Photo By Cincinnati Opera

Toni Morrison, and Richard Danielpour.

Internationally acclaimed author Toni Morrison and award-winning composer Richard Danielpour took center stage on Friday, July 22, evening at Cincinnati Music Hall to discuss the creative processes involved in developing their world premiere opera, Margaret Garner. The production made the first of three sold-out performances the previous evening before a diverse audience.

Hosted by WCPO-TV anchorman Clyde Gray and moderated by the president of Opera America, Marc Scorca, the discussion began with Danielpour describing the day he and Morrison met to discuss collaborating on an opera based on the tragic yet triumphant true story of escaped slave, Margaret Garner.

According to Danielpour, July 9, 1996, during lunch at a favorite Italian restaurant in Princeton, N.J., he and Morrison serendipitously arrived at the idea. Though Morrison had previously composed lyrics for opera singer Jessye Norman, neither she nor Danielpour had actually created an entire opera. However, because of their serious commitment to bringing the project to fruition, the team undertook the arduous task to create the multi-layered production. Using George Gerswhin's Porgy and Bess as a benchmark for what she did not want Margaret Garner to look, sound or feel like, Morrison said it was important for Garner's story to be told devoid of the stereotypical language and scenery sometimes associated with telling African-American stories.

"I certainly didn't want to show any great bales of cotton (onstage), " she quipped.

Danielpour and Morrison expressed their mutual admiration and respect for one another's inspired gifts. For Danielpour, Morrison was the only person who could have created lyrics for his music. He said his process was effortless -- he simply sat down and wrote the music as it came to him. He said it was within this divine element that the opera was born. He would look forward to working with Morrison again.

"It wouldn't be because egos brought us together. It would happen because once again, we were being used," Danielpour said.