In May of this year, Los Angeles witnessed the world premiere of dreams of the new world by composer Ellen Reid. This week, we get a second Reid world premiere when p r i s m, a new opera, has its premiere beginning Thursday at REDCAT as part of LA Opera’s Off-Grand project.
Joining Reid in creating p r i s m is librettist Roxie Perkins. Beth Morrison Projects produces the opera.
p r i s m tells the story of a mother and daughter who live in a Sanctuary and they shut out the outside world. Bibi, the daughter, suffers from an ailment to her legs. Her mother, Lumee, keeps her in this Sanctuary in an effort to heal her daughter. But each time when Bibi has to take her medicine, she hears the voices of her previous selves. As those voices grow louder, she starts to question her mother’s intentions.
The opera is an examination of trauma and the lengths one might go, regardless of the toll it may exact, to protect someone they love.
Anna Schubert is Bibi and Rebecca Jo Loeb is Lumee. The voices Bibi hears are sung by Members of the Choir of Trinity Wall Street. The production is directed by James Darrah and conducted by Julian Wachner.
There is a warning on the LA Opera page for p r i sm that the piece includes explicit language. And the material itself is intense.
There are four performances of p r i s m.
Look for our interview with Roxie Perkins soon.