The International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) will present “Afro-Diasporic Opera Forum,” a free, virtual public forum hosted by musicologist Naomi André, in partnership with Opera Omaha and FringeArts. Following an opening session on May 25 at 7 p.m. ET, three days of discussions will be held from May 26 to 28 in order to cultivate awareness among presenters, producers, ensembles, and audiences. Among the operas to be discussed: George Lewis’s Afterword (2015), Tyshawn Sorey’s Perle Noire: Meditations for Joséphine Baker (2016), and Pauline Oliveros and IONE’s The Nubian Word for Flowers: A Phantom Opera (2017). The Forum will conclude with the screening of Lisa E. Harris’s 2020 digital opera Cry of the Third Eye. Conversations and presentations during the Forum will contextualize the works. Naomi André is the event’s lead scholar and conversation partner; panelists will include soprano Julia Bullock, author/performer/director IONE, composers George Lewis and Tyshawn Sorey, vocalist and performance artist Helga Davis, and ethnomusicologist Fredara Hadley, whose recent research focus is Shirley Graham Du Bois’s Tom Tom. For complete information, click here. Read Naomi André’s recent article in Symphony magazine.
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