Fire Shut Up in My Bones
NEW PRODUCTION
September 27, 2021-October 23, 2021
Metropolitan Opera, New York, NY
OPERA BY TERENCE BLANCHARD
Based on the book by Charles M. Blow
Opening Night of the 2021–22 season will be a historic occasion—the Met's first performance of an opera by a Black composer. Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts Grammy Award–winning jazz musician and composer Terence Blanchard’s adaptation of Charles M. Blow’s moving memoir, which The New York Times praised after its 2019 world premiere at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis as “bold and affecting” and “subtly powerful.” Featuring a libretto by filmmaker Kasi Lemmons, the opera tells a poignant and profound story about a young man’s journey to overcome a life of trauma and hardship. James Robinson and Camille A. Brown—two of the creators of the Met’s sensational recent production of Porgy and Bess—co-direct this new staging; Brown, who is also the production’s choreographer, becomes the first Black director to create a mainstage Met production. Baritone Will Liverman, one of opera’s most exciting young artists, stars as Charles, alongside sopranos Angel Blue as Destiny/Loneliness/Greta and Latonia Moore as Billie.
Co-Director & Choreography: Camille A. Brown
Associate Choreographer: Rickey Tripp
Assistant Choreographer: Maleek Washington
PRESS
"Everyone who saw the videos the Met shared online prior to the opening knew what was coming and they greeted the dancers with exuberant applause. But even then, they could never have anticipated the sheer mastery that would unfold through Camille A. Brown’s choreography. And when the dancers had completed their number (no orchestration by the way to accompany them – they were both dancers and the music), the entire audience JUMPED out of its seats to give them a standing ovation."
- Opera Wire
“…joined at the Met by the director and choreographer Camille A. Brown, making her the first Black artist to direct a Met production, Brown created some stunning dance sequences, including a dream ballet…Act III begins with a long step-dance scene that stopped the show”.
- The New York Times
“Hello, Opera? Meet Social Dance. It’s a showstopper.”
-The New York Times
“James Robinson and Camille A. Brown’s co-direction was sure and solid, keeping the pace lively, the moods and colors shifting, and the surprises coming. Brown, who is making an additional bit of history…is behind one of the show’s most breathtaking stretches…that stuck with me long after the curtain fell.”
- The Washington Post
"Speaking of immersion, this complex libretto and score were brought to life in a glorious production by James Robinson and Camille A. Brown."
- Opera Wire
"The step-dancing received a standing ovation in an outburst of joy and pride, especially from the Black audience members around me. I heard more than one person around excitedly declaiming, “Now that’s what I want to see in an opera.”'
- Parterre
" Camille A. Brown, who co-directed the Met production with James Robinson, created several vivid new dance numbers."
- The Wall Street Journal
"Ms. Brown’s dances added new texture and nuance... riveting...”
-The Wall Street Journal
"..bristles with energy, aggression, virtuosity."
-The New York Times
"awe-inspiring"
- Opera Wire
"intensity and finesse...”
- Stage and Cinema
" co-director Camille A. Brown’s choreography is brilliant, dreamy in the ballet and extraordinary in the step-dance"
- Stage and Cinema
“imaginative choreography,"
- Backtrack
video
The Lyric Opera of Chicago
March 24. 2022 - April 08. 2022
20 N. Wacker Drive
Suite 860
Chicago, IL
Co-Director & Choreography: Camille A. Brown
Associate Choreographer: Jay Staten
PRESS
" Lyric’s version of “Fire,” a co-production with the Met and Los Angeles Opera, is co-directed by James Robinson and Camille A. Brown, who deftly give voice to the story’s gritty realism and emotional honesty."
- Chicago Sun Times
"Co-directors James Robinson and Camille A. Brown (who is also the choreographer) birthed this original concept at the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, and it’s filled with electric moments"
- Chicago On The Aisle
"The opera is co-directed by James Robinson and Camille A. Brown. Their collaboration results in perfect pacing and fills the stage with flowing imagery and action. "- Third Coast Review
"Here is the chance to see an authentic step line choreographed authentically by co-director Camille Brown."
- Third Coast Review
"In this way, choreographer and Co-Director Camille A. Brown weaves in a corollary movement language to tell the tale anew. It’s powerful, in this reviewer’s opinion, and more accurately put, nuclear powered."
- Picture This Post