"Songs by Animals" Featuring Bass-Baritone Marcus Nance

This powerful new song cycle by composer Michael Donovan and poet John Sobol receives its world premiere, featuring bass-baritone Marcus Nance, pianist Carl Philippe Gionet, and a cast of local vocalists. Written for nine voices and piano, this all-ages work gives voice to the natural world through a series of poems imagined as written by the animals themselves, set within a northern landscape shaped by beauty, fragility, and change. At its centre is the Ghost of the Woolly Mammoth, who encounters a Polar Bear, Arctic Tern, Bowhead Whale, Krill, Wolf, Moose, Lemming, and Arctic Blue Butterfly. Hailed by The New York Times as “thrillingly powerful,” Nance is a compelling and versatile performer with acclaimed work across opera, musical theatre, and new music. Gionet is active as a pianist, collaborative artist, and vocal coach in Canada and Europe.

"Songs by Animals"
Music by Michael Donovan | Words by John Sobol

“Opening Monologue (Ghost of the Woolly Mammoth)”
“The Polar Bear’s Song”
“The Arctic Tern’s Song”
“Mammoth: I Remember”
“The Bowhead Whale’s Song”
“Mammoth: Who Would Not Wish?”
“The Krill Song”
“The Wolf’s Song”
“Mammoth: Family”
“The Lemming’s Song”
“Mammoth: We Imagine Ourselves”
“The Moose Song”
“Mammoth: Eat or Be Eaten”
“Song of the Arctic Blue Butterfly”
“Mammoth: Final Monologue / Animal Medley”

Season Sponsor: NICE MOVES / Red Door Realty