Klytemnestra: the original subversive female
Opera
work detail
instrumentation: soprano, narrator, viola, and piano
completion date: january 2011
duration: 50 minutes
texts: Original libretto by Misha Penton
audio
Klytemnestra - Overture
Recording made by Divergence Vocal Theater in the Lone Star College-Montgomery Recital Hall.
Klytemnestra - Scene 1: Obsession
Recording made by Divergence Vocal Theater in the Lone Star College-Montgomery Recital Hall.
Klytemnestra - Scene 3: Weaving Aria
Misha Penton, soprano, librettist & artistic director
Meredith Harris, viola; Kyle Evans, piano
Klytemnestra - Scene 2: Deception / Attraction
Recording made by Divergence Vocal Theater in the Lone Star College-Montgomery Recital Hall.
Klytemnestra - Scene 4: Iphigenia's Song
Recording made by Divergence Vocal Theater in the Lone Star College-Montgomery Recital Hall.
Klytemnestra - Scene 5: Catharsis
Recording made by Divergence Vocal Theater in the Lone Star College-Montgomery Recital Hall.
videos
Klytemnestra - The Original Subversive Female
Scene 2 - Deception-Attraction from Misha Penton on Vimeo.
image gallery
Crowd for Premiere of Klytemnestra at Divergence Music and Arts
April 2011
With Misha Penton at Houston Public Radio for a taping of Klytemnestra on "The Front Row"
June 2012
Performance of Klytemnestra at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston
with Misha Penton, Meg Brooker, Meredith Harris and Kyle Evans
May 2012
performances
Divergence Vocal Theater - Divergence Music and Arts - Houston, TX
Misha Penton, soprano, artistic director, concept, libretto
Meg Brooker, dancer; Miranda Herbert, actor
Meredith Harris, viola; and Kyle Evans, piano.
Costumes and stylist: Sarah Mosher and Serret Jensen.
Divergence Vocal Theater - Divergence Music and Arts - Houston, TX
Misha Penton, soprano, artistic director, concept, libretto
Meg Brooker, dancer; Miranda Herbert, actor
Meredith Harris, viola; and Kyle Evans, piano.
Costumes and stylist: Sarah Mosher and Serret Jensen.
Divergence Vocal Theater - Museum of Fine Arts Houston - Houston, TX
Misha Penton, soprano, artistic director, concept, libretto
Meg Brooker, dancer; Shelley Auer, narrator
Meredith Harris, viola; and Kyle Evans, piano.
Divergence Vocal Theater - Museum of Fine Arts Houston - Houston, TX
Misha Penton, soprano, artistic director, concept, libretto
Meg Brooker, dancer; Shelley Auer, narrator
Meredith Harris, viola; and Kyle Evans, piano.
Divergence Vocal Theater - Dallas Museum of Art - Dallas, TX
Misha Penton, soprano, artistic director, concept, libretto
Meg Brooker, dancer; Meredith Harris, viola; and Kyle Evans, piano.
scores
press
- 2012-08-02: Wide open spaces
- 2012-06-08: Klytemnestra
- 2012-06-07: Klytemnestra Returns
- 2011-09-29: Dominick DiOrio named "Best Composer 2011" by Houston Press
- 2011-04-14: Classical music isn't dying in Houston
- 2011-04-01: University of Houston and Divergence Vocal Theater Pool Energies with Agamemnon and Klytemnestra
recordings
Dominick DiOrio, composer; Misha Penton, soprano
Meredith Harris, viola; Kyle Evans, piano
Featuring DD's original music from Klytemnestra and The Captured Goddess.
performance notes
- The soprano, actor, and dancer are members of equal importance in the drama, all offering different psychological portrayals of Klytemnestra.
- When the soprano speaks, she should always speak quasi-Sprechstimme, differentiating her tone from that of the actress. The dancer should never speak. Thus, we have three dimensions of Klytemnestra portrayed: dancer with movement and no text; actress with text and movement but no musical tone; and the soprano who intersects all three worlds.
- The piano should preferably be a seven- or nine-foot grand, with lid open to half stick.
