FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS
Based on the novel by Ernest Hemingway
Composer Brian Wilbur Grundstrom
Librettist David M. Dorsen
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In the acclaimed novel "For Whom the Bell Tolls", author Ernest Hemingway presents the story of Robert Jordan, a young, idealistic American volunteer who serves with a Republican guerrilla unit during the Spanish Civil War. The story takes place in the mountains of northern Spain in 1937, when Jordan is assigned to a seemingly doomed mission: to dynamite a bridge during an attack on the city of Segovia. There he falls in love with Maria.
ABOUT THE PRODUCTION
In this operatic adaptation, the lyrical and melodic music of American composer Brian Wilbur Grundstrom reveals the emotional depth of the characters and offers a new perspective on Hemingway's classic. With a libretto by David M. Dorsen, the opera utilizes the genre's versatility to amplify the narrative's intimate and collective conflicts, uniting drama, poetry, and musical intensity.
The Brasília IBOC Opera Nova world premiere was realized under artistic director João MacDowell and Creative Producer Athena Azevedo, with stage director and choreographer Eliana Carneiro, "For Whom the Bells Toll" dramatizes Hemingway's symbolism of the cave setting through the lens of Plato and leans into shadow and dance for poetic emphasis. The production premiere united artists from Brazil, the United States, and Sweden in an international collaboration between performers, musicians, and creators.
The English language production has Portuguese subtitles, and features a cast of 21 artists on stage and an orchestra of 29 instrumentalists featuring the Orquestra Filharmônica de Brasília.
Duration: 130 min + 20 min intermission
ABOUT IBOC OPERA NOVA
IBOC Opera Nova Brasilia is an initiative of the International Brazilian Opera Company (IBOC) dedicated to the creation, circulation, and promotion of new and original contemporary operatic works.
Bringing together artists, composers, musicians, and creators from diverse backgrounds, the project emerges from the encounter between tradition and contemporary language, bringing opera closer to new sensibilities, audiences, and cultural experiences.
The world premiere production of the "For Whom The Bell Tolls" opera was the inaugural edition of IBOC Opera Nova Brasilia and realized in collaboration with the Brasília Philharmonic Orchestra and under the artistic direction and creative production of João MacDowell and Athena Azevedo.
CONTACT US
203 W.111th Street, 4A NYC, NY 10026
TEAM
EARNEST
HEMINGWAY
SOURCE MATERIAL / NOVEL
Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) was an American novelist
and short-story writer known for his economical
and understated style. He won the Nobel Prize in
Literature in 1954 and is famous for works like
The Old Man and the Sea, A Farewell to Arms,
and The Sun Also Rises.
BRIAN
WILBUR
GRUNDSTROM
COMPOSER
with a strong affinity for long melodic lines,
a distinct tonal harmonic vocabulary, engaging
rhythms, and dramatic imagery. Grundstrom
holds a degree in piano and music theory from
Gettysburg College and studied orchestration
and composition with John David Earnest.
DAVID M. DORSEN
LIBRETTIST
David Dorsen is a lawyer and author. A lover of opera,
he created the concept of opera based on the novel
by Ernest Hemingway. He is the author of the
award-winning biography Judge Henry Friendly,
Greatest Judge of His Era, published by Harvard
University Press, and The Unexpected Scalia:
A Conservative Justice's Liberal Opinions, published by
Cambridge University Press. Dorsen served as
Assistant Chief Counsel to the Senate Committee
on the Watergate Affair. His recent novel, titled
Moses v. Trump, a work of nonfiction, is based on
the Watergate Scandal. Dorsen has taught at Duke,
Georgetown, and George Washington universities.
JEFFREY DOKKEN
MAESTRO
Jeffrey Dokken is the Music Director and Conductor
of the Rome Symphony Orchestra, recognized for his
dynamic conducting style and innovative
programming. He has performed at prestigious
venues like Carnegie Hall and The
Kennedy Center, and has conducted internationally,
including world premieres of works by notable
composers such as Philip Glass. composition
ELIANA
CARNEIRO
STAGE DIRECTOR AND CHOREOGRAPHER
Eliana Carneiro is a Brazilian dancer, actress,
director, and choreographer who founded the
acclaimed interdisciplinary performance group Cia.
Os Buriti in 1995. Blending contemporary dance,
theater, and live music, she has created and toured
numerous international productions while also
establishing Casa Buriti, a cultural center in Goiás
dedicated to artistic training and traditional
craft preservation.
JOAO
MACDOWELL
ARTISTIC DIRECTION
João MacDowell is a Brazilian composer known
for fusing contemporary and popular styles with
classical music. His work includes opera, symphonic,
chamber music, and early albums of Brazilian pop.
On the occasion of the concert premiere of
his fifth opera The Seventh Seal, Swedish journalist
Johanna Paulsson of Dagens Nyheter noted the
composer as "a new thinker in the genre"
ATHENA AZEVEDO
CREATIVE PRODUCER
Athena Azevedo is an artist, photographer, filmmaker,
and cultural producer whose work moves across
photography, cinema, opera, and interdisciplinary
visual practice. Recognized as a Graphis Photography
Master since 2019, she explores identity, memory,
cultural dialogue, and the shifting boundaries
between photography and painting. As co-founder
of the International Brazilian Opera Company,
she also works at the intersection of visual art
and contemporary opera, shaping productions,
exhibitions, and cultural projects between
New York and Brasília.
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FULL CAST, CREATIVE AND PRODUCTION TEAM COMING SOON.
SUPPORTERS
PREMIERE STAGE
