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Not your grandmother’s opera

Contemporary D.C. outfit explores trans experience in new production

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As One, gay news, Washington Blade
As One, gay news, Washington Blade, UrbanArias

UrbanArias founder Robert Wood believes opera should be accessible and not overly long. (Photo courtesy UrbanArias)

‘As One’

 

Oct. 3-10

 

UrbanArias

 

Atlas Performing Arts Center

 

1333 H St., N.E.

 

$29.50

 

202-399-7993

 

Don’t like opera? UrbanArias may change that. For five years, the local company has been making buffs out of the unconvinced with short, contemporary and relevant operas.

“I want to be a gateway to convert people into fans,” says UrbanArias’ out founder Robert Wood. “I want them to know what is so compelling about the human voice unamplified. What is stirring about being in a black box theater so close to the performers that you don’t only hear them you feel their voices resonate in your own rib cage.”

For many, length and language are opera’s biggest turnoffs, Wood says. In response, UrbanArias insists the works it produces be short (defined loosely as the length of a feature film — about 90 minutes) and they must be performed in English. (“Even with supertitles, people are turned by foreign language,” Wood says). Their operas are less than 40 years old, and relevant. The story must be compelling and the music beautiful and accessible.

The company’s current offering is out composer Laura Kaminsky’s “As One,” a timely chamber opera about self discovery told through the journey of Hannah, who is transgender. The protagonist Hannah is sung in two voices — Hannah Before (baritone Luis Alejandro Orozco) and Hannah After (mezzo soprano Ashley Cutright). In 15 songs, the three-part narrative follows Hannah’s experiences from her youth in a small town to her college years on the West Coast, and finally to Norway.

Commissioned by American Opera Projects, “As One” premiered last year at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Its co-librettists are Mark Campbell and Kimberly Reed, whose documentary “Prodigal Sons” traces her own transition from high school quarterback to woman who makes films.

Kaminsky initially reached out to Reed to do video design only. But when experienced librettist Campbell joined the project, he invited Reed to also co-write with him.

“It actually wasn’t such a big leap from filmmaking, especially the way Mark writes — unadorned and truthful,” Reed says. “Some of the lyrics began with a grain of biographical truth but it was important for us to leave my story behind and fictionalize the libretto to make it something universal. For instance, we included violence against trans women. Not my experience, but something that needed to be told.”

Campbell, who wrote the libretto for the Pulitzer Prize-winning “Silent Night,” says collaborating with Reed was a smart decision.

“I really didn’t know if I’d get the transgender experience right. I’m a gay man but that doesn’t mean I’d automatically understand Hannah’s story. Looking back I can see that I was getting a lot wrong at first. Kim added a lot of realness to the story. I learned so much working with her.”

Campbell and Reed also made a defined resolution to tell an accessible story.

“Some people are terrified of contemporary opera, and because it’s sometimes pretentious, they have every right to be,” Campbell says. “We wanted to tell a story to which people could relate. Also, the music is tonal and rhythmic with some beautiful vocal lines. A visible string quartet plays off to the side.”

And the team was adamant in not presenting a ‘50s film version of the transgender experience. While Hannah understands the seriousness of her journey, she is not a tortured person. Her experience isn’t exclusively about pain. She can make fun of herself.

“Her journey isn’t unlike all of ours,” Campbell says. “We all have to give up something of ourselves to move on. Hannah’s recognizing her authentic self is something every queer person can understand. “

In creating UrbanArias, Wood, a D.C.-based music conductor who freelances around the country, wanted to do something fulfilling and meaningful close to home. And he wanted it to be different. He felt that interpreting what big regional houses do but on a smaller scale would only invite unfavorable comparisons. So far critics have responded positively and funding from local foundations has been good.

Wood concedes that among opera goers there will always be traditionalists who only want to see Puccini, Mozart and Verde.

“But for those who’ve seen various contemporary things along the way and are curious to see a little more,” he says. “We can serve it to them beautifully done in a smaller portion.”

Past seasons have featured gay composer Rick Ian Gordon’s Orpheus and Euridice,” and “Green Sneakers,” and the world premier of Gregory Spears’ “Paul’s Case,” based on a short story by lesbian novelist Willa Cather about a bored gay boy who steals money from his industrialist father and runs away.

While he describes Kaminsky’s score as beautiful and embracing opera, Wood says “past productions have had feet planted firmly in a crossover genre like blues-infused opera, and musical theater, things purists in other opera houses would shy away from.”

“Also,” he says, “UrbanArias casts well. I’ve spent the last 15 years conducting around the country over, and I’ve made a lot of friends. This allows us to have talented, known singers in our productions. And we pay pretty well too.”

In preparing to sing the part of Hannah after, Cutright joined a transgender chat room.

