{"id":67141,"date":"2025-12-10T20:06:09","date_gmt":"2025-12-10T20:06:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/67141\/"},"modified":"2025-12-10T20:06:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-10T20:06:09","slug":"porgy-and-bess-americas-greatest-homegrown-opera-returns-to-the-met-for-its-90th-anniversary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/67141\/","title":{"rendered":"Porgy and Bess, America’s Greatest Homegrown Opera, Returns to the Met for Its 90th Anniversary"},"content":{"rendered":"

On March 29, 1932, in a letter to DuBose Heyward<\/a>\u2014author of the 1925 novel Porgy and Bess, with his wife, Dorothy, of a subsequent stage adaptation\u2014George Gershwin wrote, \u201cMy dear Mr. Heyward: I am about to go abroad in a little over a week, and in thinking of ideas for new compositions, I came back to one that I had several years ago\u2014namely, Porgy\u2014and the thought of setting it to music. I should like very much to talk with you before I leave for Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Apparently, Heyward responded kindly to the praise, for in a follow-up letter less than two months later, Gershwin again wrote to say, \u201cI was very glad to have your letter telling me that the operatic rights to Porgy are free and clear.\u201d Over the course of 1932, the men\u2019s correspondence intensified as they worked out the legal logistics, and their collaboration continued with a retreat to Heyward\u2019s weekend home on Folly Island, on the coast of Charleston, South Carolina, where much of the local Gullah culture inspired the book and Gershwin\u2019s eventual opera. Work continued, albeit slowly, through 1934, with Gershwin writing to Heyward in early March, \u201cI am working as much as I can on our opus, and I am finding it very interesting. I am skipping around\u2014writing a bit here and a bit there. It doesn\u2019t go too fast, but that doesn\u2019t worry me as I think it is all going to work out very well.”<\/p>\n

In the end, Porgy and Bess worked out very well indeed, considering that it has become an indelible piece of American musical history in the 90 years since its premiere, and given its seemingly endless parade of timeless tunes, from \u201cIt Ain\u2019t Necessarily So\u201d to \u201cI Loves You, Porgy\u201d to \u201cBess, You Is My Woman Now\u201d to \u201cMy Man\u2019s Gone Now\u201d to, of course, \u201cSummertime,\u201d which holds the record for most covered popular song of all time, with more than 25,000 renditions from such diverse artists as Billie Holiday<\/a>, Janis Joplin, Miles Davis, R.E.M., the Doors, and Fantasia. (Gershwin, sadly, would never know of the perennial power of his lone operatic work. The initial Broadway run was not a commercial success, and the composer lost money on the project. Less than two years later, he was dead from a brain tumor at age 38.)<\/p>\n

But the creation of Porgy and Bess was fraught, and staging it today remains so. The original creative team\u2014Gershwin, his brother, Ira, who wrote many of the lyrics, and the Heywards\u2014was entirely white, and the African American story they chose to tell, one of drug addiction, promiscuity, and murder, was viewed by many to traffic in stereotypes that were outdated and offensive even in the \u201930s. And then there was the libretto, which, though rich and dramatic, was written to\u00a0evoke a Southern Black dialect that can be\u00a0cringe-inducing. Gershwin\u2019s insistence that\u00a0all productions of his opera feature principal\u00a0casts and choruses of exclusively Black artists\u00a0created a wealth of opportunities for African\u00a0American opera singers who otherwise\u00a0weren\u2019t regularly cast, but many of them\u00a0had to be convinced that the characters in\u00a0Porgy were worthy of their artistry. The Met\u2019s\u00a0current production premiered in 2019 to\u00a0great fanfare, but following the subsequent\u00a02020 summer of Black Lives Matter protests,\u00a0the contradictions inherent in the piece\u00a0are more evident than ever. Even as we\u00a0acknowledge the challenges it presents,\u00a0however, the Met forces, under the baton of\u00a0Kwam\u00e9 Ryan, in his company debut, will be\u00a0giving it their all in this month\u2019s run of performances (through\u00a0January 24, 2026), and seeking to show that the opera\u00a0remains a masterpiece.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tCompany of Porgy and Bess
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tRichard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

Director James Robinson, who worked with set designer Michael Yeargan<\/a>, costume designer Catherine Zuber<\/a>, lighting designer Donald Holder<\/a>, and choreographer Camille A. Brown<\/a> when the production was new, believes Porgy exists within the grand opera tradition and, to that end, he created a production he describes as cinematic in its sweep. \u201cPorgy and Bess is a huge show,\u201d Robinson says. \u201cIt has an epic scale, so it requires a production that is just as epic. We have a set that moves and changes, and we get to see it from all different angles, which is really exciting. It is a very grand, beautiful, colorful but austere production. It definitely evokes a seaside community in Charleston, South Carolina. And every individual in that community of Catfish Row, every member of the chorus, has a story.\u201d<\/p>\n

That 60-member chorus is essential to the story of Porgy, judging the lead characters, commenting on the action, and driving the story. And that story, of course, centers on the disabled beggar Porgy, who tries to rescue the beautiful but troubled Bess from the abusive men\u2014Crown and Sportin\u2019 Life\u2014who provide her with drugs and take advantage of her sexually.<\/p>\n

