Disability Studies and the Vancouver Opera's Of Mice and Men

Abstract

In Disability Studies and the Vancouver Opera's Of Mice and Men, the author analyzes disability representation, revision and erasure in John Steinbeck's novella, Of Mice and Men, Carlisle Floyd's opera score, and the Vancouver Opera's 2002 production. She argues that the attempt to rewrite the central character Lennie as merely a metaphor leaves a social and aesthetic gap that is underscored by a performer's attempt to embody the role.