Loving v. Virginia case legalizing interracial marriage to become an opera

• Their sentence was suspended so long as they left the state, so the couple moved to D.C.
• It took nearly a decade of appeals, but in 1967, the Lovings’ conviction was overturned by the Supreme Court.
• Loving v. Virginia was the precedent cited in the Court’s 2015 decison legalizing same-sex marriage.

What’s happening: Virginia Opera commissioned the work in celebration of its 50th anniversary, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported.

• Loving v. Virginia will premiere in 2025 at Dominion Energy Center in Richmond, Harrison Opera House in Norfolk and Center for the Arts at George Mason University in Fairfax.

Be smart: Virginia Opera commissioned composer Damien Geter, who grew up in Chesterfield, and librettist Jessica Murphy Moo to create the new opera.

• The Lovings made her own marriage possible, Murphy Moo told the Times-Dispatch.

What they’re saying: “I can’t think of a more fitting story, a testament of love, a story of quiet persistence, courage, dignity and ultimately a victory for civil rights and the freedom to marry,” Adam Turner, artistic director of Virginia Opera, said at a May news conference in Richmond.