Opera Omaha Presents The World Premiere Of Wakonda's Dream A story of a contemporary American Indian family hits the stage in Nebraska Opera Omaha will present the world premiere of Wakonda’s Dream, by the acclaimed and stylistically versatile Anthony Davis (X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X, Tanya and Amistad) with a libretto by Pulitzer Prize winning poet Yusef Komunyakaa. The production will be led by Artistic Director and Principal Conductor Stewart Robertson on March 7, 9 and 11 at the Orpheum Theater. “Wakonda’s Dream, is a story of a contemporary American Indian family, a mother, Delores, a father, Justin, and a son, Jason, underpinned by the dislocation of the Ponca Indians from Nebraska and the famous trial of Standing Bear in 1870s,” said Anthony Davis, whose grandmother was Cherokee. “I didn’t want to create a historical narrative or an account of the Standing Bear trial. That could be more easily accomplished in other media like television or film,” Davis continued. “In opera you have to find a way into the story. In Jason we found an artistic prism to look at history and not just present history.  Having a character who can envision the past enables you to realize the past in the present. [In Wakonda’s Dream] the past has a concrete effect on everyone in the opera.” _____________________ ...groundbreaking trial that declared “Indians are human beings under the law,” and as such are entitled to rights of human beings, a status not previously granted Native Americans. _____________________ In 1877 Ponca Chief Standing Bear, along with 13 fellow Ponca tribal members, was detained without cause for returning to Nebraska following the government removal of his tribe to “Indian Territory” Oklahoma. This detainment led to the groundbreaking trial that declared “Indians are human beings under the law,” and as such are entitled to rights of human beings, a status not previously granted Native Americans. The story of Wakonda’s Dream, – which in many ways echoes aspects of our current national debate – is rendered throughout the opera as a backdrop to the evolving turbulence within the family. While Delores and Jason remain connected to their tradition, Justin rejects his heritage. This leads to tragedy and, ultimately, redemption. Baritone Eugene Perry sings the part of Justin, his wife Delores is sung by mezzo-soprano Phyllis Pancella, Chief Standing Bear is sung by tenor Arnold Rawls, tenor Will Ferguson sings the grown Jason and soprano Mara Bonde and bass-baritone Kristopher Irmiter, round out the cast. The production will be staged by Rhoda Levine. Sets are designed by Peter Harrison, costumes by Paul Tazewell, and lighting by Stephen Strawbridge. The Music Upon hearing Wakonda’s Dream, those familiar with X or other Davis works will be surprised by his inclusion of real “songs.” Listeners will also hear blues, jazz and gospel, and well as underlying American Indian rhythms, as interpreted by the composer. “Generally, what I’m doing is a synthesis,” Davis said. “I have created something new from many diverse sources. My background draws on the African American tradition, jazz particularly.  I developed my own voice as an opera composer that hopefully is not imitative or derivative. My work has a rhythmic quality to it, with rhythmic structure as its foundation. Even in my choral writing, the choir is like a drum. Wakonda’s Dream has a chorus and an ensemble of about 10 singers, along with a chamber orchestra and a core group of improvisers, including Mark Dresser on bass. And it's a unique work for me, because it has a lot of electronics in it, using synthesizers and samples.” The Evolution As Anthony Davis was researching American Indian music and history, he attended the annual Ponca pow-wow in the Niobrara region of Nebraska. Among the thousands of attendees, he found himself one evening next to a woman, who, along with her son, became the inspiration for the characters of Delores and Jason. In collaboration with the librettist, the two evolved a drama in which Standing Bear serves as Jason’s guide as the boy grows from childhood (in act 1) to adulthood (in act 2). The history of the removal of the American Indians to Oklahoma and their subsequent internment and trial are revealed through this communion and through a choral reenactment of the famous trial. Yusef Komunyakaa was “quite taken with the idea” of the visionary child, and “built the opera around that concept and process of discovery. I knew I wanted to stay very close to poetry in writing the libretto.” He notes that his work “has always embraced aspects of history as well as the imagination.” Rhoda Levine, who will direct, was also brought on as a creative consultant during the development of the project. She previously worked with Davis as both director and dramaturge on X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X. “If you deny your roots, you lose a sense of your own identity, which is how Justin feels in our story – there is a sense of disconnect,” Levine said. “He wants nothing to do with his native past. He feels it has limited his opportunities.  