The Metropolitan Opera announced the premiere of Yannick: An Artist's Journey, a new documentary by award-winning filmmaker Susan Froemke, about the inspiring path of Yannick Nézet-Séguin to becoming the Met's Jeanette Lerman-Neubauer Music Director. The documentary will screen in over 600 select U.S. cinemas on Wednesday, July 7. As movie theaters reopen, the Met has also announced the schedule for its 2021 Summer Encore series in the U.S., which will feature rebroadcasts of popular operas from the company's acclaimed Live in HD series of cinema presentations.
Watch the trailer below:
Yannick: An Artist's Journey follows Maestro Nézet-Séguin on his journey from young conductor to being named the third music director in Met history. The documentary features extraordinary, vivid home movies, recorded by Nézet-Séguin's family while he was growing up in Montreal, which capture the artistic curiosity and sheer talent of a child who was fascinated by art and religion, until an epiphany led him to devote his life to music. In addition to interviews with family, mentors, colleagues, and the maestro himself, the film also shows revealing behind-the-scenes footage of Nézet-Séguin in rehearsals, highlighting his musical homes in Montreal, Philadelphia, and New York. The cameras follow the energetic artist as he prepares for a new production of Verdi's La Traviata during the Met's 2018-19 season, which marked his first performances as Met Music Director. The film is bookended by the final weeks of that season, with Nézet-Séguin preparing and leading a transcendent interpretation of Poulenc's Dialogues des Carmélites. This production reflects Nézet-Séguin's musical sensitivity, collaborative spirit, and religious background, providing a stirring framework for a film that explores one's artistic inspirations and ideals.
The film is directed by Susan Froemke, whose documentaries include the Oscar-nominated LaLee's Kin: The Legacy of Cotton, as well as previous collaborations with the Met such as The Audition, Wagner's Dream, and The Opera House.
This film is made possible thanks to the generosity of Louise, Sophie, and André Desmarais, in memory of their mother, Jacqueline Desmarais, and to underscore her love of music.
Select Canadian cinemas will also screen Yannick: An Artist's Journey from July 2.
Please check your local cinema website for the most up-to-date information about their health and safety measures.
GET TICKETS!
To find a theater and purchase tickets, visit www.metopera.org/TheaterFinder