MSO Performs The Dream of Gerontius

MSO Performs The Dream of Gerontius

For its season finales, the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra typically goes big with Austro-German composers, drawing on large-scale works by the likes of Gustav Mahler to give audiences a familiar sense of occasion. This year, however, Edo de Waart offers another momentous work for orchestra and chorus, Edward Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius, a piece composed in 1900 that stands as an affirmation of the English composer’s Catholic faith. At one point as popular in England as Handel’s Messiah, and regarded by some as Elgar’s masterpiece, this symphony describes the journey of a man from his death bed to heavenly judgment,…

For its season finales, the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra typically goes big with Austro-German composers, drawing on large-scale works by the likes of Gustav Mahler to give audiences a familiar sense of occasion. This year, however, Edo de Waart offers another momentous work for orchestra and chorus, Edward Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius, a piece composed in 1900 that stands as an affirmation of the English composer’s Catholic faith. At one point as popular in England as Handel’s Messiah, and regarded by some as Elgar’s masterpiece, this symphony describes the journey of a man from his death bed to heavenly judgment, featuring three soloists and a massive chorus.

The Dream of Gerontius (May 31-June 1). Uihlein Hall. Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. 929 N. Water St., 414-273-7206, marcuscenter.org.

Paul Kosidowski is a freelance writer and critic who contributes regularly to Milwaukee Magazine, WUWM Milwaukee Public Radio and national arts magazines. He writes weekly reviews and previews for the Culture Club column. He was literary director of the Milwaukee Repertory Theater from 1999-2006. In 2007, he was a fellow with the NEA Theater and Musical Theater Criticism Institute at the University of Southern California. His writing has also appeared in American Theatre magazine, Backstage, The Boston Globe, Theatre Topics, and Isthmus (Madison, Wis.). He has taught theater history, arts criticism and magazine writing at Marquette University and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.