The Judgment of Paris by Jake Heggie

Mythology and wine history intersect in a one-act opera inspired by the 1976 blind tasting that upended assumptions about California and French wines. Frost Opera Theater and the Frost Symphony Orchestra present the Southeast U.S. premiere of Jake Heggie’s The Judgment of Paris on Friday, February 26 and Saturday, February 27 at Gusman Concert Hall as part of the Frost School of Music’s 2026-2027 season. With a libretto by Gene Scheer, the opera brings Bacchus and Venus into 1970s Paris and Napa Valley, where mythic figures encounter vintners challenging the established order. The work takes its starting point from the historic “Judgment of Paris,” in which California wines unexpectedly prevailed over celebrated French labels in a blind tasting, helping reshape international perceptions of American winemaking. Heggie and Scheer use that cultural turning point as the framework for a story about tradition, innovation and changing ideas of artistic value. Claire Manjarrès directs the production, with Jenny Renee Snyder serving as music director and Natasha Adorlee as choreographer.