Written in the imaginary voice of Jasmin, Wallach’s magical cat and mini-muse,Alleycat Love Song, based on a poem by Dana Gioia, is a lyrical, lusty look at longing and an exuberant collaboration between piano and voice.
presented December 21 & 22, 2021 at the Here Theater 145 Sixth Avenue at Dominic Street, NYC by Opera On Tap.
Come into the garden, Fred,
For the neighborhood tabby is gone.
Come into the garden, Fred.
I have nothing but my flea collar on,
And the scent of catnip has gone to my head.
I’ll wait by the screen door till dawn.
The fireflies court in the sweetgum tree.
The nightjar calls from the pine,
And she seems to say in her rhapsody,
“Oh, mustard-brown Fred, be mine!”
The full moon lights my whiskers afire,
And the fur goes erect on my spine.
I hear the frogs in the muddy lake
Croaking from shore to shore.
They’ve one swift season to soothe their ache.
In autumn they sing no more.
So ignore me now, and you’ll hear my meow
As I scratch all night at the door.