The Handel Opera Project is proud to present the first performance of Project founder William G. Ludtke’s new opera Orpheus, in the words of Rainer Maria Rilke, with additional texts from Virgil, Tagore, Baudelaire, and others. This concert performance, in the incomparable space of Bernard Maybeck’s masterpiece First Church of Christ, Scientist, features local favorites Sidney Ragland in the role of Orpheus, Daphné Touchais as Euridice, and Don Hoffman as the Narrator, with the Handel Opera Project Chorus & Ensemble conducted by the composer. This work brings the story of the most ancient of poet-musicians to life in the sensitive words of Rilke, along with poetry anciently attributed to Orpheus himself, and contributions from an array of revered figures of world literature. Including elements of the tale less well-known than in versions familiar to modern audiences, Mr. Ludtke’s Orpheus is a rich and moving journey of the poet-singer’s soul encountering the mysteries of life, art, and death.