Odd pairings often result in surprisingly delightful results. Our Earth, a partnership between the Seattle Opera, the Seattle Youth Symphony and the Nature Conservancy, is one such combination.
The ambitious project was designed as an outreach program, to help introduce opera to local schoolchildren and youth while fostering a connection between earth sciences and the arts. Written as a trilogy, each section of the opera can stand alone or be enjoyed as a continuation of the story. Each part of the trilogy will be offered to interested schools regardless of their ability to pay (at least, Seattle Opera foots half of the $400 bill to schools).
The Our Earth trilogy is designed to celebrate the ecosystem of Puget Sound by telling the story of salmon and the effect its disappearance has on the other animals and the people of the area. February saw the world premiere of the first installment of the trilogy, Heron and the Salmon Girl, at Town Hall.
The majority of the opera focuses on a small group of characters with the occasional appearance of a youth chorus, waving scarves as the undulating waves of the sound. The costuming is simple, but effective, and the singers are as charming as the animal characters they play. My son was especially fond of the orca and the playful way he moved around the stage and interacted with the other characters.
Including the Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra and the youth chorus as part of the collaboration were brilliant additions. Young voices and musicians make the work more approachable and relatable to kids. There is no substitute for live music in a performance such as this, and the orchestra filled the building with lilting strains and powerful melodies. At times the youth chorus entered the scene by flooding the aisles down to the stage. The 3-D experience was thrilling for the youngsters as they were surrounded by the music.
The opera is sung in English, but includes a few words in Lushootseed (a language spoken by the Suquamish and other local tribes), which are playfully taught to the audience “Dora” style. The third installment of the opera includes language from the Yakama Nation. While the opera being sung in English is a big bonus for enabling kids to understand the story, it is still an opera and deciphering the words can be hard even for adult ears at times. Luckily, the story of the salmon journey, which had development help from Nature Conservancy salmon scientist James Schroeder, is one that is simple and familiar enough to follow for everyone without all of the intrigue and plotting usually found in operas.
Our Earth also includes a special relationship to an older and more well-known opera, Wagner’s Ring cycle. Both operas are written as cycles and focus on the relationship between humans and the environment. Seattle Opera is renowned for its frequent performances of the Ring cycle, and the first installment of Our Earth opens with a portion of the music, which had multiple benefits. First, it provided a parallel of the struggle between humans and the environment. Yet maybe even more importantly, it provided a section of music that is familiar to some youth, while introducing a classic masterpiece to others.
The school program of Our Earth includes an hour-long presentation with a 40-minute performance of one part of the trilogy. The opera is performed with piano accompaniment instead of an orchestra, and the children at the school can be prepped to become the chorus. Part one is available to schools now, part two in September 2013, and part three in September 2014. Free performances in the community include April and August shows at Seattle Center.
If you’ve been wondering how to introduce your child to the amazing world of opera, Our Earth may just be the best opportunity you’ll find in the Northwest.
