San Diego Opera announces scholarly lecture series on the historic ‘Nabucco’

SAN DIEGO (Press Release)– Giuseppe Verdi’s opera Nabucco is based on the exile to Babylon of the Jews from Jerusalem.  In the Bible, the Babylonian King Nabucco is known as Nebuchadnezzar.  San Diego Opera will be presenting “Nabucco” Feb. 20, 23, 26, 28 at the San Diego Civic Theatre.

Prior to that time, Dr. Nicolas Reveles, Geisel Director of Education and Outreach for the San Diego Opera, will team up with the Judaic Studies programs of SDSU and UCSD, as well as with the San Diego Natural History Museum and the Museum of Art in Balboa Park to present a four-part series relating to the Babylonian exile.

The lecture series will include these presentations:

Wednesday, January 27, 7 p.m., at the San Diego Natural History Museum, Charmaine & Maurice Kaplan Theatre: “Nabucco, Israel and Babylon:The Impact of Exile on the Birth of Judaism and Christianity” Speakers:  Dr. Reveles and Dr. Risa Levitt-Kohn, Director of the Judaic Studies Program at San Diego State University

Dr. Reveles and guest Dr. Risa Levitt- Kohn will discuss the role that the Babylonian Exile had to play in the shaping of modern Judaism and Christianity. Dr. Kohn will trace the effects of the Exile on the generations of Jews that followed this transformative event.

Wednesday, February 3, 2010; 7:00pm, at Congregation Beth Israel, 9001 Towne Centre Drive, San Diego:  “Lessons from Exile: Babylon Revisited:” Speakers:  Dr. Reveles and  Rabbi Michael Berk of Congregation Beth Israel

Dr. Reveles and Rabbi Michael Berk will look at the Exile from a historical and theological point of view. Emphasis will be placed on our understanding of Exile today: politically, culturally, personally and spiritually.

Monday, February 8, 2010, 7;30 p.m.,  Garfield Theatre, Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, 4126 Executive Drive La Jolla: ” By the Rivers of Babylon: Judaism, Empire and Exile.” Speakers: Dr. Reveles and Dr. William Propp, Director of the Judaic Studies Program, University of California San Diego, and Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal of Tifereth Israel Synagogue.

Dr. Reveles and guests Dr. William Propp and Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal will discuss the events leading up to the Exile, the political atmosphere of the time and the various cultures involved, especially Babylonian and Assyrian as well as that of the ancient Israelites. Special mention will be made of the Kings of Judah who found themselves in direct conflict with Nebuchadnezzar II.

Wednesday, February 10, 7:00pm, at  San Diego Museum of Art: “Nabucco: The Jewish Story in Art and Opera,” Dr. Reveles and Dr. John Marciari, Curator of European Art and Head of Provenance Research at the San Diego Museum of Art.

Dr. Reveles and guest Dr. John Marciari will discuss the depiction of Jews and biblical scenes in Western art, with emphasis on Italian artists. The development of the images will be traced from Medieval and Renaissance times up to the early 19th century, contemporaneous to the premiere of Nabucco in 1842.

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Preceding provided by the San Diego Opera