Grounded in the lived experience of scientific practice, Meltdown is a one-act dramatic work for mezzo-soprano and piano trio that explores the intertwined dynamics of grief over the climate crisis, sexual harassment and violence, and the exploitation of people and land.
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A Glaciologist (performer and co-librettist Hai-Ting Chinn) gives a lecture on her study of ice sheet mass loss, and how climate change impacts it. Addressing an elephant in the room, she acknowledges that her mentor, renowned scientist Dr. Olivia Wells, has recently gone missing during an expedition on Greenland’s ice sheet and is presumed dead. At the same time, the Glaciologist refers to news reports that a male scientist, Dr. Martin Pearce, has been accused of harassment by women colleagues.
Through scenes that morph from lecture hall to Arctic base camp, the Glaciologist speaks about drilling ice cores, which indicate how climate change is accelerating glacier loss. As the piece continues, there are lighter moments (in subzero temps, keep Nutella warm in your pants) and irreverent ukulele songs. But the Glaciologist feels frustration with the lack of public urgency in addressing climate change, the pain and waste inflicted by bad actors such as Pearce, and the natural need to grieve Olivia. Through turbulent waves of emotion, the Glaciologist struggles to hold herself together.
Meltdown is composed by Stefan Weisman to a libretto by David Cote and Hai-Ting Chinn. Music director and pianist Erika Switzer will be joined by violinist Francesca Anderegg and cellist Jules Biber. Director Kelvin Chan’s staging incorporates projection design by Camilla Tassi, using documentary video shot during an expedition on the Greenland ice sheet, as well as original video featuring performer Kate Valk.
Stefan Weisman’s (Composer) music has range, earning ardent praise from opera critics as “personal, moody and skillfully wrought” (New York Times) and “a touching tour de force” (New York Magazine) as well as delighting the host of The Wendy Williams Show who called “Twinkie,” his satirical art song, “Fabulous!” His opera Darkling, commissioned by American Opera Projects, was included in the Guggenheim Museum’s Works & Process series, premiered to great acclaim in New York, and toured Europe. It was released by Albany Records. His one-act opera Fade, commissioned by the British opera company Second Movement, premiered in London. The Scarlet Ibis debuted in New York’s acclaimed Prototype festival, co-produced by HERE and Beth Morrison Projects. The New York Times praised The Scarlet Ibis as an “outstanding new chamber musical” and The Wall Street Journal called it “subtly subversive, and its production groundbreaking.” Visit stefanweisman.com.
David Cote (Co-Librettist) is a NYC-based librettist, playwright and theater critic. Upcoming work includes Lucidity (On Site Opera and Seattle Opera) and Blind Injustice (MasterVoices at Lincoln Center’s Rose Theater). Past work includes Three Way (Nashville Opera and BAM) and The Scarlet Ibis (Prototype Festival and Chicago Opera Theater). David wrote the text for Nkeiru Okoye’s Black Lives Matter monodrama, Invitation to a Die-In. Recordings include Blind Injustice (NAXOS), Three Way (American Modern Recordings), and In Real Life (AMR). As a critic, David’s TV and theater coverage appears in The A.V. Club, Observer, 4 Columns, and American Theatre. He’s the author of companion books about the Broadway hits Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Spring Awakening, Jersey Boys, and Wicked.
Hai-Ting Chinn’s (Co-Librettist and Performer) career spans music from medieval to new, and a range of theatrical styles from performance-practice to wildly experimental. She was featured in The Wooster Group’s La Didone, Einstein on the Beach (Philip Glass/Robert Wilson) and in several monodramas written for her, as well as standard operatic, oratorio, and concert repertoire. Hai-Ting is the creator of Science Fair: An Opera With Experiments, and of Astronautica: Voices of Women in Space, based on the words of women astronauts (with Trio Triumphatrix). See more at hai-ting.com.
Kelvin Chan (Producer and Stage Director) is a Netherlands-based Chinese American artist pursuing his core commitment to cultivating human connection through the arts as a performer, dramaturg, stage director, and arts leader. His credits in new music theater and opera include projects throughout the United States, in Poland, the UK, France, Germany, Austria, Belgium, and the Netherlands. He is the Founding General Director of the social impact arts organization, Vital Opera. www.vitalopera.org.
Erika Switzer (Music Director) is an accomplished collaborative pianist who performs regularly in major concert settings around the world, such as New York’s Weill Hall (Carnegie), Frick Collection, and the Kennedy Center. Her performances have been called “precise and lucid” (New York Times), and “intelligent, refined, and captivating” (Le Monde). She has won numerous awards, including best pianist prizes at the Robert Schumann, Hugo Wolf, and Wigmore Hall International Song Competitions. Switzer is a cofounder of the organization Sparks & Wiry Cries, which curates opportunities for art song creators, performers, and scholars through innovative initiatives that capture the stories of diverse communities. She is assistant professor of music at Bard College and director of collaborative piano studies at the Conservatory, and holds a doctorate from The Juilliard School.
Camilla Tassi (Projection Design) is a NYC-based projection designer from Florence, Italy. Design credits include Falling Out of Time (Carnegie Hall), King Arthur (Lincoln Center, Juilliard415), SEACHANGE (Miami City Ballet), The Extinctionist (Heartbeat Opera), Adoration (BMP & PROTOTYPE), SANDRA (TheaterWorks Hartford), Elijah Reimagined (Kennedy Center), Alcina (Yale Opera), Iphigénie en Tauride (Boston Baroque), and Malhaar (Walt Disney Concert Hall). Broadway: Illinoise, Associate. She has sung in the NY Phil chorus. Tassi holds degrees in computer science, music, and projection design. Burry Fredrik design award and Robert L. Tobin Director-Designer opera prize. Yale, MFA. IG: camtassi http://camillatassi.com
Åsa Rennermalm (Science Advisor) is an associate professor at the Department of Geography at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. Her research interest is the hydrology of the Arctic region. Currently, she is discovering how water is transported and retained within the Greenland ice sheet to better understand how much meltwater escapes to the ocean and rising global sea levels. Her work involves modeling, satellite and in situ data analysis, and fieldwork. She has participated in several field expeditions to the Arctic, mainly Greenland. More here.