Dead Man Walking

Directed by Brian Staufenbiel Conducted by Nicole Paiment Composed by Jake Heggie with libretto by Terrence McNally, Dead Man Walking was commissioned by San Francisco Opera and premiered on the War Memorial Opera House stage in 2000. Since then, it has been rendered in more than 40 productions worldwide, but Opera Parallèle's production will be the first time it has been seen in San Francisco since its premiere 15 years ago. Dead Man Walking is based on Sister Helen Prejean’s 1993 memoir, which tells of her time working with death row inmates at Louisiana State Penitentiary, and of a particular relationship she developed with one of the inmates. Sister Helen’s memoir was also the subject of a celebrated 1995 film starring Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn.