View more photos below - click here OVERVIEW Title: DeirdreComposer: Healey WillanLibrettist: John CoulterCommissioned By: CBCLanguage: EnglishProducer: Royal Conservatory Opera School (University of Toronto Opera Division)Run Time: 110Roles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description DeirdrehighA foundling girl, ward of ConocharPrince NaisimiddlePrince of Ullah, son of UsnaghKing Conocharmiddle-lowKing of UllahLeverchammiddle-highDeirdre's nurseA
CAST: Danielle Buonaiuto and Adanya Dunn | PHOTO CREDIT: Michael CooperCAST: Teiya Kasahara and members of the COC Chorus | PHOTO CREDIT: Michael CooperCAST: Teiya Kasahara (from the 2019 production) | PHOTO CREDIT: Dahlia Katz View more photos below - click here OVERVIEW Title: PomegranateComposer: Kye MarshallLibrettist: Amanda HaleCommissioned By:
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.
Medusa sings from beyond the grave, reaching out to her children and her two sisters. She tells the story of her rape by the god Poseidon and murder by the hero Perseus.
Pegasus recounts a dream in which their mother Medusa asks them to find her severed head. They reflect on the harrowing circumstances of their birth and their relationship with their brother Chrysaor and father Poseidon.
Xiao Lian performs the Qingming ceremony to honour the spirit of her departed father and mother. Love and fellowship combine in the running of a dragon boat race. Xiao Lian joins her friends and crosses into her future.
The combined spirits of Qu Yuan and Father return and ask the audience to release them from their servitude. That freedom granted, they ascend into the heavens triumphantly.
Xiao Lian vows to look to the past and summons the great spirit of Qu Yuan. His spirit rises and assumes the form of Xiao Lian’s father.
Xiao Lian is transported back to the ancient royal court, where she witnesses the majestic entrance of King Huai of Chu. Qu Yuan is at the peak of his power but is soon outfoxed by rival minister Zhang Yi. Qu Yuan is cast down and banished by his beloved king.
Qu Yuan wanders into the southern wilderness. As he travels, he composes a lament for himself and his lost position in court. In the present, Xiao Lian’s Father senses his end is near. Summoning up his strength, he joins with the spirit of Qu Yuan to tell the final chapter.
Years later, Qu Yuan has earned the honour and respect of the people in a little fishing village on the river Miluo. Xiao Lian and a local villager strike up a conversation with Qu Yuan, and it is soon revealed that The Kingdom of Chu has been destroyed by its
All hope is lost as the villagers return and collect Qu Yuan’s possessions. They take the scrolls containing his famous poetry to the Daoist temple, where they will be preserved forever. Xiao Lian returns to the present at the bedside of her dying father. With his encouragement and love, she
A young Chinese/Canadian woman (Xiao Lian) faces a difficult choice: Honour her family’s traditional past or embrace a more modern future. Her father dwells on the memory of his deceased wife and honours her by performing the Qingming funeral tradition. Meanwhile, Xiao Lian’s two friends want her to get out
Xiao Lian’s father bitterly reveals that he will die soon. Xiao Lian’s mother appears in spirit form and asks her to forgive her father. She speaks of their happiness together as a family in earlier times. As a child, Xiao Lian had a close connection with the Dragon Boat Festival,
OVERVIEW Title: The Waterfall (LIBLAB)Composer: Norbert PalejLibrettist: Maja ArdalCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera Composer-Librettist LaboratoryLanguage: EnglishRun Time: 8Roles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description Womanmiddle-highA3-Ab5A woman fleeing pursuers with her husband and babyMan/Waterfallmiddle-lowAb2-Eb4The woman's husbandWaterfallhighC4-Eb5The voice of a waterfallWaterfallmiddleE3-Eb4The voice of a waterfall Please Note: The table above has content that
Ava is disappointed in her birthday celebration, and Paul asks her why she isn’t happy.
