“The talk” is an all too familiar experience for parents raising Black children – particularly Black sons – ahead of interactions with law enforcement. To say that it can be a matter of life or death is by no means an exaggeration.
The practice is a regular topic of conversation. The anxiety, fear and outcomes have inspired creative responses – through music, television, film, stage and even the visual arts.
There is one place that might not be top of mind for a story framed around the added worry of teaching her son to drive due to the complicated relationship between law enforcement and the Black community – the opera.
Union Avenue Opera will give a platform to the range of emotions that the reality of it entails through their inaugural one-act play festival happening next weekend. The double-billed festival will feature “dwb (driving while black)” in addition to “As One,” which is about a transgender woman coming into her authentic self. The festival’s theme is “exploring identity and injustice through opera.”
“There are going to be folks who will be able to relate from personal experience to one of the shows,” said Emily Stolarski, Administrative Director of Union Avenue Opera. “I think it is going to be very rare that we are going to find individuals who can relate to both of them. They are two distinct stories. But these operas are going to open up those people who relate to one, to experience the other.”
Told from the perspective of a Black mother, “dwb” shows her grappling with fear and love as her son takes the wheel for the first time.
“It’s going to be eye opening, because they probably haven’t thought about what a Black mother or father has to go through when they are raising their son and having to prepare him to go out into the world on his own,” Stolarski said. “It expands beyond driving. It expands to walking down the street. In this instance, it translates to driving. But it is the same fears and anxiety that parents have just preparing their son to go off to college, to leave the house, to go to their first job, or anywhere where their parents can no longer shield or protect them from the injustices of the world.”
The festival gives the company an opportunity to explore contemporary themes and smaller scale productions.
“There are a lot of great contemporary works that just don’t see the spotlight because they are one-acts,” Stolarski said. “They are shorter shows, and they don’t get the focus of a mainstage. People go to the opera and expect to see a two-and-a-half to three-hour production. These contemporary works that deal with more relevant topics are shorter. They are written for chamber orchestras and small casts.”
Baritone Evan Bravos and St. Louis-based mezzo-soprano Emma Dickens (née Sorensen) share the role of Hannah in “As One.” The production is directed by Joan Lipkin, with music direction by UAO Artistic Director Scott Schoonover. It features music and concept by Laura Kaminsky, with libretto by Mark Campbell and Kimberly Reed.
With music by Susan Kander and a libretto by Roberta Gumbel, “dwb” features a cellist and percussionist as the sole accompaniment for soprano Marsha Thompson, who has performed the role for other companies – including Fort Worth Opera. The piece balances the everyday with devastating realities of racial bias. Directed by Ivan Griffin, “dwb” offers a gripping meditation on parenting, protection, and systemic injustice.
“This festival is giving us the opportunity to tell stories that we have never been able to tell on our stage before,” Stolarski said.
Talkbacks following the performances will give audiences the opportunity to share the emotions conjured up by the stories.
The goal is to facilitate authentic conversations about what the operas has brought to light within them – either from their own experiences or from observations.
The productions will be held in Union Avenue Opera’s gallery space. Though the gallery lends itself to the intimate nature of the works, the festival is being held there because of ongoing repairs their building experiences as a result of the tornado on May 16.
“We made it work for the summer season, but there is not really any light in the space right now,” Stolarski said. “Because all of those lights were sucked out of the roof.
The gallery will provide audiences the opportunity for an up close and personal – to see the emotions and feel them alongside the artists performing the operas.
Union Avenue is excited about bringing the type of productions that are not usually available to opera lovers in the region.
“They are newer works that just haven’t gotten the focus that a ‘La Boehme’ or a ‘Tosca’ gets,” Stolarski said. “This is an opportunity to give these operas a chance – and to put them in front of St. Louis, and give St. Louis the chance to experience them.”
Union Avenue Opera’s One-Act Festival will take place from Friday, October 10 – Sunday, October 13 at the gallery inside Union Avenue Opera, located at 733 N. Union Blvd. Tickets are $25 General Admission and available at unionavenueopera.org.
Living It content is produced with funding by the ARPA for the Arts grants program in partnership with the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis and the Community Development Administration.
