Composer’s Statement

It takes a lot of nerve for a composer to look at a literary masterpiece and think, “What I have to say about this work is significant enough to justify turning it into an opera,” so it was with loads of trepidation that I approached Why I Live at the P.O., one of the greatest comic stories ever written. But, somehow, here it is, and UrbanArias has given it a gorgeous production with a remarkably engaging cast.

These are a few of my reasons for being so certain that this was a story just begging to be made into an opera…

— The world needs more operatic comedies that are actually funny. Eudora Welty’s zany, hilarious story, in Michael O’Brien’s smart and wise libretto, provides practically fool-proof material for an opera that leaves audiences (and the singers) laughing.

— Sister is such a vivid and memorable character–how could you not love her? She’s cantankerous, unreliable, self-pitying, catastrophizing, but can’t we all relate to at least some of that? And the fabulously idiosyncratic language Welty gives her! Who wouldn’t want to spend a warm summer morning leaning in at the Post Office window, listening to her colorful tales of family woes?

— The characters are all lovable in their own ways, even the Machiavellian Stella-Rondo. Welty has made them fully alive on the printed page, but I longed to see and hear them alive on a stage, embodied by singing actors. What would they sound like? How would they interact? At every point in writing the opera, my goal was to create characters that would delight singers and give them opportunities to shine and blossom. The singers who have played these roles have given every indication that they’ve fallen in love with the characters; my hope is that you will, too, and that other companies will have the fun of introducing them to new audiences.

-Stephen Eddins, Composer