Courtney Love's Next Gig: Opera Star

You probably did not see this one coming: Courtney Love has been cast ... in an opera. Specifically, Kansas City Choir Boy, which Rolling Stone calls a "pop opera." It will run from Jan. 8 to 17 in New York City, as part of the Prototype: Opera/Theater/Now Festival. "I've always been fascinated with her," composer Todd Almond explains to the New York Times. And that's probably good, since Almond plays the male lead—and he and Love are the only two cast members. As for the storyline, it's "about a man and a woman in love in the Midwest," Almond says. "But then the woman sees something on the horizon that makes her realize that she has a greater destiny, and she follows that."

And it's probably not what you think of when you think "opera." As Almond explains, "When I say 'opera,' I don't mean it's in an operatic style. I mean it in the sense that it's a group of songs that tell a story." As for Love, who recently finished a rock tour in Australia, she says she loves the project. "I've been [touring] for a long time. I wanted to do something challenging." (More Courtney Love stories.)