Obeah Opera<\/i>\u00a0is a hand-clapping, foot-stomping, spirit-lifting, musical sensation. Steeped in Black music and sung entirely a cappella by a powerful all-female cast,\u00a0Obeah Opera<\/i>\u00a0tells the story of the legendary Salem witch trials from the spellbinding perspective of the first woman accused, the young Caribbean slave Tituba.<\/p>\n
In February 1692 the people of Salem, Massachusetts fell into a mass hysteria and paranoid state, which resulted in a massive witch hunt. Hundreds of people were arrested and tried for witchcraft, and over the course of a year 14 women, 5 men, and 2 dogs were executed for their supposed crimes. Although many operas, films, plays, and novels have been written about the event (most notably Arthur Miller\u2019s play\u00a0The Crucible<\/em>), Tituba\u2019s own story has never been told.\u00a0Obeah Opera<\/em>\u00a0is a musical odyssey that offers a new take on the witch trials, slavery, and the operatic form itself.<\/p>\n The cast of 20 serves as both orchestra and vocal leads, as\u00a0Obeah Opera<\/em>\u00a0redefines the traditional opera form away from its European roots, using an array of Black musical genres including spirituals, jazz, ska, Calypso, and traditional African and Caribbean folk. With an inter-disciplinary approach that incorporates musical theatre, opera, dance and Caribbean costumes,\u00a0Obeah Opera<\/em>\u00a0is \u201can inspiring work. Uplifting, original, as athletic as it is musical, one can\u2019t help but get swept up in the show\u2019s infectious, refreshing spirit. A must see.\u201d (Grammy Award-winner, Dan Hill)<\/p>\n