‘Breaking the Waves’ running through Sunday at Detroit Opera House

Composer Missy Mazzoli has been called a post-millenial Mozart. This week, Detroiters will have an opportunity to see her work in action.

Mazzoli’s “Breaking the Waves” is running through April 14 at the Detroit Opera House. Based on the acclaimed 1996 film by Danish director Lars von Trier, the production follows Bess McNeil (Kiera Duffy), a woman from an isolated church community in the Scottish Highlands who undergoes a spiritual journey after her husband, Jan Nyman (Ben Taylor), survives a traumatic work accident that leaves him paralyzed from the neck down.

After the accident, McNeil believes she can heal her husband by sleeping with other men and sharing details about her affairs with him. It’s a production with many layers, Mazzoli says, which gets especially interesting when everyone’s good intentions begin to clash with each other.

“There’s violence in this opera, there’s sex in this opera, there’s the presence of the church and this kind of contentious relationship with members of the church,” Mazzoli told WDET. “So there’s a lot to contend with. But I also don’t think that it’s anything that opera-goers haven’t seen before.”

Mazzoli says the production is a more contemporary story, and for that reason may hit people harder.

“Breaking the waves is an opera that asks big questions about the nature of love, the nature of faith, the nature of loyalty, and what does it mean to be a good person? And I think maybe the thing that’s more uncomfortable than anything is that it’s an opera that leaves you with more questions than answers,” she said.

There are two more opportunities to see “Breaking the Waves” at the Detroit Opera House: at 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 12 and 2 p.m. Sunday, April 14. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit detroitopera.org.

Use the media player above for my full interview with Composer Missy Mazzoli.