She Who Dared
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| She Who Dared | |
|---|---|
| Premiere | June 3, 2025 Studebaker Theater, Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
She Who Dared is an American opera written and composed by Jasmine Arielle Barnes and Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton. The opera follows seven women in the U.S. civil rights movement: Aurelia Browder, Claudette Colvin, Susie McDonald, Rosa Parks, Jeanetta Reese, Jo Ann Robinson, and Mary Louise Smith. It was commissioned by American Lyric Theater[1][2] and premiered on June 3, 2025 at the Chicago Opera Theater, in the Studebaker Theater in Chicago, Illinois.[3][1]
The work is the duo's first full length opera,[4] and is thought to be the first professionally-produced opera written by two Black women.[3] It combines classical music with "soul, gospel and protest music".[3][5] The work has an all-Black cast.[6]
Mouton was inspired to write the opera after learning she was related to Aurelia Browder.[3][4] The creative duo began working on the piece in 2022.[5] Chicago Opera Theater received an NEA grant in the amount of $30,000 for the world premiere production.[4][7]