Soldier Songs

About

Based on interviews with veterans from five wars, David T. Little’s Grammy-nominated Soldier Songs weaves opera, rock, and film into a stirring and innovative examination of trauma, exploitation, and the difficulty of expressing war’s painful truths. In a new film made exclusively for the Opera Philadelphia Channel, baritone Johnathan McCullough directs and stars as the Soldier. The film was shot on location at the Brandywine Conservancy in Chester County, Pennsylvania, the site of a significant Revolutionary War battle in 1777. The original stage production was adapted into a film, with a new screenplay by Johnathan McCullough and James Darrah. This version of Soldier Songs is a worthy addition to the far-too-slight catalog of opera presented in cinematic form — productions that place equal importance on camera work and sound fidelity, as opposed to simply taping a live performance.