Rockland the Opera, commissioned by the Pine Mountain Music Festival (PMMF), is a historically based tragic opera in 14 scenes composed and written by Jukka Linkola of Nivala, Finland, first performed in 2011. It is based on a long-forgotten miners' strike at the town of Rockland in Upper Peninsula of Michigan's Ontonagon County. Striking Finnish miners were confronted by sheriff's deputies and two miners were shot and killed.
One of the miners, Alfred Laakso wrote an account of the events. Years later his grandson Andy Hill read the account and thought it make for a good piece of musical theater. This he discussed with John Kiltinen who believed it could be turned into an opera. Kiltinen then brought idea to the PMMF Board who liked it. John Kiltinen, his wife Pauline and Dr. Gloria Jackson raised the money necessary to commission the opera. It was completed in mid-2009.[1]
The Rockland logo contains three design elements that symbolize the storyline:
The Pick – A representation of the protagonists' profession as well as the frontier life they endured in the western Upper Peninsula (U.P.) of Michigan.
The Rose – The opera contains a love story.
The Thorns – Life in the early 1900s U.P. could be harsh and trials could arise.
The first production of Rockland was in Nivala, Finland on 9 June 2011 at the Nivala Ice Arena under the direction of Jussi Tapola with Timo Hannula conducting.[2] It received generally positive reviews from audience members even though it did not draw as many spectators as the River Valleys Music Foundation of Nivala had hoped.[3]
Its premiere in the New World was in Houghton, Michigan, United States on 15 and 17 July 2011 at the Rozsa Center For The Performing Arts as part of the Pine Mountain Music Festival. The premiere was under the direction of Jussi Tapola with Craig Randal Johnson conducting.[4]
To promote the opera in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, the PMMF collaborated with community artist Mary Wright on The Story Line Project. People in the community (mostly schoolchildren) were invited to write a one-page story about an ancestor who overcame hardship like the people in the opera. These stories were then transferred to dishtowel-sized pieces of fabric and hung from clotheslines to honor their ancestors and make them aware of the history on which their lives are built.
| Role | Premiere Cast, 9 June 2011 (Conductor: Timo Hannula) | |
|---|---|---|
| Alfred Laakso, miner and musician | Esa Ruuttunen | |
| Johanna Ahopelto | Tiina Vahevaara | |
| Pekka Ahopelto (Puna-Pekka) | Riku Pelo | |
| William Jackson, foreman | William Joyner | |
| Matti Kivi, miner. | Lassi Virtanen | |
| Hilja, daughter of Heikki Järvenpää | Riika Pelo | |
| Pastor Erkki Rantanen | Petri Pussila | |
| Rauha | Katriina Leppänen | |
| Otto, Rauha's father | Ari Hosio | |
| John or Jussi | Simo Mäkinen | |
| Sven Polkki, union organizer | Mikko Himanka | |
| Thomas Colton, Director of Mining | Robert Mcloud | |
| Heikki Järvenpää, miner | Tom Häkkilä | |
| Pete Casavino | Ilkka Hämäläinen |
In about 1960, the elderly Alfred Laakso leads a bus tour of tourists to the town of Rockland, where he lived in 1906. It is almost a ghost town, but he tells them about when it was a booming place. The action reverts to 1906.