UCLA Opera unveils the first-ever staging of Cesare, a chilling horror opera with cinema influences, titled Cesare, Child of Night.
On Halloween night, Oct. 31, the Herb Alpert School of Music at UCLA will present the world premiere of "Cesare, Child of Night", an electroacoustic opera by composer Jonathan Beard.
The one-act opera, based on the 1920 German silent horror film, "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari", is a unique blend of contemporary operatic composition, cinematic, and theatrical elements. Director Emmy-nominated Stewart Schill leads the production.
"Cesare, Child of Night" draws inspiration from the disturbing and expressionistic visual style of "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari". Beard's work aims to evoke the film's eerie and psychological atmosphere, adapting its narrative into a musical and operatic framework.
The opera features a series of fifteen original paintings by artist Sufia Sadaf, each depicting a tableau from the opera. The original silent film has been re-edited to accompany the revised narrative in "Cesare, Child of Night".
The creative process involved experimenting with unexpected acoustic instrumental combinations, such as toy piano with bass flute, plucked cello, and percussion. Beard also enjoyed doing the electronic sound design and building strange electroacoustic virtual instruments.
The opera will be performed by a talented ensemble, including Michael Dean, a professor of voice performance at UCLA, Antonio Lysy, the area head of strings at UCLA, Movses Pogossian, a professor of violin at UCLA, and Mike Shapiro, a lecturer at UCLA's music industry.
Joining them on the special panel for "Cesare, Child of Night" will be composer Jonathan Beard, director Stewart Schill, vocal performers Michael Dean and Joanna Lynn-Jacobs, and visual artist Sufia Sadaf.
Jonathan Beard spent six years working on "Cesare", taking breaks from his TV/film schedule to revisit the project. The opera is infused with varying forms of musical expression, including elements from early 20th-century modernism and cabaret, a contemporary sound design, and asymmetrical electronic grooves.
Beard expressed gratitude towards his colleagues at UCLA's Recording Studio for helping bring "Cesare, Child of Night" to life. Recording for the opera was done at UCLA's Recording Studio.
Don't miss this exciting world premiere! Tune in to the live stream on Halloween night, Oct. 31, at 8 PM, and witness the fusion of opera, cinema, and theatrical elements in a chilling adaptation of the classic silent film, "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari".
"The opera, 'Cesare, Child of Night', will offer an unique blend of entertainment, with its electroacoustic opera format, and music, as it features diverse forms of musical expression and incorporates contemporary operatic composition, early 20th-century modernism, cabaret, and asymmetrical electronic grooves."
"The fusion of opera, cinema, and theatrical elements in 'Cesare, Child of Night' promises to be an engaging musical experience, making it an unforgettable entertainment for the Halloween night."
