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CAST The opera is based on George Orwell 's novel, '' Nineteen Eighty-Four ''. In contrast with the conventions of most operas, it casts the Hero , Winston, as a Baritone (sung by Simon Keenlyside at the premiere), while the lead Tenor takes the role of the Villain , O'Brien (sung by Richard Margison at the premiere). The part of Julia was sung by Soprano Nancy Gustafson in the original production. Other individual parts in the opera include Syme, Parsons, and Charrington, a gym instructress/drunken woman, a prole woman, and a café singer. Maazel incorporates an important role for the Chorus , which sings a "hate chorus" for the rallies Orwell called the Two-Minute Hate. PRODUCTION The work was originally intended as a joint commission by the Royal Opera House and the Tokyo Opera . The Tokyo Opera ultimately backed out, which prompted Maazel to step in and finance nearly half the costs of production personally. The company he formed for the purpose, Big Brother Productions, paid about £ 400,000 toward these costs. While this saved the opera from oblivion, it also led to charges that the Royal Opera House was spending taxpayer money to support a vanity project. CRITICISM Maazel's foray into composing opera was met with fairly harsh reviews. ''New York Times'' critic Anthony Tommasini described the music as evoking a variety of musical styles, but concluded that Maazel's work reflected his career in conducting rather than composition, and thus failed to find his personal voice as a Composer . EXTERNAL LINK |