October is officially almost over here in Hudson County. As we eagerly look forward to the trick-or-treating and creative costumes, this season also brings around some beloved local Halloween events and traditions — both older and newer ones. One such unique event is Jersey City’s Zombie Opera, created during the pandemic by Half-Light Productions, which is back again for its 3rd year. The 2022 Zombie Opera is being held on Saturday, October 29th from 6PM to 8:30PM at the Hamilton Park gazebo. Read on to learn more about this spooky October event.
(Photo credits: @zombieopera)
All About the Zombie Opera
“This Halloween, opera rises from the grave,” the Zombie Opera Instagram bio reads, marking the 3rd year of this unique + exciting performance. According to one Instagram post, this year is going to be the biggest Zombie Opera yet — and it’s being supported by the Arts Grant provided by Jersey City. It will be held at the Hamilton Park gazebo in Jersey City on Saturday, October 29th from 6PM to 8:30PM.
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Per Opera Wire, this year’s opera will feature singers Molly Dunn (co-creator of the Zombie Opera), Kofi Hayford, and Lindell Carter singing a variety of songs from “Faust,” “La Traviata,” “La Bohème,” “Carmen,” and “Rigoletto,” to name a few. The orchestra, conducted by Jason Tramm, will include performers from New Jersey City University as well as local community members, and there will even be an American Sign Language interpreter present. The show is directed by Catriona Rubenis-Stevens and produced by Jack Halpin and Teresa Origenes.
“Zombie Opera is simply a grand opera concert put on by zombies. Glam opera diva zombies, of course,” Catriona told Opera Wire. “There is no connection between the two, which makes it so great. If you love classical music and you love Halloween, you will love this concert!”
Incredibly, this project was birthed out of a connection that Jersey City neighbors formed during Covid.
“Catriona, our Zombie Opera director and producer, introduced me to some neighbors as the ‘town opera singer’ and we got the idea to start Stoop Operas,” Molly told Opera Wire. “We didn’t advertise and it was very casual, but still we had a huge turnout. People loved gathering safely outside to hear live music again. We even met new opera singers at Stoop Opera, and it became a monthly outdoor concert throughout the pandemic. With Halloween 2020 around the corner, we took a chance to do a zombie themed opera concert, ‘The Zombie Opera Mask-erade.'”
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The event — which was also a fundraiser for a local performing arts school, LUX Performing Arts, was a hit. Now, the team is back at it again for the 2022 concert. In the future, the production hopes to potentially expand to an entire street in order to create an immersive walk-through experience, which locals may be able to expect in the coming years.
A few weeks ago, the Zombie Opera held a pop-up teaser concert to garner local excitement for this year’s show. It was held on September 9th at 638 Jersey Avenue as part of JC Fridays, and it featured performers Kofi and Molly.
To get involved, sign up for updates, or make a donation, you can click here — and be sure to follow along on the opera’s Instagram page here.
