Vocal

Requiem

For soprano, mezzo soprano, baritone and piano

Stefania de Kenessey’s Requiem, setting the opening lines of the traditional Latin text, commemorates the tragedy of September 11th, 2001. Originally part of a larger work entitled “September Requiem”, with additional poetry by Frederick Turner, the piece was commissioned by the Newington-Cropsey Cultural Studies Center in 2002 and premiered there in a performance by Elizabeth Farnum, Mary Ann Stewart, and Samuel Hepler, with the composer at the piano.

The work was subsequently recorded by Adina Aaron, Adriana Zabala and Christòpheren Nomura, accompanied by John Churchwell, and it was released in 2015 on a CD entitled Gotham Siren (North/South Records), featuring a range of de Kenessey’s vocal compositions.

My First Aida

One of my cherished childhood memories is the legendary soprano Martina Arroyo’s performance as Aida at the Metropolitan Opera: to this day, her stunningly beautiful voice rings in my ear…

Many years later, I was honored to be able to celebrate her legacy. For the Tenth Anniversary Gala of the Martina Arroyo Foundation, I set a poem specifically commissioned for the occasion by my friend (and opera connoisseur extraordinaire) Paul Reid. Subtitled “A Song in Honor of Martina Arroyo”, the text and the music both make occasional, brief references to the Verdi opera.

The aria premiered on Nov.17, 2014 in a performance by soprano Brandie Sutton, with the composer at the piano.

Bonfire of the Vanities

BONFIRE OF THE VANITIES: THE OPERA, the first theatrical adaptation of Tom Wolfe’s epic satirical novel of greed-soaked, ego-fueled New York City, premiered October 9th and 10th, 2015 at El Teatro at El Museo del Barrio, New York, NY.

Wall Street trader Sherman McCoy (RANDAL TURNER) invents a bond whose popularity propels him to the top of the financial world. But just as he meets the peak of his success, he collides with a scandal that brings all of New York City crashing down upon him, including a ferocious Harlem reverend (KEVIN MAYNOR), his own loyal but cosseted Park Avenue housewife (ANNE-CAROLYN BIRD), an ambitious and jaded Bronx ADA (GLENN SEVEN ALLEN), a sexually irresistible femme fatale (YINGJIE ZHOU), and an idealistic lawyer who demands better things for her city (ADRIENNE DANRICH).

Stefania de Kenessey’s score, with its emphasis on melody and strong rhythms, erupts from an 18-piece orchestra and brings together elements of classic opera and popular music to create a unique blend that brings out both the truly contemporary concerns of the narrative and the deep emotions of its characters.

Menstrual Rosary

“Menstrual Rosary” is a theater-performance piece in which two women, dressed like nuns but wearing bright red lipstick, recite a rosary – which veers off periodically into bits and pieces of ads for feminine care products.

The text is co-authored by feminist philosopher Chiara Bottici and poet provocateur Vanessa Place. The work was commissioned for the launch of the Gender and Sexuality Studies Institute (GSSI) at The New School; it received its video premiere on April 29, 2021 on a panel entitled “The Art of Feminism”.

The filmed version (duration 14:07), featuring Jasmine Holland and Aiyana Greene, was directed by Cecilia Rubino; the video was created and edited by Anomie Williams, with additional images courtesy of Christen Clifford.

It has won twelve awards in 2022 at film festivals ranging from San Francisco and Portland in the US, to cities such as Paris, London, Madrid, Milan and Hong Kong.