The world premiere of The Hours, based on the Pulitzer-winning novel by Michael Cunningham, officially opened November 22 at the Metropolitan Opera. The opera, composed by Kevin Puts with a libretto by Greg Pierce, follows three women: Virginia Woolf in 1929, in the process of writing Mrs. Dalloway; Laura Brown in 1949, who is reading it; and Clarissa Vaughan toward the end of the 20th century, who is seemingly living it. The roles are played respectively by Joyce DiDonato, Kelli O'Hara, and Renée Fleming. Performances run through December 15.
Read the reviews here.
The New York Times (Zachary Woolfe)*
TheaterMania (Zachary Stewart)
*This review requires creating a free account or a paid subscription.
Playbill will continue to update this list as reviews come in.
DiDonato, Fleming, and O'Hara are joined by Kathleen Kim, Sylvia D'Eramo, Denyce Graves, John Holiday, William Burden, Sean Panikkar, Kyle Ketelsen, and Brandon Cedel.
The Hours is directed by Phelim McDermott, with scenic and costume design by Tom Pye, lighting design by Bruno Poet, projection design by Finn Ross, and choreography by Annie-B Parson.
The Metropolitan Opera's season continues this week with revivals of Don Carlo and Rigoletto. Later, the season will include new productions of Giordano's Fedora, Wagner's Lohengrin, the Met premiere of Terence Blanchard's Champion, and Mozart's Don Giovanni (directed by Ivo van Hove) and Die Zauberflöte.
Kelli O'Hara, Renée Fleming, and Joyce DiDonato in the 2022 production of Kevin Puts' The Hours
Renée Fleming in Kevin Puts's The Hours
Kelli O'Hara in Kevin Puts's The Hours
Kathleen Kim and Renée Fleming in Kevin Puts's The Hours
Kelli O'Hara and Kai Edgar in Kevin Puts's The Hours
Kelli O'Hara, Renée Fleming, and Denyce Graves in Kevin Puts's The Hours
Joyce DiDonato in Kevin Puts's The Hours
Kelli O'Hara in Kevin Puts's The Hours
Joyce DiDonato (in silhouette) and Sean Panikkar (seated) in a scene from Kevin Puts's The Hours
Sean Panikkar and Joyce DiDonato in Kevin Puts's The Hours
A scene from Kevin Puts's The Hours
Kelli O'Hara (top) and Joyce DiDonato in Kevin Puts's The Hours
Renée Fleming and Kyle Ketelsen in Kevin Puts's The Hours
Kelli O'Hara, Brandon Cedel, and Kai Edgar in Kevin Puts's The Hours
Kelli O'Hara (top) and Joyce DiDonato in Kevin Puts's The Hours
Kathleen Kim, Kai Edgar, Kelli O'Hara, and Renée Fleming (background) in Kevin Puts's The Hours
A scene from Kevin Puts's The Hours
Tony Stevenson and Renée Fleming in Kevin Puts's The Hours
Kai Edgar and Sylvia D'Eramo in Kevin Puts's The Hours
Kai Edgar and Kelli O'Hara in Kevin Puts's The Hours
