Fire Shut Up in My Bones

Met Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts Grammy Award–winning jazz musician and composer Terence Blanchard’s adaptation of Charles M. Blow’s moving memoir. The first opera by a Black composer presented on the Met stage and featuring a libretto by filmmaker Kasi Lemmons, the opera tells a poignant and profound story about a young man’s journey to overcome a life of trauma and hardship. James Robinson and Camille A. Brown—two of the creators of the recent production of the Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess—co-direct this new staging, live in cinemas on October 23. Baritone Will Liverman, one of opera’s most exciting young artists, stars as Charles, alongside sopranos Angel Blue as Destiny/Loneliness/Greta and Latonia Moore as Billie.

Adult $25 | Senior (ages 65+) $20 | Student $10 (Prices include fees.)

This opera will be broadcast LIVE!

The total runtime is 3 hours, 15 minutes (195 minutes)

If you’ve never been… 

The Metropolitan Opera Live in HD is a series of live opera performances transmitted in high-definition video via satellite from the Metropolitan Opera in New York City to select venues, primarily movie theaters, in the United States and other parts of the world — including the CCA!.

Learn before you go!

We have a wonderful volunteers who take their time to help others learn about opera. Members of the Collins Opera Outreach Committee, affectionately known as the COOCS, will provide informational sessions prior to the operas.

This session will take place on Wed., Oct. 20 at 4 p.m. and will be conducted by UMaine faculty member, Nancy Ogle.

Quotes are in!

A DEFIANT, TENDER AND VITAL WORK OF ART … A STARTING POINT FOR SOMETHING NEW, A REFRESH OF WHERE OPERA CAN TAKE US.” —The Washington Post

“A FRESH, AFFECTING WORK … Poetic, poignant, sometimes grimly funny, always dramatically effective … Will Liverman gives a BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE … Angel Blue brings her luminous soprano voice and unforced charisma.” —The New York Times CRITIC’S PICK

“LANDMARK PERFORMANCE … The evening was A TRIUMPH FOR TERENCE BLANCHARD … Music director Yannick Nézet-Séguin brought out a vibrant performance … Walter Russell III, a 13-year-old who played the young Charles, got the biggest individual cheers.” —Associated Press

“MAGNETICALLY POWERFUL … It was staggering to witness this jolt of proud kinetic Blackness on the Metropolitan Opera stage … A singular achievement … TRIUMPHANT.” —NPR

“THE MET COMES BLAZING BACK.” —Wall Street Journal