Libretti
English Libretti
Writing singable English translations has become a passion of mine.
Most of my libretti are not literal translations, but rather adaptations that stick to the basic plot and characters, while making the operas more accessible and more entertaining to modern audiences AND performers. All of these productions are available to rent. The p/v scores are in PDF form. Costumes, props, and projections are also available for some.
If you are interested in having a new translation commissioned, please contact me.
The Magic Flute
This "super" production is set in the worlds of early 1980s video games. Co-librettist E. Scott Levin.
Abduction from the Seraglio
Captain James T. Belmonte, Mr. Pedrillo, and the crew beam down to a Klingon infested planet in this zany adaptation.
Madama Butterfly 蝶々夫人
Written with Eiki Isomura, this adaptation of Butterfly is sung in English and in Japanese, as if the story really happened. All Japanese characters sing only in Japanese and all American characters sing in English. Goro and Sharpless sing in both languages. This production should be done with Japanese or Japanese-American singers in appropriate roles.
COVID fan tutte
A two hour version of Cosi set in the pandemic on a golf course.
The Impresario
They say "write what you know" and this modern take on the Mozart one act is jammed packed with jokes that are all too real for those of us on the other side of the audition table.
Tabasco
It was a dream I never knew I had come true when I was hired by the McIhenny Company and New Orleans Opera to write a new book and additional lyrics for this charming George Chadwick 1894 operetta. The rights are owned by the Tabasco Company, but if you'd like to produce the show, I can put you in touch.
The Merry Widder
Yeehaw!!! Set in the fictional town of Goldless, CA during the Old West, this spin on the Lehar classic is a barrel of laughs and then some.
The Bat's Revenge
A Hungarian countess, a Russian prince, a magically attractive watch, and a bat costume make for a strange recipe of plot in any country or time period modern audiences can relate to, except perhaps the time and place where anything was possible not that long ago.... the Golden Age of Hollywood. It's not so hard to believe that an actress would have access to her Hungarian Princess costume from a recent picture, that a maid is an aspiring chorus girl, that a mysterious Russian playboy has come to town to throw around some money, or that a matinee idol has a panache for the ladies and is in a little hot water with the local police.
Doctor Miracle
Another Wild West setting for this short one-act operetta by an 18 year old Georges Bizet. Written for the studio artist show at Opera Santa Barbara in 2019.