{"id":3919,"date":"2020-04-14T18:36:46","date_gmt":"2020-04-14T18:36:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/alzand.com\/?page_id=3919"},"modified":"2026-02-12T22:33:41","modified_gmt":"2026-02-13T03:33:41","slug":"karim-al-zand-music-the-leader","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/alzand.com\/?page_id=3919","title":{"rendered":"Karim Al-Zand: Music: The Leader"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n
\r\n
\r\n

The Leader<\/h2>\r\n

chamber opera in one act<\/h5>\r\n

T<\/span>he Leader<\/i> is a chamber opera based on Eug\u00e8ne Ionesco’s Le Ma\u00eetre<\/i>, a one-act political satire from 1953. It forms a companion piece to A Joint Interest<\/a><\/i>, with which it shares its instrumentation and voice casting. The characters in The Leader<\/i> all worship a buffoonish \u201cgreat man,\u201d a charlatan they adore despite his ridiculous behavior. The work is at once a comedy and a sobering parable about despotism and free-thinking\u2014one as relevant today as ever. Scored for 5 voices and large ensemble, this absurdist romp is a trenchant commentary on the casual rise of tyranny.<\/p>\r\n\"\"<\/a>\r\n

SYNOPSIS<\/strong>
The Announcer and two Admirers are chasing the Leader. Apparently he is nearby but the trio always seems to arrive a moment too late. Though he eludes them, they yearn to be in his presence. They fervently worship him from afar, following his every action with rapt attention. Meanwhile, two Lovers court each other and profess their mutual affection. Finally, the Leader approaches, the anticipation builds and the Lovers are swept up in the frenzy. The Leader is coming: his imminent arrival is hailed with increasing zeal.<\/p>\r\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\r\n

The original production of The Leader<\/i> featured unique reversible sets designed by Jes\u00fas Vassallo<\/a> (above & below). The opera was premiered in a double bill with Anthony Brandt’s Kassandra<\/a><\/p>\r\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\r\n

SETTING<\/strong>
Modern day. The backdrop is a city scene, but somewhat abstracted: a street \u201ccorner\u201d with two walls angled inwards and a gap upstage center. There are several large objects on stage (suitable for characters to hide behind), which might represent a car, telephone pole, trash bin, etc. The two walls are papered with posters, advertisements, playbills, etc. The opera takes place within this single stage setting, and is performed without discrete scene breaks.<\/p>\r\n

CAST<\/strong>
Announcer (lyric baritone)
An on-camera, reporter-in-the-field type<\/i><\/p>\r\n

Male Admirer (baritone)
Female Admirer (mezzo-soprano)
Followers of the Leader<\/i><\/p>\r\n

Male Lover (tenor)
Female Lover (soprano)
Young Lovers<\/i><\/p>\r\n

The Leader (non-speaking)<\/p>\r\n

NOTES<\/strong>
On its surface, Eugene Ionesco\u2019s The Leader<\/i> is a comedy: its situations are farcical, its action is madcap, and its cast is full of caricatures worthy of opera buffa<\/i>. The Announcer and Admirers, in their adulation, repeat the same words over and over, platitudes echoed by mindless followers. Their behavior is preposterous, yet their fervor seems all too familiar\u2026<\/p>\r\n

As is common in the so-called \u201ctheater of the absurd,\u201d The Leader<\/i> achieves its effect not through plot or character, but through exaggeration, and a kind of parody that forces us to reckon with our own sense of the world and its predicaments. It was published in 1953, six years before the playwright\u2019s best known work, Rhinoceros<\/i>, but shares with the later work its satirical tone, allegorical character<\/p>\r\n

\"\"<\/a>

Eug\u00e8ne Ionesco<\/p><\/div>\r\n

and underlying political critique. Together the plays are often read as a commentary on the rise of fascism in the lead-up to World War II, and a mockery of its dangerous and charismatic leaders.<\/p>\r\n

But the cautionary message of Ionesco\u2019s play is as relevant today as ever. The Leader<\/i> lays bare the cult of personality which accompanies despotism. It inveighs against mob mentality and mass conformity. The cloud of uncertainty with which the play ends shows us the result of such tendencies, and serves as a rallying cry for reason and individual thinking.<\/p><\/br<\/br>\r\n\r\n

\r\n

purchase score & parts<\/span><\/h4> <\/span>Learn More<\/span><\/a> <\/div>\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n
\r\n\r\n

DATE
2020<\/br><\/br><\/p>\r\n

DURATION
\r\n35 minutes<\/br><\/br><\/p>\r\n

CAST
\r\nAnnouncer (lyric baritone)
Male Admirer (baritone)
Female Admirer (mezzo-soprano)
Male Lover (tenor)
Female Lover (soprano)
The Leader (non-speaking)<\/br><\/br><\/p>\r\n

INSTRUMENTATION
Flute (doubles Piccolo)
B-flat Clarinet (doubles A, E-flat Clarinet)
B-flat Cornet
Trombone
Percussion (1 player)
vibraphone, xylophone, glockenspiel, snare drum,
hi-hat. cymbals, pedal bass drum, triangle,
suspended cymbal, sizzle cymbal<\/i>
2 Violins
Viola
Cello
Contrabass<\/br><\/br><\/p>\r\n

COMMISSION
\r\nOpera in the Heights and Musiqa
with assistance from the Houston Arts Alliance<\/br><\/br><\/p>\r\n

PREMI\u00c8RE
\r\nFebruary 23 & February 29, 2020<\/p>\r\n

conducted by Eiki Isomura
directed by Cara Consilvio
set design by Jes\u00fas Vassallo<\/p>\r\n

Mark Diamond: Announcer<\/i>
Lindsay Russell Bowden: Female Lover<\/i>
Zachary Averyt: Male Lover<\/i>
Megan Berti: Female Admirer<\/i>
Jason Zacher: Male Admirer<\/i><\/p>\r\n

stage manager: Madison Hottman
lighting: Edgar Guajardo
costumes:Kristie C. Shakelford<\/p>\r\n

Wendy Isaac Bergin: flute\/piccolo
Ran Kampel: clarinet
George Chase: cornet
Matt Dickson: trombone
Andrew Keller: percussion
Dominika Dancewicz: violin
Kris Kelly: violin
Dawson White: viola
Scott Card: cello
Stephen Martin: contrabass<\/br><\/br><\/p>\r\n

\r\n

SCORE<\/br>\r\n

Full Score (PDF)<\/a>
Piano-Vocal (PDF)<\/a><\/br><\/br><\/p>\r\n

\r\n\r\n

AUDIO<\/br>\r\n

<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/br><\/p>\r\n
\r\n\r\n

VIDEO<\/br>\r\n