{"id":120260,"date":"2025-12-12T14:23:31","date_gmt":"2025-12-12T19:23:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=120260"},"modified":"2025-12-12T14:23:31","modified_gmt":"2025-12-12T19:23:31","slug":"interview-composer-njo-kong-kie-librettist-douglas-rodger-talk-digital-opera-futures-market","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2025\/12\/12\/interview-composer-njo-kong-kie-librettist-douglas-rodger-talk-digital-opera-futures-market\/","title":{"rendered":"INTERVIEW | Composer Njo Kong Kie &#038; Librettist Douglas Rodger Talk About Their Digital Opera The Futures Market"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_120262\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-120262\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-120262\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2025-12-12T141841.012.jpg\" alt=\"Vocalists Keith Lam and Teiya Kasahara (Still from The Futures Market digital opera courtesy of Music Picnic)\" width=\"1200\" height=\"628\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2025-12-12T141841.012.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2025-12-12T141841.012-300x157.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2025-12-12T141841.012-1024x536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2025-12-12T141841.012-768x402.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-120262\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Vocalists Keith Lam and Teiya Kasahara (Still from The Futures Market digital opera courtesy of Music Picnic)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Toronto composer Njo Kong Kie and librettist Douglas Rodger have teamed up for a digital opera project titled The Futures Market.<\/p>\n<p>With music composed by Njo Kong Kie and Douglas Rodger\u2019s libretto, the opera features performers Teiya Kasahara, Derek Kwan (who also serves as dramaturg), Keith Lam and Wesley Hui, along with sound engineer Brandon Wells, and videography by Blake Hannahson. The episodes were filmed at Toronto\u2019s Citadel Theatre and Array Music Studio.<\/p>\n<p>The Futures Market was original released in episodic format, with new episodes dropping each weekday between November 17 and December 4.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>You\u2019ll find the whole <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/playlist?list=PLhCfa-G75arT_tV7vPAqqDZpOq5fp9NFd\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">playlist here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>LV caught up with Njo Kong Kie and Douglas Rodger to talk about the opera series.<\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/CNvE_eW1r-Y?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<h3>Douglas Rodger<\/h3>\n<p>Douglas Rodger is a veteran of the theatre scene, having spent a half century in various roles that include playwright \u2014 notably, How Could You Mrs. Dick \u2014 dramaturg, librettist, and screenplay writer, including episodes for ABC, CBC, and Global, as well as feature films. He&#8217;s worked with Theatre Terra Nova, Phoenix Theatre, NDWT Company, Actor\u2019s Lab, Theatre Passe Muraille, The Evelyn Group, Theatre Aquarius, among others. As a librettist, he\u2019s collaborated previously with composer Njo Kong Kie on the one act opera Shattered Glass, which premiered at Buddies in Bad Times theatre.<\/p>\n<h3>Njo Kong Kie<\/h3>\n<p>Toronto based Njo Kong Kie (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.musicpicnic.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Music Picnic<\/a>) is a composer, pianist, and creator of musical theatre projects. His works include the comic opera knotty together (with Anna Chatterton) which premiered at SummerWorks, Picnic in the Cemetery, a concert-theatre work that premiered at Canadian Stage, the play with music The Year of the Cello (with Marjorie Chan) which premiered at Theatre Passe Muraille, and the musical theatre work Mr. Shi and His Lover (with Wong Teng Chi), among others. He\u2019s composed music for dance for Aszure Batron (Nederlands Dans Theater, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago), Shawn Hounsell (Ballet BC), and for Anne Plamondon, as well as collaborating on many theatrical projects.<\/p>\n<h2>Njo Kong Kie and Douglas Rodger: The Interview<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cIt&#8217;s mostly a product of the pandemic, really,\u201d Kie begins. As he describes it, The Futures Market took shape in fits and starts because of the lockdowns. \u201cWe kind of put it aside.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The pandemic, however, did offer one way forward.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDuring the pandemic opportunities came up for online projects,\u201d Kie explains. \u201cUltimately, we were successful in getting some funding.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>When they considered how to disseminate the finished project, the duo came up with the idea of releasing it in a series of episodes rather than a single full length opera. It required a somewhat different approach to the writing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe&#8217;re going to have different episodes, and we can play with the techniques,\u201d Kie says. That meant things like playing with time shifts in the story, and withholding information from the audience at specific points.<\/p>\n<p>Rodgers talks of the \u201cstacks of drafts\u201d that he wrote. \u201cIn the various stages [&#8230;] it was much bigger, with many more characters involved,\u201d he says. Boiling it down to what was doable created the final result. \u201cIt&#8217;s always the art of the possible.