The Fine Arts Series at SUNY Brockport will present Opera (Un)Tapped: A Formal Communion with Opera On Tap (Rochester), a multi-day residency blending community engagement, student learning, and groundbreaking performances. From tea tastings to world premieres, this residency explores the power of music to connect culture, history, and lived experience.
The residency launches with Spill, Steep, Soothe: A Community Tea Party on Tuesday, September 23, from 3 to 5 p.m. in the Tower Fine Arts Center Lobby. Free and open to the public, this interactive event introduces themes explored throughout the residency—especially in the culminating song cycle Tea Leaves. Guests will enjoy tea tastings, a tea-painting activity, and social prompts encouraging reflection on tea and cultural practices.
On Wednesday, September 24, acclaimed countertenor Seiko Elmore will lead a masterclass with SUNY Brockport students (open to students, faculty, and staff only), followed by an evening recital. A Personal Love Letter—presented at 7:30 p.m. in the Tower Fine Arts Center Mainstage—is an intimate program blending favorites from beloved musicals, contemporary selections, and classical gems. The recital highlights Seiko’s expressive range and gift for storytelling. Tickets are $20 for the general public, $15 for seniors, SUNY Brockport faculty/staff/alumni, and $9 for students. A limited number of free tickets will be available to students.
The residency culminates with the world premiere of Tea Leaves on Thursday, September 25 at 7:30 p.m. in the Tower Fine Arts Center Mainstage. Written by Dr. Lawren Brianna Ware and Kaswanna Kanyinda, this groundbreaking song cycle was the inaugural winner of the Catherine Russell Composer Prize in collaboration with The University of Michigan and The George Shirley Competition.
Tea Leaves traces the legacy of tea across Nigeria, Brazil, Jamaica, the American South, and beyond. Through music and poetry, it examines tea as commodity, ritual, and sustenance, and its enduring role in the lives of Black communities. The piece’s composers, Mezzo-soprano Kaswanna Kanyinda and pianist Brianna Ware, bring the work to life, inviting audiences to steep in a deeper understanding of the cultural and historical resonances of this humble brew.
Tickets Tea Leaves are $20 for the general public, $15 for seniors, SUNY Brockport faculty/staff/alumni, and $9 for students. A limited number of free tickets will be available to students.
“Opera (Un)Tapped is about creating communion—between artists, audiences, and ideas,” said Anna Burklin, Manager of the Fine Arts Series. “We are honored to host this residency, which blends celebration, reflection, and new artistry in ways that truly resonate with our community.”
Tickets are available online at FineArtsTix.brockport.edu, by phone at 585-395-2787, or in person at the Tower Fine Arts Center box office (updated hours on website).
Provided information and photos
Photo courtesy of the artist.
