactive theatrical performance that takes place in multiple rooms in the Miller Theater. After the first half, audiences will be guided to their seats where the operatic second half will begin. All audiences will experience both halves. Read more about the experience>>