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The story was condensed to four characters, and the details that were necessary to preserve the essence of the story. Their approach was similar to that of creating a three act opera, but with more time to develop themes and other elements.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat created other aspects that were challenging,\u201d Douglas says. \u201cYou&#8217;re really reliant on the text. There&#8217;s no shortcut to telling certain things,\u201d Rodgers adds.<\/p>\n<h3>The Advantage of Episodes<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cI liked the format, and I also like the ability to produce something [&#8230;] essentially for people who don&#8217;t like or know opera,\u201d Douglas says.<\/p>\n<p>The episodic release allows people to try the medium out, and then ideally become engrossed enough in the story to continue. \u201cI feel like this is a very important stage,\u201d Rodgers adds.<\/p>\n<p>Njo notes that, while a staged version isn\u2019t planned at the moment, they both see the streaming project as a stepping stone. He also points out that Dean Burry\u2019s Baby Baby Kintyre, which was recently staged as half of the Glenn Gould School\u2019s fall 2025 double bill, began its life as a CBC commission and a radio serial opera and CD back in 2007.<\/p>\n<p>A digital work available on YouTube also makes it available to use when they want to contact producers and presenters.<\/p>\n<p>Douglas\u2019 background came in handy. \u201cI actually wrote radio drama,\u201d he says. He recalls submitting scripts for consideration back in the days when radio stations commissioned such works. \u201cYou never knew whether anyone was going to read it,\u201d he says. \u201cI feel like this is an interesting development.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Online, anyone can find it, and social media can extend its reach indefinitely.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt will be out there for quite some time,\u201d Kie notes.<\/p>\n<p>Rodgers says that, on a recent trip to Berlin, he was able to introduce it to a number of people via the web.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_120263\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-120263\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-120263\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Wesley-Hui-and-Derek-Kwan-2.jpg\" alt=\"Vocalists Wesley Hui and Derek Kwan (Still from The Futures Market digital opera courtesy of Music Picnic)\" width=\"1200\" height=\"664\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Wesley-Hui-and-Derek-Kwan-2.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Wesley-Hui-and-Derek-Kwan-2-300x166.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Wesley-Hui-and-Derek-Kwan-2-1024x567.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Wesley-Hui-and-Derek-Kwan-2-768x425.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-120263\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Vocalists Wesley Hui and Derek Kwan (Still from The Futures Market digital opera courtesy of Music Picnic)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3>Collaboration<\/h3>\n<p>Vocalists Teiya Kasahara, Derek Kwan, Keith Lam and Wesley Hui did more than show up for shoots. \u201cThey have been very supportive, [with] a lot of engagement,\u201d Kie says. \u201cWe were kind of writing as we go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The tight filming schedule during a busy season for performers meant handing them scores on the fly. Njo acted as vocal coach and music director as well as composing the music. \u201cThey really were committed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Douglas adds, \u201cHonestly, I have to say that if you&#8217;re a playwright, or in this case writing as a librettist, working with the performers and being the room and listening \u2014 you&#8217;re able to fix your errors,\u201d he laughs. \u201cWe&#8217;ve managed to make a lot of improvements just through the process of rehearsal.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs I&#8217;m writing, I already knew their voices,\u201d Kie says. That meant being able to highlight their individual strengths. \u201cWe have a good rapport.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The creators also took their advice. \u201cWe also ended up working quite extensively with [&#8230;] Derek,\u201d Kie says. Derek Kwan, an actor and singer, ended up as dramaturg. \u201cHe&#8217;s very versatile in all kinds of media.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He was able to advice Rodgers and Kie on using the musical from for storytelling purposes, as well as operatic techniques.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt&#8217;s quite transformative in terms of how we thought of structure and clarity, and the text, and deliver what we were aiming for,\u201d Njo says.<\/p>\n<p>Douglas points out that he doesn\u2019t have an academic background in music. Derek\u2019s encyclopedic knowledge of opera proved more than useful. \u201dThose kinds of leads were very valuable to me. It allowed me to open up the potential of what this art form can do.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/TVpbNz7B1EI?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<h3>The Story<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cThere is definitely a romantic relationship there, but probably in the sense of it being well established,\u201d Rodgers says of the story.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s essentially about a woman who\u2019s trying to save the life of her husband via an organ transplant.