Listen to ‘The Shining’ – The Opera

{Header image by Dario Acosta, and courtesy Minnesota Opera}

Note: this article was also published on SciFi4Me.com.

Come sing with us.

This past May, the Minnesota Opera premiered The Shining, and yes, it’s based on the Stephen King novel and is an authorized adaptation. As such, it leans much closer to the book than the Kubrick film.

The two-act opera is part of Minnesota Opera’s New Works Initiative, launched in 2008 and dedicated to bringing contemporary work to fruition. The opera was composed by Paul Moravec, and has a libretto by Mark Campbell, and is a little over two hours long. Sung in English, the opera received praise from Opera News and Pioneer Press.

If you’re not aware of the famous story, the plot focuses on Jack Torrance, aspiring writer and new caretaker of the Overlook Hotel in November 1975. Jack is a recovering alcoholic, and because of it had broken the arm of their son, Danny. The audience finds out that Danny has a telepathic ability, called the shining. The hotel is, unsurprisingly, haunted, and attempts to possess Danny, and when it fails moves on to Jack.

Want to know the full story? Well, you can hear it all until the end of November. In partnership with Classical Minnesota Public Radio, the complete opera is available online for your listening pleasure. The link also has a scene by scene breakdown of the opera, in case you want to follow along. (Obviously, it being Stephen King, there are the requisite warnings about strong language.)

For more about the show, including a digital program, visit the Minnesota Opera’s website.