Metropolitan Opera · 2024–25 season

Grounded

Jeanine Tesori

Friday, September 27, 2024

The story

Pilot gets pregnant, flies drone, loses soul.

The hero's fate

Prosecuted and imprisoned.

The cast

JessMezzo-soprano Emily D'Angelo^*
EricTenor Ben Bliss^*
SensorBaritone Kyle Miller^*
CommanderBass-baritone Greer Grimsley^*

* Cast for the run; a cover may have sung this night.

The production

Conductor: Yannick Nézet-Séguin
Director: Michael Mayer
Production: 2024
Length: 2 h 20 min

The opera

Premiere: 2023
Language: English

Grounded is an English-language opera in two acts with music by Jeanine Tesori and libretto by George Brant. The libretto is adapted from Brant's play of the same name. The opera features a pilot, Jess, and shows her struggle to adapt to drone warfare. The opera premiered at the Kennedy Center in 2023 to mixed reviews. Emily D'Angelo was praised for her role as the lead character, and Tesori's score was generally well received. The way in which the opera dealt with the theme of drone warfare was generally criticized by reviewers, who suggested it did not have a clear anti-war theme.

A second production with a shorter runtime followed in 2024 at the Metropolitan Opera and met mixed-to-negative critical reception. Critics were unanimous in praising D'Angelo, but found the array of minor characters distracted from the drama. There were mixed opinions on the score, with some finding it still dragged despite cuts.

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