Romulus Hunt: A Family Opera

Last updated

Romulus Hunt: A Family Opera
Romulus Hunt.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedNovember 16, 1993
Recordedat Right Track Recording and The Hit Factory, New York City.
Genre Opera
Length63:36
Label Angel Records
Producer Frank Filipetti and Teese Gohl
Carly Simon chronology
This Is My Life (Music from the Motion Picture)
(1992)
Romulus Hunt: A Family Opera
(1993)
Letters Never Sent
(1994)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [1]

Romulus Hunt: A Family Opera is an album written and composed by American singer-songwriter Carly Simon, released by Angel Records, on November 16, 1993.

Contents

The singing on the album is performed by a cast of five. Simon does appear at the end of the album, performing "Voulez-Vous Danser" as a bonus track.

History

Simon was jointly commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera Association and the Kennedy Center to write a contemporary opera that would appeal to younger people. She came up with Romulus Hunt, named after its 12-year-old protagonist. It is a family opera about divorce. Romulus tries to trick his divorced, ill-matched parents into coming back together. His sidekick is an imaginary Rastafarian named Zoogy who knows enough Jamaican magic to help with the plot. Eddie, Rom's father, is an artsy type who pierces his son's nose, while his prim mother, Joanna, worries more about propriety. A triangle is created by Mica, Eddie's girlfriend, a ditsy performance artist. During the show's final minutes Eddie learns to love Rom by recalling his own father's indifference. [2]

Revival

In December 2014, the Nashville Opera Association premiered a new performance edition of the opera. [3] [4]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Carly Simon. [5]

No.TitleLength
1."Introduction (Voulez-Vous Danser)"1:04
2."Looser Arms"3:54
3."Valentine Aria"3:11
4."A Boy Of Twelve"5:47
5."Man With Wings"3:49
6."My Dance Is A Tango"4:38
7."Voulez-Vous Danser"1:39
8."Fond of the Blondes"2:26
9."It's My Downfall"4:35
10."Incantation"3:22
11."The Fight"5:14
12."The Jig"1:25
13."Am I Still Young?"3:25
14."It's Such A Glorious Day"0:53
15."Seduction Aria"2:50
16."Romulus Hunt (The Nightmare)"2:30
17."Where Am I?"1:29
18."It Almost Happens On Its Own (We'll Never Leave)"3:07
19."Eddie's Soliloquy"3:43
20."Voulez-Vous Danser"1:16
21."Voulez-Vous Danser" (Bonus Track)"3:11
Total length:63:28

Credits

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References

  1. Ruhlmann, William. "Carly Simon's Romulus Hunt: A Family Opera". AllMusic. Archived from the original on October 21, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2007.
  2. "Romulus Hunt: A Family Opera". Carlysimon.com. Archived from the original on July 6, 2014. Retrieved April 23, 2022.
  3. Paulson, Dave (October 18, 2014). "Carly Simon teams up with Nashville Opera". The Tennessean . Retrieved April 19, 2015.
  4. Stumpfl, Amy (December 4, 2014). "Nashville Opera takes unusual journey in 'Romulus Hunt'". The Tennessean. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
  5. Romulus Hunt: A Family Opera (booklet). Carly Simon. Angel. 1993.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)