Paul begs his rocking horse for more luck for the Derby. Ava decides Paul’s been too agitated lately, and the distance between them grows wider. Ava leaves his room and bemoans Paul’s lack of understanding. She deserves luxury now and then, and Paul robs her of comfort. As if on
CAST: Todd Jang and Alicia Ault | PHOTO CREDIT: Dahlia KatzCAST: Mike Fan, Mishael Eusebio, Grace Lee, Alicia Ault, Alyssa Nicole Samson, Keith Lam | PHOTO CREDIT: Dahlia KatzCAST: Evanna Lai | PHOTO CREDIT: Dahlia Katz View more photos below - click here OVERVIEW Title: Dragon’s TaleComposer: Ka Nin ChanLibrettist:
CAST: Rebecca Cuddy | PHOTO CREDIT: Stephen BellCAST: Rebecca Gray and Hillary Jean Young | PHOTO CREDIT: Stephen BellCAST: Hillary Jean Young | PHOTO CREDIT: Stephen Bell View more photos below - click here OVERVIEW Title: Medusa’s ChildrenComposer: Colin McMahonLibrettist: Charlie PetchCommissioned By: OperaQLanguage: EnglishProducer: OperaQRun Time: 50Roles: Role Voice
CAST: PHOTO CREDIT: Dahlia KatzCAST: Suzanne Taffot | PHOTO CREDIT: Dahlia KatzCAST: Jorell WIlliams | PHOTO CREDIT: Dahlia Katz View more photos below - click here OVERVIEW Title: Of the SeaComposer: Ian CussonLibrettist: Kanika AmbroseCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera and Obsidian TheatreLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry Opera and Obsidian TheatreRun Time: 90Roles: Role
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.
OVERVIEW Title: Two SistersComposer: Benton RoarkLibrettist: Lila PalmerCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera's Composer-Librettist LaboratoryLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry OperaRun Time: 8Roles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description Helenmiddle-highG3-B5A pregnant woman, Diana's sisterDianahighC4-B5A girl in love, Helen's sister Please Note: The table above has content that is scrollable left to right.Orchestration: Piano Video Recording
Traumatized by her experiences, Alessandra reflects on her work as a translator in an American military prison.
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.”
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.
OVERVIEW Title: The TranslatorComposer: David OgbornLibrettist: Leanna BrodieCommissioned By: Tapestry OperaLanguage: English, PashtoProducer: Tapestry OperaRoles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description Alessandra Jensenmiddle-highAb3-A5A young military interpreter who suffers from post-traumatic stress after witnessing the brutal torture of detainees, age 26Colonel CranelowEb2-E4In his 50s, a career military intelligence officer whose philosophy
Two women watch and worry as the church elder walks through town with a telegram carrying news of a soldier son’s death.
OVERVIEW Title: The TelegramComposer: Gareth WilliamsLibrettist: Bernard MacLavertyCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera's Composer-Librettist LaboratoryLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry OperaRoles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description Woman 1highEb4-Bb5A womanWoman 2middle-highBb3-F#5A womanTown Eldersilent-spokensilentA middle-aged man Please Note: The table above has content that is scrollable left to right.Orchestration: Piano SYNOPSIS Content warning: death, war During
Daniel sings of his fear at the prospect of going down into the cellar of his childhood home, after his father has died.
Judith sings angrily at her brother when he expresses his desire to leave their childhood home after their father has died.
Back in his childhood home after the death of this father, Daniel kills his sister when she wants to resume their childhood sexual relationship.
OVERVIEW Title: The Cellar DoorComposer: Melissa HuiLibrettist: Jovanni SyCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera's Composer-Librettist LaboratoryLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry OperaRoles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description DanielmiddleC3-B4Judith's brotherJudithhighA3-D6Daniel's sister Please Note: The table above has content that is scrollable left to right.Orchestration: Clarinet in Bb, Percussion, Harp, Violin, Viola, Cello, Double Bass SYNOPSIS
Late at night, Allie receives a visitation from her deceased best friend, Karen.
OVERVIEW Title: The Call of the LightComposer: Iman HabibiLibrettist: Bobby TheodoreCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera's Composer-Librettist LaboratoryLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry OperaRun Time: 4Roles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description LortiemiddleG#2-F#4Canadian Forces corporalChorushighF#4-C#5VictimChorusmiddle-highE4-B4VictimChorusmiddle-lowA3-D#4Victim Please Note: The table above has content that is scrollable left to right.Orchestration: Piano Video Recording View more videos below
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.
