Keturah speaks with librettist, playwright, and director, Marella Martin Koch, who recently won the inaugural West Edge Opera Aperture commission, alongside her writing partner, composer Nicolas Lell Benavides. Their work, DOLORES, about worker’s rights fighter, Dolores Huerta, will hopefully have its debut at West Edge in 2023. They discuss the genesis and creation of this opera, as well as her time at the American Opera Initiative at the Kennedy Center, and her deep dive into Jane Austen’s SENSE & SENSIBILITY with composer, Aferdian.
Marella Martin Koch: https://www.marellamartinkoch.com/about
Nicolas Lell Benavides: https://nicolasbenavides.com/
AOI at WNO: https://www.kennedy-center.org/education/opportunities-for-artists/competitions-and-commissions/american-opera-initiative/
Aferdian: https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/The-Rally-Cat-Presents-The-Music-Of-Aferdian-Stephens-20180614
West Edge Opera’s Aperture program: https://www.aperture.westedgeopera.org/