The Threepenny Opera

In a Berlin bar, a chanteuse torches a song, taking us back to the underbelly of early Victorian times. Open Fist Theatre Company presents The Threepenny Opera, written by Bertolt Brecht, based on Elisabeth Hauptmann’s translation of The Beggar’s Opera by John Gay. Featuring music by Kurt Weill, translation by Robert David MacDonald, lyrics by Jeremy Sams, and additional text by Keith Bernstein. Directed by Charles Otte, with musical direction by Dean Mora, and produced for Open Fist Theatre Company by Anne Marie Gillen and Martha Demson.

This landmark work is a black comedy where beggars, murderers, police and prostitutes form a close-knit society that mirrors conventional middle-class life. Love, betrayal, and capitalism all flourish among thieves in the world of such legendary characters as Mac the Knife, Polly Peachum, Jenny Diver, and Tiger Brown.