After pondering the idea for forty years, retired Baha’i medical doctor Peter Paul Morgan and his wife Wynne decided to write and sponsor an opera in the small town of Perth, Ontario.
Open House ran at the Studio Theatre from 10-14 March 2011 with a cast of 12 singer-actors and an orchestra of 11 musicians. It attracted over 400 people in “unpleasant weather,” Mr. Morgan said.
It is likely the region’s first real opera and it has a distinct feel to it with characters who sing in English, a real estate agent hero and no real villain.
“The absence of a real villain in the plot allowed an opportunity to sketch the characters more deeply,” said Mr. Morgan.
Open House avoided melodramatic flourishes and focussed on the drama of day-to-day life.
“In writing the plot and lyrics, I kept in mind the problems facing the families I knew – loss and recovery, trials and growth, and the fulfilment found in useful work,” Mr. Morgan said.
Open House told the story of Carrie who had recently lost her husband and also risked losing her home. Her children were determined to keep the home, and with the help of a sympathetic real estate agent, they tried to achieve this goal, although a developer in the community had plans of his own for the property.
Throughout the challenges the characters faced, the intent was to “convey a spirit of unity,” Mr. Morgan said.
One of the songs-about women and men working together in harmony-spoke directly to this theme:
Sisters and brothers,Neither comes first,A bird must have two equal wingsTo fly above the earth.
Mr. Morgan said the opera was well-received, with many audience members expressing their approval personally.
EMC News said that the opera provided many “thought-provoking” moments and praised it as the most unique production of the region in winter 2011.