Stone Soup
Lyric Opera of Chicago's Education Department is pleased to announce the successful launching of a newly commissioned opera for children to sing: Stone Soup, based on the classic fable. The opera has been proven "tried and true" for grades K-6. It was created out of a need for high quality musical materials for grade school children to learn and perform.
Hear the Music!
Performed by the 4th grade class at The Choir Academy
of Chicago Charter Schools, June 2006
Mary Lynn Morrissey-Doherty, Music Director
Overture
A Stranger
Soup from a Stone
Into the Soup
Set the Table
Stone Soup
Right Click or Ctrl + Click & "Save As" to Download MP3 files
The story is about a traveling stranger who arrives in a village and is immediately shunned by all when he asks for food. He brings the curious villagers out from behind closed doors when he produces a stone with which he says he can make soup. He entices them into adding their own carrots, onions, spices and whatnot. In the end, a delicious meal is created that feeds the entire village.
Lyric Opera commissioned Chicago composer Philip Seward to compose both the music and libretto of Stone Soup. The music is engaging and tuneful, and well-written for young voices to sing (using a lot of vocal repetition with an ever-advancing piano accompaniment). The entire opera is approximately 20 minutes long.
Six Chicago area schools participated in the pilot program during the 2001-2002 school year. The schools ranged from public to private to parochial; from barely-there-budget to high production values. Casts ranged in size from 12 to 70. In every case, the opera proved successful not only for the students participating but also for the student audiences attending.
The story itself is set in pre-industrial times. Several school's productions reflected that time period. But one was set in an African village where all the children were draped and wrapped in colorful Kente cloth; another used traditional Mexican skirts for the girls; and one was even set in an ant hill! The opera and story proved to be highly adaptable to any culture.
During the pilot season, Mr. Seward attended all productions and made note of changes that were needed. He also took suggestions from the music teachers who led the programs and incorporated them into the score. The opera is now in its completed form and available to schools and arts organizations nationwide through Lyric Opera of Chicago. Music teachers have commented that the score is ideally written for young voices, is very creative and original, and the students love singing it. The opera is sung with piano accompaniment which includes an overture where all the tunes in the opera are introduced. The alliteration of the libretto (words of the story) helps students develop language skills and improve diction.
Lyric Opera's education department has compiled supplemental educational materials for teachers to use in the classroom when producing the opera. Included are exercises that have curriculum tie-ins with creative writing, social studies, literature, arts and crafts, and language arts.
Lyric Opera of Chicago's OperaKids program was workshopped and performed the new children's opera Stone Soup at South Shore Cultural Center as part of the after-school Park Kids program. The workshop and performances were a collaborative effort by Lyric's education department, SSCC, and the Sherwood Conservatory, which provides teachers for the program. This production of Stone Soup in April 2002 was set in an African village, with Kente-cloth backdrops and costumes. Chicago-area schools and after-school programs interested in Lyric's OperaKids program can call 312-827-5912 for more information.
Photo by Cheri Eisenberg/Lyric Opera of Chicago, 2002.The complete materials include the following:
- Production notes from the composer, with suggestions from the pilot schools
- Libretto
- Complete piano/vocal score
- Simplified piano accompaniment score
- Vocal line only score
- Six different versions of the story of Stone Soup, including one in Spanish
- Six pages of cross-curricular lesson plans including language arts, social studies, art, math, and science
- Eight different student activities, games, and puzzles about Stone Soup
- A CD of the accompaniment performed by the composer
Lyric Opera is offering these materials at a one-time cost of $250. There are no royalties and no per-performance fees involved. The materials may be used in subsequent years without any further charges.
With a specially negotiated contract, Lyric Opera may also provide music instructors for the program in your school. For further information and/or to request perusal materials, please contact Lyric's education department at 312-827-5912.
OperaKids! programs are generously sponsored by the Lloyd A. Fry Foundation and the Polk Bros. Foundation.
