Tune in! KANEKO In Conversation program guest Mark Gilbert will be interviewed by Gabrial Escalera on KVNO 90.7 FM. about Gilbert’s upcoming discussion with Kathleen Watt at KANEKO on art, healing, and the radical transformation of recovery. Listen on Wednesday, March 27, at 8:30 am and 4:00 pm. Join us at KANEKO on March 29 for In Conversation. Tickets are free!

Proving Up

past event

April 13, 2018 -
April 22, 2018

$60

General Admission

Opera Omaha at KANEKO!

Set in the brutal early years of post-Civil War Nebraska, a mother is pushed to the brink as her family is pulled apart by loss and isolation. Her son, Miles, must bear the weight of the family’s unrelenting pursuit of the American Dream.

Performance times:
Friday April 13, 2018 | 7:30 PM
Sunday April 15, 2018 | 2:00 PM
Thursday April 19, 2018 | 7:30 PM
Saturday April 21, 2018 | 2:00 PM
Sunday April 22, 2018 | 7:30 PM

Opera Omaha’s ONE Festival Artistic Director, James Darrah, and a world-renowned ensemble together will bring Mazzoli’s innovative and haunting score to life.

Music by Missy Mazzoli
Libretto by Royce Vavrek
Adapted from the short story Proving Up by Karen Russell
Co-commissioned by Washington National Opera, Opera Omaha and Miller Theater at Columbia University
© 2018 G. Schirmer Inc.

Performed in English.

About Opera Omaha ONE Festival
Building on Opera Omaha’s innovative work, and the storytelling power of opera, ONE Festival included over fifty multi-disciplinary performances, installations, conversations and explorations. Omaha was an epicenter of creativity as a cadre of world-class artists came together in the heart of the country to challenge conventional notions of “opera” by crafting one-of-a-kind events. Learn More ->


Explore more with ONE Festival Artists and Performances

Whether diving deeper into the opera or performance, opening a door to view art and music from a new perspective, introducing opera and music to new audiences, or seeing new collaborations from ONE Festival Artists, community events offered even more ways to experience the ONE Festival.

Proving Up: Music & Poetry Project
Saturday April 21 | 4 PM

A public concert which featured new works by emerging Omaha composers inspired by student poetry on themes from Proving Up. Opera Omaha invited K-12 Students from Nebraska and Iowa to submit works of poetry on themes tied to Opera Omaha’s world premiere of the opera Proving Up by Missy Mazzoli and Royce Vavrek. We received 32 poems from 28 writers, on the themes of The American Dream, Pioneers and Homesteaders, Ancestry and Lineage, and Journey to Nebraska. Local composers reviewed all the poems, and selected eight pieces to set to music. The concert featured these original compositions.

Gallery Tours
Tuesday April 17 | 11:30 AM
Wednesday April 18 | 5:30 PM
Saturday April 21 | 11 AM

Visitors viewed the Proving Up from a different perspective on a guided tour of the Bow Truss Gallery at The KANEKO.

Prelude Talks
Prelude talks occured prior to each mainstage production. These 20-minute talks gave audiences extra insight into the opera they were about the experience with information about the story, music, history and more.

Post-Show Talkbacks
Talkbacks invited the audience to explore themes and insights from the performance with members of the cast and/or artistic team as a forum for conversation and discussion. Talkbacks were with the cast and artistic team for all Proving Up performances.

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