Par for the Course: micro opera for unaccompanied voice
PDF score of Par for the Course, a micro opera for unaccompanied singer.
Music by Lisa Neher, libretto by Kendra Preston Leonard
Length: 3 minutes
Range:
High Key/Soprano Version Range: Bb3 - A5
Medium Key/Mezzo Version Range: Ab3 - G5
Additional Transpositions available by request.
Preview the score (medium key)
One of the greatest athletes of all time, Mildred Ella “Babe” Didrikson Zaharias excelled at every sport she tried. She won two gold medals in track and field at the 1932 summer Olympics and later turned to golf, winning 10 Ladies Professional Golf major championships. She often faced sexism in her work and from reporters who criticized her involvement in athletics and her unladylike personality. Known for her brash confidence, she would often say at competitions, “Okay, Babe’s here! Now who’s gonna finish second?”
Sport has played an important role in both of our lives and we are passionate about representing women in sport on the opera stage. We were drawn to Babe by her confidence, her passion for sport, and her example of excellence in spite of a society that was often against her. This micro-opera envisions the moment in which Babe learns that her attempt to qualify for the U.S. Open has been rejected.
Par for the Course was written for soprano Elisabeth Halliday-Quan for Rhymes With Opera’s 2020 Pocket Opera Workshop. It was premiered by Audrey Yoder, soprano as part of the One Voice Project Micro Opera Festival in 2021.
Sliding scale performance rights licensing will be arranged with the composer with consideration for the performer's budget.
Photos: Babe Didrikson Zaharias, public domain photo courtesy of Wikicommons; Audrey Yoder, soprano, as Babe.