The Old Man and the Sea

Fri Oct 10 2025 at 07:30 pm to 09:30 pm UTC-04:00

Mershon Auditorium | Columbus

Opera Columbus
Publisher/HostOpera Columbus
The Old Man and the Sea
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In a co-production with Opera Columbus, Wexner Center for the Arts and Beth Morrison Projects
Based on the Ernest Hemingway 1952 novella, this innovative adaptation of The Old Man and the Sea is the result of a collaboration between illustrious composer Paola Prestini, librettist Royce Vavrek, and conductor and stage director Karmina Šilec. Breathtakingly staged with eight pools of water enhanced with dynamic lighting, costumes, and sound, the performance combines the Hemingway text with original portraits of everyday life to create a look at aging, legacy, and our relationship to the ocean.
Onstage you’ll hear music from longtime collaborators and muses of Prestini’s including Jeffrey Zeigler as the featured cellist, as well as percussionists and a 16-person chorus featuring students from Ohio State’s School of Music. The cast brings to life the book’s pivotal characters: Santiago, Manolin, and the wife, who’s rewritten as La Virgen de la Caridad del Cobre, a goddess in the Afro-Caribbean faith Santería found floating off the coast of Cuba in 1628. Themes of baseball, ecology, religion, and economy paint a conflict between progress, tradition, passion, and exploitation, ultimately shedding contemporary perspectives on this timeless tale.
#OldManOC
Music by Paola Prestini
Libretto by Royce Vavrek
Directed and Co-Created by Karmina Šilec
Conducted by Mila Henry
Based on the Novel by Ernest Hemingway
Produced by Beth Morrison Projects
This production will be performed in English with English captions.
Explore more at: https://www.operacolumbus.org/oldman/
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Mershon Auditorium, 1871 N High St,Columbus, Ohio, United States

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