- While the work is conceived in five scenes, the performance should feel seamless and without too-obvious sectional delineation. Do not linger for any great amount of time at these formal divisions.
archive of photos / videos / texts
information
audio
Klytemnestra - Overture
Recording made by Divergence Vocal Theater in the Lone Star College-Montgomery Recital Hall.
Klytemnestra - Scene 1: Obsession
Recording made by Divergence Vocal Theater in the Lone Star College-Montgomery Recital Hall.
Klytemnestra - Scene 3: Weaving Aria
Misha Penton, soprano, librettist & artistic director
Meredith Harris, viola; Kyle Evans, piano
Klytemnestra - Scene 2: Deception / Attraction
Recording made by Divergence Vocal Theater in the Lone Star College-Montgomery Recital Hall.
Klytemnestra - Scene 4: Iphigenia's Song
Recording made by Divergence Vocal Theater in the Lone Star College-Montgomery Recital Hall.
Klytemnestra - Scene 5: Catharsis
Recording made by Divergence Vocal Theater in the Lone Star College-Montgomery Recital Hall.
videos
Klytemnestra - The Original Subversive Female
Scene 2 - Deception-Attraction from Misha Penton on Vimeo.
image gallery
Crowd for Premiere of Klytemnestra at Divergence Music and Arts
April 2011
With Misha Penton at Houston Public Radio for a taping of Klytemnestra on "The Front Row"
June 2012
Performance of Klytemnestra at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston
with Misha Penton, Meg Brooker, Meredith Harris and Kyle Evans
May 2012
performances
Divergence Vocal Theater - Divergence Music and Arts - Houston, TX
Misha Penton, soprano, artistic director, concept, libretto
Meg Brooker, dancer; Miranda Herbert, actor
Meredith Harris, viola; and Kyle Evans, piano.
Costumes and stylist: Sarah Mosher and Serret Jensen.
Divergence Vocal Theater - Divergence Music and Arts - Houston, TX
Misha Penton, soprano, artistic director, concept, libretto
Meg Brooker, dancer; Miranda Herbert, actor
Meredith Harris, viola; and Kyle Evans, piano.
Costumes and stylist: Sarah Mosher and Serret Jensen.
Divergence Vocal Theater - Museum of Fine Arts Houston - Houston, TX
Misha Penton, soprano, artistic director, concept, libretto
Meg Brooker, dancer; Shelley Auer, narrator
Meredith Harris, viola; and Kyle Evans, piano.
Divergence Vocal Theater - Museum of Fine Arts Houston - Houston, TX
Misha Penton, soprano, artistic director, concept, libretto
Meg Brooker, dancer; Shelley Auer, narrator
Meredith Harris, viola; and Kyle Evans, piano.
Divergence Vocal Theater - Dallas Museum of Art - Dallas, TX
Misha Penton, soprano, artistic director, concept, libretto
Meg Brooker, dancer; Meredith Harris, viola; and Kyle Evans, piano.
scores
press
- 2012-08-02: Wide open spaces
- 2012-06-08: Klytemnestra
- 2012-06-07: Klytemnestra Returns
- 2011-09-29: Dominick DiOrio named "Best Composer 2011" by Houston Press
- 2011-04-14: Classical music isn't dying in Houston
- 2011-04-01: University of Houston and Divergence Vocal Theater Pool Energies with Agamemnon and Klytemnestra
recordings
Dominick DiOrio, composer; Misha Penton, soprano
Meredith Harris, viola; Kyle Evans, piano
Featuring DD's original music from Klytemnestra and The Captured Goddess.
performance notes
- The soprano, actor, and dancer are members of equal importance in the drama, all offering different psychological portrayals of Klytemnestra.
- When the soprano speaks, she should always speak quasi-Sprechstimme, differentiating her tone from that of the actress. The dancer should never speak. Thus, we have three dimensions of Klytemnestra portrayed: dancer with movement and no text; actress with text and movement but no musical tone; and the soprano who intersects all three worlds.
- The piano should preferably be a seven- or nine-foot grand, with lid open to half stick.
- While the work is conceived in five scenes, the performance should feel seamless and without too-obvious sectional delineation. Do not linger for any great amount of time at these formal divisions.
