Calendar

WORLD PREMIERE
Adapted from George Brant’s “thought-provoking” (Washington Post), “sharp-eyed” (Time Out New York), and “compelling and provocative” (San Francisco Chronicle) one-woman play, WNO presents the world premiere of Tony Award®–winning composer Jeanine Tesori’s new work, Grounded.

Jess is an accomplished F-16 fighter pilot—until pregnancy grounds her to the “chair force” to target enemies via drones from a trailer in Las Vegas. This new arrangement seems ideal at first: by day, Jess uses her elite training to protect and serve America, and by night, she returns to her family. Ultimately, we see that protecting Jess from physical danger does little to shield her from the psychological trauma of war-by-proxy.

Mezzo-soprano Emily D’Angelo stars as a pilot and mother shaken into a downward spiral as the separation between career and home crumbles. In a first for opera stages, massive LED-screen technology will immerse audiences in the psychological and social implications of virtual warfare, suggesting that “distance” from war through technology is no distance at all.

Feuding families. Forbidden love. Doomed fate. So much is stacked against young Romeo and Juliet—and yet—love finds a way. Gounod’s opera is a grand and sweeping retelling of one of the most tragic love stories of all time. Everything you want from the captivating saga is here, from soaring music to exquisite duets to heart-stopping duels.

With Romeo and Juliet, WNO joins organizations across the Washington, D.C. region in an exciting festival celebrating the works of William Shakespeare. Simon Godwin, Artistic Director of Shakespeare Theatre Company, directs a phenomenal cast in his highly anticipated opera directorial debut. Even as their fate looms above them, you’ll root for this young couple and their ecstatic love that transcends life itself.