Honoring Eric Bentley: A Centennial Tribute Concert (The Film)
“The occasion was a triumph for soprano Karyn Levitt, who has worked diligently to bring Bentley’s Brecht translations to life, especially those settings he wrote to music of Hanns Eisler.... Full credit to Glen Roven and his Metamorphosis Chamber Orchestra who accompanied Levitt in this convincing score, performed complete for the first time anywhere.”
Songs for Mother Courage
Eric Bentley is one of the most respected theater critics, playwrights, editors and translators of our time. For his 100th birthday, a galaxy of stars honored Bentley at Broadway’s legendary Town Hall. The historic evening, produced by Karyn Levitt and Royal Road Productions, featured Tony Kushner, Austin Pendleton, Harold Bloom, James Shapiro, Edward Mendelson, Phillip Lopate, Louise Kerz Hirschfeld, Michael Paller, and Roger Copeland, and was emceed by Michael Riedel. The participants offered readings from Eric Bentley's classic works and shared their thoughts about Bentley’s influence on them personally and on American theater, music, and culture. Bentley's work with Brecht, his classic books on the theater, and his own great artistry were all highlighted. The evening was punctuated by theater music of Hanns Eisler and Darius Milhaud, whose songs for Mother Courage were performed by Soprano Karyn Levitt in the composer's original, unpublished version for chamber orchestra, conducted by the late multi-Emmy Award winner Glen Roven. Selections from Eric Bentley's Brecht-Eisler Song Book were also performed by Ms. Levitt and the Hanns Eisler Trio. The film captures all the highlights from this one-of-a-kind live event honoring Eric Bentley and his legacy.
Originally performed for Eric Bentley’s Centennial Tribute Concert, Karyn Levitt has helped bring to life a unpublished version for chamber orchestra of Darius Milhaud and Hanns Eisler’s songs for Mother Courage. The work is available for future performances.