All is Calm
The Christmas Truce of 1914
Written by Peter Rothstein
Vocal Arrangements by Erick Lichte & Timothy C. Takach
Christmas Eve 1914, a lone soldier stepped out of the trenches singing Stille Nacht. This a cappella opera, sung in English, shares the stories of soldiers along the Western Front in the spontaneous Christmas Truce of World War I.
Sung in English
December 12, 2025 | 8pm
December 14, 2025 | 2pm
December 16, 2025 | 1:30p
December 18, 2025 | 7:30pm
December 20, 2025 | 7:30pm
December 21, 2025 | 2pm
Kentucky Opera Center for Cultural Health
Kentucky Opera is committed to addressing financial barriers to participation in the arts and offers pay-what-you-can ticketing. Please contact the box office at (502) 584-4500 for more information!
Additional Events:
Opera Cafe: December 6 | 10:30am
Awakenings: December 1 | 6pm
Songs
Prologue
Will Ye Go to Flanders?
The Optimistic Departure
Come on and Join (Alexander’s Ragtime Band)
God Save the King
Good-Bye-Ee
The Grim Reality
It’s a Long to Tipperary
Les Godillots
Pack up your Troubles in Your Old Kit
The Old Barbed Wire
I Want to Go Home
When this Bloody War is Over
What a Friend We Have in Jesus
Raining, Raining, Raining (Holy, Holy, Holy)
Deutschlandlied
Keep the Home-Fires Burning
O Come, O Come Emmanuel
Christmas
Christmas in the Camp
We Wish You a Merry Christmas
Die Wacht Am Rhein
Christmas Day in the Cookhouse
O Tannenbaum (O Christmas Tree)
The Truce
Stille Nacht (Silent Night)
Angels We Have Heard on High
Er is een Kindeke geboren
Un flambeau, Jeannette, Isabella
The First Noel
Ihr Kinderlein, kommet
Wassail
Minuit Chrétiens
Will Ye Go to Flanders? (reprise)
Es is ein Ros entsprungen
Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern
Good King Wencelas
The Return to Battle
Auld Lang Syne
We’re Here Because We’re Here
Epilogue
The Last Post
Silent Night (reprise)
How long is this show?
All is Calm is one act, approximately 75 minutes, with no intermission.
Where is it? Where do I park?
All is Calm is at the Opera Center for Cultural Health at 708 Magazine St., we’re between 7th & 8th St. downtown.
Free parking is available at the Jefferson Community and Technical College parking lot located at 8th and Magazine Street.
Street parking is also available or valet, whichever you prefer.
- You pay a meter during the day if you’re coming to a matinee, but free after 6 pm.
- OR, valet parking is available for $12 in advance when you purchase tickets, or for $15 in person.
Will I understand what is being said or sung? I’ve never been to an opera before.
This musical is sung in English and it’s a cappella. Chances are you’ll recognize quite a bit of the music.
“A cappella”?
Yes, no instruments, everything is sung without musical accompaniment.
Is this all about war?
While the setting of this show is in the midst of the war, this is a family-friendly production intended to celebrate the holidays. All is Calm is based on true events-the actual spontaneous ceasefire Christmas 1914. It is written from letters to loved ones, diaries, news reports and other historical data. Unity & our common humanity, plus the remarkable singing, is what this is all about.
Anything triggering for those that may have PTSD?
We acknowledge that war and violence take a toll on the human mind and spirit in profound and unique ways for each individual. This musical doesn’t have overt violence, weapons, or scenes of warfare, but it does deliver a story that represents, through the words of WWI veterans, the emotional heaviness these men carried and the joy they felt to have a brief moment in the midst of war to celebrate shared humanity — and even joy — with “the enemy.”
What age do you think is or isn’t appropriate for this production?
We’d recommend 7 or 8 or above, bearing in mind this is 75 minutes with no intermission.
There are no weapons or violent content. This is a story of peace in the middle of war.
What do I wear?
There is no dress code at Kentucky Opera. If you wish to dress up, feel free, but many attend dressed casually in jeans or anywhere in between. Whatever is comfortable for you.
Do you offer accessible seating?
Our building is ADA accessible. If you need any accommodation or assistance (wheelchair seating, walker assistance, wider seating accommodation, etc.) please let us know, and we will have it reserved for you.
Is this the same opera (Silent Night) that was performed by Opera Lex a few years ago?
No, this is different, but it is based on the same historical events.
What is the Opera Center for Cultural Health?
The Opera Center is our new space that houses staff, the box office, and rehearsal & performance space. The Opera Center offers a little more casual, maybe off-beat environment and more progressive shows than we have produced for our more “traditional” performances at the Brown Theatre.