CHIM LAC: SOUND EDIT FOR PUPPET/ SHADOW OPERA
It’s been a treat to play a small role in this project by Oanh Vu and Charlie McCarron— who have joined forces to create “Chim Lạc” (Lost Bird), produced by the Minnesota Opera. In proper COVID-safe fashion, the piece will stream on the Opera’s web site starting at 1 PM on Feb. 9th, as part of the MNiatures series— “tiny operas, big ideas”. You can stream it here from Feb 9th through Feb 19th, 2021.
“Chim Lạc” is a modern shadow puppet opera about the pains of living in exile as a Vietnamese refugee and as a descendant of a refugee. When Liên (Monique Bạch Hạc Nguyen) suddenly dies, her granddaughter Thi (Lady Midnight) is confronted with the shame of never fully knowing her, due to their language barrier. But Thi is given a second chance when a magical bird transports her back in time to Bến Tre, Viet Nam, where her grandma grew up.
Vu wrote the text and provided her own unique, alchemical puppetry and shadow movement direction. McCarron composed the music, much of which was performed and recorded remotely by MN Opera musicians, and then mixed by Andy Thompson (Dessa, Taylor Swift). I edited some sound effects and backgrounds that appear throughout the piece.
Find out more info about how to watch (and hear) “Chim Lạc”.
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