OVERVIEW Title: Tea at ThreeComposer: Katya PineLibrettist: Sheldon RosenCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera's Composer-Librettist LaboratoryLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry OperaRun Time: 7Roles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description AlliehighF4-B5A womanKarenmiddle-highA3-F5Allie's deceased best friend Please Note: The table above has content that is scrollable left to right.Orchestration: Piano SYNOPSIS Late at night, Allie receives
OVERVIEW Title: Still the NightComposer: John AlcornLibrettist: Theresa TovaLanguage: EnglishRoles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description Bryna/TybelehighA young Jewish Polish girl, escaped from the NazisLittle BrynahighBryna's younger cousin Please Note: The table above has content that is scrollable left to right.Orchestration: Percussion, Violin, Piano SYNOPSIS Content warning: antisemitism, genocide, Holocaust,
OVERVIEW Title: She is MeComposer: Lembit BeecherLibrettist: Katherine KollerCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera's Composer-Librettist LaboratoryLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry OperaRoles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description JannahighBb3-G5A womanGrandpamiddle-lowG2-A4Her grandpa Please Note: The table above has content that is scrollable left to right.Orchestration: Piano SYNOPSIS Content warning: fire, death Janna and her grandpa are
Her health fading, Shanawdithit wonders if she’ll be welcomed into the spirit world after so much time with the colonists. Cormack tells her he must leave, and Shanawdithit gives him a sketch of his house to carry with him. He leaves the room to pack. Shanawdithit hears the spirits of
Cormack tries to raise funds for Shanawdithit’s care without success. James Simms offers to care for her while Cormack is away.
Shanawdithit describes the last days of her family as they were pushed from their land and then hunted. She asks Cormack not to speak of their death, but of their life. Cormack is ecstatic and gets lost in the memories Shanawdithit paints. She breaks his reverie with the cold fact
The taking of Demasduit weighs heavy on Shanawdithit’s heart. Cormack, unsure of what to do, tries to comfort her, saying Demasduit was treated well. Shawnadithit asks if white people actually care about her people, her story, because Cormack’s words are betrayed by the actions of his fellows, and indeed, his
Cormack’s study in St. John’s, now Shanawdithit’s room. “Nancy April” reveals she can speak English quite well, and tells Cormack her real name: Shanawdithit. Cormack asks her where the rest of her people are, where her home is. Shanawdithit says simply: they are no more. Shanawdithit reflects on the loss
Cormack meets Shanawdithit for the first time. She’s been working as a servant for Peyton for five years under the colonial name of Nancy April. Cormack is awed; he believes this woman is the last of the Beothuk. Peyton gives her to him, saying she’s useless.
Shanawdithit reprimands Cormack for his saviour complex.
Cormack presents his findings about Shanawdithit to the members of the Beothuk institute.
Shanawdithit, dying, speaks to her ancestors. She is ready to leave this world.
OVERVIEW Title: ShanawdithitComposer: Dean BurryLibrettist: Yvette NolanCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera and Opera on the AvalonLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry Opera and Opera on the AvalonRun Time: 80Roles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description Shanawdithitmiddle-highA3-G5Beothuk woman, believed by the colonizers to be the last of her peopleWilliam Cormack middle-lowA2-F4An explorer and anthropologistKwe/Spirit Chorus
Hector and Isabelle express their resentment towards each other for the sacrifices they each made.
OVERVIEW Title: RosaComposer: James RolfeLibrettist: Camyar ChaiCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera's Composer-Librettist LaboratoryLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry OperaRun Time: 12Roles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description IsabellehighE4-C6A grieving mother, Hector's partnerHectormiddleE3-A4Isabelle's partner Please Note: The table above has content that is scrollable left to right.Orchestration: Clarinet in Bb, Piano, Marimba, Violin, Cello SYNOPSIS
Paul is nearly overwhelmed by the noise, but manages. Oscar and Bassett place their bets on Daffodil. Bassett takes the role of a race announcer, and the three watch Paul’s prediction come true. The three sing of how this will change everything.
Ava bemoans Paul’s lack of understanding, and her need for luxury.
The last ride has left Paul gravely ill. Oscar and Bassett tell him they bet it all, and they’re set for life. Paul asks his mother if she’ll finally be happy- finally smile. She does, but as they leave his room to celebrate, Paul hears the house whisper. There must
The predictions keep coming true, and the money keeps coming. The money gets spent, and Paul keeps riding. All the while the house is getting filled with finery. But it keeps singing. There must be more, but Paul’s luck falters as his energy wanes.
