Susan McClary & Peter Sellars
Musicologist Susan McClary joins Peter Sellars, Distinguished professor in the UCLA Department of World Arts and Cultures/Dance, and to discuss The Passions of Peter Sellars, McClary's new book that traces the legendary theater director's career through his visually rich opera productions.
Recognized as one of the most innovative and influential directors of our time, Sellars has produced acclaimed—and often controversial—versions of many beloved operas and oratorios. He has also collaborated with several composers, including John C. Adams and Kaija Saariaho, to create challenging new operas. The Passions of Peter Sellars follows the development of his style, beginning with his interpretations of the Mozart-Da Ponte operas, proceeding to works for which he assembled the libretti and even the music, and concluding with his celebrated stagings of Bach’s passions with the Berlin Philharmonic.
As a leading scholar of gender and music, and the history of opera, McClary is ideally positioned to illuminate Sellars’s goal to address both the social tensions embodied in these operas as well as the spiritual dimensions of operatic performance.
This event is co-presented by the Hammer Museum at UCLA and the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music.
Event Date: Tuesday, May 21, 7:30 p.m.
Venue: Hammer Museum
Price: Free
The Hammer is located at the corner of Westwood and Wilshire boulevards in Westwood Village, three blocks east of the 405 freeway’s Wilshire exit.
Parking is available under the museum.
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