Organization

Admin

Spoleto Festival USA

Wuppertaler Bühnen

Nederlandse Reisopera

Stage director

Omar Abi Azar

Maya Zbib

Costume designer

Sarah Leterrier

Set designer

Joelle Aoun

Lighting designer

James F Ingalls

Conductor

Kamna Gupta

Singer

Karim Sulayman

Crow

Taylor Alexis DuPont

Hannah

Teryn Kuzma

H'ala

Leroy Davis

Blue Dove

Dr. Undertow

Sharmay Musacchio

Swift

Sarah Shafer

Sophia

Ruinous Gods

Charleston

United States

Sottile Theatre

Ruinous Gods Chaker

Public

Private

Approved

Grounded in testimonies from survivors and families of those afflicted with resignation
syndrome, the evocative opera follows the experiences of a mother, Hannah, and her 12-
year-old daughter, H’ala, who suffers from a traumatic response to the state of living in the
limbo of displacement. Evident in refugee camps around the world, resignation syndrome
causes the child, most often between the ages of 8 to 15, to fall into a non-responsive sleep.
Loosely based on the Greek myth of Persephone and Demeter, Ruinous Gods traces H’ala’s
journey to an “underworld” landscape where she is joined by other children who have fled
their homes. As H’ala sleeps, Hannah navigates the effects of her daughter’s detachment and
faces unforgiving realities of their refugee status. Though the work does not name a specific
setting, pointed moments allude to camps on the island of Lesvos, the practice of familial
separation, deadly water crossings, and a figure named “Jeb Fezos,” who represents
society’s desensitization to billionaires’ gross spending on pet projects rather than initiatives
for the common good. Despite the painful context of the characters’ situation, the work finds
moments of friendship, empathy, humor, and hope in the darkest moments.
In a joint statement, Schlesinger and composer Layale Chaker said: “Ruinous Gods
challenges political otherness through music that amplifies marginalized voices and incites
and fosters curiosity, connection, empathy, and openness.”
Musically, the work is rooted in the traditions of Arabic Maqam and Western classical music.
Created for six soloists, a chorus, and a chamber ensemble of strings, oboe/English horn,
bassoon, flute, clarinet, harp, percussion, and piano, the score includes the use of a
microtonal keyboard. Said Chaker: “Its musical branches reach a multitude of musical
landscapes and languages spanning contemporary classical music with influences from
Arabic, Ottoman, Hindustani, Persian, Hindustani music, as well as jazz and free
improvisation. It alludes in form and structure to the Chorus in ancient Greek tragedy, while
some sung texts also stem from Babylonian and Assyrian divinations and incantations. The
music of Ruinous Gods crosses different fields, including spoken word, pushing boundaries
of forms and structures. Likewise, this musical experimentation aims to challenge canonical rules, rethinking microtonality, the relationships between untampered modality and
tempered harmony, and cyclical and linear rhythms.”

English

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