atelier presentation
Music and Libretto by Susan Hurley
based on the original manuscript by Barbara Kraft
Directed by Kira Simring
Charlotte Kohn, soprano
Daniel Neer, baritone
Inspired by the life and writings of the noted diarist Anaïs Nin, this opera is a psychological drama of obsessive love during the last minutes of life. Anaïs attempts to come to terms with her impending death in the presence of her lover and long-time companion, Rupert Pole. In what amounts to a test of his devotion, she seeks his understanding but also clearly enjoys shocking him as she revisits and reveals some of the strongest memories of her life, her innumerable infidelities, incestuous relations and her violent rejection of motherhood. Rupert is unable to forgive Anaïs for these dark secrets before she struggles out of bed and then collapses, alone, to the floor.
$20
includes post-performance wine reception
I hope no one will mistake fiction for fact here–Rupert Pole more than forgave Anais for her “dark secrets,” of which she informed him long before her death, including the fact she was married to another man. After Anais’s death, Rupert doggedly continued her work in the form of her childhood and unexpurgated diaries after her death and carried her torch until he died.