OPERA/THEATER/DANCE
2019
The Infinite Energy of Ada Lovelace
Commissioned by Opera Ithaca. 40 mins: MEZZO-SOPRANO, TENOR, BASS-BARITONE, SOPRANO, BARITONE, PIANO, STRING QUARTET
Ada, Countess of Lovelace and Lord Byron's daughter, has been asked to help Charles Babbage with his work on the Difference Engine. Can she pursue her love of mathematics while upholding her reputation? Learn more >
2019
A Rose
Commissioned by Houston Grand Opera. 14 MINS: SOPRANO, TENOR, HINDUSTANI CLASSICAL SINGERS, FLUTE, OBOE, TABLA, PIANO, VIOLIN, VIOLA
This is a video opera and the video will be released in October. Learn more >
2018
Taking Up Serpents
COMISSIONED BY WASHINGTON NATIONAL OPERA. ONE-ACT CHAMBER OPERA. 55 MINS: SOPRANO, MEZZO-SOPRANO, BASS-BARITONE, TENOR, FLUTE/PICCOLO, OBOE, CLARINET, BASSOON, FRENCH HORN, ELECTRIC/ACOUSTIC GUITAR, PERCUSSION, PIANO, VIOLIN, VIOLA, CELLO, BASS
In TAKING UP SERPENTS, 25-year-old Kayla is the estranged daughter of a fire-and-brimstone preacher who is dangerously bitten by one of his own snakes. Kayla’s journey home forces her to confront her troubled upbringing. With a score showcasing Sankaram’s deft stylistic eclecticism and an original story inspired by Dye’s roots in the Deep South, Taking Up Serpents calls into question faith, family, and destiny, with shocking results. Learn more >
2018
Formidable
commissioned by Opera Memphis. FIRST PERFORMANCE AT Opera Memphis – 12 mins: soprano, mezzo, violin, guitar
In FORMIDABLE, a 12-minute pocket opera by Kamala Sankaram and Jerre Dye, a woman comes to town carrying the ashes of her recently deceased father. His dying wish was that his remains be scattered in the Mississippi at Memphis, a place she only knows as the home he left. Learn more >
2017
Monkey and Francine in the City of Tigers
commissioned by Houston Grand Opera. first performance at Houston Grand Opera Opera to Go – 45 mins: soprano, mezzo, tenor, baritone, piano, optional hand percussion
MONKEY AND FRANCINE IN THE CITY OF TIGERS, a 45-minute one-act children's opera by Kamala Sankaram and David Johnston, fuses monkey stories from India, China, and West Africa, to tell the story of Monkey and his brainy sister Francine. They must learn to work together and use their smarts to escape the hungry Crocodile and outwit the greedy Lord of the Tigers. Learn more >
2016
The Parksville Murders, Episode 1
commissioned by Opera on Tap, in collaboration with Samsung VR. FIRST PERFORMANCE AT SAMSUNG VR – 10 mins: soprano, mezzo, choir, eletronics
The Parksville Murders is the world’s first Virtual Reality Episodic Horror Opera. Two young women (Sarah and Corrine) wake up confused and terrified in a dark, surreal, music-filled world of incongruities and evil intentions, a space where Time seems to have curved in on itself somehow. Learn more >
2016
Looking at You
(work-in-progress) 90 mins: mezzo, tenor, baritone, ensemble, piano, saxophone trio, electronics
LOOKING AT YOU is a techno-noir music theater work mixing electronic dance music, crime jazz, and lyric operatic arias. Equal parts Edward Snowden and Casablanca, LOOKING AT YOU explores the impact of modern technology on privacy. Learn more >
2014
Thumbprint
commissioned by Beth Morrison Projects and HERE Arts Center for the PROTOTYPE Festival. First performance at Baruch College, NY – 90 minutes: soprano, soprano, mezzo, tenor, baritone, baritone, flute, violin, viola, bass, piano/harmonium, drum kit/ Indian percussion
THUMBPRINT, a 90-minute contemporary opera-theatre work by Kamala Sankaram and Susan Yankowitz, is inspired by the experiences of Mukhtar Mai, the first female victim of gang rape to bring her male attackers to justice in Pakistan. Learn more >
2014
Enchantress
COMMISSIONED BY AMERICAN LYRIC THEATER. FIRST PERFORMANCE AT SYMPHONY SPACE, NYC – 22 minutes: mezzo, tenor, baritone, piano
ENCHANTRESS is a 20 minute opera about Ada Lovelace, the inventor of the first computer, originally written under the auspices of American Lyric Theater’s Composer/Librettist Development Program. Learn more >
2013
Khmer III
commissioned by Manou Phuon for Works in Process at the Guggenheim Museum. FIRST PERFORMANCE AT the Guggenheim Museum – 7 minutes: solo voice
KHMER III is a score for solo voice accompanying choreography by Manou Phuon. The piece is inspired by field recordings of Gibbon calls.
2012
Miranda
commissioned by HERE Arts Center. FIRST PERFORMANCE AT HERE ARTS CENTER, NYC – 75 minutes: soprano, mezzo, tenor, baritone, ensemble, violin, cello, electric guitar, clarinet/tenor sax, bass clarinet/baritone sax, electronics
Miranda is a 60-minute steampunk murder-mystery chamber opera in which the six instrumentalists play, sing, and act all the parts. Through a lush score inspired by diverse genres such as Baroque opera, Hindustani music, tango, hip-hop, and found-sound audioscapes, Miranda’s story unfolds in song, sound, movement, video, and dialogue. Learn more >