The Scarlet Professor

The Scarlet Professor is an opera by the American composer Eric Sawyer with libretto by Harley Erdman, based on the biography[1] by Barry Werth.

Ned Spofford (William Hite) with Newton Arvin (Keith Phares) in a scene from The Scarlet Professor

Performance history

The world premieres of the fully staged opera occurred on September 15–17, 2017, at Smith College where the events that inspired the performance took place. The opera was performed without intermission with running time of about one hour and 40 minutes. A symposium[2] on the Arvin case was held all day on September 16. The following weekend the opera was performed with a cast of young artists from the Five Colleges consortium of Western Massachusetts.

Roles
Role Voice type Premiere cast, 15 September 2017
Conductor: Eduardo Leandro
Newton ArvintenorWilliam Hite
Ned SpoffordbaritoneKeith Phares
Hester Prynnemezzo-sopranoBlythe Gaissert
Helen BaconsopranoSarah Pelletier
Truman CapotecountertenorBryan Pollock
Officer ReganbaritoneJames Dernier
DoctorsopranoKristen Watson
Arthur SummerfieldbaritoneSumner Thompson

Instrumentation

The 9-piece instrumental ensemble consisted of piano, percussion, flute, clarinet, tenor saxophone, and strings, with both electric and double bass.

Reception

Reviewer Marvin J. Ward found the opera a "compelling and captivating work", adding "...composer Eric Sawyer has a penchant for choosing historical events, especially local ones, as the subjects of his operas. This is the third that I have seen, each more polished and refined than its predecessor, with The Scarlet Professor scoring a 10/10 in my book."[3] The Scarlet Professor won the 2019 American Prize in opera composition.[4]

References
  1. Werth, Barry. The Scarlet Professor: Newton Arvin: A Literary Life Shattered by Scandal.. Random House, 2001.
  2. "Singing the Story". Grecourt Gate. 2017-09-07. Retrieved 2017-10-28.
  3. Ward, Marvin (2017-09-21). "Scarlet Professor Recalls Gay 'Smut' Target As Opera". Classical Voice North America. Retrieved 2017-10-28.
  4. "The American Prize in Composition—Opera/Theater/Film (professional division)". 2019-08-05. Retrieved 2019-08-14.
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