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    Canadian Opera Resource
    Canadian Opera Resource
    COR
    Excerpts
    Ice Time – “We all fail…” (aria)

    A figure skater reflects on her experience in competition and decides to switch to a new career path.

    Ice Time – Ice Time

    After a disappointing performance a coach chastises the skater, then dreams of her glory days; the skater decides this has been her last performance.

    In This World, George is Heartbroken – In This World, George is Heartbroken

    George and his wife Martha have three very different versions of a difficult conversation over breakfast.

    Insomnia Composition – Insomnia Composition

    At 4 a.m., a composer stands looking out the window, his tools nearby. Across town, a librettist is doing the same. Both are just slightly panicking about their latest work: an opera about a dog named Harley.

    Leaving – Leaving

    A mother with postpartum depression leaves her husband and son.

    Little Miss All Canadian – Little Miss All Canadian

    Two mothers in the audience for a beauty pageant: while Eunice's daughter performs, Samantha reads an article about a murdered 11-year-old girl.

    Lost and Found – Lost and Found

    Two travellers trying to communicate in English- which neither of them speaks well- find they are attracted to each other.

    Love Redux – Love Redux

    Two lovers discuss what love is.

    Lullaby at the Shore – Lullaby at the Shore

    A child walks on a beach, in search of their parents.

    Man in Avalanche – Man in Avalanche

    On a solitary walk a Man gets buried by an avalanche; a Woman thinks his absence means he is cheating on her.

    Man With the X-Ray Eyes – Man with the X-Ray Eyes

    James, an eye doctor wanting to keep his new x-ray vision, argues with his colleague Sam and accidentally kills him, as his assistant Diane watches.

    Merk’s Dream – Merk’s Dream

    Sitting by the fire, Merk tries to discover what his mentally disabled daughter will remember when he is no longer with her.

    Morning Prayers – Morning Prayers

    A man tries to write a letter home, but he cannot find the right words. He burns each rejected attempt.

    My Eyes are Bright and Sparkly – My Eyes are Bright and Sparkly

    Stephanie is getting ready to go out on a date, but she begins to unravel when she checks herself in the mirror. The voices she hears in her head are variations of her own critical voice. She sees herself the way she imagines her date will see her.

    Naila and Lolo – Naila and Lolo

    The 1947 Partition of India forces two children to say goodbye. One departs for Pakistan, leaving her pet rabbit and childhood treasures with her friend.

    One Night, One Bell – One Night, One Bell

    A man coerces a woman to have sex with him in exchange for saving the one remaining temple bell from being melted down for the war metal supply.

    Otherworld – Otherworld

    Miners crack open a mountain and two green children emerge. They sing, then the minors pray to them as they fall asleep.

    Oubliette – Oubliette

    Having escaped forced confinment in a basement, a girl approaches a stranger. She asks if the stranger knows her, as she tries to remember her past.

    Perfect Night – Perfect Night

    A middle-aged couple's romantic night: the Man, reading poetry to the Woman, is distracted by the need to hunt down a mosquito in the room.

    Playing Ball – Playing Ball

    Tabitha helps her father Ken, who has had a stroke. She combs his hair and helps him with his therapy ball, retrieving it each time he drops it.

    Pursuit – Pursuit

    A female barista is infatuated with a male customer and stalks him. He thinks he recognizes her from his neighbourhood.

    Restoration – Restoration

    A woman cryptically remembers her past as she is briefly examined by three different people.

    Rip – Rip

    Peter is leaving Carla for another woman. Carla, sensing she will have a breakdown if he leaves, insists that he take their son to live with him.

    Rosa – “Every day I blistered my hands…” (duet)

    Hector and Isabelle express their resentment towards each other for the sacrifices they each made.

    She Sees Her Lover – “Oh, it’s beautiful” (aria)

    Excited by the possibility of a night with a new lover, Sumana anxiously expresses her anticipation.

    She Sees Her Lover – “So many ways” (aria)

    Agnieska questions why all of her previous relationships have failed.

    She Sees Her Lover – “Cinnamon Limbs” (aria)

    Waking early, Agnieska admires her new lover Sumana as she is sleeping.

    She Sees Her Lover – Scene 1 (duet)

    Agnieska and Sumana share an intimate night together after meeting in a bar. Memories of past lovers almost make Agnieska give up on this new love, but Sumana convinces her to hold on to hope.

    She Sees Her Lover – Scene 2

    Waking early, Agnieska admires her new lover Sumana as she is sleeping. When Sumana wakes, the couple share an intimate conversation and eventually descend into fits of laughter.

    Tea at Three – Tea at Three

    Late at night, Allie receives a visitation from her deceased best friend, Karen.

    The Call of the Light – The Call of the Light

    In the Blue Room of the Quebec National Assembly, Denis Lortie kills and wounds people with a submachine gun as a protest against Quebec sovereignty.

    The Cellar Door – “Down there I won’t go” (aria)

    Daniel sings of his fear at the prospect of going down into the cellar of his childhood home, after his father has died.

    The Cellar Door – “That’s all you have to say?” (aria)

    Judith sings angrily at her brother when he expresses his desire to leave their childhood home after their father has died.

    The Cellar Door – The Cellar Door

    Back in his childhood home after the death of this father, Daniel kills his sister when she wants to resume their childhood sexual relationship.

    The Colony – “No Ants?!”

    The Queen of the Amazon Ants laments the fallen state of her realm to her lone remaining subject.  She decides she must find a mate.

    The Drawing Class – The Drawing Class

    A teacher tries to inspire and distract a student as soldiers march outside their classroom, but the student is unable to escape into her imagination.

    The Golden Boy – The Golden Boy

    After a painful argument, a mother tells her son the truth of his father's absence and tries to comfort him.

