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19909.pdf (1.68 MB)
ETD Abstract Container
Abstract Header
Jonestown: A Multimedia Chamber Opera – Act I
Author Info
Williams, Evan Michael
Permalink:
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1460444805
Abstract Details
Year and Degree
2016, DMA, University of Cincinnati, College-Conservatory of Music: Composition.
Abstract
Jonestown
is a multimedia chamber opera in four acts, which is based on the mass murder/suicide of the Peoples Temple Agricultural Project — informally known as Jonestown — based in Guyana, South America and its leader, Pastor Jim Jones. The work revolves around three characters, Christine, Mary, and Joe. The character of Christine is based on Christine Miller, who can be heard in the final “Death Tape” of Jonestown opposing the mass suicide and advocating for a more peaceful resolution. Mary and Joe — a married couple facing problems in their relationship concerning Jim Jones — are completely fictional characters, however, details of their lives are drawn from real-life events that occurred around 1978. The opera employs audio recorded by the people of Jonestown, which was later confiscated by the FBI, and digitized by the Jonestown Institute at San Diego State University. There is no actor or singer representing Jim Jones. These audio recordings provide excerpts of Jones’s words unaltered and uncensored. The first act of this opera introduces Christine, who expresses her hope for a better world through the work being done at Jonestown. We also meet Mary and Joe, and learn that the source of their marital problems is that Jim Jones is the father of their baby boy, not Joe. The chorus — consisting of other members of Jonestown — sing about their desire to create a Christian/Communist community, yet sermons by Jim Jones express his belief that salvation cannot be found in heaven, but on earth, through himself.
Committee
Douglas Knehans, D.M.A. (Committee Chair)
Mike Fiday, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
Mara Helmuth, D.M.A. (Committee Member)
Pages
132 p.
Subject Headings
Music
Keywords
opera
;
multimedia
;
Jonestown
;
chamber opera
;
Jim Jones
Recommended Citations
Refworks
EndNote
RIS
Mendeley
Citations
Williams, E. M. (2016).
Jonestown: A Multimedia Chamber Opera – Act I
[Doctoral dissertation, University of Cincinnati]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1460444805
APA Style (7th edition)
Williams, Evan.
Jonestown: A Multimedia Chamber Opera – Act I.
2016. University of Cincinnati, Doctoral dissertation.
OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center
, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1460444805.
MLA Style (8th edition)
Williams, Evan. "Jonestown: A Multimedia Chamber Opera – Act I." Doctoral dissertation, University of Cincinnati, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1460444805
Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)
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Document number:
ucin1460444805
Download Count:
398
Copyright Info
© 2016, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by University of Cincinnati and OhioLINK.