Paul asks his mother why she always sings sad songs and if she knows anything happier. Ava rebukes him. She expresses profound regret for the stupidity and vanity of her youth. The world only smiles for the young, she says. Paul hopes she’ll smile for her birthday tomorrow, but she
Paul tells Oscar he hopes the winnings will stop the house from singing. Paul hears “her” sing of how there’s never enough, how there must be more. He makes Oscar promise not to tell his mother about where the money comes from; it might ruin the luck. Oscar tells him
Uncle Oscar enters, having heard the noise, and asks Paul what’s going on. Paul reveals his secret: the rocking horse is lucky, and tells him the names of race horses. Oscar calls in Paul’s caretaker, Bassett, who admits that Paul tells him the names of winning race horses. The three
Paul creeps upstairs and rides his rocking horse, asking it to take him to where luck is. He rides faster and faster and at the peak, shouts a name: Daffodil.
Paul is curious about why he and his mother don’t have a car, and Ava explains it’s because they’re poor. Paul again asks why that’s so, and Ava states it’s because his father has no luck. Paul announces that he is lucky.
A waltz is cut short. Ava discloses how far she’s fallen, and how difficult she finds caring for her son.
CAST: Asitha Tennekoon | PHOTO CREDIT: Dahlia KatzCAST: Peter McGillivray, Asitha Tennekoon, Keith KlassenCAST: Carla Huhtanen View more photos below - click here OVERVIEW Title: Rocking Horse WinnerComposer: Gareth WilliamsLibrettist: Anna ChattertonCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera and Scottish OperaLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry OperaRun Time: 75Roles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description AvahighA#3-Bb5Paul's
OVERVIEW Title: One Night, One BellComposer: Stephen Andrew TaylorLibrettist: Marjorie ChanCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera's Composer-Librettist LaboratoryLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry OperaRoles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description WomanhighB3-C6Works as a bell-ringerManmiddle-lowBb2-A4A man, identity unknown Please Note: The table above has content that is scrollable left to right.Orchestration: Piano SYNOPSIS In a country
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.
A woman makes an appeal that the metal of her bell shouldn’t be used for a war machine.
Screaming, Oksana awakens from a nightmare; Father Alexander comes to her and she admits she may have let Natalyia drown to save herself. The Father counsels forgiveness of herself and others, but Oksana is not convinced that is possible.
Dima has found Oksana at the refuge, and shows Konstantin a photograph of her as proof.
Father Alexander and Oksana realize they share an attraction for each other, but Oksana is determined to go home and tell her parents what has happened. Konstantin phones the refuge to get Oksana back.
Refugees are trying on clothes, when Dima and Konstantin enter looking for Oksana. Konstantin offers Father Alexander money for Oksana and Clara calls the police; Konstantin and Dima leave before the police arrive.
Pavlo reads Oksana’s letter to her parents telling them she’ll be home on November 8, her birthday. They are thrilled, and get carried away planning a party for her.
On the eve of Oksana’s departure, Father Alexander has to go to pick up another woman in distress. He leaves his knife with Oksana because she is afraid Konstantin will show up. Lyuba and Oksana say their goodbyes.
Father Alexander discovers the distress call was a set by Konstantin, but Dima decides he can’t beat up a priest and lets Father Alexander go back to Brindisi where Konstantin is.
Konstantin breaks into Oksana’s room and tries to convince her to leave with him. When this fails, he tries to rape her again but she stabs him. He gets the knife and stabs her before he dies. Father Alexander returns and Oksana dies of her wound, dreaming of home.
Sofiya and Yuri consult Asa when Oksana has not arrived as her lettered promised. They are interrupted by Pavlo with news that the priest from Italy is on the phone, and wants to talk to Oksana’s parents.
Pavlo checks in with Sofyia and Yuri for news; Sofiya and Yuri argue & blame each other for letting Oksana go.
On the Albanian coast the women captives wait for the boat to Italy. Oksana is still defiant, trying to figure out an escape for herself and others. The boat and Konstantin arrive, and Oksana fails to convince him to free her and Natalyia.
Brindisi refugee shelter: Father Alexander and social worker Clara work with the refugees. An injured Oksana arrives and asks for help; Lyubia, who escaped when the boat docked, is among the refugees and recognizes Oksana.
Asa and Sofiya are checking the cards. Pavlo arrives with the news that a priest called from Italy to say that Oksana is alive, but there is no sign of Natalyia.
