Blind Injustice (opera)

Last updated
Blind Injustice
Opera by Scott Davenport Richards
Librettist David Cote
LanguageEnglish
Premiere
22 July 2019 (2019-07-22)
Cincinnati Opera, Ohio

Blind Injustice is an opera based on the stories of six people who were wrongfully convicted of crimes in Ohio, and who eventually had their convictions overturned through the work of the Ohio Innocence Project. [1] [2] The opera was commissioned by the Cincinnati Opera; it was written by librettist David Cote and composer Scott Davenport Richards. [3] The libretto was based in part on the book Blind Injustice by Ohio Innocence Project co-founder Mark Godsey, and on interviews with those whose stories are portrayed. [1] [4] The opera opened at Cincinnati Opera on July 22, 2019. [5]

Contents

Composition and premiere

Although the opera is based on Mark Godsey's book of the same title, work on the opera began pre-publication based on a rough draft. Members of the Ohio Innocence Project (OIP) young professionals committee met in early 2017 with members of Cincinnati's Young Professional Choral Collective (YPCC) to discuss devising choral music based on OIP's work; [1] YPCC's founding director, KellyAnn Nelson, saw the opportunity to create something larger. Cincinnati Opera became involved and commissioned the creation of the opera. [3] The opera was initially workshopped in collaboration with the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM). [6] [7] [8]

Librettist David Cote worked with director, dramaturge and CCM faculty member Robin Guarino to develop the opera's text in early 2018. [9] Approximately 40 percent of the libretto is drawn directly from interviews with the exonerees; their stories are at the heart of the opera. [1] [2] Adjustments to the libretto were still being made in mid 2019, to reflect exonerees' civil cases for restitution. [9] Scott Davenport Richards's score includes elements of jazz, blues, minimalism, and hip-hop. [2] [4] The score was released bit by bit to the creative team throughout 2018. [10] In November 2018, a workshop was held to introduce some of the musical numbers to the exonerees themselves as well as collect creative feedback. [11]

The opera, which consists of one 90-minute act, [3] [12] premiered at the Wilks Studio Theatre in Cincinnati's Music Hall on July 22, 2019, directed by Robin Guarino. [2] [4] The narrow stage was flanked by audience members seated on either side, giving it the intimate feel of courtroom. [2] [4] The orchestra comprised members of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra under the direction of John Morris Russell. [13] Members of YPCC served as part of the chorus. [2] [3]

Some performances were followed by question-and-answer sessions with the real life exonerees represented in the opera. [3] [4]

The opera was performed in Colorado in 2023 by Opera Theatre of the Rockies and was performed in February 2024 at Peak Performances in New Jersey. In February 2025 it will premiere in New York City's Lincoln Center, a production of MasterVoices. In July 2025, it will run in Cleveland, Ohio at Playhouse Square.

Roles

The main characters in the opera are all based on six real people who had been wrongfully convicted and later exonerated by the Ohio Innocence Project (OIP). [1] [3] In addition to those real people, other characters are less closely based on individuals. There is a single prosecutor, who serves as the prosecutor for all of the cases, as well as a single defense attorney and one student research from the OIP, Alesha. [2] [3]

In order of vocal appearance:

Role Voice type Premiere cast, July 22, 2019
(Conductor: John Morris Russell)
Prosecutor baritone Joseph Lattanzi [2]
Defense Attorney tenor Samuel Levine [2]
Nancy Smith, an exoneree mezzo-soprano Maria Miller [2]
Derrick Wheatt, an exonereebaritoneSankara Harouna [2]
Eugene Johnson, an exoneree bass-baritone Miles Wilson-Toliver [2]
Laurese Glover, an exonereetenorTerrence Chin-Loy [2]
Clarence Elkins, an exonereetenorThomas J. Capobianco [2]
Rickey Jackson, an exonereebaritoneEric Shane [2]
Alesha, law student working on the Ohio Innocence Project; Ensemble soprano Victoria Okafor [2]
Derrick Wheatt's mother, Ensemblemezzo-sopranoDeborah Nansteel [2]
Earl Mann, EnsemblebaritoneMorgan Smith [2]
Earl Mann's Cellmate, EnsemblebaritoneJoseph Parrish [2]

The chorus was drawn from Cincinnati's Young Professionals Choral Collective. [2]

Synopsis

The plot of the opera follows six people wrongfully-convicted and eventually exonerated as well as the work of the lawyers and law students working on their cases. The Prosecuting Attorney and the Defense Attorney are both based in part on Mark Godsey, co-founder of the Ohio Innocence Project, at different stages of his career. The prosecutor, representing a younger Godsey (who had been a prosecutor for the Southern District of New York), extolls his role in keeping people safe, while the defense attorney reflect an older Godsey's views on the fallibility of the judicial system. [2] Clarence Elkins was convicted of two rapes and a murder after a "flimsy identification". [2] Nancy Smith, a bus driver for Head Start, was convicted on child sexual abuse charges. [12] [13] Laurese Glover, Derrick Wheatt, and Eugene Johnson, known as the East Cleveland Three, were convicted on the basis of tainted evidence and misidentification by an eyewitness; they served 20 years in prison. [4] [13] [14] Rickey Jackson served 39 years for a murder he did not commit, based on false testimony. [4] [14] The opera follows their stories from the time of the alleged crime, their time in prison, the work of the Ohio Innocence Project (represented through the character of Alesha), and their eventual release from prison. [3]

