NEWS!!
We can finally announce that Opera Montana has commissioned me, Matt Foss, and Kelley Rourke to write the operatic adaptation of Norman Maclean’s A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT.
In celebration of the book’s 50th anniversary in 2026, Opera Montana presents the world premiere of a new operatic adaptation of Maclean’s beloved story. With music by award-winning composer Zach Redler and a libretto by Matt Foss and Kelley Rourke, based on Maclean’s novella, A River Runs Through It premieres in September 2026 at the Ellen Theater in Bozeman, with additional October performances in Missoula, where some of the story is set. Opera Montana Artistic Director Michael Sakir conducts the world premiere, with stage direction by Foss, scenic and video design by Kristin Ellert, and lighting design by Stephen Sakowski. Montana PBS will film the world premiere performances for a future broadcast.
Baritone Schyler Vargas stars as Norman, the recently married eldest brother; tenor Michael Kuhn is Paul, the youngest brother, a newspaperman, gambler, and an artist with a fly rod; soprano Christine Taylor Price is Jessie, Norman’s fierce, funny, loving wife; tenor Ryan Bryce Johnson is Neal, Jessie’s brother; mezzo-soprano Megan Marino is Heidi (“Rawhide”), a local woman who fancies Neal and believes in love; mezzo-soprano Phyllis Pancella is Clara, Norman and Paul’s mother; and bass-baritone David Pittsinger is John, Norman and Paul’s father, a Presbyterian minister.
Upcoming events
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"Brown" at Het Concertgebouw on August 1st, 2026
Freddie Ballentine and Kunal Lahiry end their acclaimed recital Our People: a Celebration of Black and Queer Voices at the with Jerre Dye and my piece “Brown”, written for Freddie in 2021 based on his life experience.
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A River Runs Through It WORLD PREMIERE
Opera Montana’s world premiere production of A River Runs Through It, written with Kelley Rourke and Matt Foss begins September 18th at the historic Ellen Theater in Bozeman, MT.
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The Falling and The Rising - Pensacola Opera November 2026
November 20-21, 2026 at the UWF Center for Fine and Performing Arts
Here are some nice things people have said about my music.
