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Kent Kimes is a staff writer for The Augusta Chronicle.File Photo

In English, 'Susannah' takes the mystique out of opera

Web posted April 26, 1998

By Kent Kimes
Columnist

When I think of opera, the English language doesn't usually come to mind.

Instead comes an instant image of a grandiose baritone in a Bugs Bunny cartoon belting out "Figaro, Figaro" in mock fashion.

Many of opera's classics are in Italian, German, French, etc.

Some elitists just don't think it's opera unless it's sung in Italian.

But to translate an Italian opera like Puccini's Madame Butterfly into English is considered sacrilege in some circles, a scam and unnecessary with the advent of supertitles, which project translations of the lyrics as they are sung.

If you are heading to the Augusta Opera's upcoming productions of Susannah don't be caught off guard -- it hasn't been translated. It doesn't need to be.

"Some people are used to these 200-year-old foreign language operas, and they lose how intimate opera can be," said Philip Cokorinos, who plays the Rev. Olin Blitch in the Augusta Opera's production.

As rare as it may sound, Susannah was in fact written by an American -- a native South Carolinian for that matter.

Composer Carlisle Floyd was born in Latta, S.C., in 1926, the son of a Methodist minister. Latta is about 23 miles from Florence, near the North Carolina border and the Interstate 95 corridor.

As a child, Mr. Floyd moved around with his itinerant preacher father to several South Carolina towns, including North, Bethune and the coastal village McClellanville.

Mr. Floyd is considered one of the foremost composers and librettists of opera in the United States today.Susannah, which debuted in 1956 at Florida State University, where Mr. Floyd taught from 1947 to 1976, is his most often-performed work, followed by his adaptation of John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men.

He also adapted Emily Bronte's novel Wuthering Heights, and Esther Forbes' A Mirror for Witches became the basis for his opera Bilby's Doll.

He is currently working on an operatic adaptation of Olive Anne Burns' Cold Sassy Tree at his Tallahassee, Fla., home. He's finished the libretto (or script) and will begin composing the music soon. "As soon as possible," he said.

Mr. Floyd thinks opera is burgeoning right now in this country.Why?

Partly because several prominent American vocalists are gaining clout and calling the shots. For instance, if a major opera star demands to do something in his native tongue, like Susannah, it usually gets done, he said.

But opera is still somewhat of an enigma for most Americans.

"Since there aren't a lot of American composers, people don't really understand opera," said Mr. Cokorinos.

The mystery of foreign language opera -- and opera as a whole -- is being unraveled with the aforementioned supertitles, according to Mr. Floyd.

With American opera continuing to gain respect, Susannah is now accepted as a "great" opera, having been around for more than 40 years.

And lately the piece has undergone a resurgence, enjoying three productions by national companies last year alone.

"It's picking up steam," said Mr. Floyd.

As evidence, Susannah will have its Metropolitan Opera premier next season."Finally," Mr. Floyd said.