White Snake Projects: 'MONKEY: A Kung Fu Puppet Parable' (world premiere)

• Voices Boston

Celebrated for creating diverse, timely and relevant opera, activist opera company White Snake Projects (WSP) and its founder Cerise Lim Jacobs today announced the upcoming world premiere of MONKEY: A Kung Fu Puppet Parable on the Robert J. Orchard Stage at Boston's Emerson Paramount Center. There will be three performances from Friday, September 22 to Sunday, September 24. Set to a libretto by Jacobs with a score by composer Jorge Sosa, this family-friendly transmedia show combines unique, life-scaled Bunraku puppetry, Kung Fu, computer generated images, and live opera. Based on the epic Chinese fable "Monkey King: Journey to the West," MONKEY is rewritten to reflect contemporary issues from the multicultural mosaic of American life. With a cast carefully chosen to reflect the diversity of the characters, the movement-based ensemble of experienced puppeteers, physical theater performers, and Kung Fu practitioners animates the story's three main characters – Monkey, Pig (Zhu), and Sandwoman (Shu) – alongside opera singers and members of Voices Boston.

About White Snake Projects

White Snake Projects (WSP) is an activist opera company making mission-driven work that unites artmaking with civic practice. We envision a world where the power of opera expands our collective understanding of community and transforms lives through creative storytelling. Our most recent efforts have been devoted to the live digital productions of the Pandemic Trilogy: Alice in the Pandemic addressed the disproportionate strain of COVID-19 on communities of color and essential workers; Death by Life explored long-term incarceration and institutionalized racism; and the upcoming A Survivor's Odyssey deals with the ongoing crisis of sexual and intimate partner violence. A critical element in our exploration of these themes is the establishment of authentic connections with thought leaders in social justice to ensure that our work lives in an ecosystem of activism. We see opera not just as performance, but as performance with purpose, a vibrant and vital art form that is also a champion of change.

About Voices Boston

https://www.voicesboston.org/