An evening in Paris with Gertrude Stein
by Zoë Lemley
This past October I was fortunate enough to see Intermountain Opera Bozeman’s fall performance, 27. The enchanting story of American novelist and poet Gertrude Stein and her partner Alice B. Toklas followed their lives in Paris during both World War I and World War II.
In the opera, Stein and Toklas open a parisian art parlor called “27 rue de Fleuris” where they encounter some of history’s most famous aesthetes such as Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald. In search of artistic appeal, these artists travel to Paris to meet the reputable Stein in hopes of becoming a new voice in the evolving artistic world.
Something that really stood out to me was how contemporary the show was. I really enjoyed the way the music was presented by the characters telling their story through musicality.
Another interesting thing was that the show was performed with only a 5-person cast. I loved that each character was intimate with the music and their acting to allow the audience to feel really connected with the cast and plot.
Personally, this opera brought out two things that are very important in my life: music and my love for writing and the arts. I was able to connect with these actors who I didn’t even know and also the role that they were playing. At the end of the show, I was entranced with their stories and their lives.
Overall, I loved how personal the show was and how it appealed to many different people regardless of age or gender or culture. I think that everyone who saw the show was able to put themselves in Gertrude Stein’s shoes to find a correlation between their life and hers. Not only that, but it opened my eyes to the arts and how it impacts my everyday life.
Thank you to the cast who put on an amazing show, thank you to the writers and directors who made this opera a reality, and most of all, thank you Gertrude Stein for opening my eyes to the world that lies beyond what is possible.
Zoë Lemley is a senior at Bozeman High School. Her favorite classes include Jazz Choir, AP Psychology and AP English. When not at school, you can find her spending time with friends, writing music and poetry, and singing. She is very excited to have her first feature published in The BoZone. •