But the storied New York house thinks going big is its best hope: in the space of four days, it commissioned dual world premiere operas on two continents.
The ambitious sprint culminates Monday with the debut performance of "Lincoln in the Bardo," an adaptation of George Saunders' Booker Prize-winning novel about US president Abraham Lincoln's struggle to confront the loss of his 11-year-old son as he faced heavy criticism early in the Civil War…