New York Met: Grounded

EVENT CINEMA: NEW YORK MET OPERA Jeanine Tesori’s new opera Grounded, commissioned by the Met and based on librettist George Brant’s acclaimed play, wrestles with complex, often-overlooked issues created by 21st-century warmaking: the ethical conflicts created by the use of modern military technology and the psychological and emotional toll supposedly safe remote technology takes on our servicepersons. Mezzo-soprano Emily D’Angelo stars as Jess, a hot-shot fighter pilot whose unplanned pregnancy takes her out of the cockpit and lands her in Las Vegas, operating a Reaper drone halfway around the world. Confronted by the challenges of this new way of doing battle, she must fight to hold on to her sanity—and her soul. Met Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin oversees the Met premiere of Tesori’s score and a cast that also features tenor Ben Bliss as Eric, the Wyoming rancher who becomes Jess’s husband. Michael Mayer’s high-tech staging presents a variety of perspectives on the action, including the drone’s predatory view from high above.