A new opera by Missy Mazzoli.
World Premiere - 2026 Edinburgh International Festival

 "a defining opera of our time" The Telegraph *****

"the premiere seared into cultural consciousness in a way that happens no more than once in a decade..." The Critic

"one of the greatest operas of the century" The Times *****

"feisty, funny and for real" The Guardian ****

"A true visual spectacle" The Spectator

"a work of enormous passion and conviction delivered with power and insight" The Scotsman

About The Galloping Cure

Opera Ventures Productions has reunited with composer Missy Mazzoli, librettist Royce Vavrek, director Tom Morris and Scottish Opera to create a funny and devastating vision of a crumbling society. Exciting designs, created by Rebecca Ringst, employ cutting-edge lighting and projection technology. The piece has four principal roles and an ensemble comprising two singing dogs and a chorus.

Echoing the bleak comedy of TV sensations Ozark and True Detective, Missy Mazzoli, Royce Vavrek, Karen Russell and Tom Morris have been inspired by the beleaguered hero of Kafka’s classic story, The Country Doctor.

We are transported to the dreamless landscape of a post-industrial environment in a Burtonesque fable. Brought to life in a perfect provocation for another masterful and emotionally impactful score, from one of our greatest contemporary dramatic composers, Missy Mazzoli.

Cast for world premiere in Edinburgh 

Artistic & Creative Team

Composer

Missy Mazzoli

Librettist

Royce Vavrek

Based on an original story by

Karen Russell

Adapted for the operatic stage by

Missy Mazzoli, Tom Morris and Royce Varek

Beats by

Blume and Lorna Dune; mixed by Lorna Dune

Director & Dramaturge

Tom Morris

Set & Props Designer

Rebecca Ringst

Associate/Movement Director

Leah Hausman

Costume Designer

Christina Cunningham

Lighting Designer

Lucy Carter

Projection Designer

Will Duke

Supported By:

The Howard & Sarah D Solomon Foundation, Malcolm Herring, Susie Thomson, Eli & Ashley Wald, Sally Groves in memory of Dennis Marks, Opera America - Female Composer Grant, Ann Orton, Nicholas Prettejohn and Anonymous 

International Partners

Co-commissioners

Opera Ventures Productions, Edinburgh Festival Opera, Scottish Opera, NorrlandsOpern AB (supported by Riksbanken Jubileumsfond, 'RJ Kondst och kultur'), San Francisco Opera

Co-producers

Opera Venture Productions, Scottish Opera, NorrlandsOpern AB, San Francisco Opera, State Opera South Australia, Canadian Opera Company

World premiere:

Co-presented with Edinburgh International Festival

Inspired By Research 

The Galloping Cure is also inspired and underpinned by research regarding medical ethical dilemmas carried out by Professor Mats G. Hansson (Uppsala University) and Professor Susanne Lundin (Lund University). The involvement of the researchers – and NorrlandsOperan’s co-production and co-commission of the piece – is part of RJ Arts and Culture, an initiative by the Swedish foundation Riksbankens Jubileumsfond aimed at promoting research in the humanities and social sciences in new and thought-provoking ways.  

From the Composer:

The Galloping Cure is my sixth and most recent opera, but the idea to create a work that generated discussion about the opioid crisis in America, and addiction more broadly, has been percolating in my mind for over a decade.

Musically, I find this subject matter and creative team endlessly inspiring. My early sketches for the work include a warped carousel tune that seems to slow and speed up time, a chorus of teenagers singing to an imagined DJ drum and bass beat in an abandoned movie theatre, a placid herd of singing lambs that become strangely menacing. These themes double back on each other and combine to create a rich tapestry of a town in peril.