Riders of the Purple Sage Featured in Etched Magazine
September 1, 2016
"In just the first few pages of Zane Grey’s classic novel, Riders of the Purple Sage, fearless gunslingers and men on horseback tear through unforgiving mountains as emotions become as extreme as their surroundings: jealousy looms like a fatal precipice, and love ignites like a brushfire.
It’s a fitting opening for a story where the land and its inhabitants are inextricably linked, where every action takes its cue from the rough terrain, the lush plant life that thrives in spite of challenges, the rhythms of horse hooves and the crashing of storms.
It’s also a perfect beginning for an opera."
Riders of the Purple Sage, by composer Craig Bohmler, will receive its world premiere at Arizona Opera February 25 – March 5, 2017. Featuring baritone Morgan Smith, soprano Karin Wolverton, and tenor Joshua Dennis, the world premiere will be conducted by Keitaro Harada, directed by Fenlon Lamb, and feature set design by world-famous Southwest landscape artist Ed Mell.
Learn about the opera, based on Zane Grey's most famous Western novel, and purchase tickets.