by Sicily Xiao
Based on the book by Tom Philpott, Tom Cipullo’s two-act, 80-minute chamber opera Glory Denied tells the true story of Jim Thompson, the longest-held prisoner of war in U.S. military history, as he tries to re-assimilate into American life after spending nine years behind enemy lines in Vietnam.
What keeps Jim going is his loyalty to his country and the memory of his beloved wife, Alyce, and their children. At the same time, without any message from her husband, Alyce needs to find a new life for herself and her children, eventually moving to Massachusetts with another man.
After Colonel Thompson was released, his status as the longest-held POW was ignored, costing him the acclaim he deserved. When he finally returns to the United States, he is faced with the reality that the country has changed during his years of imprisonment in ways that are too much for him to adapt to.
“Fantasy and opera go hand-in-hand really well,” CIM Opera Theater interim director JJ Hudson said during a telephone call. And when it comes to fantasy, the Cleveland Institute of Music’s upcoming production of George Frederick Handel’s Alcina is all about fantasy. “We’re not downplaying the various reversals of fortune via magic — that’s part of the fun, and we want this show to be fun,” says Hudson.
Francis Poulenc’s Dialogues of the Carmelites recounts a fictionalized version of the real-life story of the Martyrs of Compiègne, a group of Carmelite nuns who, during the closing days of the Reign of Terror, were guillotined in Paris for refusing to renounce their vocation.
For centuries the tale of Cinderella has been told and retold around the world. This week the magical fairytale will be brought to life when CIM Opera Theater presents Jules Massenet’s charming 
Is there a more fun-filled, accessible opera than Mozart’s 
Murder, cannibalism, a return from the dead, and revenge — basically everything you could want from an evening out. You get all of that in Philip Glass’ and Robert Moran’s 
From November 7-10, Cleveland Institute of Music Opera Theater presented a double bill of Igor Stravinsky’s early Le Rossignol and Maurice Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges in CIM’s Kulas Hall. Dean Southern directed, and Harry Davidson conducted the CIM Orchestra, with sets and lighting by Dave Brooks and costumes by Inda Blatch-Geib. It was a very fine show, both musically and theatrically.