“Give me glory or death,” sings Kathryn Piña as Glory, the title character in Nathan Felix’s new opera, loosely inspired by the tragic story of Selena Quintanilla.
Felix’s opera will be presented this Saturday night at 7:00 at the Radius Center. Admission is free for everyone under 18, and also free (suggested donation encouraged) for adults.
“I really want young kids to come, that may not have the means to go to the opera,” Felix said. “To feel welcome and bring their families… just walk in the door and experience opera in an immersive way.”
To that effect, the production takes over a wide space in the Radius Center, as audience members follow the performers along during the show.
“Essentially, we just meld the stage with the audience so that you’re really up close to all the performers,” Felix said.
The opera follows the story of Gloria, an orphan who gets discovered at an open mic, becomes famous, and has to deal with a photographer who becomes an obsessed fan of the singer. The photographer himself is more than a two-dimensional character, as he reckons his adult obsessions with a tragic backstory.
Kathryn Piña said one of the things she’s enjoying most in the production is getting to debut something new. “You get to make your own choices, and really set the example of what this work should be,” Piña said.
To hear excerpts from the opera, as performed live on KPAC 88.3 FM, use the audio player at the top of this page. Free tickets to the performance, Saturday at 7:00 p.m. at the Radius Center, are available at this Eventbrite link.
