Champion

composed by Terence Blanchard with a libretto by Michael Cristofer

April 29, 2023

This event occurred as part of the 22/23 Arts On Screen season. This is an archived view.

A young boxer rises from obscurity to become a world champion.

22/23 Arts On Screen

Six-time Grammy Award–winning composer Terence Blanchard brings his first opera to the Met after his Fire Shut Up in My Bones triumphantly premiered with the company to universal acclaim in 2021–22. Bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green is the young boxer Emile Griffith, who rises from obscurity to become a world champion, and bass-baritone Eric Owens portrays Griffith's older self, haunted by the ghosts of his past. Soprano Latonia Moore is Emelda Griffith, the boxer's estranged mother, and mezzo-soprano Stephanie Blythe is the bar owner Kathy Hagan. Yannick Nézet-Séguin takes the podium for Blanchard's second Met premiere, also reuniting the director-and-choreographer team of James Robinson and Camille A. Brown.

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The Program

The Hop Presents

Met Opera in HD
Champion
composed by Terence Blanchard with a libretto by Michael Cristofer

Saturday, April 29, 1 pm
Loew Auditorium • Dartmouth College • 2023

Duration: 3 hours, 10 minutes including intermission

Free tickets for Dartmouth students to attend The Met: Live in HD are supported by a gift from Cynthia and Jeffrey Manocherian P’15, ’18

Cast

(Cast in order of vocal appearance) Emelda Griffith...........................................................................................................................................Latonia Moore Young Emile Griffith........................................................................................................................Ryan Speedo Green Emile Griffith.....................................................................................................................................................Eric Owens Kathy Hagen......................................................................................................................................... Stephanie Blythe Howie Albert................................................................................................................................................... Paul Groves Benny “Kid” Paret...........................................................................................................................................Eric Greene Conductor......................................................................................................................................Yannick Nézet-Séguin Production.............................................................................................................................................. James Robinson Set Designer.................................................................................................................................................... Allen Moyer Costume Designer........................................................................................................................Montana Levi Blanco Lighting Designer...................................................................................................................................... Donald Holder Projection Designer..................................................................................................................................... Greg Emetaz Choreographer......................................................................................................................................Camille A. Brown Live in HD Director..................................................................................................................................Gary Halvorson Live in HD Host................................................................................................................................Lawrence Brownlee

Synopsis

ACT I
In his apartment in Hempstead, Long Island, Emile Griffith is struggling to get dressed. Suffering from dementia, he is confused and haunted by his past. Luis, his adopted son and caretaker, reminds him to be ready for an important meeting with Benny Paret, Jr.

In the late 1950s, Emile is a young man again in St. Thomas. He yearns to find his mother, Emelda, and make it big in America as a singer, a baseball player and a designer of hats. Emile moves to New York. When he finds his mother, she is confused, but overjoyed to see him. She takes him to meet Howie Albert, a hat manufacturer. Howie sees the young man is built like a boxer and sets his sights on training Emile, who quickly develops into a talented welterweight. Feeling lonely, Emile finds his way to a gay bar in Manhattan, and Kathy Hagen, the owner, welcomes Emile to a world that frightens and attracts him. Emile confides in Kathy, revealing some demons from his past.

In 1962, Emile encounters Benny “Kid” Paret at a weigh-in for their upcoming fight. Kid Paret taunts Emile, calling him “maricon,” a disparaging Spanish word for a homosexual. Alone with Howie, Emile tries to talk honestly about why this insult hurt so deeply, but Howie refuses to discuss it. As they prepare for the big fight, Paret continues to taunt Emile, who ultimately delivers seventeen blows in less than seven seconds and knocks Paret into a coma.

Intermission (30 Minutes)

ACT II
Back in Emile’s bedroom in the present, Emile is haunted by the ghost of Kid Paret, who still questions and taunts his old opponent.

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