Hailed “a rising star of stage directing [whose] approach to directing refreshes hope for the future of opera,” Eve Summer is a director, producer, and choreographer. She has been described as having “a gift for translating classic symbolism into familiar detail with just enough flippancy to bring out the fun of the opera without skewing the emotional equation.” Ms. Summer begins this season with new productions of Tosca at Opera Columbus, Don Giovanni at Opera Carolina and Opera Grand Rapids, and Thomas Albert’s Lizbeth at Opera Orlando. Selected recent directing credits include The Little Prince at Tulsa Opera, Albert Herring at Curtis Opera Theatre, Trouble in Tahiti at the Glimmerglass Festival, Don Giovanni at Opera Columbus, The Mikado at Opera Grand Rapids, The Pearl Fishers at Opera Tampa and Opera in Williamsburg, The Tales of Hoffmann at Opera Orlando, Xerxes at Connecticut Early Music Festival, John Musto’s Later the Same Evening at Boston University, Aida and Lucia di Lammermoor at Boheme Opera New Jersey, Suor Angelica at the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Magic Flute at Opera in Williamsburg and Hartt Opera Theatre, Così fan tutte at Opera Grand Rapids, Connecticut Lyric Opera, and Commonwealth Opera, Bluebeard’s Castle at Mid-Ohio Opera, Le nozze di Figaro at dell’Arte Opera Ensemble, Carmen at MassOpera, and the world premiere of Larry Bell’s opera Holy Ghosts at the Berklee Performance Center.
Ms. Summer’s work has been called “eye-poppingly contemporary,” “a riveting, glorious production from beginning to end,” and “can only be described as brilliant.” Critics raved that her production of Xerxes was “a delight, and a testament to Summer’s gift for banishing stodginess from an art form too often seen as fossilized and elitist”. Critics hailed her recent Albert Herring at Curtis as “exuberant and delightful,” “a drawing room tour de force,” and declared “It is hard to imagine how the performance could have been improved. It was sensational.”
A former professional ballet dancer and choreographer, Ms. Summer’s choreography credits include a commission to choreograph a new ballet, Jeanne’s Fantasy, by composer Mark Warhol for the premiere with Contrapose Dance and Fort Point Theatre Channel, Elektra at Des Moines Metro Opera, Falstaff at Opera Colorado, and Don Giovanni at Boston Opera Collaborative. She recently collaborated with renowned choreographer Karole Armitage on the critically acclaimed American premiere of Philip Glass’ Opera-Ballet The Witches of Venice at Opera Saratoga. Ms. Summer has served as staff and assistant director and choreographer at many opera companies including Boston Lyric Opera, The Glimmerglass Festival, Des Moines Metro Opera, Opera Colorado, Tulsa Opera, Opera Saratoga, and Opera Boston.
