Laura Kaminsky’s “As One” is the most performed new opera in North America
Laura Kaminsky’s 75-minute opera As One has been making waves since it premiered in 2014. In the past four years, it has quickly become the most performed new opera in North America with over 20 productions.
With only two roles and underscored by a string quartet, the opera is very manageable for a company of any size, and it creates an experience that is “up close and personal.”
Focusing on the experiences of its sole transgender protagonist, Hannah, as she endeavors to resolve the discord between her self and the outside world, the opera is also relevant to this cultural moment.
As the Cincinatti Enquirer writes, “The size of “As One” is not its only progressive component. From the beginning, this opera was destined to stand out and challenge the status quo of both opera and society.”
Laura Kaminsky is the head of the Composition (Classical) Department, and this was her first opera. She is currently writing her second opera Today It Rains, which will receive its world premiere in San Francisco in March 2019.