Author Archives: Joel

Outcast at the Gate, an opera by Joel Feigin based on Oedipus at Colonus by Sophocles.

New opera Outcast at the Gate selected for CCO’s Development Series

I’m pleased to announce that my new opera, Outcast at the Gate, has been selected for the Center for Contemporary Opera’s Development Series. An hour-long excerpt will be performed in a workshop setting at New York’s Symphony Space on June 14. Tickets and information are available at symphonyspace.org/events/vp-cco-presents-outcast-at-the-gate-in-workshop.

Outcast at the Gate is a drama about refugees: a blind old man, supported by his daughter, seeking food and shelter. It is also a drama of redemption: the old man is “stained to the core of his existence,” and at the same time somehow innocent: he is Oedipus, former king of Thebes, who has unwittingly killed his father and married his mother. The end will reveal him as a prophet, blind, but leading his daughters and the King of his new homeland to a miraculous appointment with the waiting Gods.

I am grateful to conductor and CCO artistic director Sara Jobin for her work to make this happen, and to creative team, lead by stage director Sara Erde, pianist and coach Brent Funderburk, and stage manager Tracey Woolley. The cast includes singers Aaron Theno, Kristina Bachrach, Anna Laurenzo, David Gordon, and Eric McKeever.

Beach Cities Symphony to perform Festive Overture

On October 26, the Beach Cities Symphony will open their 69th season with my piece Festive Overture, conducted by my friend Barry Brisk. Also on the program are Elgar’s Enigma Variations and Sibelius’s violin concerto, performed by violinist Aubree Oliverson.

I’m very excited to have my overture included on this concert, which is at 8 pm at El Camino College’s Marsee Auditorium in Torrance, CA. Admission is free. I hope to see you there!

Two Arias from Oedipus at Colonus to Premiere in New York

I’m currently working on my next opera, Oedipus at Colonus, and have scheduled the premiere of two arias from it at the National Opera Center in New York on April 6. Also on the program are two songs from Twelfth Night, a new version of my horn trio Tapestry, and works by my former student Camden Boyle, now pursuing graduate study at Juilliard.

April 6, 7:30 PM
National Opera Center
New York, NY

The concert will be live streamed at youtube.com/user/NatOperaCenterLIVE

Performances by:

Alexandra Batsios, soprano
Alexander Charles Boyd, baritone
Zachary Elmassian, baritone
Brent Funderburk, accompanist
Maya Bennardo, violin
Cameron West, horn
Markus Kaitila, piano

Complete details and tickets are available at brownpapertickets.com/event/3366998.

Mosaic is out today

The Ciompi Quartet’s recording of my piece Mosaic in Two Panels for string quartet is available today via bandcamp and all major digital music stores and streaming services.

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