Jack Pine: The Opera

Rachel, Kaleb and I headed over to North Vancouver yesterday to attend the grand opening of Jack Pine, an opera for children based on the book by Christopher Patton. The libretto and music were written by Veda Hille, who is a musical favourite in this household.

The opera was alright, but we came away with the impression that Chris's text wasn't ideally suited to adaptation. The best element of the show was the core part, which used Chris's poem. The story built around the poem felt like ... a story built around a poem. There was also a lot of "educational" content about trees that was more didactic than lyrical. The thing as a whole was a bit long for young kids. (Tho it should be said that K almost made it thru the whole thing without fussing.)

The book, which we bought in the lobby, is a thing of beauty, both the text and Cybèle Young's artwork. I highly recommend it.