    The Last Life – The Last Life

    Former lovers are reincarnated and reunited, but this time around one is a farmer and one is his cow.

    The Laurels – “Lost” (aria)

    A young woman, Laurel, runs through a dark forest, filled with anxiety and haunted by disturbing memories.

    The Laurels – “And so I killed a man…” (aria)

    Laurel stabs the Stranger, killing him. As his body slides to the ground to rest at her feet, she begins to feel a new sense of freedom, not realising that it is at the cost of her conscience and her humanity. The aria should be performed with an improvisational blues quality over the regular pulse of the accompaniment, to convey both this se...

    The Laurels – The Laurels

    In a wooded park at night, it seems like Laurel is running for her life- but it turns out she is running from the memory of the murder she committed that night.

    The Leaving – The Leaving

    A young religous brother tells an older brother that he is planning to leave the order. The older brother advises caution and obedience.

    The Rape of Artemisia – The Rape of Artemisia

    In pain after being raped by Tassi, Artemisia tries to understand what just happened, while Tassi justifies himself.

    The Sermon – The Sermon

    A Boy slowly falls asleep as a Priest gives sermon on purity, and words go from meaningful to jibberish.

    The Shaman’s Tale – “Many years ago”

    The Shaman introduces the audience to his newest clients, a Man and Woman hoping to have a child.

    The Shaman’s Tale – “Because of the sacrifice”

    The Shaman explains the end of the couple's tale.

    The Telegram – The Telegram

    Two women watch and worry as the church elder walks through town with a telegram carrying news of a soldier son's death.

    The Translator – “America died in that cell” (aria)

    Traumatized by her experiences, Alessandra reflects on her work as a translator in an American military prison.

    The Translator – “You can understand all you want” (aria)

    Colonel Crane, Alessandra's supervisor, tersely tells her to lose what her perceives as her naive sense of morality: "We are just here to win."

    The Translator – The Translator

    2003: After leaking torture photos to the internet, American army translator Alessandra Jenson refuses to be hushed up, and live streams her suicide in protest.

    The Two Graces – “Oh, to belong to the sea” (aria)

    Queen Liz imagines what it would be like to be free.

    The Two Graces – The Two Graces

    Irish pirate Chieftain Grace O'Malley sneaks into the bedroom of Queen Elizabeth I of England, and convinces the Queen to give her back her ship and free her lover. In return Grace will attend the Queen's birthday celebration and cause a sensation - which delights Liz.

    The Virgin Charlie – “Step ever so softly now…” (aria)

    Drag performer Charlie sings a number in the persona of the Virgin Mary.

    The Virgin Charlie – “Charlie, please listen…” (aria)

    The Virgin Mary explains to Charlie why he has been chosen to carry the child of God.

    The Virgin Charlie – “Little one I aim to help you” (aria)

    Charlie sings gently to his child, the Messiah, who he has been chosen to bear.

    The Virgin Charlie – Scene 1

    In his dressing room, drag performer Charlie puts on his Virgin Mary costume, witnessed by the real Virgin Mary inside his mirror.

    The Virgin Charlie – Scene 2

    Charlie performs the first number of his act: Mother Mary in the nativity scene, with the worries of a new mother carrying the son of god.

    The Virgin Charlie – Scene 3

    In his dressing room, Mother Mary explains to Charlie that he is pregnant with the son of god and offers him tips from her experience. Eventually, Charlie accepts that he will be a parent, and vows to protect the new messiah.

    The Waterfall – Part 1

    On the first warm spring day in the mountains, Olaf, a rich farmer, proposes to Runa, a poor farmer, only to discover that she is in love with the bandit Davith. Angered by this, Olaf burns down Runa's farm, and Runa escapes up the mountain searching for Davith.

    Two Sisters – Two Sisters

    Two sisters are outside by the river talking. One sister describes the boy she hopes to be with, and the other sister admits that she is pregnant with his baby. Jealousy is a deadly emotion.

    Unfamiliar – Workshop Version

    A night out celebrating midterms takes a turn when one student doesn't return.

    The Handless Maiden: Scene 8 (Wash the Loss) – Wash the Loss Away

    A Gardener, lost in the wilderness, ends up at Madonna's cabin. She recognizes him as the man in her dreams and vows to heal him of his grief.

    What is She? – What is She?

    An intersex woman wins a gold medal, but her struggles to get there mean nothing to the organization and the other athletes. She’s disqualified and shamed.

    Where is Ava – Where is Ava

    Chloe and Eddie are in the throes of love when they’re interrupted by Matt, Chloe’s athlete ex-husband. Matt asks where their daughter Ava is, and criticizes Chloe for abandoning Ava for a man.

    Where You Live – Where You Live

    A businessman is waiting for a streetcar, with his back to an unhoused woman. The two silently judge each other. The man is annoyed at seeing someone who wants something for nothing, and the woman is feeling judged for a situation she has no control over. The two finally acknowledge each other, and we discover their shared experience.

    You and Meme – You and Meme

    An awkward first date seems destined for failure, until the two bond over a mutual love of memes. The result? A hot, steamy connection over goats.

    She is Me – She is Me

    Janna and her grandpa are in Toronto’s distillery district. Before she has to leave, Janna asks him to tell the story of how he and Grandma met.

    Sleep, Sleep – Sleep, Sleep

    A boy and his mother make up ways of killing an unnamed woman.  When the game is over, the boy asks what would happen if they killed the woman “for real,” if it would make his father love them again.

    Snow Globe – Snow Globe

    A sister and brother go through the belongings of their recently departed mother and find an old snow globe from their youth. They both really want to keep it. A bitter fight ensues and the sister inadvertently blurts out a very painful secret.

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