Safe Haven

Opera Theatre of Saint Louis is bringing the world premiere of Safe Haven to the Loretto-Hilton Center for the Performing Arts this June. It's a new opera with music by Grammy Award-winning composer Tobias Picker and a libretto by Aryeh Lev Stollman, and the production is framed around the story of the MS St. Louis, the ship of Jewish refugees that was refused landing in the United States in 1939.

The story follows a young Jewish opera singer fleeing Europe as World War II closes in, carrying her faith and her dreams across the ocean. When America hesitates to open its doors, Eleanor Roosevelt fights to awaken the conscience of a nation. The two women's paths cross only once, but each leaves a lasting mark on the other. Decades later, a shocking act of violence serves as a reminder that history ignored is all too likely to repeat itself. The production is described as intimate and cinematic, and it's performed in English with English captions.

On the musical side, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra accompanies every single performance, with Benjamin Manis conducting and Patricia Racette directing. The show runs two hours and ten minutes, with one 25-minute intermission. It's a world premiere, so this is the first time the piece is being staged.

There are five performances in total, running from June 12 through June 26: June 12, 18, 20, 24, and 26. The evening shows start at 7:30 PM, and the closing matinee on the 26th is at 12:30 PM. Tickets range from $25 to $149, and the Loretto-Hilton Center is at 130 Eager Rd. in Webster Groves.