Based on Oscar Wilde’s comic short story of the same name, The Canterville Ghost is a faithful adaptation of the original tale, in which a well-to-do American family buys an English manor house that harbors a centuries-old ghost. The new owners are unimpressed by the ghost’s numerous efforts to frighten them, and the family’s twin boys take great delight in tormenting the spirit; only the young daughter shows any sympathy for the ghost’s plight.
The Leipzig Opera presented the world premiere of The Canterville Ghost in 2015. The U.S. premiere of the opera took place in 2017 at the Center for Contemporary Opera in New York as part of Scare Pair.
Learn more about The Canterville Ghost at: Scare Pair opera website
Watch The Canterville Ghost trailer. The opera was presented in a double feature with Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci at Oper Leipzig.
The dos and don’ts of romantic comedy are pretty much eternal. Wilde has given us one, in short story form, of unique beauty and genius. We laugh and cry, and are enriched. I added music, and some words, with the same intention.
– Gordon Getty
