Description
A play with music by Carlos Simon
Additional music from Carmen by Georges Bizet
Commissioned by the Glimmerglass Festival
The Passion of Mary Cardwell Dawson is a new play with music, celebrating the founder of the historic and groundbreaking National Negro Opera Company, which premiered with acclaimed mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves in 2021 at the Glimmerglass Festival. The work, written by Mark Twain Award-winning playwright and librettist, Sandra Seaton, includes selections from the repertory of the National Negro Opera Company and original music composed by Carlos Simon.
“Madame Dawson was an arts pioneer, a woman of many firsts, whose remarkable story had been all but forgotten until recently. Mary Cardwell Dawson broke through incredible barriers to give voice to singers of color, creating opportunities that eventually brought them to major American opera house stages for the first time. It is an honor to champion her story — and that of the National Negro Opera Company she founded in 1941.” — Denyce Graves
To view an excerpt from the piece, please click here.
