A New Cross-Genre Operatic Song Cycle by Michael Kelly & David Sisco
The Siren of the Drunken Boat is a companion work to Fauré’s La bonne chanson. created by Michael Kelly and David Sisco. Paul Verlaine—one of the most iconic figures in 19th-century French literature—has long been celebrated for his lyrical finesse, emotional intensity, and musicality of language. His poetry not only captivated the literary world but also inspired generations of composers—Claude Debussy, Gabriel Fauré, and Reynaldo Hahn among them.
Fauré’s La bonne chanson (Op. 61, composed between 1892 and 1894) stands as one of the most beloved mélodie cycles of the French Romantic period. Drawing from a series of 21 poems written by Verlaine to his soon-to-be wife, Mathilde Mauté, La bonne chanson is imbued with radiant hope, youthful passion, and a seemingly unshakable belief in the promise of love.
Yet, beneath the surface of this lush and luminous music lies a darker, more complicated reality. At the very time Verlaine was crafting these tender verses for Mathilde, his life was unraveling through a tempestuous and highly public love affair with the precocious teenage poet Arthur Rimbaud. It is within this contradiction—between the serene devotion of La bonne chanson and the chaos of Verlaine’s liaison with Rimbaud—that The Siren of the Drunken Boat finds its voice.
This new work—conceived by baritone and poet Michael Kelly in collaboration with composer David Sisco—presents a companion song cycle that both contrasts and converses with Fauré’s original. Through a seamless blend of music, text, dance and multimedia The Siren of the Drunken Boat recontextualizes La bonne chanson by illuminating the complex personal drama that surrounded its creation. It is a tale of desire and destruction, of artistry and identity, and of a love that defied societal norms-often with violent consequences.
Development History
February 19, 2026 – Reading of Siren at a private residence
June 30 – July 2, 2026 – Exploratory workshop with director/choreographer Sean Curan