Black Water/Savior

City Lyric Opera presents a chamber opera double bill featuring Jeremy Beck's monodrama Black Water and Amy Beth Kirsten's groundbreaking work Savior.

Jeremy Beck’s Black Water, based on Joyce Carol Oates’s haunting novella, gives voice to Kelly Kelleher in the final moments of her life. Trapped in a sinking car after a fateful encounter with a powerful senator, Kelly’s memories, desires, and regrets swirl together in a gripping psychological portrait of vulnerability, idealism, and betrayal.

In Savior, composed by Amy Beth Kirsten, we witness the final reckoning of Joan of Arc — a teenage girl condemned for her divine convictions and revolutionary courage. Sung in trio through Kirsten’s electrifying, visceral soundscape, Savior reframes Joan’s martyrdom as a feminist outcry that still echoes across centuries.

Their stories, though centuries apart, ask the same question: What happens when a women dares to speak, lead, or love in a world determined to silence her?

Black Water by Jeremy Beck
Stage Direction by Michelle Beck
Music Direction by Stephanie Leotsakos

Featuring:
MaKayla McDonald, soprano
Havanna Fisher, dancer

Savior by Amy Beth Kirsten
Stage Direction by Jen Pitt
Music Directed by Julianne Merrill

Featuring:
Abagael Cheng, soprano
Ciera Cope, soprano
Rebecca Sacks, mezzo-soprano

Performances take place at the Frank Shiner Theater in the Sheen Center for Thought and Culture

May 15 - 18, 2025