It’s up to the creative team to find a direction that reveals the heart of the work. Glass’ operas are not your standard operatic fare, however: Limited librettos don’t follow a linear story line, instead taking on big concepts like a redefinition of space and time ( Einstein), a vision of a nonviolent world ( Satyagraha) and a song cycle based on 1960s beat writer Allen Ginsberg’s poetry ( Jukebox). Packed houses watch in rapture and incredulity as stage productions of Glass’s music unfold: operas including Einstein On the Beach, Satyagraha, Hydrogen Jukebox, and The Voyage draw fascinated audience members whether or not they have a working familiarity with the music. The contemporary composer’s work throughout the 20th century became the very definition of minimalism in opera, as he wrote more than 20 characteristically rhythmic opera scores with what he called in press interviews “repetitive structures.” Of all the modern operas in the international repertoire, few present more staging challenges than the ones written by Philip Glass. Anthony Roth Costanzo as Akhenaten and Aaron Blake (background) as the High Priest of Amon in Philip Glass’s Akhnaten.
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