He Shall Prepare a Way is an opera based on events from the opening chapters of The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. The story takes place in Jerusalem in 600 B.C. and explores themes of faith, doubt, forgiveness, revelation, family, and trusting in the Lord.
A fully staged performance of the opera was performed April 8-10, 2022, in Provo, Utah. The professional video recording of the performance (above) was released in June 2022.
“I have a vision of artists putting into film, drama, literature, music, and paintings great themes and great characters from the Book of Mormon.” – President Ezra Taft Benson
History
CJ started work on the opera in 2018, at the request of a BYU opera professor who lamented the lack of operatic works based on Book of Mormon texts. In October 2019, CJ performed a first draft of the opera as a concert sing-through. It featured a cast and chorus of over 70, including future Metropolitan Opera winner and BYU vocal graduate Jonah Hoskins. Three scenes were later featured in BYU’s Opera Scenes production in February 2020.
This summer, CJ completed a second draft of the score and performed the opera in concert in Fall 2021. The cast also recorded a professional album of the work at the same time. Rehearsals are now in full swing to perform a fully staged version with a pit orchestra in April 2022. Tickets to this performance can be requested by emailing heshallprepareaway@gmail.com.
In order to successfully execute these plans, the project required $30,000 in funding, which was used for paying for a production team, recording and performance venues, and equipment for the staged performance. A huge thanks to all of the many people who donated even more than the $30,000 goal to make this happen! If you are interested in donating to this or future projects, click here.
Photo Gallery (Stage production April 2022)
Ishmael feels the Spirit
Why This Project?
One of CJ’s career goals is to tell the stories and messages of The Book of Mormon through compelling musical performances. His quest began in 2016, when he composed One Fold, One Shepherd, a choral/orchestral work that took its text from Christ’s visit to the Americas recorded in 3 Nephi. That work has been performed 7 times to over 5,000 people in the Utah and Salt Lake valleys, and it was released as an album in 2019.
CJ feels strongly that the Book of Mormon’s message about Christ must be taken throughout the world and shared in a variety of mediums. Your donation to this project can help bring this work to a larger audience and increase faith in Jesus Christ.
“When I think of the Book of Mormon, I think of the word power. The truths of the Book of Mormon have the power to heal, comfort, restore, succor, strengthen, console, and cheer our souls.” – President Russell M. Nelson