Margaret Atwood writes opera libretto

26 July 2013, 17:35

Booker Prize-winning author Margaret Atwood has written her first ever opera libretto, for a production entitled Pauline.

The writer's first foray into operatic libretto is a dramatisation of the life of Canadian writer Pauline Johnson, and features music written by composer Tobin Stokes. It is set in Vancouver in 1913.

The production has suffered numerous setbacks in the last 15 years. The initial choice of composer, Randolph Peters, left the project after citing a lack of interest in the opera's subject.

However, the opera is now scheduled to premiere at the East Vancouver York Theatre in Canada, for between six and 10 performances in May 2014.

Although it is Atwood's first time as an operatic librettist, it is not the first time her work has been associated with opera. Her classic novel The Handmaid's Tale was adapted into an opera in 2000 by the Danish Royal Opera.