“The Ballad of Baby Doe” July 9 through August 6
By Janet Braccio
Central City Opera opens its 2016 summer festival with Douglas Moore’s The Ballad of Baby Doe, running in repertory from July 9 through August 6, in the historic 550-seat opera house in Central City.
“We are always thrilled to bring Baby Doe home, said Pelham (Pat) Pearce, general and artistic director of Central City Opera, now in his 20th season with the company. “While we’ve produced this opera many times here, this summer’s production is so fresh and compelling that you’ll not want to miss it,” said Pearce. “Most exciting is the exquisite lighting and scene projections of actual locations in Colorado, including images of the cabin at the Matchless Mine in Leadville, where Baby Doe spent her final days.”
Set in Leadville, Colorado, during the mining days of the late 1800s, The Ballad of Baby Doe, written and performed in English, is based on the tragic love triangle of Colorado silver baron Horace Tabor, his wife Augusta, and a woman who once lived in Central City, Mrs. Elizabeth “Baby” Doe. Central City Opera commissioned and premiered the opera in 1956 and last performed it in 2006.
“The thing I love most about what we are doing with this production is focusing on the human story,” said Timothy Myers, conducting The Ballad of Baby Doe for his first time. “Pieces like Baby Doe can easily come across as what I call a ‘docu-opera,’ so I love that we are focusing on the relationships of the characters and bringing the music to life from a very organic place.”
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