Ruhrtriennale - Emily - No Prisoner Be

Music theatre

21.8.-23.8.2026

Jahrhunderthalle Bochum

A genius finds freedom in poetry

Joyce DiDonato, one of the greatest opera singers of our time, loves the brave and often humorous works of Emily Dickinson. Her poems are provocative and modern, yet she remained virtually unknown in her own lifetime. It is unclear whether a misogynistic society or Dickinson herself denied her the fame she deserved. Now Joyce DiDonato devotes a special evening of song to the leading American female poet of the 19th century featuring an unconventional cast. The virtuoso Grammy Award-winning string trio Time for Three is remarkable not only for their seamless combination of classical and pop, but also for their vocal talents. Grammy Award and Pulitzer Prize winner Kevin Puts sets Dickinson’s poems to sensitive poetic and ear-pleasing music. With a theatrical setting, the recital occasionally takes on the character of a rock concert.

Emily - No Prisoner Be, Ranaan Meyer, Joyce DiDonato, Nicolas Kendall (f.l.t.r.) © Heinrich Brinkmöller-Becker, Ruhrtriennale 2026
Emily - No Prisoner Be, Charles Yang, Ranaan Meyer, Joyce DiDonato, Nicolas Kendall (f.l.t.r.) © Heinrich Brinkmöller-Becker, Ruhrtriennale 2026
Emily - No Prisoner Be, Joyce DiDonato © Heinrich Brinkmöller-Becker, Ruhrtriennale 2026
Emily - No Prisoner Be, Joyce DiDonato, Nicolas Kendall © Heinrich Brinkmöller-Becker, Ruhrtriennale 2026
Emily - No Prisoner Be, Charles Yang, Ranaan Meyer, Joyce DiDonato (f.l.t.r.) © Heinrich Brinkmöller-Becker, Ruhrtriennale 2026
Emily - No Prisoner Be, Joyce DiDonato © Heinrich Brinkmöller-Becker, Ruhrtriennale 2026
Emily - No Prisoner Be, Joyce DiDonato © Heinrich Brinkmöller-Becker, Ruhrtriennale 2026
Emily - No Prisoner Be, Joyce DiDonato © Heinrich Brinkmöller-Becker, Ruhrtriennale 2026
Emily - No Prisoner Be, Charles Yang, Nicolas Kendall, Joyce DiDonato, Ranaan Meyer (f.l.n.r.) © Heinrich Brinkmöller-Becker, Ruhrtriennale 2026

Cast

Gedichte von
- Emily Dickinson
Composition
- Kevin Puts
Mezzo-soprano
- Joyce DiDonato
Time for Three - String Trio
- Nicolas Kendall (Violin, viola, vocals),
- Charles Yang (violin, vocals),
- Ranaan Meyer (Double-bass, vocals)
Production Designer
- Ryan J. O’Gara
Stage and Production Manager
- Lars Marcel Braun
Lighting Operator
- Vincent Rouzier
Sound Engineer
- Colin Egan
Tour Management
- Askonas Holt
Time for Three General Management
- Park Avenue Artists
Time For Three Tour Management
- David Ross
Dress Designer
- Metamorphosa
Technical Project Manager Ruhrtriennale
- Ole Meißner
Technician
- Boris Aleksandrov,
- Konrad Anger,
- Schirin Boudny,
- Dirk Heymann,
- Tanya Hofmann,
- Torben Krol,
- Jan Küppers,
- Imke Linde,
- Anke Lindner,
- Daria Motalebsade,
- Daniel Przemus,
- Uwe Renken,
- Fanny Schmidt,
- Alma Schraer,
- Ralph Schwarzenauer,
- Jens Tuch
Dressing and Costume Team Ruhrtriennale
- Chantal Baumann
Hair and Makeup Team Ruhrtriennale
- Pia Norberg,
- Renate Wellershausen

Further supporters

Emily — No Prisoner Be has been generously supported by Mary Ellen Clark, Helen Berggruen for Five Arts Foundation, Gordon P. Getty, and Elaine Camarda & Morris Williams.