Opera Philadelphia presents 'The Anonymous Lover' January 31 and February 2

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- 'The Anonymous Lover' is full of comedy and romance.

Kalena Bovell is conducting this opera for the company premiere at the Academy of Music.

"You have two people who are in love with each other, but who are afraid of being vulnerable," says Bovell.

It is the only surviving opera by the first known Black classical composer.

"Joseph Bologne was often considered the Black Mozart," she says.

"The composer is just this fantastic, multi-hyphenated talent that most people don't know about," says Dennis Whitehead Darling, the stage director for these two performances with Opera Philadelphia. "His father was a Parisian aristocrat."

"And his mom was actually an enslaved person," says Bovell.

The opera follows a young, wealthy widow, Léontine, with a secret admirer named Valcour.

"He's been writing her letters and sending her gifts for four years," says Whitehead Darling. "Today's the day he's going to reveal his true identity."

Soprano Symone Harcum plays the love interest who's hesitant to open her heart.

"This is really a story of her deciding to be vulnerable and opening up and exploring that side of her life again," says Harcum.

"She has a crush on Valcour. She doesn't know that he is the anonymous lover and so in this, mayhem ensues," says Whitehead Darling. "Everybody's basically trying to push these two together."

The opera, from 1780, is sung in French, but the updated dialogue is in English.

"We've rewritten the spoken word in it, so the script is new and fresh and has a more contemporary feel about it," says Whitehead Darling.

"Because there's also a lot of dialogue, you're able to really follow a story," says Bovell. "It's really accessible."

The show is packed with romance.

"Everyone's paired up in the show. Ophémon and Dorothée are flirting," says Harcum. "There's a couple who are getting married, Jeannette and Colin."

"This is like the 'All My Children' of the 18th century," laughs Bovell. "I honestly hope audiences leave excited, and I hope they leave inspired to learn more."

"Composers, and librettists, and conductors of color are often overlooked, or lost to history. And it's just wonderful that we're bringing this to the stage," says Whitehead Darling.

Opera Philadelphia presents 'The Anonymous Lover' January 31 and February 2 at The Academy of Music.

Opera Philadelphia - 'The Anonymous Lover'
Link to Tickets at the Academy of Music