Why Is an Entire Age of American Opera Missing at the Met?

“Vanessa” debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in January 1958 with an impressive roster of talent rarely seen in a world premiere. Samuel Barber, already renowned for his Adagio for Strings, composed the score, while his partner, Gian Carlo Menotti—an opera expert—wrote the libretto and directed. The production was designed by Cecil Beaton, fresh off his first Academy Award win, and conducted by Dimitri Mitropoulos, the Met’s leading maestro.

Audience reactions during intermission seemed favorable, with reports mentioning 17 curtain calls. The following day, The New York Times‘s Howard Taubman hailed the opera as “the best American opera ever presented” at the Met, and it went on to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music.https://svtoday.org/

Despite its initial success, “Vanessa” was revived only once more in 1965, when critics called for its place in the operatic repertoire. Unfortunately, it soon vanished from the Met’s stage.

However, the opera’s legacy persists. The aria “Must the winter come so soon?” remains a favorite in recitals and competitions, and smaller companies, as well as conservatories, continue to stage it. This summer, Heartbeat Opera will present a “reimagined” version at the Williamstown Theater Festival.

So why is “Vanessa” so hard to find in major opera houses today? The question raises broader concerns: If such a masterpiece, celebrated as one of the finest American operas of the 20th century, struggles to secure a place at the Met, what does that say about the prospects for other works from this era?

“Vanessa” encapsulates a pivotal moment in American opera, where composers like Barber—along with his peers, most of whom were gay—crafted a distinctive “American sound.” This style merged folk melodies and well-known songs into a classical idiom that was both accessible and sophisticated.

The absence of “Vanessa” on stages like the Met’s is especially troubling when you consider its revival at the Kennedy Center, where the opera was performed with stellar talent. The concert featured mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges in the iconic aria, with veteran stars Susan Graham and Thomas Hampson in smaller roles. Gianandrea Noseda conducted, and the opera’s final quintet, “To leave, to break,” was a standout, showcasing Barber’s mastery of dramatic, sweeping melodies.

This climactic moment represents the opera’s core: a love triangle that pits idealism against self-doubt and regret. The quintet is a tribute to classical traditions, weaving melodies reminiscent of Beethoven’s Fidelio and Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier. Barber’s European influences, though evident, reflect his quest to forge a uniquely American style. Menotti, his collaborator, brought his Italian roots into the mix, having grown up immersed in operas at Milan’s La Scala.

At one point, the title role of Vanessa could have gone to none other than Maria Callas. As recounted by Howard Pollack in Samuel Barber: His Life and Legacy, Callas was unimpressed by the score, finding it lacking in melodies. She also expressed doubts about singing in English, despite her New York birthplace, which prompted Barber to quip about her reluctance to sing in her native tongue.

Despite the lack of Callas, anticipation for the opera’s debut was immense. The Met had not staged an American opera in over two decades, and Vanessa would be the first new American work performed in years. Esquire even published the full libretto before opening night.

The fact that Vanessa had such a high-profile premiere at the Met is remarkable, given that in the 1940s and ’50s, new operas often debuted on Broadway. Works like Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, Weill’s Street Scene, and Menotti’s The Consul first found audiences in Broadway theaters before making their way to the opera stage.

While these operas faced commercial pressures and critical skepticism, their legacy endures, even if Vanessa has been less frequently performed in recent years. Operas like Street Scene and Regina, which combine American themes with rich musical scores, express the soul of the nation, yet remain absent from the Met’s lineup.

In a conversation with Peter Gelb, the Met’s general manager, about the challenges of staging works like Vanessa, he noted that it’s only feasible for the Met to produce these operas if they can cast top-tier singers and secure extensive promotional support. When Susannah debuted at the Met in 1999, for example, it starred Renée Fleming in the title role.

The cast for Vanessa at the Kennedy Center included established and rising stars of the Met, proving that the opera could seamlessly transition to Lincoln Center. So why hasn’t it?

In recent years, the Met has shown renewed interest in American operas, but with a focus on those by living composers. New works and revivals, such as Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking and his upcoming Moby-Dick, are in line with the Met’s aim to feature “operas with rich melodic scores and contemporary storylines.”

Interestingly, these descriptors could just as easily apply to many of the mid-20th-century operas, like Vanessa, that have yet to find their place on the grandest stage in the country.