Sofiya and Yuri take their infant daughter Oksana to have her horoscope read by Asa, who predicts that “freedom invades her future.”
Though others are at first suspicious, Russian Konstantin convinces Ukranian teenagers Nataliya and Oksana to come work for him at a hotel in Romania for the summer.
In a forest in Romania, Oksana discovers she has been tricked and is now in danger. Konstantin and his partners rape Oksana & Natalyia.
Sofiya goes to Asa to have her cards read for news of Oksana. The police will not treat Oksana’s disappearance as crime, as she went with the men willingly. The cards say Oksana has been robbed of her soul.
In Greece at a bar, three women are held captive: Konstantin sends Lyubia with a businessman, Natalyia with the Immigration officer who cuts her, and Oksana is bought by Konstantin at auction. Konstantin then offers to the crowd a gang rape just as the police arrive to raid the bar.
CAST: Natalya Gennadi, Jacqueline Woodley | PHOTO CREDIT: Dahlia KatzCAST: Keith Klassen, Natalya Gennadi | PHOTO CREDIT: Dahlia KatzCAST: Natalya Gennadi, Adam Fisher, Andrea Ludwig, Chorus | PHOTO CREDIT: Dahlia Katz View more photos below - click here OVERVIEW Title: The Enslavement and Liberation of Oksana G.Composer: Aaron GervaisLibrettist: Colleen
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.
OVERVIEW Title: Naila and LoloComposer: Elisabeth Mehl GreeneLibrettist: Anusree RoyCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera's Composer-Librettist LaboratoryLanguage: EnglishProducer: Opera on Tap DC MetroRun Time: 4Roles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description NailahighF4-Ab5A young girlLolomiddle-highF3-G4Her best friend Please Note: The table above has content that is scrollable left to right.Orchestration: Piano SYNOPSIS Partition
Westerner Jackie and sherpa Pasang summit Everest without using oxygen cannisters. Soon their victory turns into a culture clash as they argue about their affair and the mountain, and slowly die of hypoxia.
OVERVIEW Title: Mother EverestComposer: Abigail RichardsonLibrettist: Marjorie ChanCommissioned By: Tapestry OperaLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry OperaRun Time: 17Roles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description Jackiemiddle-highAb3-G5A womanPasangmiddle-lowA2-F#4Her sherpa Please Note: The table above has content that is scrollable left to right.Orchestration: Clarinet in Bb, Percussion, Piano, Violin, Cello SYNOPSIS Content warning: death Just
A couple is trying to come to terms with the loss of their daughter. They grieve, and fight with one another.
Duet between the woman and a violin, symbolizing her daughter.
OVERVIEW Title: TAP:EX MetallurgyComposers: Ivan Barbotin, Jonah Falco, Mike HaliechukLibrettist: David James BrockCommissioned By: Tapestry OperaLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry OperaRoles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description ManmiddleRomantically involved with womanWomanmiddle-highRomantically involved with man Please Note: The table above has content that is scrollable left to right.Orchestration: Percussion, Synthesizer, Lead Guitar, Rhythm
Sitting by the fire, Merk tries to discover what his mentally disabled daughter will remember when he is no longer with her.
OVERVIEW Title: Merk’s DreamComposer: Elisabeth Mehl GreeneLibrettist: Nick CarpenterCommissioned By: Tapestry Opera's Composer-Librettist LaboratoryLanguage: EnglishProducer: Tapestry OperaRun Time: 5Roles: Role Voice Type Range ? Character Description Old MerkmiddleD3-Gb4A dying manPaulinemiddle-highD4-A5His daughter Please Note: The table above has content that is scrollable left to right.Orchestration: Piano SYNOPSIS Content warning: death, ableism Old
After the murders, M’dea almost kills herself but is interrupted by Chase. They escape to the beach.
Pursued by Jason and the guards, M’dea and Chase climb a cliff by the ocean. When they reach the top, they play a version of their make-believe game, and jump off.
The party is about to announce Jason’s candidacy. Jason and Dahlia dance together, oblivious to all the others. Enraged, M’dea smashes a glass wall, showering fragments over the party guests.
Jason and Dahlia are getting married. The citizens gossip.
The President threatens M’dea with prison or the loss of her son if she doesn’t do as he wants. He warns her not to cause trouble for Jason.
English 
French