“I didn’t have any close trans friends and I wanted to get is right,” she says. “The trans people I met were excited and supportive and forthcoming with experiences and perspectives.”

In the early stages of rehearsal, Cutright spent time grappling with her character’s physicality.

“I wasn’t sure how to move as Hannah. I’ve been cast in a lot of trousers roles which means I play young teenage boys. So I’ve had to walk like a guy, whatever that means. After some thought, I came to Hannah’s story is about somebody who is forced to be who she’s not. And they just want to be who they really are, so I relaxed and ended up moving like myself.”

Hannah is equal parts realist and optimist, says Cutright.

“She goes to Norway to see the Northern Lights and when they don’t appear, she realizes even the most natural things in the world aren’t going to appear just because I want them to, and she moves on. I love that about her.”

As One, UrbanArias, gay news, Washington Blade

Luis Alejandro Orozco and Ashley Cutright in ‘As One,’ a contemporary opera about the plight of a transgender woman. (Photo by Courtney Kalbacker, courtesy UrbanArias)

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Music & Concerts

Musical icons and newer stars to rock D.C. this spring

Brandi Carlile, Bad Bunny, Nicki Minaj, and more headed our way

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Brandi Carlile plays the Anthem this month.

Bands and solo artists of all different genres are visiting D.C. this spring. Patti LaBelle and Gladys Knight will team up to perform at the Wolf Trap in June, and girl in red will play at the Anthem in April. Some artists and bands aren’t paying a visit until the summer, like Janet Jackson and Usher, but there are still plenty of acts to see as the weather warms up. 

MARCH 

Brandi Carlile plays at the Anthem on March 21; Arlo Parks will perform at 9:30 Club on March 23; Girlschool will take the stage at Blackcat on March 28.

APRIL 

Nicki Minaj stops in D.C. at Capital One Arena as part of her North American tour on April 1; Bad Bunny plays at Capital One Arena on April 9 as part of his Most Wanted tour; girl in red performs at the Anthem on April 20 and 21; Brandy Clark plays at the Birchmere on April 25; Laufey comes to town to play at the Anthem on April 25 and 26. 

MAY 

Belle and Sebastian play at the Anthem on May 2; Chastity Belt performs at Blackcat on May 4; Madeleine Peyroux stops at the Birchmere on May 5; The Decemberists play at the Anthem on May 10; the rock band Mannequin Pussy performs at the Atlantis on May 17 and 18; Hozier plays at Merriweather Post Pavilion on May 17 as part of the Unreal Unearth tour. 

JUNE 

Patti LaBelle and Gladys Knight will sing soulful melodies at Wolf Trap on June 8; Joe Jackson performs at the Lincoln Theatre on June 10; the Pixies and Modest Mouse are teaming up to play at Merriweather Post Pavilion on June 14; Maggie Rogers plays at Merriweather Post Pavilion on June 16 as part of The Don’t Forget Me tour; Brittany Howard headlines the Out & About Festival at Wolf Trap on June 22; Sarah McLachlan plays at Merriweather Post Pavilion on June 27; Alanis Morissette performs at Merriweather Post Pavilion on June 29 and 30

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Music & Concerts

Grammys: Queer women and their sisters took down the house

Taylor Swift won Album of the Year

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When the late, great Ruth Bader Ginsburg was asked when there will be enough women on the Supreme Court, her answer was simple: Nine. She stated: “I say when there are nine, people are shocked. But there’d been nine men, and nobody’s ever raised a question about that.” RBG did not attend the Grammy’s last night, but her spirit sure did. Women, at long last, dominated, ruled and killed the night.

Cher, in song a decade ago, declared that “this is a woman’s world,” but there was little evidence that was true, Grammy, and entertainment awards, speaking. In 2018, the Grammys were heavily criticized for lack of female representation across all categories and organizers’ response was for women to “step up.”

Be careful what you wish for boys.

The biggest star of the 2024 Grammys was the collective power of women. They made history, they claimed legacy and they danced and lip sang to each other’s work. Standing victorious was Miley Cyrus, Billie Eilish, SZA (the most nominated person of the year), Lainey Wilson, Karol G, boygenius, Kylie Minogue and Victoria Monét. Oh, yes, and powerhouse Taylor Swift, the superstar from whom Fox News cowers in fear, made history to become the first performer of any gender to win four Best Album of the Year trophies.

In the throng of these powerful women stand a number of both LGBTQ advocates and queer identifying artists. Cyrus has identified as pansexual, SZA has said lesbian rumors “ain’t wrong,” Phoebe Bridgers (winner of four trophies during the night, most of any artist) is lesbian, Monét is bi and Eilish likes women but doesn’t want to talk about it. Plus, ask any queer person about Swift or Minogue and you are likely to get a love-gush.

