On Jan. 31, Harvey's opera, "Leave Me Alone" makes its world debut at Oberlin College, just a 45-minute drive from Cleveland, Ohio. And as Pekar might say, if you can't make it, don't sweat it. The production will be broadcast live to an international audience at LeaveMeAloneOpera. For those who can make it to the 8:00PM premiere, it's free.

To be perfectly clear, "Leave Me Alone" is not an opera in the classic connotation of the word. It's being called a "Jazz opera," which means it can be pretty much whatever Pekar wants it to be. Pekar wrote the libretto (that's the text of an opera, kids) and framed the whole presentation into a storyline. The music was written by jazz saxophonist Dan Plonsey, of the San Francisco area. Another San Franciscan, Josh Smith, is the music director, and music students from internationally renowned Oberlin College will perform and sing.