Utah Opera's The Shining

To say that I was intrigued when Utah Opera announced The Shining as the opening production for the 2025-2026 season would be an understatement!  As a huge fan of the novel by Stephen King, I have been counting down the days until I could see it and I was so excited to finally have the chance last night.  I admit to being a bit skeptical about how well the novel would translate to the stage but this production is outstanding and I think it brilliantly captures the terror of the Overlook Hotel.  Jack Torrence (Craig Irvin) is a recovering alcoholic tormented by the memory of his abusive father and by the fact that he is now perpetuating the cycle of abuse with his own son.  He hopes that a job as the caretaker for the remote and isolated Overlook Hotel while it is closed for the winter will be a new start for him, his wife Wendy (Kearstin Piper Brown), and his son Danny (Bella Grace Smith).  However, Danny immediately senses an evil presence in the hotel with a sixth sense that the hotel's cook Dick Hallorann (Patrick Blackwell), who possesses the same abilty, calls "the shining."  Dick assures Danny that he can use "the shining" to contact him if things get too dangerous for him at the hotel.  Jack finds a scrapbook detailing the hotel's infamous past full of murders, suicides, and Mafia hits and the ghosts haunting the hotel use his insecurities about being a good husband and father to influence him.  Eventually, the ghosts of Delbert Grady (Christian Sanders), the former caretaker who murdered his wife (Stephanie Chee) and daughters (Eva Peterson and Lilah Burrell), and his father Mark Torrence (Christopher Clayton) urge him to murder his family but, in a moment of lucidity, Jack implores them to leave with Hallorann, who has responded to Danny's call for help, and finds redemption by destroying the hotel and its ghosts.  I think the movie adaptation is a cinematic masterpiece but it is definitely the story Stanley Kubrick wanted to tell rather than the one Stephen King wrote so I was very pleased that the libretto closely follows King's version because I prefer the more sympathetic portrayal of Jack.  Irvin gives a powerful performance and, while much of what he sings involves recitative, he does have a soul searching aria where he wishes to be a better husband and father in Act I and it is very affecting.  He also portrays Jack's slow descent into madness with nuance and it is very chilling to watch.  Brown gave me goosebumps with her beautiful performance of the aria "I never stopped loving you" in Act I and I was also impressed with her transformation from a loving wife to a fiercely protective mother.  Blackwell has a moment to shine in the epilogue and his deep rich tones in the aria exhorting Danny to be strong was the highlight for me.  The music itself is very atmospheric and it gets more ominous as the opera progresses but the sound design also adds to the unease (particularly the steam coming from the boiler because it foreshadows the tragedy to come).  The stage is configured as the lobby of the Overlook Hotel with a grand staircase leading to an upper level and various rooms made out of scrim to allow for eerie digital projections (some of which replicate the iconic images from the movie).  The costumes for the Torrence family have a fun 1970s vibe but I especially loved those worn by the ghosts attending the New Year's Eve Masquerade Ball.  I thoroughly enjoyed this opera and would definitely recommend getting a ticket to one of the two remaining performances (go here).