Ricky Ian Gordon’s opera "Green Sneakers" West Coast premiere February 19, 2013

The West Coast Premiere of New York-based composer Ricky Ian Gordon's Mini-Opera "Green Sneakers" will take place on Tuesday, February 19 (7pm pre-concert lecture/Q&A and 7:30pm performance) at Fort Mason's Southside Theater in San Francisco.

The 19-part song cycle for baritone and string quartet is about love, loss and finding solace and is Gordon's most personal composition as it deals with the death of his lover, Jeffrey Grossi, from AIDS. It is his Kaddish: the Jewish prayer for mourners -- and one of the only operas that deals directly with AIDS.

It will be performed by San Francisco's Del Sol Quartet and baritone, Jesse Blumberg.

As to the origin of the title, Green Sneakers, Gordon says "There was a day after Jeffrey’s death when I was staring into our closet from the vast desolation of our bed. These sad little green sneakers suggested a text about the day we bought them together. It poured out of me and ended up a cycle of poems that tells the story of that day and the period after it — all the way up to Jeffrey’s death."

Following this performance, Green Sneakers will head to New York's Lincoln Center as part of the American Songbook series.

http://www.rickyiangordon.com
http://www.jesseblumberg.com
http://www.delsolquartet.com