BROADCASTS.com

b'

If a chorus of 12 teens can provide compelling commentary on immigration enforcement from the stage of a venerable performing arts center in Santa Fe, how might ten times that number of voices impact the debate? From a Broadway venue that has welcomed some of the twentieth century\\u2019s most influential social justice visionaries?\\xa0

Key Change co-hosts Andrea Fellows-Fineberg and Anna Garcia pilot the time machine east to find out, setting a course for the 2022 premiere of\\xa0Hometown to the World at New York\\u2019s storied Town Hall.

Adding their insights to this aural postcard are Hometown\\u2019s composer Laura Kaminsky and librettist Kimberly Reed; Melay Araya, artistic director at The Town Hall; several chorus members from Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts and Repertory Company High School for Theatre Arts, as well as the audience.

Hometown\\u2013\\u2013an original work commissioned by Santa Fe Opera for its Opera For All Voices (OFAV) initiative\\u2013\\u2013follows the events of a 2008 raid by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of a kosher meatpacking plant in Postville, IA. The opera explores themes of religion, acceptance, and community, igniting a communal desire to create a more equitable world. \\u201cPeople that are already empathetic, they need fuel,\\u201d says Melay. \\u201cThey need the refocusing that Laura and Kim provide in language and song to think larger and to address these issues, not just on the granular level, but as spiritual and ethical questions.\\u201d

Hometown closes with a Hebrew call to action, delivered by that sprawling chorus of young, hopeful voices: Tikkun Olam! Repair the world!

FEATURING

Laura Kaminsky - Composer, Hometown to the World

Kimberly Reed - Librettist, Hometown to the World

Melay Araya - Artistic Director, The Town Hall

A chorus comprised of 100+ public high school students from Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts and Repertory Company High School for Theatre Arts

RELATED EPISODES

Season 1, Episode 6 \\u201cHometown to the World\\u201d - Hometown\\u2019s Laura Kaminsky and Kimberly Reed on telling history and collaboration.

Season 2, Episode 9 \\u201cAmerica Is Impossible Without Us\\u201d - Revisiting Hometown\\u2019s story, structure, music, and what it means to be an American during the San Francisco workshop.

Season 3, Episode 3 \\u201cResponding to the World\\u201d - with Stage Director Kristine McIntyre and Dramaturg Cori Ellison.

Season 3, Episode 8 \\u201cBridging Communities with Carmen Fl\\xf3rez-Mansi\\u201d - with Chorus Master Carmen Fl\\xf3rez-Mansi.

Season 4, Episode 1 \\u201cThis Doesn\\u2019t Happen Without Audience\\u201d - Andrea prepares for the world premiere in Santa Fe with core members of its artistic team, young performers, and the most influential collaborator: the audience.

Season 4, Episode 2 \\u201cInfluence and Inclusion: The Impact of Hometown to the World with Estevan, Ely, and Francesco of the Youth Chorus\\u201d - Post-show reactions from artists, creators, collaborators, and the audience buoyed by musical excerpts from Hometown\\u2019s premiere at the Lensic Performing Arts Center in Santa Fe.

***

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

Produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios

Hosted by Andrea Fellows Fineberg & Anna Garcia

Audio Engineer: Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe

Show Notes by\\xa0 Lisa Widder

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

Cover art by Dylan Crouch

This podcast is made possible due to the generous funding from the Hankins Foundation, the Andrew W Mellon foundation, and an Opera America innovation Grant supported by the Anne & Gordon Getty Foundation.\\xa0\\xa0

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

\\xa0