Craig Robinson (from left) as Top, Hannah Thurman Vanderpool as Laurie Moss and David Kozisek as Martin rehearse Tuesday night for The Tender Land at Russell H. Miller Theatre. Photo by Clinton Lewis

Aaron Copelands American opera The Tender Land may be set in the countrys heartland during the Great Depression, but its message is timeless, say those who are taking part in Western Kentucky Universitys production of the opera this week. I think the opera is a coming-of-age (tale), when people have to make decisions that arent comfortable, said Bill Leonard, the operas director and head of Westerns theater and dance department. Mrs. Moss has to let go, and Lori has to break away. At some point in our life, we all have to do those things. The Tender Land is a joint production of the theater and dance and music departments. Shows will be at 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and at 3 p.m. Sunday at Russell H. Miller Theatre on campus. The Tender Land tells the tale of Lori Moss, who is graduating from high school and something tells her she needs to be moving into a new life, Leonard said. Living in the heartland of the U.S., she doesnt think its going to happen there. Change for Lori comes in the form of two drifters Martin and Top. While Top is interested in Lori, it is Martin who captures her eye. At her graduation party, she and Martin fall in love, but the embrace is interrupted by her grandfather, who tells Martin and Top that they must leave his farm the next day, Leonard said. Lori and Martin meet secretly before dawn and Martin agrees to take Lori with him. But Top reminds Martin that Martin cant provide a decent future for Lori. Martin realizes that Top is right, and the drifters sneak off without Loris knowing. Lori is devastated but still believes that her life must take her away from the farm where she lives, Leonard said. She tells her mother she must leave anyway shes making that break, he said. As Loris mom, Ma Moss played by Western senior music major Meg Fortney isnt happy with the decision. She doesnt like change very much, but she loves her family and hopes her daughters and primarily her older daughter (Lori) will have all the advantages she never had, Fortney said. Fortney thinks Lori may feel stifled by her mother. She is a kind woman, but shes not a touchy-feely sort, Fortney said. She doesnt give of herself a lot. … Ma is a very proud character and doesnt tend to let people know what shes thinking. I grew up in the latter part of the 20th century. I never questioned my right to speak my mind. … Ma is not that way. … Theres a certain set of social standards shes expected to live by, so shes far more rigid than I am. Playing such a tough old bird, was the hardest role Fortney has tackled during her years on Westerns stages, she said. It was even more difficult than playing several different parts in one production, as she did in a Western performance last year. I am a touchy-feely sort, she said. Im the one who likes to be in the middle of everything. I joke about being typecast, because I am the maternal type. So, youd think Id have an easy time with the mother character, but Ma is not maternal. She wears a thousand masks. Fortney doesnt speak when shes playing Ma.Like the others in the opera, she must sing her lines. Music is a narrative, Leonard said. But dont expect only haunting songs that portray the tense emotions that the Moss family feels. A few fiddle tunes are in the score, Leonard said. Tickets for The Tender Land are $7. They are available through the theaters box office, which is open from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays, or at the door.