- Concert
Our Founders, Multisensory Shakespeare, and Philadelphia: World Capitol of New Italian Opera
Join Dr. Sheila T. Cavanagh (Emory University) and Philadelphia's International Opera Theater for a performance of Shakespearean operas.
RSVP is encouraged but not required.
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November 5, 2026, 5:00pm -
7:00pm
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Kislak Center Class of 1978 Orrery Pavilion, 6th Floor, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center
group
Open to the Public
Hosted by: Kislak Center
John Adams and Thomas Jefferson were both strong Shakespeare enthusiasts. Thomas Jefferson was also passionate about Italian Opera. Philadelphia's International Opera Theater has produced 16 world premiere Italian operas, many of which present Shakespeare's plays. Sheila Cavanagh (World Shakespeare Project and Emory University) co-produced "Sogno di Una Nottte Di Mezza Estate" and includes a chapter about the International Opera Theater collaboration with learning disabled artists, among others, in Umbria, Italy in her recent book, Multisensory Shakespeare and Specialized Communities.
This event will include a number of singers who will perform selections from these Shakespearean operas, with special guest Dr. Sheila Cavanagh (Professor of English, Director of the World Shakespeare Project, and The Emory Women Writers Resource Project, Emory University), who will contextualize this work in the context of America 250, Shakespeare in Performance, and the multisensory nature of these creations.
This concert is hosted in partnership with the Department of English working group in Medieval and Renaissance Studies.