And The Adventure Continues Atelier Course develops site-specific opera

An actor stands on stage in front of a projection as 2 other actors walk around him

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

An actor holding a baby doll performs in front of a projection of diapers on shelves in a store

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

An actor looks enthusiastically at his iphone

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

An actor wearing sunglasses talks on a phone on stage

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

An actor wearing a bandana on his face is filmed by another actor with an iphone

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

Two actors perform on a stage in front of a projection.

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

Two actors stand at music stands and sing in front of a projection

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

An actor performs on stage near a column with a baby doll resting on a stack of towels.

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

An actor lays on the ground looking at his iphone

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

On April 20, 2023, the students of the Princeton Atelier course, “Experiments in Opera,” presented And The Adventure Continues, a multidimensional, multimedia works-in-progress performance created in collaboration with lecturer in creative writing A.M. Homes and visiting lecturer Aaron Siegel.

The semester-long course focused on developing elements of a site-specific opera piece based on A.M. Homes’ short story, “A Prize For Every Player.” Students were invited to create and develop a character of their own in relation to the story and to revise and explore their character in a variety of media including composing music, choreographing dance, writing lyrics and monologues, and making short films or other visual materials.

The class visited a local Target store to explore how their character would inhabit that space and filmed an on-site performance by guest artist baritone Joshua Johnson. The end of semester performance took place in New South Theater Studio.