Modern Opera

The Robots (world premiere)
(music director, conductor, répétiteur, vocal coach, musical preparation)
     May 31, 2024 & June 1-2, 2024 / Bread and Salt Gallery / San Diego, CA

adapted from Rossum's Universal Robots by Karel Čapek
​music by Carolyn Chen
     libretto by Carolyn Chen
     produced by projectBLANK
     directed by Rosie Glen-Lambert
     conducted by Kyle Adam Blair
     featuring:
          Shelby Condray          
          Mariana Flores-Bucio
          Leslie Leytham
          Jonathan Nussman
          Danielle Perrault
          Paul Young, Jr.
          Miguel Zazueta
​
- - -
     This genre-bending operatic adaptation of an early sci-fi play from 1920 — Rossum’s Universal Robots by Karel Čapek — takes place on an isolated island where a workforce of mass-produced humanoid robots gradually gains self-awareness and revolts against the human creators. Čapek’s play first coined the term “robot” from the Czech word for “slave”, and was a strong condemnation of exploitative labor practices in the early 20th Century.Performed by a diverse cast of some of the best singers in the region, Chen’s exuberant and eclectic score will come to life in this revolutionary new production, immersing the entire audience into the action of the robot uprising!

(from projectblanksd.org)​