I DREAM is one of Opera Carolina’s most popular Charlotte performances, so much so that they have brought it back for a reprisal this September.
Revised for the 2021 performances, the new version coming to Opera Carolina includes new music and a completely revised script to bring to life this remarkable story.
I Dream is a look back at the early days of the Civil Rights Movement that would reshape America and transform a preacher from Atlanta into an icon for the ages.
I Dream Charlotte Performance Dates
Thursday, September 16th – 7:30 pm
Saturday, September 18th – 8:00 pm
Sunday, September 19th – 2:00 pm
Buy I Dream Tickets Now
This is a very popular performance, often selling out. Don’t sleep on getting your seats!
I Dream Synopsis from Opera Carolina
On the morning of April 3, 1968, Martin prepares for a journey to Memphis to join striking sanitation workers in their protest for an improvement in their pay, treatment and working conditions. The night before he had a disturbing dream of a man who doesn’t retaliate even when viciously attacked. The image of a balcony — with a strange sense of destiny – dominates the dream, and a moment he knows he is not ready to face, but can’t explain, or see beyond.
As Martin and Ralph leave for the airport he begins to reflect on episodes of his life and searching for meaning to his dream. He starts with the early years of his story, remembering the harsh racism and segregation in the community of his childhood, his dear grandmother and the promise he made to her at her deathbed. It was a promise to love, one that set his life upon its present course.
His thoughts return to Boston University, the place where he formed his “love answer” to the persecution and injustice he saw. It was also the place he enjoyed the taste of freedom and met Coretta, the woman who would become his life partner. She would set out with him on a life adventure that first took them to Montgomery, Alabama where they would play a vital role in the 1955 bus boycott that began to change a nation.
As he continues his practical application of love to America’s social ills, he challenges the status quo, beginning a freedom revolution. Side by side, Martin, Coretta and Ralph march, facing stern and sometimes violent opposition, and eventually winning political success in Washington D.C.
As the trip to Memphis continues, Martin relives the most significant times he was celebrated and vilified — the struggles around him — the war within him and the loneliness and despair he often felt. His thoughts take him from Birmingham to Selma where he led the people to take a stand and enact voting rights legislation that changed the course of American history. He remembers this kaleidoscope of events as he arrives in Memphis, where he would make the most poignant and emotionally draining speech of his life.
Just 36 hours after leaving home, he sits alone at the edge of his bed in a lonely motel room. He knows that outside his room is the balcony of his recurring dream. The Dream has become reality; the moment he has seen in dream images is now the moment at hand.
How To Get Tickets to the I Dream Performance in Charlotte?
- Visit CarolinaTix here
- Call 704.372.1000
- For group ticket inquiries, contact Ashley Lam at 704.332.7177 x109
1600 Elizabeth Ave
Charlotte, NC 28204 704.332.7177
