LOLA presents the full concert premiere of the new chamber opera by composer Peter Stopschinski and playwright Terry Galloway with Mezzo Soprano Liz Cass as Dinah LeFarge.
August 17th @7pm CDT
This event is free, donations are welcome, reservations are required
Recommended for adults 18 and older
Lardo Weeping is a wonderful journey through the mind of recluse-genius Dinah LeFarge, a clever, intellectual, quite sexual woman of independent means who seldom ventures outside her apartment and refuses to answer her door unarmed. Dinah finds herself with only five dollars left to her name but claims to have "otherworldly resources" and hints at a miraculous transformation for her and her audience. Dinah takes us through her many ideas and schemes and through this storytelling we are introduced to many feminist icons including Emily Dickinson, Gertrude Stein, Alice B. Toklas, Emma Goldman, Ann Landers, and others. We are treated to stories about her past employment as a convenience store clerk, her food journaling, and Dinah’s ongoing obsession with the “Weekly World News”. This journey ends with Dinah literally tearing her body apart and putting it back together again further highlighting the stress and demands put on human and especially female bodies.
Cast: Dinah LeFarge - Liz Cass, Chorus - Jihee Han, Chorus - Julie Silva
Orchestra: Piano - Peter Stopschinski, Violin - Sonja Larson, Cello - Nora Karakousoglou
Production Team: Composer - Peter Stopschinski, Librettists - Terry Galloway & Donna Nudd , Executive Producer - Liz Cass, Artistic Producer - Rebecca Herman, Stage Direction - Rebecca Herman, Production Manager - Carli Kerr
This project is supported in part by the Cultural Arts Division of the City of Austin Economic Development Department.