Time Capsule: Juilliard 'Porgy' Connections

Revisiting Porgy and Bess

In honor of the Metropolitan Opera’s production of George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, which opened this fall and returns January 8–February 1, we look back at a few of the many Juilliard Porgy connections from the opening to the present.

The world premiere of the groundbreaking opera took place in Boston in 1935. Gershwin had selected alumnus Todd Duncan to create the role of Porgy; Duncan was joined by Anne Wiggins Brown as Bess and Ruby Pearl Elzy as Serena. Brown attended the Institute of Musical Art, Juilliard’s predecessor institution, from 1928 to 1934 and Ruby Pearl Elzy attended from 1930 to 1934. Both received Diplomas in the Regular Singing Course and the Teachers’ Singing Course as well as Certificates of Maturity in Voice; Brown later spent a year in the graduate school’s opera program. Brown, Elzy, and Duncan reprised their Porgy and Bess roles a number of times over the years, including at the Majestic Theater in 1942. A decade later, soprano Leontyne Price (’52, voice) sang Bess in a revival that opened in London. The Metropolitan Opera first staged the opera in 1985, with bass-baritone Simon Estes (’64, voice) as Porgy.

In the current Met production, David Robertson, director of conducting studies, is the conductor and vocal arts faculty member David Moody is an assistant conductor. In select performances, bass-baritone Kevin Short (’89, voice/opera) sings Porgy and soprano Golda Schultz (Graduate Diploma ’11, voice) sings Clara. The ensemble includes soprano Katerina Burton (MM ’19, voice) and mezzo-soprano Marguerite Jones (Pre-College ’09, MM ’15, voice), the Pre-College admissions and academic affairs coordinator.