After 5 years of development and workshops, Where Elephants Weep received an American preview run of performances in Lowell, MA, from April 27-29, 2007. Each night was sold out, with the theater full of a mix of Cambodian and non-Cambodian audiences, coming from all over New England and even New York for this event.
Commissioned by Cambodian Living Arts, Where Elephants Weep is the first-known contemporary Cambodian opera. Conceived of by theater producer and CLA Chair Emeritus John Burt, the opera contributes to CLA’s mission to support the revival of Khmer performing arts by inspiring Cambodian artists to find their own unique voices while drawing upon traditional cultural forms.
The score, by the Russian-trained Cambodian composer Sophy Him, draws on classical western, ancient Cambodian, and contemporary popular American music. The libretto is by award-winning playwright Catherine Filloux, a former Fullbright Senior Specialist in playwrighting in Cambodia. The opera is developed and produced by John Burt and by Amrita Performing Arts, an allied non-profit performing arts production company based in Cambodia that is dedicated to promoting and sustaining the revival and presentation of Cambodian performing arts.
Where Elephants Weep tells a modern story about Cambodians returning to their country following 30 years of civil strife. Loosely based on an ancient Cambodian love story, the opera follows Sam, a refugee from the Khmer Rouge genocide, who leaves America to return to his homeland, committed to finding his roots. He unexpectedly falls in love with Bopha, a Cambodian pop star. The story examines generational and social dislocations caused by war, as well as more traditional clashes with modernity. While following this traditional storyline, the opera also speaks to the experiences of some of the artists involved in the project, namely Arn Chorn-Pond, founder of CLA, and composer Him Sophy. Both survived forced labor and atrocities committed during the Khmer Rouge’s four-year reign.
“Cambodia has never had a modern opera like this before,” said Him. “The work examines and speaks to how Cambodia is changing, how Western and Cambodian cultures mix together, and how our histories and futures are connected.” The music features a 12th-century Cambodian pin peat ensemble, an array of traditional Cambodian instruments, and Western-style rock band. Some of the traditional Cambodian instruments were even “reinvented” to better accommodate Him’s innovative ensemble and visionary score. Additional music and orchestral development was provided by Scot Stafford.
Leading up to the preview performances, Lowell High School hosted a month-long residency program with the musicians from Cambodia and an international cast from New York, providing an opportunity for cross-cultural exchanges for students at UMass Lowell, Middlesex Community College, students in the Lowell schools and the residents of the City and region. Lowell is home to the second-largest Cambodian population in the US.
The American previews of Where Elephants Weep is made possible by an unprecedented and innovative public-private partnership between many educational, community, civic, and Cambodian organizations in Lowell, MA.