Women power was not just owned by the lady award winners. There were the ladies and then there were the Legends. The first Legend to appear was a surprise. Country singer Luke Combs has a cross-generational hit this year with a cover of Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car.” When originally released, the song was embraced as a lesbian anthem. When performing “Fast Car,” surprise, there was Chapman herself, singing the duet with Combs. The rendition was stunning, sentimental and historic.

Chapman, like many of the night’s female dignitaries, has not been public with her sexuality. Author Alice Walker has spoken of the two of them being lovers, however.

The legend among legends of the night, however, was the one and only Joni Mitchell. Not gay herself, she embodies the concept of an LGBTQ icon, and was accompanied by the very out Brandi Carlile on stage. On her website, Mitchell’s statement to the LGBTQ community reads, “The trick is if you listen to that music and you see me, you’re not getting anything out of it. If you listen to that music and you see yourself, it will probably make you cry and you’ll learn something about yourself and now you’re getting something out of it.”

Mitchell performed her longtime classic “Both Sides Now.” The emotion, insight and delivery from the now 80-year old artist, survivor of an aneurism, was nothing short of profound. (To fully appreciate the nuance time can bring, check out the YouTube video of a Swift lookalike Mitchell singing the same song to Mama Cass and Mary Travers in 1969.) In this latest rendition, Mitchell clearly had an impact on Meryl Streep who was sitting in the audience. Talk about the arc of female talent and power.

That arc extended from a today’s lady, Cyrus, to legend Celine Dion as well. Cyrus declared Dion as one of her icons and inspirations early in the evening. Dion appeared, graceful and looking healthy, to present the final, and historic, award of the night at the end of the show.

Legends did not even need to be living to have had an effect on the night. Tributes to Tina Turner and Sinead O’Conner by Oprah, Fantasia Barrino-Taylor and Annie Lennox respectively, proved that not even death could stop these women. As Lennox has musically and famously put it, “Sisters are doing it for themselves.”

Even the content of performances by today’s legends-in-the-making spoke to feminine power. Eilish was honored for, and performed “What Was I Made For?,” a haunting and searching song that speaks to the soul of womanhood and redefinition in today’s fight for gender rights and expression, while Dua Lipa laid down the gauntlet for mind blowing performance with her rendition of “Houdini” at the top of the show, Cyrus asserted the power of her anthem “Flowers” and pretty much stole the show.

Cyrus had not performed the song on television before, and only three times publicly. She declared in her intro that she was thrilled over the business numbers the song garnered, but she refused to let them define her. As she sang the hit, she scolded the audience, “you guys act like you don’t know the words to this song.” Soon the woman power of the room was singing along with her, from Swift to Oprah.

They can buy themselves flowers from now on. They don’t need anyone else. Cyrus made that point with the mic drop to cap all mic drops, “And I just won my first Grammy!” she declared as she danced off stage.

Even the squirmiest moment of the night still did not diminish the light of women power, and in fact, underscored it. During his acceptance of the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award, Jay-Z had a bone to pick with the Grammy voters. He called out the irony that his wife Beyoncé had won more Grammys than any other human, but had never won the Best Album of the Year. Yeah, what’s with that?

But then, it brought additional context ultimately to the fact that the winner of the most Grammys individually … is a woman. And to the fact that the winner of the most Best Album of the Year awards … is a woman.

Hopefully this was the night that the Grammys “got it.” Women are the epicenter of The Creative Force.

Will the other entertainment awards get it soon as well? We can hope.

Most importantly, in a political world where women’s healthcare is under siege. Will the American voters get it?

A little known band named Little Mix put it this way in their 2019 song “A Woman’s World.”

“If you can’t see that it’s gotta change
Only want the body but not the brains
If you really think that’s the way it works
You ain’t lived in a woman’s world

Just look at how far that we’ve got
And don’t think that we’ll ever stop…”

From Grammy’s mouth to the world’s ear.

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Music & Concerts

Janet Jackson returning to D.C, Baltimore

‘Together Again Tour’ comes to Capital One Arena, CFG Bank Arena

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Janet Jackson is coming back to D.C. this summer.

Pop icon Janet Jackson announced this week an extension of her 2023 “Together Again Tour.” A new leg of the tour will bring Jackson back to the area for two shows, one at D.C.’s Capital One Arena on Friday, July 12 and another at Baltimore’s CFG Bank Arena on Saturday, July 13.  

Tickets are on sale now via TicketMaster. LiveNation announced the 2023 leg of the tour consisted of 36 shows, each of which was sold out. The 2024 leg has 35 stops planned so far; R&B star Nelly will open for Jackson on the new leg. 

Jackson made the tour announcement Tuesday on social media: “Hey u guys! By popular demand, we’re bringing the Together Again Tour back to North America this summer with special guest Nelly! It’ll be so much fun!”

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