Courtesy of Opera Theatre of Saint Louis
A New Works Collective workshop held in December 2022.
More than 130 artists submitted applications to be a part of Opera Theatre of Saint Louis’ New Works Collective, a groundbreaking program that invites new voices into the world of opera. Now, the first works of the three-year commissioning cycle, created by artists chosen by a group of St. Louis Community members, are on their way to COCA’s Catherine B. Berges Theatre March 16–18.
“This opportunity gave us a chance to look at how we can break the model that usually exists in opera, where you have an artistic director, which is usually a white person, curating BIPOC art,” says stage director and community consultant Rajendra Ramoon Maharaj. “What made this so unique and why it’s garnishing so much national attention is that Opera Theatre of St. Louis said, ‘No, we’re going to try something. We’re going to put it in the hands of the community that looks like these artists.”
The 2023 slate includes Cook Shack—which celebrates Black female inventors of the 20th century—by Del-Shawn Taylor and Samiya Bashir, Slanted: An American Rock Opera—the real-life story of the writers’ Supreme Court experience—by Simon Tam and Joe X. Jiang, and Madison Lodge—a tale of drag balls and community during the Roaring Twenties—by Tre’von Griffith, all of which will be led by Maharaj.
“You can’t live in a city like St. Louis, which is so driven by people of color, and not have this major opera house committed to doing this work,” says Maharaj. “It’s really a great moment where mission, moment, and the movement are all meeting at the same time.”
