
Tales from a Safe Distance
10 creative teams. 9 companies from across the United States. 4 electric nights of new opera.
Boccaccio’s 14th century masterpiece “The Decameron” featured ten characters passing the…
“We are daring to think big in a time of limitations, creating a collaboration that is uniquely born of this time, but which will help opera to thrive far beyond it.”
Maria Sensi Sellner, Artistic & General Director, Resonance Works
10 creative teams. 9 companies from across the United States. 4 electric episodes of new opera.
Boccaccio’s 14th century masterpiece “The Decameron” involved ten characters passing the time while sheltering from a plague by telling one another stories – stories comic, tragic, romantic, sexy, terrifying. The Decameron Opera Coalition has adapted those stories for the modern pandemic era.
“Tales from a Safe Distance” features nine World Premiere one-act operas, and a tenth wrap-around story starring internationally renowned bass-baritone Luca Pisaroni.
In each episode, you’ll see and hear a diverse array of voices, sounds, visuals, methods, and messages as dozens of contemporary opera’s most vital artists tell intimate tales of a global moment.
This unprecedented, searingly relevant, nation-wide collaboration is not to be missed.
The Decameron Opera Coalition aims to keep opera alive, new work blossoming, singers singing, and audiences rapt, even in these alarming times, through a new collaboration of unprecedented scope. We are nine independent opera companies from across the United States: Resonance Works [Pittsburgh], Lyric Opera of the North [Duluth], UrbanArias [Washington DC], Bare Opera [NYC], Opera in the Heights [Houston], Chicago Fringe Opera, Milwaukee Opera Theatre, Fargo-Moorhead Opera, and An Opera Theatre [Minneapolis], along with composer and librettist Peter Hilliard and Matt Boresi (The Last American Hammer). For our maiden project we’ve commissioned nine teams of contemporary opera’s most vital and most diverse creative voices to showcase America’s indispensable indie opera scene, and dedicate ourselves to new sounds, unparalleled storytelling, and underrepresented voices. Independent opera companies are where new audiences are born, where discerning opera appetites are fed, where new work is incubated, and where talent is nurtured. The Decameron Opera Coalition is the future of opera.
Tales from a Safe Distance
10 creative teams. 9 companies from across the United States. 4 electric nights of new opera.
Boccaccio’s 14th century masterpiece “The Decameron” featured ten characters passing the…
“The Happy Hour”
The Frame
Ten friends last saw one another on a starlit rooftop in Florence. Now their only way to share a toast is via web conference call from their pandemic lockdown locations. How to pass the time when no…
“Everything Comes to a Head”
Lyric Opera of the North - Duluth, Minnesota
Inspired by The Decameron Day 4, Story 5 “Filomena’s Story”
Where is Basil, Rosemary's boyfriend? He made like a tree and leaved. He made like a banana and peeled. He made like a bush and…
“The Late Walk”
Bare Opera - New York, New York
Inspired by The Decameron Day 5, Story 8
During a pandemic nothing is a walk in the park. For modern lovers Tamara and Natalie, a night out in the fresh air takes a turn for the uncanny when they…
“The Roost”
UrbanArias - Washington, D.C.
Inspired by The Decameron Day 5, Story 4 (Filostrato’s Tale)
Expecting your first baby should be a joyous time. Expecting your first baby while quarantined during a pandemic in your over-bearing…
“Dinner 4 3”
Fargo-Moorhead Opera - Fargo, North Dakota
Inspired by The Decameron Day 5, Story 10
A wealthy businessman and his trophy wife are unfulfilled in their marriage. They both search internet dating sites for extra-marital partners and, upon…
“Orsa Ibernata”
Milwaukee Opera Theatre - Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Inspired by The Decameron Day 4, Story 1 & Day 4, Story 9
When a clandestine love affair begets tragic consequences, a woman resolves to reunite with her lost love, even at the price of…
“Seven Spells”
Opera in the Heights - Houston, Texas
Inspired by The Decameron Day 8, Story 7
A celebrity named Elena joins an online dating service in search of some fun while stringing along another man. The tabloids snap some photos of her and…
“The Sky Where You Are”
An Opera Theatre - Minneapolis, Minnesota
In collaboration with Brenisen Wheeler, Women's Advocates
Reyna has locked herself in her bathroom in order to contact her childhood friend, Jo. Reyna reveals to Jo for the first time that her…
“Sourdough: Rise Up”
Resonance Works - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Everyday life in the spring of COVID-19 is refracted through a graphic-novel lens as three friends—Shazam, Rockstar, and Boss—wrestle with the changing world around them and their place in it.…
“Corsair”
Chicago Fringe Opera - Chicago, Illinois
Inspired by The Decameron Day 2, Story 4
You have everything you need. Then you double it. Then you lose it all. How do you get it back? Where do you end up? “Corsair” is one man’s journey…
The Decameron Opera Coalition was awarded "Best Collaboration" in the 2020 360° of Opera Awards! We are thrilled to be in such amazing company. Thank you to all who voted!
See the whole list…
We are thrilled to announce that DOC and "Tales from a Safe Distance" have been given an "Excellence in Opera Award" (aka a "Freddie") by Fred Plotkin and WQXR New York Public Radio!
LINK to…
We are thrilled to be at #5 on OperaWire's list of Top Industry-Defining Moments of the Year!
Read the whole article here.
5. Indie Companies Lead Operatic Innovation
If we look back at this…
“Everything Comes to a Head”
Episode 1: Both Gladsome and Grievous
October 9, 2020
“The Late Walk”
Episode 1: Both Gladsome and Grievous
October 9, 2020
“Dinner 4 3”
Episode 2: Prompted by Appetite
October 16, 2020
“The Roost”
Episode 2: Prompted by Appetite
October 16, 2020
“Seven Spells”
Episode 3: So Noble a Heart
October 23, 2020
“Orsa Ibernata”
Episode 3: So Noble a Heart
October 23, 2020
“The Sky Where You Are”
Episode 3: So Noble a Heart
October 23, 2020
“Sourdough: Rise up”
Episode 4: The Bolts of Fortune
October 30, 2020
“Corsair”
Episode 4: The Bolts of Fortune
October 30, 2020
“An unbridled success – edgy, novel, richly detailed, musically intriguing”
Houston Press
“Tales from a Safe Distance” episodes are no longer available on demand.
Learn about the project from our Artist Afterparties and Happy Hour Conversations, all available on our DOC YouTube channel.
Make a tax-deductible gift to one or all of the Decameron Opera Coalition partners. Your donation directly supports the future of opera through commissioning new works and sustaining the careers of talented artists, creative teams, and administrators. We thank you for your support!