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat lengths would we go to to save our life, and the life of someone we love?\u201d Rodgers says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI&#8217;m part of a very privileged demographic in this world,\u201d Douglas notes. He\u2019s conscious of the great inequality that exists when it comes to the trade of human organs globally. \u201cInitially it began as more of an expos\u00e9,\u201d he adds. \u201cI became more interested in the moral dilemma. \u201c<\/p>\n<p>The setting of the story was modified multiple times during development, and ended up at a point not too far into the future.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt&#8217;s maybe not what&#8217;s happening now,\u201d Rodgers adds. \u201cIt\u2019s more about the moral dimensions of the characters and the dilemmas of them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Kieadds, \u201cAlso, we deliberately set in in a location that is somewhere near by.\u201d The events in the story, though, have already taken place elsewhere. It\u2019s based on stories of human organ trafficking that have already taken place.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe imagine the story that is closer to home,\u201d Njo says. Ultimately, it\u2019s a human story. \u201cIt&#8217;s not meant as an expos\u00e9; it&#8217;s a story looking at our implications in that setting.We just wanted to tell a good story.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It leaves room for the audience to draw their own takes on the issues involved.<\/p>\n<h3>The Road to Opera<\/h3>\n<p>Rodgers worked in Hamilton for years. That\u2019s where he wrote How Could You Mrs. Dick? \u2014 a stage play about the infamous 1946 murder in that city. \u201cI started working in opera as a stage hand in Hamilton when there was an opera company,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>Kie notes that the two met as participants in Tapestry Opera\u2019s opera creation program. \u201cWe met because we did <a href=\"https:\/\/tapestryopera.com\/programs\/liblab\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">LIBLAB with Tapestry<\/a>,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n<p>In the end, creating opera has to come from a place of artistic \u2014 rather than material \u2014 satisfaction.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI do think that the process, it really has to be the reward,\u201d Rodgers says.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>As well as on YouTube, you can find the entire 14 episode opera series [<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/musicpicnic.com\/digital\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">HERE<\/a><\/strong>].<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><em>Are you looking to promote an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/advertising\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"color: #0e101a;\"><u>event<\/u><\/span><\/a>? Have a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/masthead\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><u>news tip<\/u><\/a>? Need to know the best\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/events\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><u>events<\/u><\/a>\u00a0happening this weekend? Send us a\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><a href=\"mailto:anya@ludwig-van.com?subject=Let's%20chat\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong><em><u>note<\/u>.<\/em><\/strong><br \/>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"western\"><em><b>#LUDWIGVAN<\/b><\/em><\/h3>\n<p class=\"western\"><em>Get the daily arts news straight to your inbox.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"western\"><em>Sign up for the Ludwig Van Toronto e-Blast! \u2014 local classical music and opera news straight to your inbox <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/583e6ce0-dfd0-48be-8a33-61256b3c58e3.mlbtlr.com\/p2\/Fbd8jWoWQQ6CdBcLIvut3Q\/02E3cYaETqaj4Xm087cpSg?contactid=S3HHYfHY5rZv5f94S15MnA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/583e6ce0-dfd0-48be-8a33-61256b3c58e3.mlbtlr.com\/p2\/Fbd8jWoWQQ6CdBcLIvut3Q\/02E3cYaETqaj4Xm087cpSg?contactid%3DS3HHYfHY5rZv5f94S15MnA&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1695737525351000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0QTqKRwRJQFGK3KoJYigxX\">HERE<\/a>.<\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Toronto composer Njo Kong Kie and librettist Douglas Rodger have teamed up for a digital opera project titled The Futures Market.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":120262,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[41660,18,42084,29,41357,43,4557,63],"tags":[42499,42498,42500],"yst_prominent_words":[13705,13706,13696],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2025-12-12T141841.012.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-vhG","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120260"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=120260"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120260\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":120264,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120260\/revisions\/120264"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/120262"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=120260"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=120260"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=120260"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=120260"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}