the opera

Kanye West, Our Modern-Day Puccini, Announces Second Opera, Mary

Yeezy opera season approaching. Photo: Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for WSJ. Magazine Innovators Awards

As the saying goes, everything old is new again, and Kanye West is singlehandedly trying to bring back a beloved trend of the 19th century: the opera. After the debut of his first opera, Nebuchadnezzar, last month, starring Sheck Wes in the Old Testament Bible story at the Hollywood Bowl, the prolific composer announced a follow-up, Mary, to take place at Miami’s Marine Stadium this Sunday, December 8. He’s our modern-day Puccini (or Verdi or Mozart, take your pick really). Like Nebuchadnezzar, it’s directed by performance artist and Kanye collaborator Vanessa Beecroft and will feature music by the Sunday Service ensemble. No cast has been announced, but over at Vulture, we’re holding out for Teyana Taylor to play the Blessed Mother — on the heels of her new song, “We Got Love,” out today, no less. It’s what she deserves!

Kanye West, Modern-Day Puccini, Announces Second Opera, Mary