Julia Wolfe’s Her Story
for 10 women’s voices and orchestra
[Her Story] has a ferocity that is literally written into the score, but also an absence of resolution as it looks back to suffrage with one wary eye toward the future steps this country still needs to take for something resembling true equality.
— The New York Times, September 2022
Julia Wolfe’s Her Story is a 40-minute oratorio for 10 women’s voices — with stage direction by Anne Kauffman, scenic design by Jeff Sugg, and production by Bang on a Can.
Her Story invokes the words of historical figures and the spirit of pivotal moments to pay tribute to the centuries of ongoing struggle for equal rights and representation for women in America. The piece incorporates text that reflects the history of women’s fight for equality, ranging from a letter written by Abigail Adams to words attributed to Sojourner Truth, from public attacks directed at women protesting for the right to vote, to political satire. Her Story is the latest in a series of compositions by Wolfe that highlight monumental and turbulent moments in American history and culture, and the people—both real and imagined, celebrated and forgotten—that defined them.
Wolfe explains:
Though we have yet to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, women have been battling for equality from the beginning of the nation. Her Story captures the passion and perseverance of women refusing subordination, demanding representation, and challenging the prejudice and power structures that have limited women’s voices. The dynamic vocal artists of Lorelei Ensemble team up with five major American orchestras to tell this important yet much neglected thread of American political history.
Press
Production credits
JULIA WOLFE, Composer
ANNE KAUFFMAN, Director
JEFF SUGG, Scenic, Lighting, and Production Designer
ANDREW COTTON, Sound Designer
MÁRION TALÁN DE LA ROSA, Costume Designer
KENNY SAVELSON, Project Manager
ASHER LLOYD EHRENBERG, Associate Director
Produced by Bang on a Can
Performance and commissioning info
Her Story premiered in September 2022 with the Nashville Symphony, Giancarlo Guerrero conductor.
Additional performances:
- January 2023, Chicago Symphony, Marin Alsop, conductor
- March 2023, Boston Symphony, Giancarlo Guerrero, conductor
- May 2023, San Francisco Symphony, Giancarlo Guerrero, conductor
- July 2023, Tanglewood Music Festival/Boston Symphony, Giancarlo Guerrero, conductor
- May 2024, Cincinnati Symphony, François López-Ferrer, conductor
- February, 2025, National Symphony, Marin Alsop, conductor.
All performances listed above feature the vocal ensemble Lorelei.
Her Story was commissioned by Boston Symphony, Chicago Symphony, Nashville Symphony, National Symphony, San Francisco Symphony
More Her Story info, including score preview, is available on Julia’s website.