Transformations: Sing Your Story
“Transformations: Sing Your Story” was a semester-long project that examined the personal barriers of UTRGV Opera Theater students, and how despite these challenges, they persevere to earn their college degrees and transform their families, communities, and the world. The project included a week-long residency with guest director, Ann Baltz, the Artistic Director of OperaWorks. Collaborating with the students and UTRGV faculty members Cathy Compton and Daniel Hunter-Holly, Ann Baltz created “I am,” the project’s culminating performance work. Integrating prepared music with improvised dialogue, the bi-lingual performances told the stories of people from different backgrounds who must deal with the challenges of life’s transitions: children leaving home for an education, relationships that cross cultural divides, love lost and found, and teachers who help students navigate their changing lives in and out of school. Other collaborators in the project included Ms. Alejandra Mazariegos, a mental health consultant within UTRGV’s Counseling Center, and student photographer Veronica Gaona.
Team members:
- Daniel Hunter-Holly, Associate Professor in the School of Music
- Catherine Compton, Lecturer in the School of Music
- Maria Alejandra Mazariegos, Counseling Specialist
- Veronica Gaona, Mass Communication Student
Transformations - Sing Your Story project report
Performance Program
Guillermo Gonzalez and Klarissa Muñoz, April 21, 2018
Rosario Olvera and Ignacio Cruz, April 22, 2018
After-performance discussion, April 22, 2018