Well, we're back to an original space for the South Bend Lyric Opera.

You guys have been doing this for ten years now and bringing it kind of back home, where we're at right now.

This isn't where you're going to be performing this year, but this is an important space for you two at the Lang Lab.

It is indeed.

This is all we started ten years ago.

In fact, in this room, this very room we have started our very first, meeting about doing an opera.

And then and then we decide, wow, this is a cool room.

This is a bohemian space.

So this is where we did a La Boheme the first time in, 2016.

Yeah.

So this is a long time ago, but, I mean, it seems like a long time ago, but not really.

It goes very quickly, goes very quickly.

And in fact, that is the piano we actually worked with the very first time as well.

And is it still in tune?

Yes, almost.

Okay.

Now tell us about the opera that you guys are going to be putting on.

So we're going to do, a production of a song cycle or song cycle is a little different.

The song cycle is, number of songs that have a theme, and then we have artists that, stand and perform.

So rather than kind of storytelling, it's more individualized, but also all collaborative.

Exactly.

Okay.

And it is a storytelling because it does have a theme, but, it's not, staged and costumed like we, we usually do with an opera.

But it does have a theme, and we have projections to, and then we'll, we'll talk a little more about the whole the whole show because it's, it's a really cool show and it's, it's, a project that Ian brought to us and he, is, is kind of spearheading that in many ways.

I love that.

Tell us about this know, because this is a really special and unique opera that you guys are putting together.

It's a regional composer.

Yeah.

So, Songs in Flight, is written by, Shawn Okpebholo.

He's a Nigerian American composer located in, in the Chicago area.

So.

Yeah.

Right.

Right near by.

Yeah.

And I came upon his work, a few years ago.

Just learning about, like, he did a lot of, reimaginings of spirituals and things like that.

And I really liked, his renditions, just the way he composes and things like that.

It has a traditional sound to it.

But then there's a contemporary spin.

There's like.

And when you think contemporary might be a little bit of like dissonance here, things that are kind of.

Yeah.

What does that mean?

This contemporary, I mean, the approach to more of a traditional opera.

Yeah.

So it's it might be different like our, you know, aurally just like different sounds.

So dissonance might be one like though some of those chords it to sound like off for a second or like what is that like that sort of thing.

So it kind of play a lot of contemporary pose to play around with those kinds of sounds and things like that.

And so that's quite a bit of what, of what Shawn has brought, into works like Songs in Flight.

So it's taking sort of like the classical realm, but then also intermingling with, with black music, with, with work songs, with, protest songs and things like that within the work.

So did their influences of various things.

And there's components of this that are factual too, in the storytelling process.

Yeah.

So, so all Songs of Flight is a response to, of, runaway slave ad from the freedom on the move database.

And so it was, these various poets that took a, read them and then took a response.

And so throughout the work, you'll see projections of these ads or, singers will be reading the ads, and then there will be and then they'll be the songs.

They're sort of responses to what's happening.

And so it's very much, very much a kind of like a not so much of a historical.

It is a historical thing, but it's very much a contemporary response to all of it.

So, it kind of notes some of the contradictions of in, in the, as there are moments of where, you know, where the slave masters would write descriptions about them that they know, you know, might know French or know specific details about them, you know, but it's always sort of like that is there is that humanity aspect to them.

But then there's still property.

It's so it's sort of like looks at those contradictions.

And so the, the work investigates what all of that means.

Who were these people behind all of it.

And, and it also seeks to, bring a contemporary look at it.

So it does, it does, reference, you know, the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery and Trayvon Martin and things like that through it as well.

So it's very it's very cool now that the particular performance, I think, on the 16th, you guys have a panel that's going to be participating.

We do.

Yes.

And we have, leaders from the community.

And Ian has, talked to all of them.

Can you tell us?

So, yes.

So, we're we're fortunate, that, Doctor Shawn Okpebholo the composer, is available, and he is coming for this.

And so this and this, this is really pick his brain.

Yeah.

I think this is a very busy man.

He's really been a rising star over the last few years.

His last album of spirituals and, and songs is like, was Grammy nominated and everything like that.

So he's gotten really, really, really rising.

So we're really fortunate that he'll be able to come and talk.

We've also got him.

We've got, Doctor Darryl Heller, of a civil rights heritage center, to come and talk as well as doctor De Bryant, the social actor.

And will that be before or after the, so we, So, Shawn, Shawn Okpebholo will talk, like, just a little bit before I just kind of give the overview.

Like what?

This.

Yeah.

Yeah.

And then afterwards, after the performance and there will be a little of a panel discussion about what people just saw, kind of like how, you know, what a response to how what do we do at this point after that, that, now, as a director, I know you've had many themes in the past.

Why specifically this theme?

Partly because, Ian brought to me and I didn't know about the work, and he.

And this isn’t a debut.

This is as it's been it's been performed before in New York, and, we are and he brought it to me and I was like, yeah, we got to do this.

Yeah.

It's a it's a great show.

And we've done shows like this, in the past, in terms of contemporary shows is they have they have modern themes, themes that we deal with today, but also take on themes as this particular work is going to show on things that happen, historical things.

And we take our contemporary view on that.

And then, and, and, so we've done these things in the past and then we, we will continue to do as part of our, our, model to, to bring contemporary works also traditional works to and we've done that and we will do that as well.

And you guys do that too.

So this performance when is it happening?

This is happening in October, October 16th and October 18th.

October 16th is going to be at, Indiana University, South Bend, okay.

In the Joshi Performance Hall and, and 18th, which is a Saturday.

It's a 2:00 performance is going to be at the MLK Dream Center.

So that's making it very accessible for our community, right, for our community.

And this is one of the things that we have been doing, bringing opera to the community and love.

And this is the first time we're going to be, in that part of the city, and we try to move in the north part and the west part of the south and everywhere we can get to do, because the community sometimes, doesn't come to the opera house because it's like, oh, opera, but but it is it is true.

It's very intimidating.

You will.

Right.

So we have performed, at art beat.

We have performed at yart.

We have performed various places, because we want to bring opera and we want to bring this artform to the community.

And this, this is what we were trying to do.

I love it.

Now, you and you have performed in these performances as well.

Too.

Here at South Bend Lyric Opera, talk about that aspect coming from a performance view.

So, you know, it's I definitely to that point of like, you know, if opera can be intimidating, I know it took me, you know, it definitely took me for a second to figure out, like, what is this?

What why am I what am I sitting here for those long period of time?

Well, people are just, like singing at me or whatever.

And so, you know, I think the thing that is the thing that's fun about opera is it is a challenging artform.

It does take a lot of athleticism.

It does take a lot of work.

So it is a lot of fun for me just to to work on it.

But, you know what I appreciate it is productions like Tosca.

You know, my thing is being able to, you know, put them in different time periods and then also be able to like put like some a lot of the things that in these, these operas from a long time ago are still talking about very similar ideas and things, just at a different time frame.

Yeah.

But yeah, I really I like being able to appreciate, to reinterpret and being able to bring my own taste into a character of what I think these things are and things like that at each performance.

And now, how many performers do you have in those particular productions?

So in this particular production, we have four singers and one pianist.

Okay.

So, there's going to be, two sopranos, a countertenor and a baritone.

You know, people need to get tickets.

Yes.

We have a link, for that on our website, and you can buy tickets for the show on the 16th.

The show on the 18th is going to be free to the public.

Oh, my gosh.

Amazing.

What a gift.

Yes.

Thank you so much.