Dead Man Walking
Dead Man Walking is an opera “ripped from the headlines.” Sister Helen Prejean’s experience as the spiritual advisor and witness to the execution of two convicted murderers led her to a career in prisoner advocacy and capital punishment reform. Her book was turned into an Oscar-winning film starring Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn. Written in 2000, the opera has been performed extensively. Powerful, brutal, and at times harrowing, Dead Man Walking is certainly an indictment of capital punishment, but most importantly, it is a story of redemption. Sister Helen leads Joseph DeRocher on the uphill journey to admitting what he has done and asking for forgiveness before he dies. Joseph’s terrible crime and the punishment he receives for it irrevocably changes Sister Helen’s life and ministry, as well as the lives of the parents of the victims, his own family, the employees of the prison, and the other nuns within Sister Helen’s order. Sung in English with supertitles.
NOTE: This production is intended for mature audiences and contains scenes of graphic sexual violence, profanity, and partial nudity.