PROTOTYPE: Opera l Theatre l Now is a co-production of Beth Morrison Projects and HERE, two trailblazers in the creation and presentation of contemporary, multi-disciplinary opera-theatre and music-theatre works. The pioneering festival is the only one of its kind in New York City and is a model now emulated around the country—producing and presenting a wide spectrum of works, from intimate black-box experiences to larger chamber opera productions, valuing artistic, curatorial and producorial risk-taking.
PROTOTYPE is committed to surprising audiences and confounding their expectations through content, form and relevance. In providing a recurring showcase of visionary opera-theatre and music-theatre pieces, the touring life of the work extends around the world. The festival also presents groundbreaking new works by international artists and has become a global reference of artistic excellence in the field of opera and music-theatre.
The 2024 season embraces the future, with an extraordinarily diverse group of composers, librettists, performers and musicians, spanning many different genres, backgrounds and cultures, imaginatively telling the stories of our time. Pulitzer-Prize winning composer and Prototype Alumna Du Yun returns this year as guest curator for the International, Out of Bounds and Digital sections.
Terce: A Practical Breviary
The Space at Irondale
Composed & Written by Heather Christian
Directed by Keenan Tyler Oliphant
Music Directed by Mona Seyed-Bolorforosh
Creative Produced by Kristin Marting
Produced by HERE
Terce: A Practical Breviary is a radical rethinking of a monastic 9 AM mass and an adaptation that reimagines the face of the “Holy Spirit” through the lens of the Divine Feminine. Sung by a community choir of 30 plus women-identifying caregivers and makers, it is a wild meditation/celebration of the sacred mothers alive in all of us and how that manifests in regard to the Earth, each other and ourselves.
Adoration
The Sheen Center for Thought & Culture
Composed by Mary Kouyoumdjian
Libretto by Royce Vavrek
Directed by Laine Rettmer
Music direction by Alan Pierson
Creative Produced by Beth Morrison
Produced by Beth Morrison Projects
Adoration, based on Atom Egoyan's film, centers on Simon, a high school student who reimagines a historical terrorist attack as a tragic event involving his parents. As his story gains traction online, Simon cleverly exposes society's intolerance and racism. The true circumstances of his family's loss unfold gradually, culminating in the revelation that his parents' deaths were caused by the prejudices of Simon's maternal grandfather.
Angel Island
BAM's Harvey Theater at BAM Strong
Composed by Huang Ruo
Directed by Matthew Ozawa
Film by Bill Morrison
Produced by Beth Morrison Projects
Co-presented with BAM's Next Wave Festival
Between 1910 and 1940, a significant number of Chinese immigrants passed through Angel Island immigration station in San Francisco Bay. Enduring mass discrimination due to the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, their experiences are revisited in Angel Island. This poignant multimedia production, scored by renowned Chinese-American composer Huang Ruo, combines voices and a string quartet to create a unique blend of opera, theater, dance, and music.
Chornobyldorf
La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club, Ellen Stewart Theater
Composed by Roman Grygoriv & Ilia Razumeiko
Libretto by Yurii Izdryk, Publii Ovidii Nazon, Ivan Kotlyarevskyy & Ilia Razumeiko
Directed by Roman Grygoriv & Ilia Razumeiko
Co-presented with La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club
Internationally acclaimed Ukranian composing duo return to Prototype with this post-apocalyptic operatic fantasy. The remaining descendants of humanity find themselves in a post-societal world following the death of capitalism, opera and philosophy. Wandering amongst the ruins of civilization, they engage in archeological performance-rituals to recreate their lost culture; however, misinterpretations gradually dissolve into the white noise of nature.
Malinxe
The Winter Garden at Brookfield Place
Co-Created by Autumn Chacon & Laura Ortman
Directed by Autumn Chacon
Libretto by Autumn Chacon (adapted from the myth of La Llorona)
Music by Laura Ortman
Produced and Commissioned by Prototype, hosted by The Battery Conservancy
Malinxe is a modern retelling of the La Llorona myth, dating back to 1550, where a vengeful spirit mourns her drowned children near water bodies, warning others of its power. This original opera explores the complex story of Malinxe, represented in this interpretation as a contemporary woman who immerses herself in La Llorona's perilous realm, making transformative choices to save her spirit from following the destructive path of La Llorona.
The Promise
HERE Mainstage
Concept by Chloe Lamford & Wende
Created by Chloe Lamford, Wende, Isobel Waller-Bridge & Imogen Knight
Words by E.V Crowe, Sabrina Mahfouz, Somalia Nonyé, Stef Smith & Debris Stevenson
Composed by Wende & Isobel Waller-Bridge
The Promise is a captivating modern song cycle that explores profound themes of identity, origin, motherhood and the complexities of human relationships in our modern era. Created by the internationally acclaimed Dutch singer-songwriter Wende in collaboration with the Royal Court Theatre and composed together with renowned English composer Isobel Waller-Bridge, The Promise creates a rich and diverse musical landscape that seamlessly blends various genres and showcases Wende’s incredibly versatile vocal range.
