- Gershwin first turned his thoughts to the possibility of writing a “jazz opera” in 1924, when the Metropolitan Opera approached him with the invitation to write such a work.1
- The Met also approached Jerome Kern and Irving Berlin, and both declined the offer.
- Gershwin was interested in writing a jazz opera, but insisted that such a work ought to have an African-American subject and an African-American cast. The Met had no Black singers, and Gershwin moved forward with his idea without them.
- Gershwin found his subject for a jazz opera in 1926 when he read DuBose Heyward’s novel Porgy. DuBose Heyward and his wife Dorothy Heyward (a playwright) adapted the novel for Gershwin’s libretto, along with Ira Gershwin.2
- Gershwin’s preparation for writing the musical score included a trip to Charleston in 1933 to absorb the local culture.3
- Porgy and Bess opened at the Alvin Theater in New York on October 10, 1935. The show ran for 124 performances, then toured Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chicago, and Washington.4
- Porgy and Bess was originally billed as “An American Folk Opera.”5
- The original cast of Porgy and Bess included Todd Duncan, Anne Brown, Ruby Elzy, and the Eva Jessye Choir.6
- Synopsis of Porgy and Bess from NPR
Sources
- Richard Crawford and Wayne J. Schneider, “Gershwin, George,” Grove Music Online (October 16, 2013), accessed March 2, 2021, https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-1002252861.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- “Porgy and Bess (Opera),” gershwin.com, accessed March 2, 2021, http://gershwin.com/publications/porgy-and-bess/.
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