John Adams’ EL NIÑO: Nativity Reconsidered is an AMOC* production in partnership with The Cathedral of St. John the Divine, conceptualized by soprano Julia Bullock.
This special chamber music arrangement was first performed at The Met Cloisters in 2018 and was adapted for the intimate setting. The New York Times called it “intimate, affecting and quietly rich with activism.” The piece, which celebrates Latin American poets and the voices of women, returns for a limited engagement this holiday season at a different New York City landmark. The cast of this Christmas oratorio is an AMOC* production featuring company members, including soprano Julia Bullock, countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo, bass-baritone Davóne Tines, violinists Miranda Cuckson and Keir GoGwilt, cellist Coleman Itzkoff, bassist Doug Balliett, flutist Emi Ferguson, percussionist Jonny Allen, pianist Conor Hanick, with guest artists including The Choir of Trinity Wall Street, and conductor, Christian Reif, who created the new arrangement and premiered the initial iteration of the work at the Cloisters in 2018.
A rarely performed work, El Niño “ruminates on the notion that with the promise of new life, there is the equal threat of inexplicable violence and sacrifice,” said Ms. Bullock, “one of opera’s fastest-rising stars” (Vanity Fair). The concert will be performed at St. John the Divine, with more details to be announced.