Who: Classical Concerts at Calvary
What: World Premiere Screening of LIBERTARIA: THE VIRTUAL OPERA, by Sabrina Peña Young
Where: Calvary United Methodist Church, 301 1st Ave. South, Lake Worth
(Federal Hwy & 1st Ave. South, 1 blk. south of Lake Ave. in downtown Lake Worth)
When: 3:00 P.M., Saturday, October 5th
Cost: $10 Donation. FREE admission for students (w/ID).
Contact: Call the church office at 561-585-1786 or email shoreclare@aol.com
Classical Concerts at Calvary is pleased to present the World Premiere Screening of the very first totally animated opera created exclusively in cyberspace – Sabrina Peña Young’s LIBERTARIA: THE VIRTUAL OPERA, at 3:00 P.M. on Saturday, October 5, 2013 at Calvary United Methodist Church in downtown Lake Worth. Prior to the screening (promptly at 3:00) Greg Stepanich, music critic, composer and founder of the Palm Beach ArtsPaper, will lead a discussion with Peña Young and select cast members about the opera and how it was created.
Admission is $10 by donation (FREE for students); tickets are available at the door. Ample parking behind the church is free. Come early, grab a bite to eat at one of many cafés and stroll the streets of Lake Worth or enjoy a post-concert early dinner in the colorful environment of this Intracoastal town. Call 561-585-1786 or email shoreclare@aol.com for more information.
*Though not officially rated, the opera is appropriate for ages 13 and older.
**To view the opera’s trailer, go to http://bit.ly/18qjBdI
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| Libertaria: The Virtual Opera |
THE STORY BEHIND LIBERTARIA
In 2011 I started writing a story about a young geneticist that worked in a cutting edge facility that absorbed the energy from the ill and dying to make a new serum that rejuvenated the younger, healthy populace. In the short story, the scientist, orphaned at a
young age, discovered that one of her test subjects was actually her mother. The short story evolved over time and instead of focusing on the scientists, the young girl was placed in the genetics factory herself, escaping it to discover her addict father runs
the resistance against the factory. With a hundred twists and turns, Libertaria tells the story with true operatic drama and sci-fi energy.
Production for Libertaria was entirely online. The cast auditioned virtually through Music Xray and other sites, the animators worked together using a machinima program called Moviestorm, communication continued through e-mail and facebook. The composer hasn’t met the majority of the cast and crew in person.
Libertaria is an opera for the Digital Age. Created with virtual characters in a computer-generated environment, Libertaria is easily disseminated through the internet and simple DVDs. An animated opera offers a lower cost than a full live production, although there has been acoustic versions of songs like Lonely Mother’s Cry.
In the end Libertaria is a groundbreaking opera experiment. Creating an opera for a fraction of a budget, an opera that requires no rehearsals to enjoy, appeals to the masses, and has a diverse cast of characters reflecting the global nature of our culture. Libertaria questions our current sociopolitical reality and the actions of the government, it questions war and even family. Libertaria challenges musically and ideologically and will change our time. (http://virtualopera.wordpress.com/opera-plot-synopsis/)
ABOUT THE COMPOSER
Award-winning composer Sabrina Peña Young composes experimental electroacoustic works heard in Asia, North America, Australia, and Europe. Her multimedia works have been performed at venues such as the Beijing Conservatory, the International
Computer Music Conference, Miramax's Project Greenlight, the Athena Festival, the New York International Independent Film Festival, Art Basil Miami, Turkey's Cinema for Peace, and Pulsefield International Exhibition of Sound Art.
An awe-inspiring work of beauty, Young's multimedia oratorio Creation won the New Genre Prize from the International Alliance for Women in Music Search for New Music in 2011. Commissioned by Millikin University Women's Choir and the
Millikin University Percussion Ensemble, the work was premiered at the Albert Taylor Theater in Decator, Illinois. Sung in Swahili, Spanish, and English, the Creation Oratorio combines sacred vocal music (SSA), complex sound synthesis, and Afro- Cuban percussion.
Also a percussionist, educator and author, Peña Young has taught at Murray State University in Kentucky where she curated the 60x60 Athena Mix, and currently teaches online classes in media related subjects. She has penned several music books including
Top 10 Mistakes When Composing for Percussion and The Feminine Musique: Multimedia and Women Today as well as nonmusic books for children, and has contributed several articles to a site called EasyEarTraining.com. Sabrina and several cast members of LIBERTARIA were recently reviewed on Machinima Indy Radio in Buffalo, NY, where she, husband Nate and two year old daughter Eva currently reside.
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