Critical reception

Blind Injustice opened to positive reviews in both local and national publications. The Wall Street Journal called it a "powerful piece of music theater." [2] National Public Radio's Elizabeth Kramer said "the opera's overarching call for awareness can resonate with audiences universally." [1] Seen and Heard International noted "Richards's potent music and Cote's hard-hitting words." [13] Cincinnati City Beat called it a "masterpiece", and declared that the only flaw was the small seating capacity, saying that the opera's powerful message deserved a broader audience. [4] . Blind Injustice has received positive feature coverage on ABC News, the New York Times and The New Yorker, among other outlets.

Related Research Articles

Innocence Project, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal organization that works to exonerate the wrongly convicted through DNA testing and other forms of post-conviction relief, as well as advocate for criminal justice reform to prevent future injustice. The group cites various studies estimating that in the United States between 1% and 10% of all prisoners are innocent. The Innocence Project was founded in 1992 by Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld who gained national attention in the mid-1990s as part of the "Dream Team" of lawyers who formed part of the defense in the O. J. Simpson murder case.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miscarriage of justice</span> Conviction of a person for a crime that they did not commit

A miscarriage of justice occurs when an unfair outcome occurs in a criminal or civil proceeding, such as the conviction and punishment of a person for a crime they did not commit. Miscarriages are also known as wrongful convictions. Innocent people have sometimes ended up in prison for years before their conviction has eventually been overturned. They may be exonerated if new evidence comes to light or it is determined that the police or prosecutor committed some kind of misconduct at the original trial. In some jurisdictions this leads to the payment of compensation.

<i>The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town</i> 2006 true crime book by John Grisham

The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town is a 2006 true crime book by John Grisham, his first nonfiction title. The book tells the story of Ronald 'Ron' Keith Williamson of Ada, Oklahoma, a former minor league baseball player who was wrongly convicted in 1988 of the rape and murder of Debra Sue Carter in Ada and was sentenced to death. After serving 11 years on death row, he was exonerated by DNA evidence and other material introduced by the Innocence Project and was released in 1999.

Exoneration occurs when the conviction for a crime is reversed, either through demonstration of innocence, a flaw in the conviction, or otherwise. Attempts to exonerate individuals are particularly controversial in death penalty cases, especially where new evidence is put forth after the execution has taken place. The transitive verb, "to exonerate" can also mean to informally absolve one from blame.

<i>The Exonerated</i> 2005 American TV series or program

The Exonerated is a made-for-cable television film that dramatizes the stories of six people, some of whom, were wrongfully convicted of murder and other offenses, placed on death row, and later exonerated and freed after serving varying years in prison. It was based on a successful stage play of the same name written by Erik Jensen and Jessica Blank and first aired on the former CourtTV cable television network on January 27, 2005. It is directed by Bob Balaban and was produced by Radical Media.

This is a list of notable overturned convictions in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cincinnati Opera</span> American opera company

Cincinnati Opera is an American opera company based in Cincinnati, Ohio and the second oldest opera company in the United States. Beginning with its first season in 1920, Cincinnati Opera has produced operas in the summer months of June and July with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra providing orchestral accompaniment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Delbert Tibbs</span> American poet

Delbert Lee Tibbs was an American man who was wrongfully convicted of murder and rape in 1974 in Florida and sentenced to death. Later exonerated, Tibbs became a writer and anti-death penalty activist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Morton (criminal justice)</span> American wrongly convicted of murder

Michael Morton is an American who was wrongfully convicted in 1987 in a Williamson County, Texas court of the 1986 murder of his wife Christine Morton. He spent nearly 25 years in prison before he was exonerated by DNA evidence which supported his claim of innocence and pointed to the crime being committed by another individual. Morton was released from prison on October 4, 2011, and another man, Mark Alan Norwood, was convicted of the murder in 2013. The prosecutor in the case, Ken Anderson, was convicted of contempt of court for withholding evidence after the judge had ordered its release to the defense.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clarence Elkins</span> American wrongfully convicted for murder and rape

Clarence Arnold Elkins Sr. is an American man who was wrongfully convicted of the 1998 rape and murder of his mother-in-law, Judith Johnson, and the rape and assault of his wife's niece, Brooke Sutton. He was convicted solely on the basis of the testimony of his wife's six-year-old niece who testified that Elkins was the perpetrator.

The National Registry of Exonerations is a project of the University of Michigan Law School, Michigan State University College of Law and the University of California Irvine Newkirk Center for Science and Society. The Registry was co-founded in 2012 with the Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern University School of Law to provide detailed information about known exonerations in the United States since 1989. As of February 6, 2020, the Registry has 2,551 known exonerations in the United States since 1989. The National Registry does not include more than 1,800 defendants cleared in 15 large-scale police scandals that came to light between 1989 and March 7, 2017, in which officers systematically framed innocent defendants.

