The Circling Stars, the Sea Surrounding

The Circling Stars, the Sea Surrounding:

Philip Glass and John Luther Adams

by Ursula K. Le Guin

Every year one of the Portland Opera Company’s productions is sung by the singers in the company’s outstanding training program. In 2012 it was Philip Glass’s short opera, Galileo Galilei. There is a splendor to young voices different from the patina of the experienced singer; and these performances always have an extra charge of tension and excitement.

The bold, beautiful, intricately simple set, all...