Anthony Davis in Conversation
Anthony Davis, composer
Composer Anthony Davis was the winner of the 2020 Pulitzer Prize in Music for his opera The Central Park Five, which was presented at Long Beach Opera and Portland Opera. Davis has composed eight operas. His first, X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X, with a libretto by Thulani Davis, had its world premiere at the New York City Opera in 1986. A revised version of X, which debuted at Detroit Opera in May 2022, will be presented at the Met in 2023, Seattle Opera in 2024, and Lyric Opera of Chicago in 2025. Davis’ fourth opera, Amistad, also with a libretto by Thulani Davis, premiered at Lyric Opera of Chicago in 1997. His other works include the music for the Broadway production of Tony Kushner’s Angels in America as well as music for orchestra and chorus.
Davis is currently a distinguished professor of music at the University of California, San Diego. His future works include the musical Shimmer, the children’s opera Pancho Rabbit and the Coyote, and orchestral works for Eastman School of Music, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, and the New York Philharmonic.
Marc A. Scorca, OPERA America President/CEO
Marc A. Scorca joined OPERA America in 1990 as president and CEO. Since that time, the OPERA America membership has grown from 120 opera companies to 3,500 organizations and individuals. Under his leadership, OPERA America has administered two landmark funding initiatives in support of the development of North American operas and opera audiences and launched an endowment effort in 2000 to create a permanent fund dedicated to supporting new works and audience development activities. In 2005, Scorca spearheaded OPERA America’s relocation from Washington, D.C. to New York City and the subsequent construction of the National Opera Center, which opened in 2012 and serves 80,000 guests each year. The Opera Center’s recital hall was dedicated as Marc A. Scorca Hall in 2015 in honor of Scorca’s 25th anniversary with the organization.
Scorca has led strategic planning retreats for opera companies and other cultural institutions internationally, and has participated on panels for federal, state, and local funding agencies, as well as for numerous private organizations. He also appears frequently in the media on a variety of cultural issues. A strong advocate of collaboration, Scorca has led several cross-disciplinary projects, including the Performing Arts Research Coalition and the National Performing Arts Convention (2004 and 2008). He is currently a member of the U.S. delegation to UNESCO. Scorca serves as an officer on the boards of the Performing Arts Alliance and the Curtis Institute of Music, and is on the Music Advisory Board of Hunter College (CUNY). Scorca attended Amherst College, where he graduated with high honors in both history and music.