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A hummingbird, a beatboxer, and a sweet potato walk into a theatre\\u2026\\xa0

We should probably mention the bees, the dog, the squirrel, the baby pigeons, and a few woodpeckers, too. These are some of the creatures that inhabit the magical garden community of Sweet Potato Kicks the Sun, and in 2019, they lit up the stage performing opera in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

But a menagerie as complex and unpredictable as this one didn\\u2019t just arrive fully formed, ready for its world premiere. Instead, Opera for All Voices\\u2019 first-ever premiere required years of lead time, months of prep work, and several changes to its artistic team.\\xa0

Key Change host Andrea Fellows Fineberg fires up the time machine once again to travel behind the scenes with members of the Sweet Potato... creative crew. Andrea asks them about the artistic challenges inherent to wrangling myriad talents and viewpoints into a cohesive staged performance. Their answers reveal a shared vision that binds these creative individuals to the OFAV mission, the production, and each other.

Librettist Leslie Dunton Downer discusses the risk and ultimate reward of relinquishing control to the interpretive artists on stage. Dramaturg Cori Ellison and collaborator Ruth Nott recall decisions that helped shape the show\\u2019s production team. Director John de los Santos and costume designer Ashley Soliman trade thoughts on the role ambiguity played in their designs, while offering glimpses into their working relationship.\\xa0

And it\\u2019s composer Augusta Read Thomas who offers an observation that best captures Sweet Potato Kicks the Sun\\u2019s collaborative and connective genius. In an age of so much uncertainty, the production is a reminder that anything is still possible. \\u201cIt\\u2019s a joyful piece. I think everybody feels it, every single character, and it jumps off the stage.\\u201d

RELATED EPISODES

Season 1, Episode 3 \\u201cBeatboxing and Opera: a love story\\u201d - interview with Nicole Paris and Augusta Read Thomas

Season 2, Episode 1 \\u201cPress Play\\u201d - Sweet Potato\\u2019s Augusta Read Thomas and Leslie Dunton Downer on story and score development on the eve of the Chicago workshop

***

Key Change is a production of The Santa Fe Opera in collaboration with Opera for All Voices.

Hosted by Andrea Fellows Fineberg

Featuring Cori Ellison, Ruth Nott, Stage Director: John de los Santos, Costume Designer: Ashley Soliman, Librettist: Leslie Dunton Downer, Composer: Augusta Read Thomas\\xa0

Produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios

Audio Engineer: Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe

Theme music by Rene Orth with Corrie Stallings, mezzo-soprano, and Joe Becktell, cello.

Cover art by David Tousley

Additional music in this episode composed and provided by Augusta Read Thomas, with permission from Nimbus Records.

This podcast is made possible due to the generous funding from the Melville Hankins Family Foundation, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and an OPERA America Innovation Grant, supported by the Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation. \\xa0

To learn more about Opera for All Voices, visit us at SantaFeOpera.org