1000 Airplanes on the Roof

1988 melodrama by Philip Glass June 2025 1000 Airplanes on the Roof Philip Glass Philip Glass in Florence, Italy - 1993.jpg Glass in Florence, 1993 melodrama 1988 07 15 Vienna International Airport 1000 Airplanes on the Roof is a melodrama in one act with music by Philip Glass, text by David Henry Hwang, and projections by Jerome Sirlin. Glass described it as "a science fiction music drama". The work was commissioned by the Donau Festival, Krems an der Donau, the American Music Theater Festival, Philadelphia, and West Berlin City Council in 1988. It premiered on July 15 of that year at the Vienna Airport in Hangar #3. The performance featured vocals by Linda Ronstadt and was conducted by Michael Riesman. The US premiere took place in September 1988 at the American Music Theater Festival in Philadelphia and went on to play in 40 North American cities, including New York, Boston, Chicago and Toronto, as well as Glasgow during that city's celebration as European City of Culture. Synopsis The drama is set in New York City with a sole character, "M", who recalls encounters with extraterrestrial life forms, including their message: It is better to forget, it is pointless to remember. No one will believe you. You will have spoken a heresy. You will be outcast. In the staged production, "M" performs in the midst of a three-dimensional, holographic set. In the classic sense of the word melodrama, the role is performed by an actor in a spoken monologue over music. In the world premiere, "M" was played by a male actor; in many of the US performances, the character was played alternately by female actor Jodi Longhttps://bombmagazine.org/articles/1989/01/01/jodi-long/ 1989-01-01 Jodi Long by Michael McClard Bomb and male actor Patrick O'Connell.FOB and Other Plays, Plume, 1990 Discography Philip Glass: 1000 Airplanes on the Roof (The Philip Glass Ensemble and Linda Ronstadt; Martin Goldray, Music Direction), 1989. Virgin 86106-2 Book The libretto and images of the original set are published in: Philip Glass, David Henry Hwang and Jerome Sirlin (Introduction by John Howell), 1000 Airplanes on the Roof, Salt Lake City: Peregrine Smith Book, 1989 0-87905-343-7 References Further reading 1000 Airplanes on the Roof at PhilipGlass.com. Weiss Hedy Philip Glass pilots 'Airplanes' into inner reaches of the mind Chicago Sun-Times September 29, 1988 http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3906693.html https://web.archive.org/web/20121020134613/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3906693.html October 20, 2012 July 5, 2008 HighBeam Research subscription usurped John Rockwell, "A Mixing of Media From Philip Glass" (Review of the New York premiere performance, The New York Times, December 16, 1988. Retrieved July 5, 2008. Kelly Kevin 'Airplanes' can't sustain its fancy flights The Boston Globe September 20, 1989 http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-8138758.html https://web.archive.org/web/20121020134622/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-8138758.html October 20, 2012 July 5, 2008 HighBeam Research subscription usurped James Schellenberg, Review of the book and CD, 1000 Airplanes on the Roof, Challenging Destiny, March 2001. Retrieved July 5, 2008. John Young, https://www.allmusic.com/album/1000-airplanes-on-the-roof-mw0000299026#review AllMusic.com, 2002 Retrieved February 2, 2024 Category:Operas by Philip Glass Category:Philip Glass albums Category:English-language operas Category:Melodramas Category:Minimalist operas Category:1988 operas Category:Operas Category:Albums produced by Kurt Munkacsi Category:Operas set in the United States