“Lifeboat” reviewed by The Washington Post and Classical Voice America

“Lifeboat,” a one-act opera with Matthew Peterson produced by Washington National Opera, received a nice mention in both the The Washington Post and Classical Voice America. Charles T. Downey specifically mentioned the libretto, saying that the “compactly constructed libretto by Emily Roller explored the conflicts among three victims of a shipwreck, marooned together in an inflatable lifeboat. Good libretto construction is quite different from simply writing a play that will be set to music, since the lines to be sung should optimally fit into the composer’s musical plan. Roller’s libretto meshed beautifully with the score by Matthew Peterson. Seeming to have resulted from input from both composer and librettist, the opera moved from a tumultuous opening ensemble, as three refugees on the Mediterranean Sea cut the lifeboat free from their sinking ship, through compelling aria moments, and into a moving final ensemble.”