The first of two discussions presented in conjunction with the premiere of the opera Death with Interruptions.

The longtime translator of José Saramago’s work, Margaret Jull Costa, joins in a discussion with Dennis Washburn (Dartmouth, translator of the forthcoming Norton edition of Tale of Genji), Robert Alter (Berkeley, translator of Genesis and The Five Books of Moses), and Paula Varsano (Berkeley, translator of premodern Chinese poetry).

This event is free and open to the public.

About the Opera

Left Coast Chamber Ensemble presents a new dramatic musical work based on Nobel Prize winner José Saramago’s novel Death with Interruptions. With music composed by Kurt Rohde and a libretto by the distinguished UC Berkeley historian Thomas Laqueur, the story recounts what happens when death, who lives in an unnamed Iberian country with her taciturn scythe, falls in love with the principal cellist of a local orchestra and fails to claim his life.

Soprano Nikki Einfeld, baritone Daniel Cilli, tenor Christopher Bengochea and cellist Leighton Fong are joined by Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, noted San Francisco choir Volti San Francisco and director Majel Connery in the first Left Coast opera production. Support provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Distinguished Achievement Award granted to Professor Thomas Laqueur.

Ticketing information for the San Francisco performances at ODC Theater on March 19 and March 21 can be found on the Left Coast Ensemble's website.

A free noon concert will be offered Monday, March 16 at Hertz Hall. Please see the event listing for more information.