<P> The opera begins with a short introduction which segues into an evening in Catfish Row . Jasbo Brown entertains the community with his piano playing . Clara , a young mother , sings a lullaby to her baby ( `` Summertime '' ) as the working men prepare for a game of craps ( `` Roll them Bones '' ) . One of the players , Robbins , scorns his wife Serena 's demands that he not play , retorting that on a Saturday night , a man has the right to play . Clara 's husband , the fisherman Jake , tries his own lullaby ( `` A Woman is a Sometime Thing '' ) with little effect . Little by little , other characters in the opera enter Catfish Row , among them Mingo , another fisherman , and Jim , a stevedore who , tired of his job , decides to give it up and join Jake and the other fishermen . Porgy , a disabled beggar , enters on his goat cart to organize the game . Peter , an elderly `` honey man '' returns , singing his vendor 's call . Crown , a strong and brutal stevedore , storms in with his woman , Bess , and buys cheap whiskey and some `` Happy Dust '' off the local dope peddler , Sportin ' Life . Bess is shunned by the women of the community , especially the pious Serena and the matriarchal cookshop owner Maria , but Porgy softly defends her . The game begins . One by one , the players get crapped out , leaving only Robbins and Crown , who has become extremely drunk . When Robbins wins , Crown attempts to prevent him from taking his winnings . A brawl ensues , which ends when Crown stabs Robbins with a cotton hook , killing him . Crown runs , telling Bess to fend for herself but that he will be back for her when the heat dies down . Sportin ' Life gives her a dose of happy dust and offers to take her with him when he goes to New York , but she rejects him . He flees , and Bess begins to pound on doors , but is rejected by all of the residents of Catfish Row , with the exception of Porgy , who lets her in . </P>
<P> The opera begins with a short introduction which segues into an evening in Catfish Row . Jasbo Brown entertains the community with his piano playing . Clara , a young mother , sings a lullaby to her baby ( `` Summertime '' ) as the working men prepare for a game of craps ( `` Roll them Bones '' ) . One of the players , Robbins , scorns his wife Serena 's demands that he not play , retorting that on a Saturday night , a man has the right to play . Clara 's husband , the fisherman Jake , tries his own lullaby ( `` A Woman is a Sometime Thing '' ) with little effect . Little by little , other characters in the opera enter Catfish Row , among them Mingo , another fisherman , and Jim , a stevedore who , tired of his job , decides to give it up and join Jake and the other fishermen . Porgy , a disabled beggar , enters on his goat cart to organize the game . Peter , an elderly `` honey man '' returns , singing his vendor 's call . Crown , a strong and brutal stevedore , storms in with his woman , Bess , and buys cheap whiskey and some `` Happy Dust '' off the local dope peddler , Sportin ' Life . Bess is shunned by the women of the community , especially the pious Serena and the matriarchal cookshop owner Maria , but Porgy softly defends her . The game begins . One by one , the players get crapped out , leaving only Robbins and Crown , who has become extremely drunk . When Robbins wins , Crown attempts to prevent him from taking his winnings . A brawl ensues , which ends when Crown stabs Robbins with a cotton hook , killing him . Crown runs , telling Bess to fend for herself but that he will be back for her when the heat dies down . Sportin ' Life gives her a dose of happy dust and offers to take her with him when he goes to New York , but she rejects him . He flees , and Bess begins to pound on doors , but is rejected by all of the residents of Catfish Row , with the exception of Porgy , who lets her in . </P>
what character sings summertime in porgy and bess
what character sings summertime in porgy and bess
Clara
Clara