Jean Cocteau\u2019s La Belle et la B\u00eate (Beauty and the Beast) was long considered a masterpiece before Philip Glass decided to write an opera that would meld with the classic 1946 film on stage. Glass\u2019 ingenious creation translates the film\u2019s spoken dialogue into lyrics, perfectly syncing his French libretto with the lip movements of the characters on screen, the actors\u2019 voices substituted with live vocals. He also wrote a new score.<\/p>\n
Performed dozens of times since its 1994 premiere, Glass\u2019 take on the magical, effects-laden La Belle is being presented by the Fort Worth Opera away from the typical concert hall \u2014 at the Ridglea Theater, an old movie house built in 1950. A cast that includes soprano V\u00e9ronique Filloux and bass-baritone Andr\u00e9 Courville in the title roles will perform in front of the screen amid an 18-piece orchestra dominated by synthesizers and wind instruments from the Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth. David Bloom conducts.<\/p>\n
For these shows, Fort Worth Opera is introducing a pay-what-you-can program sponsored by the Claytor Family Charitable Foundation. Artistic director Angela Turner Wilson calls the piece \u201ca wonderful introduction to opera for families with kids who grew up loving the Disney version and are now ready for something a little more sophisticated.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cocteau, a critical figure in the 20th century avant-garde of the surrealists and dadaists, based La Belle on an 18th century fairy tale about a young woman who in trying to save her father eventually falls for an unsightly creature. Glass\u2019 version is the middle work of his Cocteau trilogy.<\/p>\n
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