“The inhabitants of Catfish Row are integral to everything that\u2019s going on with every other character,\u201d Robinson continues. \u201cYou get to know how this community functions. It\u2019s a very religious community\u2014 they\u2019re bound by their faith.\u201d Where some observers view Catfish Row as a \u201cslum,\u201d Robinson sees a rich, interconnected working-class community in which everyone is doing his or her best to get by. To capture this milieu, Gershwin tapped into his love for spirituals and jazz, elements of which are heard throughout Porgy and\u00a0Bess. The opera had its long-awaited Met\u00a0premiere in 1985\u201450 years after it was first\u00a0staged\u2014with Grace Bumbry and Simon Estes\u00a0in the title roles. This season, the cast is led\u00a0by bass-baritone Alfred Walker as Porgy and\u00a0soprano Brittany Renee as Bess, with soprano\u00a0Latonia Moore, mezzo-soprano Denyce\u00a0Graves, and tenor Frederick Ballentine\u00a0reprising their roles as Serena, Maria, and\u00a0Sportin\u2019 Life, respectively. Bass-baritone Ryan\u00a0Speedo Green\u2014Jake when the production\u00a0was new\u2014steps into the role of Crown, and\u00a0debuting soprano Vuvu Mpofu delivers the\u00a0indelible strains of \u201cSummertime\u201d as Clara.<\/p>\n

On this occasion of the 90th anniversary\u00a0of the work, it\u2019s a fascinating bit of history\u00a0that the Met was involved in early discussions with Gershwin about the piece having\u00a0its world premiere at the old Met on 39th\u00a0Street. Then\u2013Met Chairman Otto Kahn was a\u00a0fan of Gershwin\u2019s, in particular of his genre-straddling style, and he initially contracted\u00a0the composer to write a new opera based on\u00a0the popular Yiddish play The Dybbuk, but\u00a0rights issues scuttled the project. When the\u00a0idea of Porgy arose, Kahn showed interest,\u00a0but it was apparently agreed by all parties\u00a0that presenting the premiere with an all-Black\u00a0cast in the midst of the Met\u2019s repertory\u00a0season would be too complicated and costly.\u00a0Not only did Porgy not premiere at the Met\u00a0in the 1930s, no African American principal\u00a0artist would appear with the company in\u00a0any production until 1955, when General\u00a0Manager Rudolf Bing hired Marian Anderson\u00a0and Robert McFerrin<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, those days are largely behind\u00a0us, with a robust roster of Black artists\u00a0appearing on the Met stage this season,\u00a0including such Met stalwarts as Lawrence\u00a0Brown<\/a>lee, Janai Brugger, Leah Hawkins,\u00a0Soloman Howard, Michael Sumuel, and,\u00a0of course, soprano Angel Blue, who sang\u00a0Bess when the production was new in 2019.\u00a0At the time, she summed up the appeal of\u00a0the opera, an appeal that transcends race,\u00a0politics, and current events: \u201cI think the\u00a0reason Porgy and Bess has managed to\u00a0stay in people\u2019s hearts for all these years is\u00a0because it really resonates. The characters\u00a0could be from any background, any language.\u00a0The story itself is truly universal.”<\/p>\n

Visit MetOpera.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t0
\n\t\t\t\tof<\/p>\n

\t\t\tPhotos: Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess at The Metropolitan Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tPhotos: Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess at The Metropolitan Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t50 PHOTOS<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Vuvu Mpofu in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Vuvu Mpofu and company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Vuvu Mpofu and Brittany Olivia Logan in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Alfred Walker in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Brittany Renee and Alfred Walker in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Alfred Walker and Brittany Renee in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Alfred Walker and Brittany Renee in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Latonia Moore, Denyce Graves, and Vuvu Mpofu in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Alfred Walker and company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Frederick Ballentine in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Frederick Ballentine in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Frederick Ballentine and Brittany Renee in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Alfred Walker in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Alfred Walker in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Ryan Speedo Green in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Brittany Renee and Frederick Ballentine in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Latonia Moore and company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Brittany Renee in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Vuvu Mpofu in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Denyce Graves, Vuvu Mpofu, Benjamin Taylor and company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Brittany Renee and Frederick Ballentine in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Brittany Renee and Alfred Walker in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Brittany Renee and Alfred Walker in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Alfred Walker and Brittany Renee in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Denyce Graves, Brittany Renee, and Alfred Walker in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Alfred Walker in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Brittany Renee and Ryan Speedo Green in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Brittany Renee and Ryan Speedo Green in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Denyce Graves and Chauncey Packer in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Alfred Walker and Brittany Renee in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Brittany Renee and Frederick Ballentine in Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Porgy<\/p>\n

Company of Porgy and Bess<\/p>\n

Richard Termine \/ Met Opera<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"On March 29, 1932, in a letter to DuBose Heyward\u2014author of the 1925 novel Porgy and Bess, with…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":67142,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[128,9,24,63,129,131,130],"class_list":["post-67141","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-the-bronx","tag-bronx","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-the-bronx","tag-the-bronx-headlines","tag-the-bronx-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67141","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=67141"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67141\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/67142"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=67141"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=67141"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=67141"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}