The Illinois Innocence Project, a member of the national Innocence Project network, is a non-profit legal organization that works to exonerate wrongfully convicted people and reform the criminal justice system to prevent future injustice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Investigating Innocence</span>

Investigating Innocence is a nonprofit wrongful conviction advocacy organization that provides criminal defense investigations for inmates in the United States. Investigating Innocence was founded in 2013 by private investigator Bill Clutter to assist nationwide Innocence Project groups in investigating innocence claims. "Once we have a case that meets our criteria, we'll put private investigators to work on it. A lot of these cases need investigators," said Kelly Thompson, executive director of Investigating Innocence. Prior to his work on Investigating Innocence, Clutter was one of the founders of the Illinois Innocence Project. Investigating Innocence also has a board composed of exonerees that reviews incoming cases.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nick Yarris</span> American writer and death row exoneree

Nicholas James Yarris is an American writer and storyteller who spent 22 years on death row in Pennsylvania after being wrongfully convicted of rape and murder.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Opera Fusion: New Works</span>

Opera Fusion: New Works (OF:NW) is a partnership between Cincinnati Opera and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) dedicated to fostering the development of new American operas. This collaboration is jointly led by Evans Mirageas, the Harry T. Wilks Artistic Director at Cincinnati Opera, as well as Robin Guarino, Professor of Opera at CCM. Since its founding in 2011, OF:NW has developed twenty-four new American operas. From the program's inception in 2011 through 2022, co-founders Marcus Küchle and Guarino served as co-artistic directors.

<i>Blind Injustice</i> (book) Non-fiction book by Mark Godsey about wrongful imprisonment

Blind Injustice is a nonfiction book by lawyer Mark Godsey. Godsey is the co-founder of the Ohio Innocence Project (OIP), which seeks to exonerate and overturn the convictions of people who have been wrongfully convicted. Drawing on Godsey's experience as a prosecutor for the Southern District of New York prior to his work at OIP, the book examines how the culture of the justice system is complicit in wrongful convictions. It was published in 2017 by the University of California Press.

Hubert Nathan Myers and Clifford Williams are two African American men exonerated for First-Degree Murder and attempted murder after 42 years due to eyewitness misidentification, ineffective assistance of counsel and official misconduct. They are the first exonerees freed based on an investigation by a Conviction Integrity Unit in Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murders of Annette Cooper and Todd Schultz</span> 1982 American murders of an Ohio couple

On October 4, 1982, Annette Cooper, 18, and Todd Schultz, 19, both of Logan, Ohio, and who were engaged to one another, went missing. Their dismembered bodies were recovered two weeks later in the Hocking River and a cornfield in West Logan. Both had been shot before being dismembered.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Kramer, Elizabeth (July 23, 2019). "Blind Injustice Opera Sets Out to Open Eyes About Wrongful Conviction Rates". NPR . Retrieved 2019-07-30.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Waleson, Heidi (July 26, 2019). "Blind Injustice Review: Stories of the Innocent". The Wall Street Journal . Retrieved 2019-07-30.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Gelfand, Janelle (July 19, 2019). "Opera's powerful premiere Blind Injustice explores wrongful convictions". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 2019-07-30.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Arenstein, Anne (July 24, 2019). "Cincinnati Opera's Blind Injustice is a 'Masterpiece'". CityBeat Cincinnati. Retrieved 2019-07-30.
  5. ↑ "Blind Injustice". Cincinnati Opera. Retrieved 2023-02-24.
  6. ↑ "From prison to center stage". magazine.uc.edu. Retrieved 2023-02-24.
  7. ↑ English, Sherry (2019-07-30). "UC's 'Blind Injustice' opera premieres to acclaim, makes national news". UC News. Retrieved 2023-02-24.
  8. ↑ Makers, Movers and (2021-02-16). "Cincinnati Opera releases premiere recording of 'Blind Injustice'". Movers & Makers. Retrieved 2023-02-24.
  9. 1 2 Gresham, Mark (7 August 2019). "Review: Cincinnati Opera's Blind Injustice opens eyes with story of exonerated prisoners". Ear Relevant. Atlanta, Georgia. Retrieved 10 October 2019.
  10. ↑ Godsey, Mark (May 21, 2019). "Voice to the Voiceless". Cincinnati Opera's 2019 Season Program Book. p. 38. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
  11. ↑ Arenstein, Anne (July 17, 2019). "Cincinnati Opera's World Premiere of 'Blind Injustice' Uncovers Innocence". City Beat. Retrieved 21 September 2019.
  12. 1 2 de Acha, Rafael (July 30, 2019). "Falsely Accused, Falsely Convicted By Blind Injustice". Classical Voice North America. Journal of the Music Critics Association of North America. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
  13. 1 2 3 4 de Acha, Rafael (2019-07-24). "Cincinnati Opera Does Great Justice to Blind Injustice : Seen and Heard International". Seen and Heard. Retrieved 2019-07-31.
  14. 1 2 Shane, Eric (May 21, 2019). "In Performance". Cincinnati Opera's 2019 Season Program Book. p. 38. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
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