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Mason Festival Opera
Love’s Comedy
A concert performance of a world premiere opera.
Music composition by Kim D. Sherman, libretto by Rick Davis.
Based on the play by Henrik Ibsen
Saturday, June 21 at 8pm in the Center for the Arts Concert Hall

First explored in last season’s Vision Series at Mason, this two-act opera will receive its first complete performance in this unique concert-style presentation, featuring professional, student and community opera singers. Love’s Comedy is Ibsen’s exploration of the gap between romantic ideals and the facts of love and marriage in the real world. Soaring melodies, witty choruses, and a timeless story are the hallmarks of this world premiere operatic event.
$30 / $20

Theater of the First Amendment
Two-Bit Taj Mahal by Paul D’Andrea
Opens June 13 in TheaterSpace

Clay Bayliss is a dangerous bully and a brute, until he meets Sally Faye Redmond. Just as their incendiary love affair produces something magical, their small Missouri town votes to kill him. But to what end? Inspired by the true story of a still unsolved FBI case.

Paul D’Andrea’s work — including such plays as The Einstein Project, Nathan the Wise and The Wonderful One-Hoss Shay — has been a mainstay of TFA’s history.

Contains adult themes.

Fri, June 13 at 8pm
Sat, June 14 at 2pm & 8pm
Sun, June 15 at 2pm & 7pm

Thur, June 19 at 8pm
Fri, June 20 at 8pm
Sat, June 21 at 2pm & 8pm
Sun, June 22 at 1pm

Wed, June 25 at 8pm
Fri, June 27 at 8pm
Sat, June 28 at 2pm & 8pm
Sun, June 29 at 2pm
$30 / $25

Theater of the First Amendment
Mariela in the Desert by Karen Zacarías
Opens June 12 in the Harris Theater

How far will we go to free our creativity?
Mariela and José were once the golden couple of the Mexican artists’ inner-circle. Together they built a family and an artist colony to host friends Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, and Rufino Tamayo. But now their daughter has grown and run away, their friends are too famous to call, and artistic inspiration has been strangled by isolation and lies. Set in the Northern Mexican desert in 1950, Mariela in the Desert is a deadly mystery – a layered yet profoundly honest story of what happens to a family when creativity is forced to dry and wither away.

Thur, June 12 at 8pm
Sat, June 14 at 2pm & 8pm
Sun, June 15 at 2pm

Wed, June 18 at 8pm
Fri, June 20 at 8pm
Sat, June 21 at 8pm
Sun, June 22 at 4pm

Thu, June 26 at 8pm
Fri, June 27 at 8pm
Sat, June 28 at 2pm & 8pm
Sun, June 29 at 2pm
$30 / $25