But our past will always enrich who we are. That is the theme of Wakonda’s Dream, and it is a universal theme.” The Production Levine describes the stage setting as “very simple. The action takes place on a raked surface surrounded by the chorus and a company of American Indian dancers. They are on stage throughout the entire performance, like spirits.” Set designer, Peter Harrison, says, “The scenic design for Wakonda’s Dream approaches the piece on several levels to reflect the psychological and spiritual realities which co-exist musically and in the libretto. The unmoored world of Justin and his family is a floating raked earthen plain, littered with the detritus of contemporary American Indian existence – nature that has been drained of the life and fertility it once held for native people – and filled with the trash of civilization: a broken motorcycle, old tires, crates, abandoned rusty oil drums, etc.” The Soundscape To further establish the atmosphere, Davis has involved well-known electronic sound designer, Earl Howard, to create a synthesized soundscape as one enters the theater. Prior to the action beginning on stage, the audience – from the time they enter the theater – will be enveloped in “the sound environment of woods and nature,” Davis said.  “As the prelude eventually begins, synthesized sounds will transform and become more musical.” Gradually, the audience will “recognize choral voices taking over and becoming the sound of the wind. Earl’s and my idea is that sound design can be completely integrated into the music with no clear division. What was previously thought of as sound effects becomes musical.” This experience will be reprised during the opera’s postlude, which returns to the same time and place as the prelude. Wakonda’s Dream Festival: January – March 2007 In advance of the world premiere production, which marks Davis’s first opera in 10 years Opera Omaha will present free programs in schools and the community featuring the music and poetry of Wakonda’s Dream creators, composer Anthony Davis and librettist Yusef Komunyakaa. These outreach events include meet-the-creators panel discussions, poetry readings and an American Indian art museum program. Of special interest is an evening of Davis’s jazz compositions, a poetry reading with Komunyakaa and 2004-2006 U.S. Poet Laureate Ted Kooser, a slide lecture with Richard West, director of the Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian, and a concert performance of Restless Mourning. Written by Davis, the opera Restless Mourning is a memorial to 9/11, commissioned by Spoleto USA. Anthony Davis Anthony Davis is an internationally known composer of operatic, symphonic, choral, and chamber works. As a composer, Davis is best known for his operas. X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X, which played to sold-out houses at its world premiere at the New York City Opera in 1986, was the first of a new American genre: opera on a contemporary political subject. The recording of X was released on the Gramavision label in August 1992 and received a Grammy Nomination for "Best Contemporary Classical Composition" in February 1993. Wakonda’s Dream marks Davis’s first opera in 10 years. In April 1993, Davis made his Broadway debut, composing the music for Tony Kushner’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play Angels in America: Millennium Approaches, directed by George C. Wolfe. His music is also heard in Kushner’s companion piece, Perestroika, which opened on Broadway in November 1993. Davis's second opera, Under the Double Moon, a science fiction opera with an original libretto by Deborah Atherton, premiered at the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis in June 1989. His third opera, Tania, with a libretto by Michael-John LaChiusa and based on the abduction of Patricia Hearst, premiered at the American Music Theater Festival in June 1992. A recording of Tania was released in 2001 on Koch, and in November 2003, Musikwerkstaat Wien presented its European premiere. A fourth opera, Amistad, about a shipboard uprising by slaves and their subsequent trial, premiered at the Lyric Opera of Chicago in November 1997. Yusef Komunyakaa Described as “perhaps the single most original poet of his generation and one of the most brave, both in stylistic innovation and commitment to handling difficult subjects and dark emotions,” Pulitzer Prize winner Yusef Komunyakaa’s well-established poetic career has flowed into librettos and performance works dealing with historical subjects. He is the author of twelve books of poems, including Neon Vernacular: New and Selected Poems, for which he received the 1994 Pulitzer Prize and won the Kingsley-Tufts Poetry Award from the Claremont Graduate School. From 1999 through 2006, he has been a Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets, and was the winner of the 2001 Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize. He will have an adaptation for stage based on the epic tale of the Gilgamesh, published by Wesleyan University Press, released in June 2006. Opera Omaha Under the leadership of General Director Joan Desens and Artistic Director and Principal Conductor Stewart Robertson, Opera Omaha is the only professional opera company in Nebraska. The company will celebrate its 50th anniversary during the 2007-2008 season. The company produces a season of original main stage productions, presented at the historic Orpheum Theater, and smaller productions and musical events throughout the community. Opera Omaha is internationally known for its productions of world premieres; in addition, the company has given four classical masterpieces their first performances in America. The company is highly regarded regionally for an extensive education and outreach programs that annually reaches as many as 15,000 people from elementary school through adulthood. Wakonda's Dream will be the 7th world premiere Opera Omaha has staged. This website: Copyright © 2007 Dream World Media, LLC. / Urban Mozaik Magazine. All rights reserved. The opinions expressed in Urban Mozaik Magazine are not necessarily those of Urban Mozaik Magazine and the publisher cannot be held responsible for them. This website/publication, in whole or in part, may not be reproduced without written permission from the publisher.