DETROIT, March 6, 2024 – Missy Mazzoli and Royce Vavrek’s powerful, searing opera Breaking the Waves comes to the Detroit Opera House for three performances on April 6, 12 and 14. Soprano Kiera Duffy—who memorably created the role of Bess at the opera’s 2016 world premiere in Philadelphia—will return to sing Bess in Detroit. Baritone Ben Taylor (Schaunard in Detroit Opera’s 2022 La bohème), will sing the role of Jan, and rising conductor Stephanie Childress will make her Detroit Opera debut leading the cast and Detroit Opera Orchestra in Breaking the Waves.

Breaking the Waves is a co-production that was first performed in 2019 at Scottish Opera, directed by Tom Morris; Diana Wyenn will direct the revival at Detroit Opera. The Detroit Opera cast will also feature soprano Elizabeth van Os as the Mother, mezzo-soprano Gabrielle Barkidjija as Bess’s sister-in-law Dodo, tenor David Portillo as Dr. Richardson (a role he originated in 2016), bass-baritone Nathan Stark as the Church Councilman, and bass-baritone Robert Mellon as Terry.

Based on the controversial 1996 film by Lars von Trier, composer Missy Mazzoli and librettist Royce Vavrek’s Breaking the Waves stands on its own as a work of art, winning the 2017 award for “Best New Opera” by the Music Critics Association of North America. The opera, exploring the boundaries of love and social conventions, is set in a remote community in Scotland, where Bess undergoes a harrowing spiritual journey after her husband, Jan, suffers a paralyzing accident. Yuval Sharon, Detroit Opera’s artistic director, says, “Breaking the Waves is a work that tells the story of a woman’s agency in an impossible situation, grappling with what it means to be pious and good. It’s a powerful and searing work, and Mazzoli’s orchestration is oceanic, with soundscapes depicting a deeply human conflict, and collision in so many ways.”

Breaking the Waves
April 6, 12, & 14, 2024
Detroit Opera House

Music by Missy Mazzoli
Libretto by Royce Vavrek
Inspired by the Lars von Trier film Breaking the Waves
Co-production of Opera Ventures, Scottish Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Adelaide Festival and Théâtre National de l’Opéra Comique
Original staging by Tom Morris
Revival director: Diana Wyenn
Conductor: Stephanie Childress

Bess: Kiera Duffy (soprano)
Jan: Ben Taylor (baritone)
Mother: Elizabeth van Os (soprano)
Dodo: Gabrielle Barkidjija (mezzo-soprano)
Dr. Richardson: David Portillo (tenor)
Church Councilman: Nathan Stark (bass-baritone)
Terry: Robert Mellon (bass-baritone)

Performance dates:
Saturday, April 6, 2024, 7:30pm
Friday, April 12, 2024, 7:30pm
Sunday, April 14, 2024, 2:30pm