Quick Facts about The Furies

Story:	Orestes, pursued by the Furies for murdering his mother Klytemnestra, is purified of his crime by Apollo at Delphi.  The Furies, however, whose mandate to punish those who kill their family members is not satisfied by this, pursue Orestes still.  Orestes flees to Athens.  Once there, he is placed on trial and acquitted of matricide.  Athena, who presided over the trial, placates the Furies’ loss by making them honored deities in Athens.  The work closes with a joyous procession.
Date of Composition:	2005
Composer:	Andrew Earle Simpson
Librettist:	Sarah Brown Ferrario
Language of Libretto:	English
Supertitles:	Computerized supertitles available for use.
Number of Acts:	One
Number of Scenes:	Eight
Performance Time:	Approximately 80 minutes (no intermission).
Cast:	5 principal roles (2 sop, 1 mzo-sop, 1 tnr, 1 bar) Ensemble of Furies (6 sop, 6 mzo-sop) SATB chorus
Vocal Ranges of Principals:	See below.
Dancers:	Recommended: 5-7 dancers (in staged productions).  A troupe of at least 5 dancers has been employed in both workshop and full-stage productions of Agamemnon, the first opera of the Oresteia trilogy.
Instrumental Scoring:	Chamber Ensemble version: fl/ob/vn/va/vc/pno/1 perc
University Premiere Production (chamber version):	February 9-12, 2006 Ward Recital Hall, The Benjamin T. Rome School of Music, The Catholic University of America, Washington, DC. Michael Scarola, director Adam Turner, conductor

Principal Roles (In Order of Appearance):
Pythia (mezzo-soprano)
Apollo (baritone)
Orestes (tenor)
Ghost of Klytemnestra (soprano)
Athena (soprano)
Ensemble of Furies:
Hagnothea (Fury 1) Soprano I Boularki (Fury 2) Soprano I Glauci (Fury 3) Soprano I Dimitreia (Fury 4) Soprano II Euboli (Fury 5) Soprano II Isychia (Fury 6) Soprano II Theodoti (Fury 7) Alto I Iostrati (Fury 8) Alto I Kathara (Fury 9) Alto I Leioniki (Fury 10) Alto II Mania (Fury 11) Alto II Nausistrati (Fury 12) Alto II
Chorus:
Athenian Escort SA Athenian Jurors TB