Browse by Title
Browse by Title
Browse by Subject
Ordering Information
Educational Streaming
Sign up for our educational newsletter
Contact Us
Questions? Don't hesitate to call us at 212.243.0600 x20 or send us an email.

Educational / Non-Theatrical Sales
225_purplesage
Riders of the Purple Sage: The Making of a Western Opera

Director - Kristin Atwell Ford
Run Time - 82 minutes
Language - English
Format - Digital
Year - 2020
Genre - Documentary

Educational Interests- American Studies, Business, Cinema Studies, Cultural Studies, Literature, Media Studies, Music, New Releases, Performance

Institutional DVD Price: $295

Educational Streaming Information »

Ordering Information »

Riders of the Purple Sage: The Making of a Western Opera follows a classically trained composer as he adapts a dime novel masterpiece into a grand opera. In 1912, Zane Grey's 'Riders of the Purple Sage' flew off bookshelves around the world and today is recognized by the Library of Congress as "One Hundred Books that Shaped America."

A century later, composer Craig Bohmler takes shelter in Zane Grey's cabin during a rainstorm. There, amidst posters from Grey's Hollywood Westerns, Bohmler discovers a story with the grand dimensions of opera; he decides then and there to mount the legendary frontier novel for the operatic stage. Alongside a team of designers, musicians, singers, and fine art painter Ed Mell, Bohmler translates America's cowboy culture and sprawling beauty of the West into the realm of Puccini and Verdi.

"Riveting. An excellent portrayal of the making of an opera...takes the audience on a fascinating journey behind the scenes of a truly sparkling production. Highly recommended." -Video Librarian

"A vital and resonant work of art, the film is as powerful and evocative in its own way as the piece and the process it reveres and celebrates. For a riveting and elevating eighty minutes, we are invited into the inner sanctum of the creative process." -Broadway World