Ted Rosenthal’s Jazz Opera, Dear Erich,

Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center

By: Jazz - Jul 27, 2022

 

Jazz and opera fans don’t often find themselves in the same company, but an exception will be in order on August 6, when Ted Rosenthal’s jazz opera, Dear Erich, makes its Berkshires debut at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center in Great Barrington, Mass. The opera tells a true story of tragedy, love, and redemption in wartime Germany and Chicago, where Erich Rosenthal, Ted’s father, survived the war.

Dear Erich depicts a family’s dual fates. Erich, a Jewish academic, escapes Nazi Germany to the U.S. and a new life of studies, jazz, and love – while the deteriorating situation in Germany leads to his family’s cruel and untimely demise at the hands of the Nazis. Frustrated and powerless to help them emigrate, Erich lives with survivor guilt which affects his relationships with his wife and children. The libretto is based on translations of some 200 letters from Ted’s grandmother to her son Erich. And the music, of course, is composed by Erich's son, Ted Rosenthal, and performed with his jazz trio and a cast from the New York City Opera.

Friends of Berkshires Jazz can take advantage of a $5 per ticket discount by using the code “friends5” when you check-out of the Mahaiwe’s box office:  https://bit.ly/3Sjuixh

 This is a one-of-a-kind event, and we’re delighted to be partnering with the Mahaiwe to bring you the news, and this discount.