The Onion
Free Workshop Performance of part 1 of "The Onion" a new opera about the brain
and audience discussion about consciousness with noted philosopher and neuroscientist
Weds, May 29th 7:00 - 8:30 pm
Bowker Auditorium (Stockbridge Hall)
100 Holdsworth Way, Amherst, MA 01003
On the UMass Amherst Campus
The UMass Amherst Initiative on Neurosciences is staging the first half of a new Opera titled, "The Onion", which deals with issues of thought and consciousness. It was composed and directed by Amherst College professors, Eric Sawyer and Ron Bashford. Two cast members are UMass alums.
The performance will be followed by a conversation with noted philosopher and author on the subject of consciousness, Daniel Dennett, and Harvard neuroscientist, Florian Engert. They will be joined by composer/librettist Eric Sawyer, director/librettist Ron Bashford, and members of the cast. The conversation will be moderated by the director of the UMass Initiative on Neurosciences, Paul Katz.
DISCUSSANTS
Florian Engert is a Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology at Harvard University. His laboratory uses modern neuroscience techniques to study neural activity in the brain of zebra fish to formulate models of how the brain creates behavior.
Elizabeth Phelps is the Pershing Square Professor of Human Neuroscience at Harvard University. Her lab examines how emotions alter our cognitive experience.
Paul Katz is the Director of the UMass Initiative on Neurosciences. He is a professor in the Biology department. His lab studies the structure and function of sea slug brains.
THE ONION – Part 1 (duration 50 minutes)
Music by Eric Sawyer
Libretto by Eric Sawyer and Ron Bashford
Directed by Ron Bashford
Sawyer and Bashford have previously joined forces in The Scarlet Professor (with librettist Harley Erdman), which received the 2019 American Prize for best opera, as well as in My Evil Twin, a cabaret musical (with script by Harley Erdman), which was recently staged at the Drake in Amherst.
The opera unfolds on an island in the Pacific Northwest where a neuroscientist has sequestered herself with her daughter, her co-inventor, and their invention, the Onion. Rounding out the singing roles are her ex-partner, summoned in memory by both mother and daughter, and the Onion itself, which seems to gain its own personality with each use.
Eric Sawyer is the Andrew W. Mellon Professor of Music at Amherst College. He is the composer of an extensive catalog ranging from chamber music and songs across many genres to orchestral music to opera.
Ron Bashford is the Chair of Theater and Dance at Amherst College. He has directed more than ninety theater productions and multimedia projects, from traditional play scripts to collaborations with composers and choreographers.
CAST
Dana Lynne Varga plays MAGISTRA, a neuroscientist and inventor, late 40’s, soprano. Ms. Varga holds a degree in vocal performance from UMass, where she also served on the faculty. She sang debut performances as a soloist at Carnegie Hall and Boston’s Symphony Hall.
Corrine Byrne plays MIRANDA, Magistra's daughter, 19, soprano. Ms. Byrne also received a degree in vocal performance from UMass and made her Carnegie solo debut and maintains a busy schedule of opera roles and early music performances across the United States.
David Thomas Mather plays OCTAVIAN, Magistra’s assistant, 25, tenor or high baritone. Mr. Mather is an emerging baritone with rare versatility, appears in performances across opera, art song, early music, and musical theater.
David Small plays CAL, Magistra’s ex and Miranda’s father, 60’s, baritone. Mr. Small is an Associate Professor at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee, who has a 40-year career in both opera and concert.
Ifeanyi Epum plays THE ONION, countertenor or contralto, Magistra’s invention. Mr. Epum received the Kingsley Inupe Idegun Award for countertenors and brings to his role of the Onion specialties in early music, oratorio, and the modern compositions of his native Nigeria.