Dead Man Walking

Jake Heggie’s opera Dead Man Walking poignantly reveals the reality of the death penalty, as well as the internal conflicts of the condemned prisoners and those who resist social pressure in order to help them. The San Francisco Opera commissioned Heggie to write his first opera based on the actual events related in Sister Helen Prejean’s world-famous book. This was also the first opera libretto created by dramatist and musical librettist Terrence McNally, who is also credited with Kiss of the Spider Woman and The Full Monty. The critics hailed the work enthusiastically for its courageous portrayal of both the convict and his family and the justice of the point of view of the parents of the victims.

By arrangement with Bent Pen Music. Sole Agent: Bill Holab Music.

This Opera was commissioned by the San Francisco Opera.