American Opera Double Bill

An enlivening exploration of David Lang’s The Loser and Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer’s To Hell and Back.

Australian Contemporary Opera Co (ACOCo) are operatic storytellers for the 21st century. The award-winning ensemble Scheerdelivers world-class presentations of contemporary works that are praised for their imagination and excellence.

About the concert

In this enlivening double bill, ACOCo spotlights works by three visionary American composers: David Lang’s The Loser and Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer’s To Hell and Back. The Loser is a complex and unsettling piece about talent, jealousy and genius, based on the book by Thomas Bernhard and brought to life by Christopher Hillier and quartet. Riveting, hopeful and unforgettable, To Hell and Back is a ground-breaking dramatic work that combines modern Baroque orchestra, opera and music theatre to explore the nature of challenging relationships and stars Dimity Shepherd and Desirée Frahn.

Please note, The Loser references suicide and To Hell and Back has themes of family and domestic violence and may not be suitable for some audiences.